SACRAMENTO, California – The Southern Utah Softball team dropped the first game on Sunday 3-0 to Saint Mary's College. Game two against UC Davis ended in a similar fashion as the hot bats of the Thunderbirds cooled leading to a second consecutive shutout, 4-0.
The Thunderbirds finished the weekend 2-3, with wins against Saint Mary's and Alabama State. Southern Utah struggled to get the offense going in the game they lost this weekend being shut out in each loss.
The T-Birds were led at the plate this weekend by sophomore second baseman Jayne Sepulveda who hit consistently in each of the first four games. Freshman third baseman Emily Gonzalez, who drilled two home runs in the Alabama State, collected four RBIs on the weekend. Junior catcher Bella Garcia also picked up three RBIs on the tournament.
In the circle, Freshman Riley Nielson picked up her first win of the season while sophomore Keimon Winston collected both a win against Alabama State and a save in Friday's game against Saint Mary's.
SUU vs SAINT MARY'S
The Thunderbirds started the day by taking on Saint Mary's for the second time this weekend. The Gaels got the scoring started in the top of the first inning when they scored two runs with one swing of the bat by Castillo.
The Thunderbirds were able to shut them down the next inning though in the top of the third Saint Mary's added one more run to make it 3-0.
That would be enough to pick up the win for the Gaels as the Thunderbirds struggled to collect hits at key times. Four Thunderbirds scattered hits in the game including sophomore Jayne Sepulveda, freshman Alayah Toscano, Riley Nielson, and Allie Laub.
The loss would go to Keimon Winston who drops to 2-3 on the season. She pitched four innings striking out one and walking one in a solid effort from the rubber.
SUU vs UC DAVIS
Game two on Sunday started out as a true defensive battle with neither team being able to put runs on the board for the first three innings. In the bottom of the fourth inning, the Aggies picked up a couple of runs with a single up the middle that scored two.
In the bottom of the fourth, the Aggies strung together three hits to score a pair of runs. Keimon Winston entered the game and picked up a strikeout immediately. The next batter hit a ground ball to second, but Sepulveda's diving stop kept the Aggies from getting another run.
The Thunderbirds headed to the seventh inning trailing by five as UC Davis added another run with two outs in the sixth. Coach Don Don Williams gave Sophomore Capri Franzen a chance to pinch hit in the inning but the T-Birds would end the game without crossing the plate.
The loss went to Riley Nielson who pitched four innings and gave up four runs in the effort.
NEXT UP
The Thunderbirds will travel west again next week for a three-game series against the University of Nevada at Reno. The Wolfpack Classic previously had three teams coming to play, but some travel arrangements changed and it will now be a head-to-head set between Southern Utah and UNR. The exact schedule is still to be determined.
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