LAS VEGAS, Nev. -- Azusa Pacific exploded for 28 runs in three games Saturday at the Desert Stinger Tournament in Las Vegas, posting wins over Western New Mexico and Cal State Dominguez Hills after opening the day with a high-scoring defeat to Minot State.

Nicki Sprague and Madison Hernandez combined to go 15-for-25 on the day to lead the Cougar offense, which scored at least eight runs in each of its three games Saturday. Sprague opened the day going four-for-five with her first home run of the season in a 13-11 defeat to Minot State, and Hernandez opened up an 8-3 win over Cal State Dominguez Hills with a two-run first-inning home run. By wrapping up the tournament with consecutive wins, Azusa Pacific improves to 4-3 on the season.

In the opener, Azusa Pacific built an 11-6 lead through the first six innings before Minot State rallied to win with a seven-run seventh inning. The Cougars answered Minot State's three-run first with consecutive four-run frames and added single runs in the third and fourth innings to take a 10-3 lead. Another three-run inning in the fifth cut the margin to 10-6, and Sprague's sixth-inning solo home run to center field pushed the lead to 11-6.

Ariana von Zboray got the Cougars one out away from the win with back-to-back strikeouts when she entered the game in relief with an 11-8 lead and two runners aboard, but Minot State kept the rally going with its next five hitters all reaching safely to complete a seven-run seventh.

In the second game of the day, a 9-0 mercy-rule win over Western New Mexico, Narissa Garcia fired a three-hit shutout while the offense piled up nine runs on 12 hits in five innings of work. Five Cougars registered two hits each, including freshman Christine Pinela, who led off the second inning with a solo home run to left field to open up the scoring.

In an 8-3 win over Cal State Dominguez Hills, Hernandez went two-for-four with three RBIs and her second home run of the season, and freshman Cayla Broussard went three-for-four with two runs scored. The Cougars built up a 6-0 lead through the first four innings before Cal State Dominguez Hills closed the gap to 6-2 in the bottom of the fourth inning. In the sixth inning, Azusa Pacific combined a pair of infield hits with two Toro errors to manufacture two more runs to the tally without the ball leaving the infield in the inning.

On the day, Sprague was eight-for-13 (.615), Hernandez was seven-for-12 (.583), and Broussard went five-for-10 while another five Cougars collected at least three hits on the day. Garcia surrendered just one run, which was unearned, and struck out seven in 7.2 innings of work while appearing in all three games Saturday.

Azusa Pacific has three more doubleheaders scheduled before Pacific West Conference play gets underway in March. The Cougars visit Biola on Friday, Feb. 12, before hosting Concordia (Ore.) University on Feb. 13 and Adelphi (N.Y.) University on Feb. 19.