JACKSONVILLE – Ashley Phillips and Emma Jones-Hubbard doubled back-to-back to open the game and put Jax State ahead early in a contest the Gamecocks never slowed down in on their way to an 11-0 victory over New Mexico State.
 
The first-year Conference USA members met for the first time Friday night at Jana McGinnis Field. The Aggies (20-14, 6-4 CUSA) had never played a softball game in the state of Alabama, and the Gamecocks (16-21, 5-5 CUSA) didn't show much hospitality for the first visit.
 
NMSU's Desirae Spearman entered Friday with the seventh-best ERA in the nation at 0.83 with a 6-0 record next to her name. Two batters in, Jax State had a 1-0 lead that quickly ballooned to 3-0 when Lindsey Richardson teed off to bring home Jones-Hubbard.
 
Jax State hung three runs in the first, two in the second on Phillips' 2-run homer and five in the third to stun the third-place CUSA Aggies with a 10-0 advantage early. The third frame unraveled for NMSU when Megan Rasmussen and Kenzie Nicholson reached on errors. Morgan Nowakowski, who would homer in the fourth inning to cap the Gamecock scoring, singled up the middle to load the bases. Linley Tubbs drew the painful hit-by-pitch RBI before Makalyn Kyser uploaded the bases on a single that kept going after the third defensive error of the inning.
 
With Nowakowski's solo shot in Jax State's final round of at-bats, the 11-0 final marked the largest margin of victory since the Gamecocks beat Alabama State, 13-1, last March 22nd for Coach McGinnis' 1,000th career win. Friday's outcome signaled Jax State's largest shutout win since the Gamecocks blanked Mercer, 15-0, on Feb. 10, 2019.
 
While the offense exploded, junior Kat Carter rode out a smooth day in the circle with four strikeouts and just three hits allowed en route to her third shutout of the season. She events her season pitching tally back to .500 at 6-6.
 
The Gamecocks are also back to .500 in league play at 5-5 after an 0-4 start. Jax State will try to secure its third-straight CUSA series with a win in Saturday's 1 p.m. contest.