AZUSA, CALIF. -- The NAIA's No. 3-ranked Azusa Pacific saw its 15-game overall and 11-game conference winning streak come to an end in a 9-inning, 2-1 loss to Biola, but bounced back to start a new streak with a 2-1 win in the nightcap.
Jodi Miller threw 7 shutout innings for the Cougars to extend her scoreless inning streak in GSAC games to 42 innings, but with 2 outs in the bottom of the eighth inning, Jessica Logsdon ended the streak with an RBI single. Logsdon then worked out of a no-outs, bases-loaded jam in the top of the ninth inning to set up the Eagle victory.
After 7 scoreless innings, Azusa Pacific put runners on first and third with no outs in the top of the eighth inning, and pinch-runner Cassie Lakey scored on an RBI sacrifice bunt by Cristal Brown to give the Cougars a 1-0 lead. However, Shannon Long hit into a fielder's choice, and Logsdon retired the next 2 batters. After Logsdon drove in Shauna Brown to tie the game at 1-1 in the bottom of the eighth, the Cougars went into the ninth needing to manufacture another run.
Azusa Pacific loaded the bases with no outs, but Sasha Budde's hot grounder to shortstop resulted in a fielder's choice at home plate, and Logsdon retired the next 2 Cougar batters on a strikeout and a pop-up to third base. In the bottom of the ninth, Rebekah Anderson moved pinch-runner Melissa Fox to third base on a sacrifice to open the inning, giving the Eagles a runner on third base with only 1 out. Miller could not get a handle on Jessica Clark's squeeze bunt before Fox crossed the plate, and Biola took the 2-1 upset.
Miller worked out of a no-outs, bases-loaded situation in the bottom of the fifth inning by following a strikeout with a pair of fielder's choice groundouts.
In the nightcap, Mandy Dorow fired a 3-hitter to pick up her 18th win in a row, giving up just 1 run and striking out 3. Dorow gave up 3 hits, all in the first 2 innings, then finished the game with 5 perfect innings.
Brown led off the top of the first inning with a walk. After stealing second and third bases, she came around to score on Long's RBI single, giving the Cougars a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning. After Biola answered with a single run in the bottom of the second inning to tie the game at 1-1, Lorna Lyttle drove in Long with a no-out single to give the Cougars a 2-1 lead heading into the bottom of the third inning, where Dorow took over.
With a hit in each game, Lyttle has reached base safely in 19 consecutive games.
With the split, Azusa Pacific's record now stands at 18-4 in GSAC play, 41-10 overall (39-5 since Feb. 19), while Biola holds a 13-9 record in the GSAC, 37-14 overall.
