Mexico's early softball season didn't include any wins but many early runs on Tuesday ensured victory followed.

The Lady Bulldogs scored nine runs in the first three innings to beat North Central Missouri Conference foe Marshall 13-5 in Mexico's first game on the new turf surface on Gallop Field. Landri Teel led the offense by going 3-for-4 with four RBIs and a home run.

Mexico (1-5, 1-0 NCMC) won its home opener after finishing 0-5 this past weekend at the Peoples Bank Back to School Classic in Sullivan. The Lady Bulldogs played tough competition, including the Class 4 state champion Father Tolton, but head coach Hanna Jones said Tuesday's game was important to the team.

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"It was definitely much-needed," Jones said. "It boosted the girls' confidence a little bit. Team morale overall was a lot better this game than this past weekend."

Mexico averaged 3.2 runs in its five tournament games over the weekend. The team had five runs after the first inning. 

Jones said Mexico did well by making adjustments not just between games but between pitches.

"They made adjustments really well early on in the count," Jones said. "They weren't afraid to make changes mid at-bat that they knew to make. Over the weekend, we were a little stubborn about making different adjustments like moving in the box or swinging a little sooner."

Jones complimented the girls laying off pitches out of the strike zone and forcing Marshall's pitchers to throw balls over the plate. This helped several girls have good games, including Payton Shaw by going 3-for-4 with three RBIs and a double, Scottie Smith by going 2-for-5 with three RBIs and a double, and Maddy Feger by drawing three walks and scoring three runs.

Smith began the game with a diving catch and cleared the bases in the bottom half of the first inning with a double that carried over the left fielder's head to the fence.

Teel had the big blow in a four-run third inning in the form of a three-RBI home run. There was a bang off the senior's bat and then a bang off the lightpost beyond the left-centerfield fence. The ball caromed back on the field leading to a hesitant trot around second base for Teel, who had never hit that post before.

"I stopped at second because I didn't know," Teel said. "As soon as I hit it, it felt so good coming off the bat. I was looking down, and I saw (the umpire's) hand up and didn't know if they were covering the sun or telling me to stop. Then I saw them (make the home run signal)."

Teel said she and the other Lady Bulldogs were disciplined at the plate and hit the pitches they could hit. Safe to say that Teel waited long enough for her pitch her hit.

Jones was also confused with the sun in her eyes, but there was no doubt Teel crushed the ball.

"It's almost like she hit it so hard that I didn't see where it went," Jones said. "That wasn't like she kind of got it. She got ahold of it. That was big and gave our defense and all the girls some more confidence to go up to bat and score more."

Marshall (2-2, 0-1 NCMC) gave Mexico come competitive games last season, when the Lady Owls won a seven-year high 12 games. Mexico beat Marshall 11-7 in one game but also lost 3-2 in another game. 

Before the Lady Owls hit two two-RBI home runs to cut Mexico's lead to 10-5, they were aggressive early in Tuesday's game, sending Keerstan Ewing's second pitch into Smith's extended glove to lead off the game. The next two girls reached base by hitting the first pitch.

"She's always really stoic and nothing rattles her," Jones said. "She wasn't even rattled by them swinging at those first pitches. She takes it one pitch at a time and trusts her catcher (Hannah Loyd) and trusts her defense."

Jones said Aleigha Henderson did well going right after the hitters as she allowed one run on two hits and struck out four in 2 2/3 innings of relief.

Going into today's 5 p.m. game at district foe Bowling Green (1-3), Jones likes what Mexico is working off of since she also said the defense was better and less mental mistakes were made against Marshall. 

"It feels really good," Teel said after the win. "Last year, we lost to them at their place. It's very good to get this first one at home."