SAN FRANCISCO – The SF State women's softball team got two tremendous pitching performances out of their starters, and the defense as a whole was playing at gold glove caliber, unfortunately the No. 20 Lumberjacks scored late in both contests to take both halves of Saturday's CCAA doubleheader, winning game one 4-0 before taking the nightcap 6-1.
"Today was a character building day for us," said head coach
Cristina Byrne. "We didn't get the end result we wanted but the journey took a big step forward today. We played as a team today and truly put it all on the line. I'm proud of the way we battled and played, I thought our defense was clutch in a tight game two, making some spectacular grabs in the outfield and infield and shutting down almost every opportunity they had. On offense, we put pressure on their defense to make plays, and on the mound. Jenny pitched very well. The last inning got away from us, but we really came together and fought. It was a true collective effort today and I think we saw our best mound performances of the season by Megan and Jenny. I believe our offense is still coming around and that we will find those holes and score the runs."
In the series opener,
Megan Clark (0-4) had her best outing of the young season. The sophomore lefty threw a complete game, 7.0 innings, surrendering 11 hits, four runs, two earned, with a pair of walks and a strike out.
Humboldt State (5-4/2-0 CCAA) scored one in the first and another in the second to take the early 2-0 lead. In the top of the first the Lumberjack's Hanna Holland led off the game with a single through the right side on a 3-2 pitch. After stealing second she eventually came around to score on an error by the Gators.
In the top of the second the Lumberjacks loaded the bases but could not break through. A hit batter with the bases full of Lumberjacks was all Humboldt State could muster.
The Gators (1-9/0-6 CCAA) offensively did a good job of putting pressure on HSU starter Katie Obbema (3-2). SF State tagged the Lumberjacks starter for six hits but could not push across that crucial base hit to score a run.
In the top of the sixth inning Clark made her one mistake of the day. With a runner on first, she left a 1-0 offering up and over the plate for HSU All-American Tiffany Hollingsworth, who connected on her second home run of the season. The four run cushion was enough for Obbema who closed out the bottom of the seventh, pitching around a two out double by
Marisa Andrade.
The Gators bottom of the order of the order had a good day, as
Mallory Cleveland,
Chelsea Brent, Andrade, and
Aryn Guzman all collected a hit.
In the night cap the Gators countered with their own Obbema.
Jenny Obbema (0-2) pitched six shutout innings and completely dominated the Humboldt State lineup before running out of gas in the seventh.
The Lumberjacks countered with Madison Williams (2-2) who threw 7.0 complete innings, scattering six hits, one run, with three walks and four strike outs.
The Gators scored their lone run of the game in the bottom of the fourth inning. Cleveland led off the inning hitting a deep ball to right field that was lost in the sun. She moved over to second on the walk issued to Brent. Andrade sent down a perfect sacrifice bunt that the catcher threw into right field that allowed Cleveland to score.
The 1-0 lead looked like it was going to hold up, in the sixth inning Obbema got gold glove caliber defense behind her. The strong defensive play started with
Courtney Gravel diving to her left up the middle stopping a sure base hit and robbing the batter with a strong throw to first. The next batter hit a blooper to shallow right field that Guzman slid down to make the grab. The inning ended when Obbema snatched a comebacker for the final out.
In the top of the seventh Obbema was not as fortunate. Holland led off with a double to right center, the Gators then failed to cover first on a sacrifice bunt allowing runners at the corners. A walk and a base hit tied the game at 1-1. The real damage came a few batters later when HSU's Breonna Bejaran hit a grand slam over the left field fence, to give the Lumberjacks a 6-1.
The Gators middle of the order is starting to heat up.
Selina Rodriguez went 3-for-4 on the afternoon, Gravel went 1-for-4,
Sara Higa and
Lucy Fernandez both went 1-for-3.
The Gators and Lumberjacks will resume the four game series tomorrow. Game one is scheduled for an 11:00 a.m. first pitch with game two slated for a 1:00 p.m. start.
Complete Box Score Game 1 (HTML)Complete Box Score Game 2 (HTML)--
Gator Athletics has a proud tradition of competitive success within the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The department offers 12 intercollegiate sports programs: Baseball, Men's and Women's Basketball, Men's and Women's Cross Country, Men's and Women's Soccer, Softball, Women's Track & Field, Women's Volleyball and Men's Wrestling.Gator Athletics places great emphasis on academic performance as well as athletic achievement. The program offers student athletes the opportunity to reach their educational goals, as well pursue meaningful athletic accomplishments. For more information, visit SF State Athletics' website, Twitter and Facebook pages.
