Photo Gallery vs. Portland State
OGDEN, Utah- All season long Idaho State coach
Candi Letts has preached the process of having her team peak in time for the Big Sky Conference tournament. After day 1 of the tournament, Letts plan is working to perfection.
No. 3 Idaho State took out No. 6 Portland State 12-0 in five innings and the Bengals then came back and knocked off No. 2 Sacramento State 11-1 in five innings.
Idaho State plays No. 1 seed Weber State on Friday at 2:30 p.m. If the Bengals win they play in the championship at 1:30 p.m. A Bengal loss means they will play at 11 a.m. on Saturday.
The Bengal offense pounded out 23 hits, 18 RBIs and hit .426 to spark the explosion. The pitching of
Sophie Slagle and
Ashlyn Ames combined to allow only seven hits, four strikeouts and one run.
"I just think we are staying relaxed and focused going forward," Letts said. "We are not looking around. We are keeping our eyes on the plan and sticking to it. Just look at the finish line and don't look around."
Kacie Burnett was 4-7 on the day. She had five RBIs and scored three runs.
Katelyn Marquez was 4-8 with three RBIs and four runs scored. Ames and
Micheala Taylor had three this while
Sarah Hayes,
Alex Portesi,
Dara Kolar and
Maddy Hickman all had two hits.
"We just keep telling them it is their game to play," Letts said. "It is not mine or Chelsea's. We are turning it over to them and helping them when they need it. Other than that they are just playing. That is what we want. We want them to be thinking on their feet, moving and having fun."
Having fun is exactly what the Bengals are having. The Bengals scored 14 runs in the first three innings of both games. ISU led 11-0 after three vs. Portland State and 3-0 after three vs. Sacramento State.
In the first game of the day vs. Portland State ISU sent 11 batters to the plate and scored six runs on six hits. The Bengals tallied its 12 runs on 14 hits while Slagle tossed the team's fifth shutout of the season. Slagle struck out one and walked only two while allowing four hits.
Eight Bengals had hits in the game and Burnett led the attack by going 3-3, scoring three runs and tallying four RBIs. The three-time first-team all-league left fielder also walked once. Burnett started the scoring in the first inning with a two-RBI triple.
Ames had an RBI double for the third run of the game and Molly Creekmore added a two-RBI double to center for the fourth and fifth runs of the game. The final run of the game was an RBI by Hayes.
The Bengals had a run in the second inning and then added four in the third inning. Burnett had a two-RBI single, Hickman platted a run on sacrifice RBI and Ames brought home the final run on an Portland State miscue.
ISU scored its final run of the game on RBI single by Marquez, platting Hayes.
In the win over Sacramento State, ISU scored three runs in the second inning. Hickman led off with a single to left field and Ames followed with a single to center. Kolar had an RBI single in the inning and the Bengals took advantage of two wild pitches and three passed balls in the inning to move the base runners and score two runs.
The Bengals then scored eight runs in the top of the fifth on only six hits to put the game out of reach. Sacramento State committed three errors in the inning and had one wild pitch. The eight run inning tied the season-high for most runs scored in an inning. ISU also had eight vs. Nebraska Omaha on March 6, 2016.
The Bengal offense never allowed the Big Sky Conference Pitcher of the Year Celina Matthias to get into a grove as she gave up nine hits, 11 runs but only four earned while walking three and striking out five.
"Against a good pitcher we did some really good things," Lett said.
The Bengal defense also came up with great defensive stops in the game and when they made a mistake they bounced back fast.
"They are just staying positive and moving onto the next play," Letts said.
Notes
- The 12 runs tied a season-high. The Bengals lost 15-12 to Grand Canyon on Feb. 13 and beat Montana 12-9 on April 9.
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