LOS ANGELES, Calif. (March 20, 2010) –
It was an exhilarating day on the diamond as the Tigers edged out
Cal Lutheran University in two Southern California Intercollegiate
Athletic Conference games. The Black and Orange swept a double
header against the Regals, it was the first pair of back-to-back
SCIAC wins for the Tigers this season; they took game one 3-2 and
game two, 6-5, in eight innings.
Oxy jumped out to a 1-0 lead early on, after
Alyssa Escalante hit a solo shot home run in the
bottom of the first. The Regals retaliated in the third, with
back-to-back-to-back doubles, sending two runners across home plate
and giving them a 2-1 lead.
The bats went quiet for both teams, until Oxy
rallied early in the sixth. Olympia Powell
revitalized the Tigers after she singled to left field and then
quickly advanced to second on the throw. With one out and a runner
on second, Tasha Serna-Gallegos homered, giving
her two RBI's and the Tigers the lead 3-2.
In the top of the seventh, with the game on
the line, Shanna Yackel, who pitched a complete
game for Oxy, tossed a few more to the Regals who went three and
out to end the game; giving the Tigers the win, 3-2.
With a home run a piece,
Escalante and Serna-Gallegos, led
the Tigers with two runs and three RBI's between them.
In game two, Cal Lutheran came out swinging.
They took an early lead in the second after some clutch hitting
sent two runners around the diamond to put them up 2-0. The Regals
only kept their offensive push going into the third; an error by
the third baseman and three consistent hits sent another three
across home plate and increased their lead to 5-0.
The Tigers turned things around in the fourth
after Kristin Sullivan got on base with a single
shot to left field. Continuing the drive Ashley
Noone hit another single down the left field line to get
on base and sending Sullivan to second. With
runners in scoring position, Powell hit one out to
center field; sending Sullivan into score and
refusing the shut out.
The Tigers continued to rally in the bottom of
the fifth after Escalante singled to left field
and advanced to second on an error by the short stop. Next up,
Chavez reached first on a walk, sending
Sullivan up to bat. Sullivan
singled to left field and advanced to second on an error by the
short stop; sending Chavez to third and
Tania Camacho-Pineda, who was pinch running for
Escalante, into score. Keeping it going,
Noone singled to left center, advancing
Sullivan to third and sending
Chavez into score. Finishing up the push,
Powell singled to left field sending
Sullivan across home plate to cut Cal
Lutheran's lead by one.
The Regals lead didn't last much longer;
Chavez tied things up for the Tigers in the bottom
of the sixth after she hit a beauty out of the park to put the game
at 5-5.
The seventh went scoreless for both teams,
sending the game into extra innings. The Regals threatened in the
top of the eight, but were unable to put up any runs. It was a
different story for the Tigers, however, who took advantage of two
errors by Cal Lutheran to get Nicole Hannasch on
third and into scoring position. With the game on the line,
Alyssa Smith, was able to get one off to left
field, sending Hannasch into score and securing the win for the
Tigers, 6-5.
Brittany Vacura hurled a
complete game for the Black and Orange. The Tigers went 13 for 35,
with Sullivan leading the way with two runs, two
hits and an RBI.
Up next, the Tigers (6-12 overall and 3-7 in
SCIAC play) will host a double header against the University of La
Verne on Sat. March 27, starting at noon.
Article by: Savannah
Russell, Sports Information Intern
