POCATELLO, Idaho- The Idaho State softball team went 2-0 in the second day of the CSUN Mizuno Classic, beating UC Riverside, 4-2 and Loyola Marymount 9-1 in Northridge, Calif. ISU got solid pitching from
Bailey Foster and
Sophie Slagle while the offense tallied 18 hits in the two wins.
Ashley Morris was 3-7 with two RBIs and Ames had three hits, one being a home run and four RBIs. Nine different Bengals had hits on the day.
Sarah Hayes,
Maddy Hickman,
Alex Portesi,
Katelyn Marquez and
Micheala Taylor all had two hits while
Dara Kolar and
Kacie Burnett each had one.
In the win over LMU, Foster tossed a complete game, allowing only six hits, one run, no walks and two strikeouts.
Slagle allowed only five hits, two runs, two walks and struck out five against UCR.
"It was a great day for us all the way around," Idaho State coach
Candi Letts said. "It started with aggressive offensive execution and a stellar pitching performance in game one. In game two we started slow but our pitcher stayed determined and kept us in it. Our offense then picked it up. Our defense kicked in to help our pitcher shut UCR down from the first inning on. Out pitchers had a great day on the mound and we had the offense and defense when we needed it to pick up two key wins."
Against LMU, the Bengals jumped out to a 5-0 lead after three innings. ISU started aggressive with a three-run first inning. Taylor led off with an infield single and Marquez reached on a bunt. Burnett then loaded the bases when she reached on a LMU fielding error. Hickman then walked with the bases loaded for the first run of the inning and Portesi later drove in the second run of the game on a ground out. Morris had a two-out RBI single to drive in the final run of the inning.
Morris had an RBI single in the third inning and Ames stole home to up the Bengal lead to 5-0. Idaho State added two runs in the fourth inning on RBI singles by Marquez and a sacrifice by Burnett. Ames hit a two-run homer in the seventh inning to seal the victory for the Bengals.
Idaho State had 13 hits in the win while committing only one error. LMU had two errors and six hits. Foster improved to 2-0 on the season and five Bengals had two hits.
The Bengals rallied against UCR as they trailed 2-0 after the top of the third inning. ISU tied the game at two in the bottom of the third inning. With one out, Taylor, Marquez and Burnett walked. Then with two outs, Ames had a two RBI single to the shortstop.
Idaho State added a run in the fourth thanks a triple to centerfield by Hayes. She later scored on a fielder's choice by Taylor.
Hickman homered in the fifth inning for the final run of the game. Both teams had five hits and did not commit an error.
The CSUN Mizuno Classic concludes Sunday at 1:30 p.m. mountain time against CSUN. The Bengal then open the 2016 home season vs. Southern Utah March 25-26. All games are free to the public and player at ISU's Miller Ranch Stadium.
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