LAS VEGAS, Nev.—One day into the 2017 season, and it's already pretty safe to say: The 'Cats dig the long ball. The Chico State softball team hammered three home runs on the afternoon, with two of those round-trippers providing the game-winning runs Friday as the Wildcats won both of their season-opening games during the first day of the Desert Stinger Tournament at Majestic Park in Las Vegas. The 'Cats beat Augustana University (S.D.) 3-2 to start day, then came from behind to down Western Oregon 7-4 in eight innings.
Claire Wayne, Ari Marsh and Rachel DeHart provided the muscle as each hit their first homers of the year, as seven of the Wildcats' 15 combined hits went for extra bases. Marsh and Cailin Garmon both had three hits on the day, with Megan Bowley and Amanda Flores contributed a pair of safeties.
In the pitcher's circle, Haley Gilham scattered 11 hits in notching a complete game victory against Augustana, while Garmon came on in relief against Western Oregon and tossed four scoreless innings, striking out a career-high eight batters to pick up the win.
Against Augustana, the Wildcats got on the board in the bottom of the first inning as Garmon led off with a bunt single, stole second and third and came home on a passed ball. It took just one swing of Wayne's bat to double the 'Cats' lead in the bottom of the second—the sophomore blasted the first home run of her Chico State career down the left field line to make it a 2-0 contest.
Gilham was able to keep Augustana off the scoreboard—twice wiggling out of early bases-loaded jams—before the Vikings pushed across a run in the top of the sixth inning. Chico State got the run back in the bottom of the frame, as Marsh led off with a round-tripper to right-center field.
The run turned out to be huge. In the top of the seventh inning Augustana once again pulled to within one when Shannon Peterson delivered a one-out RBI single, but she was thrown out trying to advance to second base on the play. Instead of having the tying run aboard with one out, the bases were empty when Gilham got Christina Pickett to ground out to end it, giving Chico State the 3-2 win.
In the late afternoon game against Western Oregon, the Wildcats again drew first blood, as Garmon singled, stole second and scored on Marsh's double to right-center. Western Oregon used a double, single and Chico State error to plate a pair and jump in front in the bottom of the second, but in the top of the fourth Flores doubled home Bowley to knot up the score at two-apiece.
Zoe Clark's two-run homer off Wildcats starting pitcher Samantha Mulock put the Wolves back on top, and thanks to Garmon shutting down the Western Oregon offense with her sparkling relief stint, the scored stayed 4-2 until the 'Cats pulled even in the top of the seventh inning—with the bases loaded, Briana Contreras scored from third on a Wolves' error, and after reloading the bags, Wayne coaxed a two-out walk to force home DeHart to make it a 4-4 contest.
After Garmon set down Western Oregon without a score in the bottom of the seventh, the game went into extra innings. In the top of the eighth, Chico State once again unleashed the long ball—with Contreras and Flores aboard, DeHart launched the home run that put the Wildcats in front. Garmon handled the rest, retiring the Wolves in order in the bottom of the eighth to give Chico State the come-from-behind 7-4 victory.
Chico State will play a pair of games Saturday during day two of the Desert Stinger Tournament. The Wildcats will face Western New Mexico at 4:30 p.m., followed by a 7 p.m. tilt against California Baptist in a rematch of last year's NCAA Championship Tournament West Regional rivals. Fans can keep up with the action online with Live Stats, available through the Wildcat Athletics website.
