From staff reports
Sports Reporter
San Marcos — Texas State softball will take its first road trip of the season as they head to Tempe, Ariz. to participate in the Littlewood Classic, hosted by Arizona State at Farrington Stadium.
The Bobcats will play Iowa and Illinois State on Friday at 9:30 a.m. and 2:30pm, respectively. On Saturday, Texas State will play Rutgers at 9:30 a.m. and No. 5 Arizona State at 5 p.m.
The Bobcats close out the tournament on Sunday with a 10 a.m. game vs. Illinois State.
Texas State began its season at home with the CenturyLink Softball Classic. The Bobcats had a rough start as they opened up the weekend with a 3-0 win over Northern Illionis, before dropping their next four games.
Despite the slump, freshman Haley Lemons has adapted quite nicely to the college scene as the Rockwall native batted .500 in her weekend debut, to lead the Bobcats through five games. Second baseman Anna Hernandez also had a solid performance as she went 5-for-13 from the plate, including a home run over the left field wall.
• Rutgers will open up the 2010 season at the Littlewood Classic. The Scarlet Knights are picked to finish 13th in the Big East after placing 13th in the league last year with an overall record of 23-33.
• Iowa (3-2) is coming off a 7-2 win over Drake at the Metrodome Tournament, where they opened the season 3-2. The Hawkeyes posted two wins over Drake and one over Western Illinois.
• Illinois State (2-2) opened the 2010 season at the USF-DeMarini Classic. The Redbirds dropped their first two games over Long Island and South Florida, before capturing wins over Canisius and Florida Gulf Coast. Illinois State is picked to finish fifth in the Missouri Valley Conference.
• No. 5 Arizona State (5-1) is on a four-game win streak after opening the season at its home tournament of the Kajikawa Classic. The Sun Devils posted wins over Ole Miss, Portland State, Auburn, Texas A&M and Southern Utah to maintain their No. 5 ranking.
