AZUSA, Calif. -- Azusa Pacific secured another doubleheader split with a nationally-ranked opponent, dropping an extra-inning opener to No. 7-ranked Adelphi, 6-5, in nine innings, before an 8-0 mercy-rule victory in the second game.
The doubleheader was added after Adelphi's scheduled season opener at UC San Diego was cancelled due to unplayable field conditions, opening up a spot on Adelphi's season-opening West Coast road trip. Nicki Sprague hit a go-ahead grand slam in the opener, although Adelphi rallied to win the game in extra innings, and Kat Ung fired a two-hit shutout in the five-inning nightcap.
With the split, Azusa Pacific is now 7-4 overall and will return to action on Friday, Feb. 24, with another home doubleheader against Cal State San Marcos.
GAME 1 (9 innings): Adelphi 6, Azusa Pacific 5
Sprague's two-out grand slam capped a five-run fifth for the Cougars, who answered Adelphi's two runs in the top of the fifth to take a 5-2 lead into the final two frames. The Panthers got one of those runs back in the sixth, and rallied to tie the game with two outs in the seventh.
Sprague was intentionally walked with one out in the bottom of the seventh, putting the potential winning run on base, and Kayla Jimenez followed with a single to left-center. They advanced to second and third on a bunt, but Adelphi relief pitcher Jessica Vadala escaped the jam with a strikeout to send the game to extra innings.
Both teams got a runner on base in the eighth but were not able to score, but the Panthers got two runners on base before Nikki Cucchio delivered a two-out RBI single up the middle for the go-ahead run. Vadala induced three fly balls to the left side in the bottom of the ninth to finish off the victory.
Cucchio was three-for-five with a pair of RBI singles that first tied and then won the game for Adelphi. Sprague's big home run was responsible for four of the Cougars' five runs, and Jimenez and Abry Moreno registered two hits each.
GAME 2 (5 innings): Azusa Pacific 8, Adelphi 0
Sprague jump-started the Azusa Pacific offense in the second game with a first-inning RBI double, and she later scored on a groundout to give the Cougars an early 2-0 lead. After leaving two runners on base in each of the next two innings, Azusa Pacific produced three-run frames in the fourth and fifth innings to finish off the mercy-rule win.
Freshman lefthander Kat Ung only allowed three total baserunners in a two-hit shutout performance, and none of those three reached second base. Ung registered six strikeouts without a walk to win the first decision of her collegiate career.
Five different players registered two hits each for Azusa Pacific, anchored by Sprague and Jimenez in the middle of the lineup. The pair accounted for both of the Cougars' extra-base hits, the first-inning RBI double from Sprague and a two-run fourth-inning triple for Jimenez. Moreno reached base safely in all three of her plate appearances, going two-for-two with a walk to finish the day with a four-for-six performance at the plate.
