The Lumberjacks softball team concluded their four-game series with No. 3 ranked Chico State University on April 21 by taking a pair of losses to complete Chico’s sweep.
Video by Bailey Tennery.
The Jacks were shut out in the first game (9-0) in only five innings because of the mercy rule. The game must end if a team is losing by eight or more runs after the fifth inning.
The second game was more of a slugfest, however, as that ended 16-13.
Jacks head coach Shelli Sarchett remained optimistic, despite the team’s troubles.
“This whole weekend I saw a difference in this team and how they reacted to things. They played with a lot of energy,” Sarchett said. “If we’re gonna lose, that’s how I want it to happen.”
The visiting Wildcats recorded nine runs on 13 hits in the first game. The damage was spread throughout the game, as they tallied three runs in the second, third and fourth innings.
The win moved Chico State’s winning streak to 18, while the Jack’s losing streak was extended to four games.
Chico State starting pitcher Haley Gilham (21-2, 1.25 ERA) was locked in all game, as she limited HSU to just three hits over five innings of shutout ball. Jacks starter Jasmine Hill took the loss as she allowed six runs on seven hits to go with five walks.
When Chico’s Gilham was not on the mound, the Lumberjacks thrived at the plate. The Lumberjacks jumped on Chico State starting pitcher Naomi Monahan (15-1, 2.41 ERA) for three runs in the first.
The damage came from an RBI double from Hanna Holland, a run-scoring single courtesy of Micaela Harris and a wild pitch.
Chico State responded with a vengeance in the top half of the second, as they scored seven runs on six hits to take an 8-3 advantage. The Jacks kept fighting though, as they plated a run in the second before a six-run third inning put them in the driver’s seat.
The Jacks’ lead was short lived as a run-scoring error, and a Wendy Cardinali three-run homer in the next inning, put the Wildcats back on top.
Jacks first basemen Rylie Carlier continued her power surge with a team-leading eighth home run in the fifth inning.
HSU’s 1-2-3 hitters in the lineup each finished the game with three hits, and Winona Vigil and Harris each drove in three runs each.
When talking about her approach at the plate, Harris had a simple answer.
“I just tried to attack the first pitch, and be aggressive,” Harris said.
The series sweep moves the Lumberjacks’ CCAA record to 14-16 and 19-25 overall, which puts them in seventh place in the CCAA standings.
HSU will host Sonoma State University next weekend at HSU Softball Field. The series begins April 27 at 1 p.m.
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