UD Softball Sweeps Southwestern College on Opening Day
IRVING, Texas – The University of Dallas softball team achieved a 2-0 start to the 2020 season with victories over Southwestern College on Friday night. Dallas got a walk-off hit from Liz Cordova (Oklahoma City, Okla.) to win 4-3 in the opening game. UD would score eight runs in the fifth of game two to secure a run-ruled final of 15-7.
GAME 1 INFORMATION
Team Scores: Southwestern College (3), Dallas (4)
Team Records: Southwestern College (0-1), Dallas (1-0)
Pitcher Records: W) Martin (1-0), L) Montoya (0-1)
The Moundbuilders grabbed the early lead in the first inning for the lone time this game that they be ahead. After a scoreless first and top of the second, Dallas plated two runs and would never trail the remainder of the game. Bri Hale (Austin, Texas) doubled to deep left field with the ball hitting the warning track and scoring Mackenzie Tano (Wylie, Texas), who had doubled earlier that inning. Madison Coutts (Tampa, Fla.) singled to shortstop to put the Crusaders on top.
Southwestern College knotted the game in the fifth inning with an RBI by Sydni Fulks. Alexis Gouyton tripled that frame and scored to make it 2-2. A double play by Annabel Anderson (Midlothian, Texas) plated Coutts for the 3-2 advantage. It was a short lead, as Mackenzie Lyons crushed a lead-off home run to left field on a 2-0 pitch to start the sixth. The Moundbuilders notched four extra-base hits for their five overall.
Emily Martin (San Jose, Calif.) worked around a walk and infield single to eventually retire three in a row in the seventh. She earned the winning decision with her final two innings of relief work.
In the bottom of the seventh, Julie Duenas (Houston, Texas) walked, Anderson singled up the middle and Cordova struck a hit that tipped off a leaping Gouyton at second base for SC. Duenas crossed home and UD had won on opening day a third straight year. The previous two to Southwestern by a run.
Cordova, Coutts, and Tano had two-hit games and the latter two scored a run. Dallas also got a hit from Karina Campo (Georgetown, Texas). UD totaled nine hits and one error. Maggie Watts (Arcadia, La.) hurled five innings in the start. She allowed one earned run on three hits. She walked one and struck out two.
Southwestern's Maria Montoya threw 3.2 innings with two runs on five hits allowed. She walked two. Lyons started the first three innings and scattered four hits with two runs. Lyons also struck out three and walked two.
SOCIAL MEDIA
#UDCRUSADERS WIN! Game 1
— UDallas Athletics (@UDallasSports) February 8, 2020
Defeat Southwestern College 4-3!
- Cordova (2-4, GW RBI)
- Tano (2-3, 2B, R)
- Coutts (2-4, RBI, R)
- Hale (2B, RBI)
- Watts (5 IP, 1 ER, 3 H, BB, 2 K)#WeAreUD #d3sb #UDallas #UDSoftball pic.twitter.com/yaYYqn97rm
GAME 2 INFORMATION
Team Scores: Southwestern College (7), Dallas (15)
Team Records: Southwestern College (0-2), Dallas (2-0)
Pitcher Records: W) Watts (1-0), L) Montoya (0-2)
The Crusaders cut a 2-0 deficit and scored five runs in a row to carry the momentum. Southwestern responded with big fourth and fifth innings to knot the scoreboard each time UD pulled on top. The home team put the game away with eight in the fifth and that completed the run-shortened rule of eight runs after five innings.
The Moundbuilders took the early lead again in the first. After two outs, four consecutive hits by Southwestern that was capped by Kayleen Gonzalez put the first two runs on the board.
An error got Dallas within one in the second. Tano singled back to the pitcher as Lyons knocked it down. Duenas took advantage of the hesitation and scored the tying run in the third to make it 2-2. Wild pitches put the team up by two and Hale reached on another fielding miscue to complete the 5-2 lead.
UD relinquished the edge right back with three runs in the fourth. An error by Dallas allowed the tying run to cross home. An error and hit by pitch put UD back up, but Southwestern got a run on a double play, the third time for that to happen overall in the two games. Lyons singled up the middle for a clutch hitting RBI that made it 7-7.
The floodgates opened for UD in the fifth with eight runs despite 4 hits for the team in that span. The home team sent 12 batters to the plate in that contest. Anderson did knock the single down the left field line that scored McLain.
Dallas was outhit 14-11. Tano led the group with 3-4, two RBI, two runs. McLain, Anderson, and Campo recorded two-hit games. Duenas scored 3 runs. Campo doubled for the team's only extra-base hit.
Watts got the win after recording one out in the fifth. Campo started game two and went 3.2 innings. Lindsay Devlin (Leander, Texas) followed Campo with an inning of work.
Lyons paced the bats again with a 3-4, 2 RBI, and two runs scored. Kayleen Gonzalez also drove in two runs. Lyons went three innings with six hits, five runs, and three earned runs. She struck out one. Maria Montoya was saddled with the loss for allowing 10 runs on five hits in 1.2 innings. She walked eight and hit three opposing batters by a pitch.
SOCIAL MEDIA
#UDCRUSADERS WIN! (Game 2)
— UDallas Athletics (@UDallasSports) February 8, 2020
- Defeat Southwestern College 15-7 (F/5)
- Tano (3-4, 2 RBI, 2 R)
- Campo (2-2, 2B, 2 R)
- McLain (2-4, RBI, R, SB)
- Anderson (2-4, RBI, R)
- UD (10 BB, 3 HBP)#WeAreUD #d3sb #UDallas #UDSoftball pic.twitter.com/CthEc9x7xx
UP NEXT
Dallas is on the road at Howard Payne University on Feb. 15. First pitch is at 12 p.m. and 2 p.m. UD plays the same times on Feb. 16 versus Hendrix College.