April 23, 2016
Reno, Nev. - The San José State softball team banged out a season-high 17 hits and defeated the Nevada Wolf Pack 12-4 on Saturday afternoon.
San José State (21-21, 10-4 MW) has reached double-digit hits 21 times this season, including 12 times in 14 Mountain West games. The Spartans have won 17 times in those 21 games, including 10-of-12 in conference play. SJSU had at least one hit in six of seven innings and got the scoring started in the second.
Leading off the inning, Madison Aurin (2-for-4, R, 2 RBI, HR) crushed a 2-1 pitch off Nevada starter McKenna Isenberg. It landed somewhere near Sparks and gave the team a 1-0 lead. On the very next pitch from Isenberg, Taylor Purdy (2-for-4, R, 3 RBI, HR) banged a shot off the left field fair pole for a 2-0 lead.
The Spartans added two more in the third. Casey Watt (3-for-4, 3 R, 3 RBI, HR) led off, reached on an error and ended up on second base. Two batters later she scored on a Jessie Hufstetler (2-for-5, 2 R, 2 RBI, 3B) triple to right center. Aurin followed Hufstetler with an RBI single for a 4-0 lead.
In the fourth, a Brittany Abacherli walk sandwiched between singles by Emma Entzminger and Watt set SJSU up with the bases loaded and no outs. Two batters later Hufstetler singled to center to plate a run. The Nevada centerfielder committed a throwing error on the play, which allowed a second run to score.
Two batters after the Hufstelter single, with two outs and runners on second and third, Purdy doubled in two more with a shot to left center. It was 8-0.
Colette Riggs, the Spartans' starter, cruised through the first three innings, scattering three hits. But in the fourth, she gave up a leadoff walk followed by back-to-back singles, the second of which drove in a run. Head Coach Peter Turner went to his bullpen and brought in Emily Rogers.
Rogers faced three batters, but did not record an out. She issued a walk to load the bases and then hit the next two batters. Nevada (30-11, 8-6 MW) scored two more runs with out swinging the bat to make it 8-3. The bases were still loaded and there were still no outs.
Katelyn Linford, who threw a complete game four-hitter in an 11-1 win on Friday, became the third Spartan pitcher of the inning. She struck out the first batter she faced and induced a foul out to the second. An RBI single brought in the fourth run of the inning for the Wolf Pack, but Linford got a ground out to end the threat with the bases loaded. It was 8-4 after four.
San José State got two runs back in the top of the fifth. Pinch running for Alexandra Luna (3-for-4), who had singled to lead off the frame, Casey Lester scored on a double by Abacherli and a throwing error by the UNR leftfielder. Abacherli ended up on third on the play and scored on a Watt double to make it 10-4.
SJSU completed its scoring on the day with a two-run seventh inning homer from Watt. It was her third home run of the year.
Linford (7-8) picked up her second win in the series. She pitched 4.0 shutout innings allowing two hits while striking out three. In 11 innings in Reno, she has giving up six hits, has struck out six and allowed one unearned run.
The series wrap up on Sunday with first pitch scheduled for 12:00 p.m.
San Jose State 12, Nevada 4 (Apr 23, 2016 at Reno, Nev.)
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San Jose State...... 022 420 2 - 12 17 1 (21-21, 10-4 MW)
Nevada.............. 000 400 0 - 4 7 3 (30-11, 8-6 MW)
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Pitchers: San Jose State - RIGGS, Collette; ROGERS, Emily(4); LINFORD, Katelyn(4) and
Avila, Alyssa; Luna, Alexandra. Nevada - ISENBERG, M; REDINGTON, C(6) and NICHOLAS, A.
Win-LINFORD, Katelyn(7-8) Loss-ISENBERG, M(11-6) T-2:07 A-148
HR SJ - Watt, Casey (3); Aurin, Madison (5); Purdy, Taylor (3).
RIGGS faced 3 batters in the 4th.
ROGERS faced 3 batters in the 4th.