The University of Redlands softball team continued Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) play by facing off against the Occidental College Tigers in a doubleheader on Saturday at home at the Field of Dreams. The Bulldogs took out the brooms for a series sweep through dominant pitching and timely hitting en route to a 2-1 game-one victory and a 2-1 walk-off win in game two.
In game one, freshman pitcher Lindsey Mifsud (Belmont, CA) was slotted in the circle and dominated over the course of seven innings by blanking the Tigers through six innings and allowing a mere run in the final frame. In addition, she was able to set down the side in order on two separate occasions, earning her two strikeouts and scattering three hits.
The Bulldog offense did not record a hit in the first game, but still put together some solid at-bats to put pressure on the Tigers defensively.
The Bulldogs struck in the bottom of the first inning after senior center-fielder AJ Carrasco (Whittier, CA) and senior left-fielder Grace Rose (Villa Park, CA) led off the inning with consecutive walks. Carrasco quickly found herself on third base after swiping second and advancing to third on the throw from the catcher. She promptly scored on a wild pitch a handful of pitches later, giving the Bulldogs an early 1-0 advantage.
Redlands added another run in the bottom of fifth inning after sophomore shortstop Shannon Skrzynski (Pomona, CA) led off the inning via hit-by-pitch. She came around to score on a sacrifice fly from freshman pinch-hitter Tawney Lilley (Alta Loma, CA) to hold a 2-0 advantage.
Despite allowing a Tiger run en route to the 2-1 victory, Mifsud closed the door in the seventh inning. She earned the victory after chucking seven strong.
In game two, Mifsud was handed the pearl once again and picked up right where she left off by blanking the Tigers in the opening two frames. However, the Tigers plated one run in the top of the third inning to put the Bulldogs in an early hole at 0-1.
Senior reliever Lauren Henson (Riverside, CA) took over the pitching duties in the top of the fourth inning and shut down the Tiger offense for the remaining five frames by utilizing her defense and striking out one batter.
While the Bulldogs' bats were slow to awake, they came around in the bottom of the seventh inning, as sophomore third baseman Lauren Hernandez (Littleton, CO) started the rally with a single up the middle and was lifted for sophomore pinch-runner Marissa Romero (Manteca, CA). Freshman pinch-hitter Hayley Romo (Port Orchard, WA) came up clutch and promptly tied the game up on the second pitch of her at-bat by lacing an RBI-double in the right-center gap, plating Romero and forcing extra innings.
After Henson set down the side in order with three-consecutive groundouts in the top of the eighth inning, the Bulldogs went to work offensively in the bottom half of the inning. Rose led off the inning with a single to left field, which was backed by sophomore first baseman Ursyla Baumgarten (Penngrove, CA) wearing a pitch off the leg to set up first and second with nobody out. Freshman pinch hitter Mika Imoto (Vista, CA) loaded the bases by driving a single up the middle to set the stage for Lilley with two outs.
Lilley successfully put the ball in play and forced a defensive miscue by running hard to first base, thus handing the Bulldogs a 2-1 walk-off victory.
Henson hauled in the win after tossing five innings of shutout ball. Rose, Carrasco, and Hernandez each notched two hits, while Romo barreled the game-tying-RBI-double on her only at-bat of the day.
The Bulldogs (9-5, 6-4 SCIAC) take on the University of Dallas (TX) on Wednesday, March 9, in a non-conference doubleheader at the Field of Dreams. Frist pitch is set for 12 noon.
