LAS VEGAS - The Southern Utah softball team opened the 2019 season Friday morning with a close 1-2 loss to Seton Hall University and a 5-10 loss to No. 25 Long Beach State.

Three Thunderbirds had multiple hits on the day with Kendall Kapitzke leading the way with three hits including a solo home run against SHU and three RBIs. Madison Tuft had two hits and so did Dream Weaver in her first collegiate competitions.

Overall, the Thunderbirds racked up 13 hits on the day including eight against LBSU.

In the circle, Hanna Wynn pitched four innings and gave up just three hits and one run in her first start since 2017. Kalei Watkins also gave up just three hits and one run in three innings of relief. Sydni Sorensen pitched 2.2 innings of relief in her Thunderbird debut giving up six hits and two runs.

Against the Pirates, the Thunderbirds took the lead in the bottom of the second inning when Kapitzke launched a solo shot to center field. They held that lead until the fourth inning when SHU answered with a home run of their own to tie things up.

The Pirates took the lead in the fifth inning, scoring a run on a RBI single. That would end up being the winning run as neither team would be able to score again.

In game two against LBSU, the T-Birds struck first as two Long Beach errors allowed Javlyn Weaver to reach base and come around to score. The lead wouldn't last long however, as the Beach answered in the bottom half of the inning with a grand slam. They would go on to score four more runs in the fourth and two more runs in the fifth.

The Thunderbirds hung around scoring two runs in the fourth on RBI singles from Emilee Reeder and Weaver and two more in the fifth on a RBI single from Kapitzke.

The Thunderbirds will continue play in Las Vegas tomorrow against Utah Valley and North Dakota.

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