April 4, 2016
Fort Collins, Colo. - Jessie Hufstetler hit a pair of three-run bombs as the San Jose State Spartans pounded the Colorado State Rams 12-4 in six innings to take its Mountain West Conference softball series two games to one on Monday morning.
SJSU (16-18, 5-1 MW) jumped on the Rams early and never let them back in to the game. In the circle, Colette Riggs won her third game of the week. She pitched 3.0 innings, scattering five hits and struck out three. Riggs gave up four runs and was lifted with two on and no outs in the bottom of the fourth.
Emily Rogers came in and struck out the first two batters she faced. A dropped third strike on the second batter led to a two-three putout at first and caught the CSU runner off the base for an inning ending double play.
Rogers went the rest of the way without giving up a hit. She pitched 3.0 innings, striking out five and allowed just one walk.
At the plate Hufstetler (3-for-4, 3R, 6RBI, 2HR) got things going in the top of the first with a three-run opposite field shot to stake the Spartans to a lead they would never relinquish. Madison Aurin followed Hufstetler with a opposite field solo homer of her own to make it 4-0 after half an inning. Colorado State got one run back in the bottom of the frame on an RBI double.
In the third, Jessica Madrid (2-for-2, 2R, RBI) and Hufstetler singled followed by an Aurin walk to load the bases. Two batters later Taylor Purdy (1-for-2, R, 2RBI) doubled down the left field line to plate two. Alyssa Avila then lifted a sacrifice fly to right to push across the third run of the frame. On the play a throwing error by the CSU second baseman, which sailed into the third base dugout, allowed a fourth run in. San Jose State led 8-1 after two and a half innings.
Colorado State's (16-16, 2-4 MW) Lauren Buchanan a hit a three-run homer in the bottom of the fourth, which led the end of the day for Riggs and sent the game to the fifth with SJSU up 8-4.
Neither team scored in the fifth, but in the sixth the Spartans put the game out of reach.
Emma Entzminger was hit by a pitch leading off the inning. Brittany Abacherli walked and Jessica Madrid singled to score Entzminger. That set the stage for Hufstetler's second blast of the game. She crushed a shot that went out in right center and put the 12-4 and in position to win the game by run rule.
Rogers got the first two outs on strikeouts. With a runner on first, she induced a slow grounder to second, which Purdy fielded and tagged out the runner to end the game.
San Jose State 12, Colorado State 4 (Apr 04, 2016 at Fort Collins, Colo.)
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San Jose State...... 404 004 - 12 10 0 (16-18, 5-1 MW)
Colorado State...... 100 300 - 4 5 1 (16-16, 2-4 MW)
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Pitchers: San Jose State - Riggs, Colette; ROGERS, Emily(4) and Avila, Alyssa. Colorado State - HUTTON, B; REINKE, Holl(1); PETAKOFF, La(6) and MANZANARES,.
Win-RIGGS, Colette(5-2) Loss-HUTTON, B(3-8) T-2:01 A-80
HR SJ - Hufstetler, Jessie 2; Aurin, Madison.
HR CS - BUCHANAN, L (3).
Weather: Sunny and 60 degrees
RIGGS faced 5 batters in the 4th.