The softball team used the long ball to take the lead, and then was patient enough to earn insurance runs late in the game as the Redhawks defeated future conference foe for the second straight day, 11-5, Saturday afternoon at the Courtyard by Marriott L.A. Westside Classic at Loyola Marymount’s Smith Field.
After scored two runs in the top of the first, SeattleU answered in the bottom of the inning when, after two outs, Jamie Foote (, ) was hit by a pitch and Lisa Hill () doubled to left-center field. Junior Lauren Berin (Lacey, ) snapped out of a hitting slump, hitting a three-run home run to left field to give the Redhawks the lead.
(4-8) answered in the second inning with two runs to take a 4-3 lead. The score stayed that way until the bottom of the fifth inning, when Katie Petersen (, ) singled and scored on a double by Foote. Hill followed that with a mammoth shot to left field that hit high off the screen protecting the LMU Tennis Courts to give SeattleU the lead for good.
After the Wolverines scored once in the top of the sixth to cut the SeattleU lead to 6-5, the Redhawks started a two-out scoring run as Petersen walked and Foote was hit by a pitch. Hill singled to drive in Petersen, and Berin walked to load the bases.
Jodie Schmehr (El Cajon, Calif.) was hit by a pitch, forcing in Foote, and then Jessica Amador () also earned a run batted in the hard way, being hit by a pitch that scored pinch runner Lauren Carlson (Richland, Wash.). After a pitching change, Berin scored on a wild pitch, and Schmehr earned a run on a balk call, concluding an inning in which SeattleU scored five runs on only one hit.
Kelsey Reynolds () finally earned her first victory of the season, scattering ten hits while giving up only two earned runs in the game. Hill finished the game 3-for-3 with two runs scored and three runs batted in, while Foote scored three times and Petersen and Berin each scored twice.
(5-7) concludes play Sunday in the Courtyard by Marriott L.A. Westside Classic, facing Saint Mary’s College at 12 noon and the host Loyola Marymount Lions at 2 p.m. The team flies back to Sunday night and opens the home schedule Monday against with a doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m. at Logan Field.