AZUSA, Calif. – The Azusa Pacific softball team earned a big win on senior day, getting a 2-0 shutout over Concordia in the opening game before dropping the second contest 9-1 Saturday afternoon at the Cougar Softball Complex.
Game One:Â AZUSA PACIFIC 2, Concordia 0
Katie Korstrom made sure the Cougars wouldn't have to do much offensively to get the win in the first game of the day, tossing a complete game five-hit shutout, striking out five batters in the process. Concordia made things interesting as the Golden Eagles stranded runners on base in every inning except the first, nine runners in total. And in the top of the fifth, the Golden Eagles had their best chance with one out and a runner on second. Concordia's leadoff hitter singled up the middle, but Kinsey Erickson fired a laser to the plate to throw out the would-be first run of the game.
In the bottom half of that fifth inning, catcher Aleah Delgado reached on a fielding error and was replaced by pinch runner Hannah Tipton. Ally Chin beat out an infield single, and when that throw went awry, there were runners at second and third with nobody out for Erickson. The centerfielder tucked a 1-1 pitch just inside the right field line for a single, allowing both runners to score. It was Erickson's second hit of the game, the only Cougar with multiple hits in the contest. She also became the sixth different Cougar to reach double figures in RBI this season with 10.
Game Two:Â CONCORDIA 9, Azusa Pacific 1
The second game was close in the early innings, as Sydnie Sahhar allowed just one run over three innings of work. She left the game after the third, and Concordia's bats erupted, scoring three in the fourth, two in the fifth, one in the sixth, and two more in the seventh. The Cougars' lone dent on the scoreboard came in the fifth inning, when Mia Alvarez led off the inning with a solo home run over the left field fence, her fourth of the season. Alvarez and senior Carley Gay each had two hits for the Cougars in the game.
By the Numbers: Gay had a three-hit day over the course of the doubleheader, including her 20th career stolen base. She was one of three Cougar seniors honored after the game, along with pitcher Liz Phillips and second baseman Julia Olivares. Korstrom's work in game one gives her 18 wins and 121 strikeouts this season, both of which are the most by a Cougar pitcher in the NCAA era (2013-present). Azusa Pacific went 2-2 against Concordia this season, with each team winning once at home and once on the road. For the season, Azusa Pacific hit .266 as a team with 19 home runs, while the pitching staff posted a 2.55 ERA over 354.2 innings.
Up Next: The Cougars have finished the regular season with a record of 30-22, 18-14 in PacWest play, earning them the third seed in the first-ever PacWest softball tournament, which will take place at Biola University. The Cougars will face the host Eagles in their first game of this double-elimination tournament Wednesday, with the tournament winner claiming the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. Links to the tournament will be posted as they are made available.
