LAS VEGAS -- Azusa Pacific couldn't have gotten off to a much better start Friday at the Desert Stinger tournament, posting an 11-1 win over Cal State Dominguez Hills before suffering two mercy-rule defeats to 10th-ranked Cal State Monterey Bay and Saint Martin's Friday afternoon.
In the victory over Cal State Dominguez Hills, the Cougars rolled up 11 runs on 13 hits, including senior leftfielder Sona Babayan's three-for-three, five-RBI performance which included her second career home run, which was a three-run shot in the seventh inning of the victory. It was her second straight game with a home run and her second straight five-RBI effort, and junior Janelle Eccles drilled a pinch-hit two-run home run in the sixth inning.
Four different players registered two or more hits, including a three-hit game for freshman designated player Illiana Jimenez along with two-hit games from sophomore third baseman Nicki Sprague and junior catcher Madison Hernandez.
Junior righthander Narissa Garcia surrendered one run on four hits with four strikeouts to collect the win, and senior Destinee Levesque tossed two scoreless innings of relief.
Against Cal State Monterey Bay, which is ranked 10th nationally in Division II, the Cougar bats were shut down and limited to just two hits in a five-inning, four-strikeout complete-game effort from Otters pitcher Cori Reinhardt. Cal State Monterey Bay broke open a 1-0 game with a six-run third frame, adding one run in the fourth to make it 8-0 before finishing off the win with a three-run fifth inning for the final 11-0 margin.
To wrap up the busy day, the Cougar offense quickly got back into a rhythm, taking a 2-0 lead on freshman first baseman Kayla Jimenez's two-run home run In the top of the second inning. However, Saint Martin's rallied for six runs, all with two outs, in the bottom of the second, and the Saints responded to Azusa Pacific runs scored in the fourth and fifth inning with a two-run fifth and a game-ending five-run fifth inning.
After going 1-2 on the day, the Cougars are now 3-4 overall heading into Saturday afternoon matchups against Simon Fraser and Minot State to wrap up Azusa Pacific's participation in the Desert Stinger.
