PLAY BALL!

Utah State softball (16-11, 0-0 Mountain West) continues its 2024 campaign this week with its first home games of the season, a single contest against Idaho State and a three-game series versus Boise State. The Aggies face off with the Bengals on Tuesday, March 19, at 2 p.m., and then take on the Broncos on Friday, March 22, at 4 p.m., Saturday, March 23, at Noon, and Sunday, March 24, at Noon. All games will be played at LaRee and LeGrand Johnson Field.  

FOLLOW ALONG

Live stats for all of this weekend's games will be available via StatBroadcast, while each game will also be streamed on the Mountain West Network. Links and live updates will be available on the USU softball social media pages and through UtahStateAggies.com.

AGGIES VS BENGALS

• Utah State and Idaho State have met up 49 times in a series dating back to 1976. The Aggies hold a 29-20 series advantage, including an 11-8 lead over the Bengals in Logan. 

• Last season in Logan, the Aggies won the lone meeting of the season between the sides, a 10-2 five-inning win. Utah State has won two-straight in the series, though the Idaho State has won 10 of the past 12 contests. 

• The Bengals enter the weekend 16-13 overall, with a 5-6 road record. In 2023, Idaho State went 20-28 overall, including a 10-5 mark in league play to finish the season tied for first in the Big Sky. The team returned eight starters and 11 letterwinners, while welcoming in 10 newcomers this year. 

AGGIES VS BRONCOS

• Utah State and Boise State have met up 40 times in a series dating back to 2009. The Broncos hold a 29-11 series advantage, including an 13-5 lead over the Aggies in Logan. 

• Last season in Boise, the Broncos swept a three-game regular season series. All three games were determined in five innings, BSU winning 11-2, 9-1 and 11-3. Boise State has won 17-straight in the series, with Utah State's last win coming back in 2017 in Boise.  

• The Broncos enter the week 19-10 overall, and will play at Utah Valley and Utah before making the trek to Logan for their first series of Mountain West play. In 2023, Boise State went 32-17 overall, including a 16-5 mark in league play to win sole possession of the regular season Mountain West title. The team returned six starters and nine letterwinners, while welcoming in 12 newcomers this year.

ICYMI

• Utah State opened Mountain West play last weekend with a 1-2 showing on the road against reigning MW Tournament champion San Diego State. The Aggies opened the weekend with a 6-4 loss on Friday and a 14-0 five-inning loss on Saturday, but bounced back in the final game of the weekend with a 1-0 shutout win on Sunday. 

• Six different Aggie pitchers saw time in the circle, with senior Jessica Stewart earning the win. Stewart pitched a team-high 8.0 innings, including the full seven innings in the team's win, giving up just one combined earned run. The Aggie pitching staff posted a combined 9.00 ERA during the series.

• Senior outfielder Ali Ashner led the Aggie bats with a .571 (4-for-7) batting average during the series. Junior infielder Ariel Fifita, sophomore catcher Grace Matej and freshman outfielder Tatum Silva each recorded three hits, while Matej hit a home run and had two RBIs on the weekend.   

AGGIES IN HOME OPENERS

All-time in home openers, Utah State holds a 27-20 record. The Aggies won last season's opener at Johnson Field, defeating New Mexico in a 5-4 10-inning contest. 

LIGHT THE A BLUE

Entering the week with a 16-11 record, Utah State is off to its best start to a season since 2017 when the team started 23-9. Prior to that, the last time USU started a year 16-11 or better was back in 1986. The Aggies are already just two victories from matching last year's win total of 18.

ALL RISE FOR THE JUDGE

Utah State head coach Todd Judge is off to one of the best coaching starts in program history in his first season at the helm. With a 16-11 mark this year, this is the best 27-game start under a first year head coach since Utah State Hall of Famer Lloydene Searle's 1981 squad started 20-7. Just three of the nine previous head coaches at USU posted a winning record in their first season. 

PITCH (NEARLY) PERFECT

• Utah State boasts the top two pitcher ERAs in the Mountain West as redshirt sophomore Denay Smith leads the league with a 1.45 ERA while senior Jessica Stewart ranks closely behind in second with a 1.51 ERA. Stewart also ranks tied for fourth in the nation this season with four saves. 

• In 2023, the Utah State pitching staff ranked sixth in the Mountain West with a 4.96 combined ERA. This season, Aggie pitchers have combined for an ERA of 2.82.  

AGGIES SWEEP LOUISVILLE SLUGGER INVITATIONAL

• Utah State played its final tournament of non-conference play at the Louisville Slugger Invitational in Long Beach and Fullerton, California. The Aggies had a perfect 5-0 week with wins over Fairfield (8-1) and North Dakota (2-0) on Friday, Yale (9-1) and Toledo (3-2 (8)) on Saturday, then wrapped up play at Long Beach State with a win (4-2 (8)) on Sunday. 

• Five different Aggie pitchers saw time in the circle, with redshirt sophomore Denay Smith earning three wins, and sophomores Tess Bumiller and Hailey McLean each earning one win. Smith pitched a team-high 11.2 innings, allowing four runs and posting three strikeouts. The Aggie pitching staff posted a combined 0.49 ERA during the tournament. 

• Freshman outfielder Tatum Silva led the Aggie bats with a .438 (7-for-16) batting average during the tournament with five runs and two RBIs.  

MOUNTAIN BEST

• The Mountain West is off to one of its best starts in recent years. Seven of the nine teams have a winning record against non-conference opponents, while San José State is just a game back of .500. Last season, just four MW teams had a winning out of conference record. 

• In non-conference play, Mountain West teams have combined for an overall record of 130-89 (.594) this season. 

FRESHMAN FIREPOWER

The freshman trio of outfielder Tatum Silva, infielder Emerson Meggers and catcher Zereniti Sousa has played a big role in Utah State's success this season. Silva has started 20 games in center field this season and boasts a .333 (22-for-66) batting average, fifth-best on the team. Meggers has made 23 appearances in 27 games for USU, while Sousa is hitting .350 (7-for-20) on the year. 

FIFITA ON FIRE

• Utah State junior infielder Ariel Fifita is off to an extremely strong start to the year, currently leading the Aggies in batting average at .395 (30-of-76) with four doubles and a home run. Fifita has been walked 10 times this year, second-most on the team, and has hit leadoff for the Aggies in 21 of the past 22 games. 

• Fifita's .489 on base percentage ranks sixth in the Mountain West.