LONG BEACH, Calif. – Taking part in the Long Beach Wilson Tournament, the SUU softball team played four games over two days over the weekend, going 1-3.
Here is a recap of the Thunderbirds’ tournament results, beginning with a 1-0 victory over Oregon State on Saturday.
Saturday vs. Oregon State
The T-birds began the tournament with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over the Beavers, improving to 2-4 on the year.
SUU would score the lone run of the game when right fielder Michaella Salvatierra singled, stole second, and eventually scored thanks to an error.
From there the T-birds’ pitching and defense were on full display. Despite leaving runners on base in five innings, OSU was unable to break through and SUU secured the one-run win.
First baseman Arianna Ramirez led the Thunderbirds on offense, going 2-for-2 at the plate and picking up the RBI. Keimon Winston (1-1) pitched a complete game shutout in the circle for SUU, allowing just three hits and striking out six.
Saturday vs. Saint Mary’s
Game two was another pitching battle, as the teams remained scoreless through the first 3 1/2 innings.
Saint Mary’s would finally break through with a run in the fourth inning, but SUU would respond with a score in the sixth to tie the game. Ramirez tagged a double to right field and was then replaced by Tasha Hokanson as a pinch runner. In the next at-bat, a wild pitch and sacrifice fly of the bat of Ariyana Miranda tied the score at 1-1.
The game would go to extra innings, where the Gaels would secure a walk-off 2-1 win in the eighth.
Left fielder Taralyn Ollison went 2-for-2 at the plate in the close loss, while Emily Delgado (0-2) took the loss in the circle despite allowing just five hits and an earned run.
Southern Utah basketball: Women defeat UVU, men fall in close contest
Sunday vs. Iowa State
Southern Utah started strong against Big 12 Conference member Iowa State, taking a 1-0 lead in the first inning courtesy of an RBI double off the bat of third baseman Ariyana Miranda.
The Cyclones would pull even in the third, but Michaella Salvatierra knocked in a run with an RBI single in the fourth to put the T-birds back in front, 2-1.
Iowa State took advantage of a pair of SUU errors in the fifth, leading to a pair of runs as they took the lead. The T-birds were unable to answer in the final innings, dropping the game by a 3-2 score.
Ariyana Miranda and Michaella Salvatierra each recorded two hits and an RBI in the loss, while the Southern Utah pitching staff allowed only eight hits and one earned run.
Sunday vs. Kansas
Wrapping up the tournament, the T-birds dropped Sunday’s finale against Kansas 8-1.
The Jayhawks would jump in front 4-0 in the bottom of the first inning, but SUU would get one back in the second to cut the deficit to three.
It was as close as the game would be, however, as the T-birds were held scoreless for the remainder of the game and Kansas would add four more runs to pick up the seven-run win.
SUU ended the tournament with a 1-3 record, moving to 2-7 on the season.
Up next
Southern Utah (2-7) heads south to Tuscaloosa, Alabama for its third tournament of the season.
The T-birds will play five games over three days, beginning with a matchup with Drake on Friday, Feb. 21 at 10 a.m. MT.
SUU will also face Alabama on Friday at 5:30 p.m. MT, Virginia Tech on Saturday, Feb. 22 at 3 and 5:30 p.m., and Drake a second time on Sunday, Feb. 23 at 9 a.m. MT.
