AZUSA, Calif. – The Cougar catching duo of Jaelah Burrell and Aleah Delgado took turns having 2-RBI games, while catching a pair of gems from starters Sydnie Sahhar and Katie Korstrom, respectively, as Azusa Pacific swept Holy Names 9-1 and 8-0 Monday evening inside the Cougar Softball Complex. 

GAME ONE:  AZUSA PACIFIC 9, Holy Names 1 (6 innings)

Holy Names started off the opening game strong, with a leadoff triple and RBI groundout to take a quick 1-0 lead.  The Hawks next two batters also reached base, but Sahhar induced a ground ball double play to retire the side, and that was virtually all she wrote for the Hawks' offense on the day. 

In the bottom of the first, Kinsey Erickson was hit by a pitch, stole second, and advanced to third on a single from Carley Gay.  Two batters later, Korstrom hit a grounder to second and Korstrom beat the throw home to tie the game.  Mia Alvarez drove Gay in with a sac fly, and just like that, the Cougars had a 2-1 lead.

Burrell would lead off the bottom of the second with a line drive just over the fence in left, her second homer of the season, doubling the advantage.  Korstrom would add a home run of her own the following inning, as the Cougars would add three more, including another RBI hit from Burrell that forced a pitching change. 

The Cougars added another run in the fourth, while Sahhar was retiring 14 batters in a row between the top of the first and the leadoff batter in the sixth.  In the bottom half of the sixth, the Cougars put two on with two out for pinch hitter Bella Fraser, who doubled to the wall in center to send both runners in and end the game early. 

Caitlin DeCanio had a double and triple, each of which drove in a run, while Burrell was 2-2 with a pair of walks. In the circle, Sahhar allowed just four hits while striking out two.

GAME TWO:  AZUSA PACIFIC 8, Holy Names 0

The Cougars would open the scoring in the second, when Alvarez led off with a single.  She then stole second, and was on third with two outs for Delgado.  The catcher beat out an infield single to drive in the first run of the game.  Azusa Pacific would bring in another run in the third when Gay hit a one-out double and stole third, scoring on an Izzy Rivera sac fly to make it 2-0.

The game would be broken open in the fourth, as the first five Cougar batters in the inning came around to score, highlighted by a two-run triple from Erickson. 

Korstrom had an especially dominant night in the circle, striking out nine batters and allowing just a single hit with one out in the fourth inning.  With one gone in the sixth, Korstrom came to the plate in her own cause and decided that was enough, as she uncorked a blast over the fence in left for her second home run of the doubleheader and sixth of the season to end the day.

By the Numbers: The two Cougar pitchers combined to allow just six baserunners over the 12 innings of play.  Erickson had a 4-for-6 day at the plate with two runs, two RBI, and two stolen bases.  Between Burrell and Delgado, the Cougars got four hits and four RBI from the catcher position.  Korstrom's nine strikeouts give her 112 on the season thus far, the most by a Cougar pitcher since Narissa Garcia fanned 114 batters in 2016.

Up Next: Azusa Pacific (27-19, 15-11 PacWest) continue their push towards the PacWest Tournament when they play one final doubleheader against Holy Names Tuesday at 4:00 p.m.  Both games can be livestreamed HERE.