AZUSA, Calif. – The Cougars took a swing at nationally-ranked Concordia on Saturday, dropping a pair of games to the Golden Eagles by scores of 5-2 and 1-0 at the Cougar Softball Complex.
Game One:Â Concordia 5, Azusa Pacific 2
The opening contest was a low-scoring affair through the early innings. Concordia got a run across in the first on a wild pitch, but that was all they would get through the fourth. Meanwhile, the Cougars were getting plenty of runners on base, but had been unable to secure that crucial hit to bring anyone across the plate. That changed in the bottom of the fourth when, with two on and two out, Jaelah Burrell came in to pinch hit and laced a double to right that plated Bella Fraser to tie the game.
That hard-fought tie would be short-lived, however, as the Golden Eagles fired back with three in the top of the fifth, two of those runs coming on a homer that clanged off the left field foul pole. Concordia would tack on another run in the sixth to make it 5-1. Azusa Pacific would claw that run back on a Katie Korstrom RBI double in the bottom of the seventh and would bring the tying run to the plate, but would get no closer. Korstrom and Fraser would each have two hits in the contest, while Korstrom also struck out seven batters in the circle.
Game Two:Â Concordia 1, Azusa Pacific 0
Game two saw chances come few and far between. Concordia scored a run in the top of the second courtesy of a two-out error, a stolen base, and a single, in that order. While the Golden Eagles would regularly get a runner on the base paths in subsequent innings, they would not be able to muster any further offensive support, as game two starting pitcher Sydnie Sahhar threw a complete game for the Cougars, allowing six hits while striking out a pair and allowing only that single, unearned run. But that was all that Concordia would need as the Cougars were held without a hit in game two.
Up Next: Azusa Pacific (19-14, 10-6 PacWest) will look to rebound quickly on Monday as they wrap up this eight-game home stand with a doubleheader against Hawai'i Pacific. First pitch is set for 4:00 p.m. from the Cougar Softball Complex.
