San Diego State softball lost 5-1 to No. 18 University of Kentucky Thursday night in its first home game of 2016.
The game was part of the 26th annual Campbell/Cartier Classic at SDSU Softball Stadium, which features six teams this weekend: SDSU, Kentucky, UC Berkeley, University of San Diego, South Dakota State and Texas Tech. The six teams will play a combined 15 games over the four days of the tournament.
The tournament is named after Susanne Campbell and Karin Cartier, who lost their lives during the 1991 softball season in a car accident. The Aztec softball team renamed the SDSU Spring Classic in 1994 to honor the memory of their teammates’ friendship and athletic ability.
The Aztecs quickly fell behind when Kentucky’s third batter, freshman Katie Reed, roped a two-run homer over the left-field wall. The score would remain 2-0 until the bottom of the fifth inning when SDSU center-fielder, junior Jaylene Ignacio, hit a solo home run to make the score 2-1.
The Wildcats bounced back into action in the top of the sixth, with another home run from Reed and later a two-run homer from the right fielder, sophomore Brooklin Hinz. Despite two errors from the Kentucky shortstop in the bottom of the seventh and putting runners on first and second, the Aztecs lost the game, 5-1.
Head coach Kathy Van Wyk recognizes offensive progress will be critical in future games.
“We were on the count and I thought we did a really good job of swinging at good pitches,” she said. “We’re getting runners on base, but we aren’t getting the clutch hits we need. But I have no doubt that’s going to come.”
SDSU had a mere five hits to Kentucky’s 10. Sophomore Alex Formby was the starting pitcher for the Aztecs and allowed two runs in the first inning and junior Erica Romero came in to pitch in the third. Romero shut down the Wildcats until the sixth inning, when she allowed three runs. Freshman Julie McDonald came in to finish the game in the seventh.
With three more pitchers than she had last season, Van Wyk aims to get them all plenty of time on the mound this weekend. Right now she is trying to get a feel for what the other pitchers can do and knows that it will take time for them to find their groove.
The game had a slow feeling to it at some points, with a few hitless innings and not much offensive action besides the home runs.
“God knows that softball can sometimes be a boring game,” Van Wyk said. “They have to catch themselves when they start fading out and bring it back together. That’s why they do the silly cheers in the dugout and try to have a good time just to help keep each other in the game.”
The Aztecs will continue the tournament Friday, facing both South Dakota and Texas Tech.
