Game 1 Box Score
Game 2 Box Score
POCATELLO, Idaho- Kandis Clesson has had many great performances this season but she just may have saved her best for her final series as a Bengal. The fifth year senior pitched two complete game wins to lead ISU to a doubleheader sweep over Utah Valley University, 5-4 and 7-3. Idaho State improved to 15-31 overall and 8-10 in Pacific Coast Softball Conference play.
Utah Valley dropped to 18-27 and 11-7 in conference play. The Wolverines were in contention for an opportunity to play in the PCSC championship going into this weekend.
Clesson went the distance in both games, striking out six, allowing five hits, four runs and three walks in the come-from behind win in game 1 and in the game 2 she struck out four, scattered seven hits and allowed four runs. Clesson is now 13-17.
“Kandis was tremendous,” Idaho State coach
Julie Wright said. “She gave up an occasional hit or double but what I loved the most is she got out of everything. She made her pitches and she flat out performed. She showed great leadership on the mound.”
The Bengals had great play from everyone in the lineup as the offense combined for 20 hits and 11 RBIs. Seven different Bengals recorded two hits or more on the day.
“We were solid up and down,” Wright said. “It was a full-team effort.”
Leading the charge was
Courtney Dial with four hits,
Brittany Olsin with three and
Terah Blackwell with three including a homerun and six RBIs on the day.
The Bengals were able to come from behind with four runs in the top of the seventh to win the first game and never trailed in the night cap.
In the game 1 win, Olsin was 2-for-4 with two RBIs and one run scored.
Blackwell, Dial,
Ashley Moeller,
Courtney Hancock and
Erin Olander all had hits for the Bengals.
The winning inning in the top of the seventh started when Moeller hit a one-out pinch hit single up the middle.
Courtney Hancock followed with another single and Olander reached base thanks to an error by the Wolverines third baseman to load the bases.
“Ashley Moeller and Courtney Hancock were tremendous offensively in the first game and played great in the second game,” Wright said.
Then with two outs Amanda Fitzsimmons was hit by a pitch, allowing one run to score and Olsin followed with a two-RBI single to right field to tie the game. Blackwell then brought home the winning run on a single to left field.
“Coming back from being down 4-0 was great,” Wright said. “I was real proud of their effort. We just calmed down and believed we could do it and we did.”
In the final game of the day, both teams scored three runs in the first inning. Blackwell hit a two-run shot for ISU and Dial had an RBI single.
The Bengals then took a 5-3 lead with a run in the second and third innings. In the top of the seventh ISU got two insurance runs when Blackwell smacked a two-out two-RBI single, bringing home Dial and Fitzsimmons.
“That was a big hit by Terah,” Wright said. “For us to get seven runs was huge.”
Dial was 3-for-4 with one RBI in game 2 while Fitzsimmons was 2-for-3 and Blackwell 2-for-5 with five RBIs. Eight different Bengals had hits in the win.
The series concludes Saturday at 12 p.m. with another double header in Orem, Utah.
