COSTA MESA -- The Pacific West Conference softball series against the Silverswords of Chaminade University of Hawaii was taken by Vanguard yesterday via a pair of wins. The Silverswords did not help their own cause much, with nine errors across both games, with the Lions taking game one 10-0 in five innings before getting over the line with a 7-6 victory in the second game. VU improved to 18-23 overall and 12-12 in PacWest games, while CUH dropped to 7-28, 6-20.
What Happened? Five runs over the first two innings set the tone in game one for VU, which allowed
Mari Ipatzi to cruise to her sixth win of the season. The lefty surrendered only three hits and a walk while striking out three, as CUH could not find any responses to Vanguard's scoring.
Megan Ireland started the home half of the first with a walk, and the first of seven errors by Chaminade allowed
Lilyana Roth to reach safely.
Kamryn Walker loaded the bases by placing a bunt expertly near the box, but then a strange sequence put VU on the board, with Chaminade netting two outs.
Kayla Rodriguez hit a grounder, but a fielding error by the CUH first baseman allowed everyone to advance safely. While Roth ended up scoring as well, both Rodriguez and Walker were caught trying to advance an extra base.
But it did not make a difference in the long term, as VU put up three runs in the second.
ChaCha Miranda was hit by a pitch, and
Adriana Portillo legged out an infield single to put two aboard. Back-to-back groundouts got Miranda home, and after Ireland was hit by a pitch, Roth clobbered a double to the left-center gap to put VU ahead 5-0.
The final five runs all came in the fourth, which started with singles from Portillo and
Leah Mays. A groundout got the duo to second and third, and on a single by Ireland, the first of four CUH errors in the frame brought both runners home. Three more mistakes in a row allowed Ireland, Roth, and Walker to score, setting up the 10-0 win in five frames.
VU left two runners on base and CUH left three. Portillo went 2-for-2 from the box to lead the lineup, and Roth had two RBI to pace the squad.
Game 2
The Silverwords cleaned up their play entering the final game to give a respectable battle, and the teams exchanged runs throughout the contest. Ipatzi got the start again, but Chaminade used three hits to scratch two runs across the plate in the first. The offense stayed in touch with the visitors, though, as Roth and Walker made consecutive singles to put runners at the corners in the bottom half. While CUH did not have as many errors as game one, another miscue allowed Roth to score to cut the lead to 2-1.
Mia Iacomini was called in to the circle in the top of the second, though a sacrifice fly in the second put CUH up 3-1. However, the Blue and Gold summersaulted into the lead in the bottom half. Portillo was hit by a pitch, and after getting bunted to second, she scored on the final error of the day by CUH on a grounder by
Bella Bastien. Ireland was beaned to put VU players at first and second, and a grounder advanced the pair a base. Walker then unloaded on a ball into the left-center gap for a two RBI double, giving the team a 4-3 edge.
The first home run of the series returned CUH to a 5-4 lead in the third, and the guests held that lead until the bottom of the fifth. Roth took a leadoff walk and got bunted to second, with a Rodriguez single to center cashing her in to level things at five-all.
Preslee Brower snaked a single down the right-field line after that, which led to a pinch-hit appearance for
Hailey Ibarra. She followed Brower's example and placed her own single into right field to bring Rodriguez home for a 6-5 VU advantage.
Iacomini settled into a good rhythm and kept the Silverswords off the board after the home run, and the Blue and Gold snagged one more run that proved to be necessary for the 7-6 win. VU loaded up the bases with one out, and a groundout by Walker to second scored
Andrea Connor, which was the winning run due to CUH getting a rally going in the seventh.
A single and a walk got two aboard and another single brought in a run to make it 7-6. Iacomini hit the next batter to put CUH runners at first and second, but a flyout retired the side to give Iacomini and company the win.
Chaminade had a 9-7 edge in hits in game two, but made two errors to VU's one. CUH left 10 on base, while Vanguard stranded seven. Both VU pitchers had one K, and Iacomini improved to 3-3. Walker had a 2-for-3 game from the dish and scooped up three RBI to pace the team.
What's Next? CSU San Bernardino comes to town on Wednesday to make up the doubleheader that was rescheduled for earlier this season. The contests begin at 2:00 p.m.
