SAN FRANCISCO — The San Francisco State softball team swept its home opener on Saturday over Jessup. The Gators won in very different fashion with a 4-0 shutout in game one and rallied back to walk off game two, 9-8.
- The Gators move to 6-1 while Jessup drops to .500 at 3-3.
- Ashley Rocha had a day. She was 4-for-4 in game two and finished her day 5-for-6 with four runs, the game-winning RBI in game two, and four steals.
- Kai DeLeon went 2-for-3 with two runs and an RBI in game one. Daniella Guerrera went 2-for-3 with two RBI. DeLeon continues to lead the team with a .500 batting average while Guerrera leads the Gators with 10 RBI.
- Marley Gonzales went 3-for-4 with a run, two RBI, and a steal in game two. Shaunessey Cardwell was 2-for-3 with two RBI.
- The Gators had five steals on the day, bringing their season total to 20.
- SF State turned a double play in game one for the team's fourth of the year.
Game One
- SF State grabbed a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the third. Rocha reached on a fielder's choice but stole second and third to get herself into scoring position, and scored on a DeLeon double to left field. Gonzales followed with an RBI single to right center.
- In the top of the fifth, Gators starter Takeda Bajan issued a walk to load the bases but got Maddy Ybarra to roll over on a dribbler to second base to get out of the jam unscathed. In the bottom half of the inning, the Gators doubled the lead with Guerrera's two-out, two-run single to center.
- The Warriors threatened with two outs in the seventh with back-to-back singles but Takeda Bajan got Ybarra swinging to end it.
- Takeda Bajan (3-0) posted her third complete game of the season and lowered her ERA to 1.11 with the shutout. She needed 115 pitches but was able to work out of trouble. She scattered seven hits and four walks, and struck out a pair.
- Alexandria Himes (1-2) threw 60 pitches in five innings but was tagged for four runs on seven hits with one strikeout for the Warriors.
- Jazlyn Villavicencio faced three batters in relief and recorded a strikeout.
Game Two
- The Gators struck early in game two when Marissa Jordan's two-out single to right center plated Gonzales.
- SF State's lead was short-lived as Jessup struck for a three-run second inning. Gators starter Kharime Caratachea got two quick outs but back-to-back singles and a wild pitch tied the game. Olivia Dominguez worked a full count, then singled home a run to make it 2-1. Another single loaded the bases and Sarah Giles drew a four-pitch walk. Caratachea struck out Ybarra on three pitches to get out of the bases-loaded jam.
- It turned out that the Warriors' lead would also be short-lived. Shaunessey Cardwell smacked a one-out double to center field. Shannon Tierney pinch ran for Cardwell and scored when Lexi Holihan reached on a throwing error by third baseman Emma Gaytan. Rocha singled, then DeLeon sac plated Holihan with a game-tying sac fly. Rocha stole second and gave the Gators the lead when she scored on an infield single by Gonzales.
- After both teams went quickly in the third, Jessup regained the lead in the fourth with another two-out rally. Caratchea retired the first two batters of the inning but a double, single, and Giles double put Jessup back up, 5-4. Ybarra singled to make it 6-4, doubled, and scored on Aaliyah Pineda's single to center field to chase Caratchea. SF State threatened in the bottom of the inning but stranded a pair.
- SF State got a run back in the fifth on Cardwell's two-out RBI single.
- Kira Nilson nearly made a running catch in left field to end the seventh but couldn't hold onto the ball, which allowed Neva Adams to score unearned for an 8-5 Warriors lead.
- Roch led off the sixth with a single, DeLeon doubled, and Gonzales sent the first pitch she saw into center field to score Rocha. Gonzales and DeLeon attempted a double steal and DeLeon was able to score to bring the Gators within a run. However, Gonzales was picked off in the pickle.
- After a four-pitch walk to begin the seventh, Elise Roy got back-to-back strikeouts looking, then Gonzales gunned down Gaytan attempting to steal second to keep the game close. Villavicencio took over in the seventh and was unable to replicate the success she had in game one. Nilson legged out a leadoff single and moved up on an errant throw, then McDaniel and Cardwell laid down back-to-back sacrifice bunts where everyone on the play was safe. Nilson beat the tag at home on Cardwell's bunt to tie the game at 8-8. Holihan moved both runners into scoring position with another successful sac bunt, then Rocha won it with a single to right field.
- Caratachea gave up seven runs, three earned, on nine hits. She walked two and struck out two.
- Roy (2-0) came on in relief and did not allow a hit over three and a third innings of work. She gave up one unearned run, walked three, and struck out four.
- Bella MacFarlane took a no-decision for the Warriors. She surrendered seven runs, four earned, on 13 hits. She walked one and struck out four.
- Villavicencio took the loss in game two. She allowed two runs, one earned, on two hits.
The Gators host Menlo on Monday, February 10 at Noon in non-conference action. The game was rescheduled from Friday, February 7 due to rain. Live stats will be available at
sfstategators.com and the doubleheader will be broadcast live on
FloCollege. Tickets are available at
sfstategators.com/tickets.
