Game one: SDSU 13, Utah State 0
The San Diego State University softball team dominated their weekend opener against the Utah State Aggies — scoring 13 runs off twelve hits and ending the game in six innings.
Aztec sophomore Mac Barbara was an offensive powerhouse that could not be stopped. Barbara ended the game with two home runs, a double and five RBI.
Offense, offense and offense was the name of the game for SDSU. Junior Jillian Celis went two-for-two, with three RBI, two runs and a walk. Junior Makena Brocki got a piece of the action with two hits and two runs. Off the bench, junior Alexis Otero went one for one with a walk and sophomore Cali Decker scored a pair of runs with a walk.
Sophomore Bella Espinoza, who is reasonably the leadoff batter, scored three times with a walk and a stolen base.
Juniors Allie Light and Cassidy West pitched for the Aztecs. Light threw four scoreless innings with four hits, one walk allowed and two strikeouts. West closed out the final two innings by striking out three.
Game two: SDSU 4, Utah State 5
It was neck and neck the whole way.
Tied at four in the bottom of the seventh with two outs, the Aztecs gave up a walk-off home run, falling to Utah State 5-4. The Aggie’s victory over SDSU brought their seven-game win streak to a close.
San Diego led four to two in the top of the fifth when Otero’s sacrifice fly scored Decker.
The lead was short lived as USU tied it in the sixth with back-to-back one-out singles by graduate student Gabriella Jimenez and sophomore Claudia Medina.
SDSU was retired one, two, three at the top of the seventh by Aggie first-year relief pitcher Tess Bumiller — giving the Aggies one more chance to take the victory.
In the bottom of the seventh, Aztec senior reliever Sarah Lehman struck out the first two batters. But her first pitch to sophomore Taryn Edds was hit dead center over the wall for Edds’ first career homer that gave USU the victory.
The Aztecs took the lead in the first inning when sophomore AJ Murphy brought Barbara home on a single. Decker also scored when junior Macey Keester reached on an error.
Another short lived lead for San Diego as Utah tied it in the second with a two-run homer by Jimenez.
Decker brought the Aztecs back to the top in the third, scoring from second after Murphy reached on an infield single on a Utah State error.
Murphy had three of San Diego’s eight hits in the game as Barbara reached base safely three times with a double and two walks.
Lehman took the loss for the Aztecs. She struck out two and allowed one run on three hits. Senior Dani Martinez got the start — striking out three, giving up two runs on three hits and a walk over three innings. Sophomore Dee Dee Hernandez also came into the game striking out two and yielded two runs on two hits.
Game three: SDSU 6, Utah State 3
Coming back from their loss, the Aztecs defeated the Aggies 6-3 and outhit their opponent 7-3.
The game was scoreless for three innings until Brocki doubled in pinch runner junior Elianna Reyes.
San Diego State added four runs to their league in the fifth, the first two coming on a throwing error by Utah State’s starting pitcher Hailey McLean. The wild throw allowed Keester and Espinoza to score. Barbara followed with a single to score Celis and later scored herself on a fielder’s choice by Brocki.
SDSU secured their lead in the sixth inning when Keester led off with a walk and scored on a Celis triple.
Utah State did not go down without a fight as they loaded the bases in the bottom of the sixth. Jimenez drew a bases loaded walk to score sophomore Claire Raley. The Aggies scored again in the seventh with a two-run home run by first-year Kya Pratt. But their momentum was quickly squashed by Lehman who struck out Raley to end the game.
Barbara and Espinoza had two hits a piece and Keester added two walks and two runs for the Aztecs.
Light secured the win for San Diego, striking out four, allowing only one run on two hits and three walks over six innings. Lehman struck out three and gave up two runs in the seventh.
