Feb. 16, 2018
Las Vegas, Nev.-The San José State softball team used a big scoring inning in game one and came from behind in game two as the Spartans won two games at the Marucci Desert Classic Friday. The Spartans defeated Idaho State, 15-3 in five innings, and came-from-behind to defeat South Dakota, 6-5, in Las Vegas.
Against the Bengals, the Spartans went up 2-0 in the bottom of the first inning. Emma Entzminger started the game by drawing a four-pitch walk and eventually scored on a Madison Aurin single to left field. Brittany Abacherli, who also drew a walk in the inning, scored on an Idaho State wild pitch.
Idaho State tied the game at 2-2 in the top of the third inning, but San José State responded in the bottom of the inning, sending 13 batters to the plate and scoring 10 runs to take a 12-2 lead after three. All nine spots in the lineup scored at least one run.
San José State tacked on three more runs in the bottom of the fourth inning to go up 15-2. Mackenzie Drake led off the inning with a walk and eventually scored on a Cassidy Clark single to left field. Rayohna Sagapolu pinch hit for Entzminger and drew a walk. Entzminger came back in the game and eventually scored on an Aurin sacrifice fly to center field.
The Bengals added a solo run in the top of the fourth before Spartan pitcher Caroline Bowman got the Idaho State batters to strike out and ground to end the game. Bowman improved her record to 3-0 on the season. She allowed six hits over five innings pitched, struck out five and did not walk a batter.
In the second game of the morning, San José State jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the fourth inning. With Kaelin Amrein and Desiree Reyes (pinch ran for Kristen Heffley) on base, Amrein scored on a Sagapolu single to right field. Reyes scored as Jacey Phipps reached base on an error. Sagapolu then score on an Entzminger sacrifice fly to right field.
The Coyotes then responded in the bottom of the third inning with three runs on three hits to tie the game at 3-3. South Dakota then took a 5-3 lead in the bottom of the fifth inning on a two-run home run to right field off of Spartan pitcher Aurin. San José State brought in Desiree Severance to pitch, and she shut down USD, allowing no hits and one walk while striking out two of 10 batters she faced in three innings pitched. Severance is now 2-0 on the season.
San José State used a three-run sixth inning to take the lead for good in the comeback-win. Alyssa Avila started the inning with a walk, and Isabel Gonzalez-Velarde pinch ran for her. With one out, Entzminger reached base on a Coyote error, and Abacherli then doubled to center field to drive in Gonzalez-Velarde. With the bases loaded, Amrein singled to right field to score Clark and Abacherli and give San José State the 6-5 lead and eventual win.
"We had a nice effort in the first game," said Spartan head coach Peter Turner. "We knew they (Idaho State) had not played yet and were going to throw a freshman pitcher. We had to extremely patient at the plate and did a good job of plate discipline.
"We did not bounce back and play well in the second game. We lost our competitive edge and played uninspired, but we battled for the win. This is a very competitive group and I am impressed with their cohesiveness and competitive drive."
The Spartans play twice on Saturday with a little different schedule than announced earlier this week. The team plays Florida International at 1:30 p.m., followed by Seattle U at 3:45 p.m. SJSU finishes the tournament on Sunday with a game against Iowa State at 11:15 a.m.
Marucci Desert Classic
Las Vegas, Nev.
San José State 15, Idaho State 3 (Feb 16, 2018 at Las Vegas, NV)
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Idaho State 002 01 - 3 6 1 (0-1)
San José State 20(10) 3X - 15 7 2 (5-1)
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Pitchers: Idaho State - Ryan and FitzGerald. San José State - Bowman, Caroline and Luna, Alexandra. Win-BOWMAN, Caroline (3-0) Loss-Ryan (0-1). 2B - Bordenkecher (IS); Phillps (SJS). 2 hits - Clark, Aurin (SJS). 4 RBI - Aurin (SJS). 2 RBI - Clark (SJS) T-1:45 A-100
San José State 6, South Dakota 5 (Feb 16, 2018 at Las Vegas, NV)
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San José State 000 303 0 - 6 8 1 (6-1)
South Dakota 000 320 0 - 5 5 3 (0-7)
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Pitchers: San José State - Aurin, Madison; SEVERANCE, Desiree(5) and Avila, Alyssa. South Dakota - Devers; Lisko (5); Durham (6) and Rogers. Win-SEVERANCE, Desiree (2-0) Loss-Durham (0-2). HR Winckler (SD). 2B - Abacherli (SJS). 2 hits - Abacherli (SJS). 2 RBI -Winkler (SD), Amrein (SJS). T-2:00 A-125
AURIN faced 2 batters in the 5th.
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