In what has become normal for Texas, starter Rachel Fox came out and threw heat to shut down the Texas Woman’s University offense in her sixth shutout of the year.

Fox was dominant in the game and flirted with a no-hitter going into the fifth inning, when it was broken up on a one-out double into left field. That did not deter Fox as she continued on in the inning working out of the jam.

“You never really think about individual accolades and you’re trying to get a W, but it’s nice to almost get a no-no and to just get the win,” Fox said.

Fox was on her game Wednesday and had 10 strikeouts to her credit, keeping the Pioneer batters on their toes with off-speed pitches.

“She pitched great tonight. Everything was working, her off-speed threw them off, the rise ball changed their eyes up and it was just fun playing chess with them tonight,” said senior Amy Hooks.

Fox also was able to keep the defense involved in the game, with plenty of grounders to handle to keep them on their toes, allowing them to be active and focused the entire time.

“Good defense plays tonight; they had to stay in the ball game, and even though I had 10 K’s, it’s still a defensive game, and I think the defense did a good job staying solid tonight,” Fox said.

Despite her outstanding performance on the mound, Fox was not entirely satisfied with her pitching effort, noting that she still had to work on developing pitches and minor things in her game.

“We are still working on some things Coach Clark and I have talked about it,” Fox said. “A couple of my drop pitches were in the dirt; I was just a little disappointed with that. I think I just need to work in the bullpen and in practice in bringing that up so that we deceive the batters a little bit more with the up pitch.”

Despite the fact that she feels that she needs to continue to work to improve, her pitching ability is already a great asset to the Texas staff, giving the team depth behind All-American Blaire Luna. Fox isn’t satisfied sitting behind Luna, and their performances on the mound push each other, making them both better.

“Blaire and I push each other to be better each and every game, and I think she sets a good example for me,” Fox said. “She had to do it as a freshman, and now I’m here. The roles are a little different because last year she was mainly the only pitcher, but I’m glad to be next to her and help her, and she’ll help me anyway she can.”