Photo Gallery | 2026 CUSA Softball Championship Central
 
NEWARK, Del. – NM State two-way star Faith Aragon struck out 11 batters to lead No. 5 NM State to a 3-0 shutout of No. 8 Sam Houston in game one of the 2026 CUSA Softball Championship on Wednesday afternoon at the Delaware Softball Diamond.
 
Aragon (21-9) shut down the entire Bearkats (29-27) lineup, allowing just three hits and no walks. Sam Houston’s Tiffany Sanchez (11-10) suffered the loss after giving up all three runs on three hits with three punchouts and a pair of walks.  
 
On the offensive side, catcher Kendal Lunar was responsible for two of the Aggies’ three solo shots in the game, finishing 2-2 in the game with two homers and a walk. Her first opened the scoring in the bottom of the second, and she hit the first of back-to-back blasts in the home half of the fourth, followed by another long ball from shortstop Tamara Carranza.
 
The Aggies (27-25) advance to face host and No. 4 seed Delaware at 5 p.m. ET on Wednesday.