LAS CRUCES, N.M.-- New Mexico State softball head coach Kathy Rodolph announced Monday, Nov. 26, that Tiare Jennings and Sarah Byrne have singed National Letters of Intent to attend school and play softball.

 Rodolph said that she was excited to add such great talents to the Aggie family.

“Tiare (Jennings) is an outstanding multi-sport athlete who should have an immediate impact on our program,” Rodolph said.  

 Jennings is a 5-8 utility player from Turlock, Calif., who hit an impressive .700 at the plate her junior season, which was the highest batting average on her squad, while earning Central California All-Conference honors.

 Throughout her junior season, Jennings was voted most valuable player by her teammates, along with the most athletic senior classman award.

 Jennings also participated in basketball and soccer at Pitman High School where she led both teams to league championships her sophomore and junior seasons. 

 On the hardwood, Jennings earned all-league honors in each the past two seasons and was the team’s most valuable player.  She also holds the school record for the most points scored in a game with 35.

 Jennings was also voted MVP of her soccer team, scoring 21 goals as a junior.  She was an all-district and all-league selection for the past two seasons.

 Jennings is the niece of NMSU football associate head coach/defensive line Mike Fanoga.

 “She (Jennings) has great leadership experience and I really think she'll be someone who connects people together for us,” Rodolph said.

 The other signee, Byrne is a 5-6 pitcher from Glendale, Ariz., where she led her team, Cactus High School, to a national championship as a sophomore and three state appearances.

 Rodolph also stated that she plans to redshirt Byrne during her first season as an Aggie due to the Aggies depth in the circle.

 As a junior Byrne pitched her way to a fifth-place state finish, while earning first team all-region and second team all-state honors.

 Throughout her sophomore season, Byrne collected second team all-region and honorable mention all-state awards.  She had a batting average of .400 with 44 hits, while driving in 26 runs.  In the circle, Byrne posted a 0.00 ERA in her five starts where she faced 125 batters.

 As a freshman, Byrne was selected to the first team all-region as a first baseman. In the box she batted .357 and had 30 hits along with 17 RBIs. Defensively, Byrne was the starting pitcher in seven games, facing 213 batters with an ERA of 0.79.

 “We think Sarah embodies the tenacity and work ethic necessary to move our program to the next level,” Rodolph said.  “I am excited to see what the future holds for Sarah as an Aggie.”

 Currently, the Aggies are focusing their attention to the upcoming 2008 spring season.  NMSU has highly upgraded its non-conference schedule, which is highlighted by a meeting with two-time defending NCAA Champion Arizona, Texas A&M who participated in the world series last season,13 teams who played in the 2007 NCAA Tournament and WAC conference foes Hawai’i and Fresno State. 

 The Aggies open their season against Texas A&M, Feb.8, at the Cathedral City Kick Off, in Palm Springs, Calif.