ARCATA -- Cal State Dominguez Hills was one out away from pulling off an upset victory over Humboldt State, but the top-ranked softball team in NCAA Division II scored the tying run in the seventh and walked off in the eighth to take game two, 3-2, and sweep the doubleheader Friday. The Lumberjacks took game one 14-5 in six innings.
Game 1 – CSUDH 5, HSU 14 (6 Innings)
HSU (16-1, 11-1 CCAA) jumped on the scoreboard first as they used two home runs to take an early 3-0 lead.
The Toros immediately answered back in the top of the second with three runs of their own. Lyzette Reveles led off the inning with a single to center field. Jade Loe and Jessica Lane reached base on errors by the Jacks allowing Reveles to cross home plate. Loe would score on a wild pitch. Madison Murphy singled to right center to drive in the third run.
After being held scoreless in the bottom of the second, Humboldt pushed across six runs in the third and fourth innings to take a 9-3 lead.
CSUDH continued to battle and scored two more runs in the top of the fifth. Damari Simon singled to center and scored on Loe's single through the left side. Kendelle Messersmith drove in Reveles who reached base on a fielder's choice.
The Jacks added five more runs to put the run-rule into effect in the bottom of the sixth inning.
Renee Galindo, Loe, Reveles, Simon, Jazmin Guzman and Murphy all had one hit each while Messersmith had two for the Toros.
Loe recorded the loss after throwing 2.2 innings giving up five runs on six hits while walking three and striking out one.
Game 2 – CSUDH 2, HSU 1 (8 Innings)
The Jacks took an early 1-0 lead in the first and the score remained the same through 5 innings.
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Analisa Nicholson homered to right field in the top of the sixth to even the score 1-1. Reveles doubled down the left field line and crossed home plate on Kayla Lock's single to right center to take the first lead of the series 2-1.
HSU tied the game in their half of the frame off Bejaran's double and tried to go for the win but was shut down by a perfect relay from Murphy to Loe to Galindo.
Nicholson began extra innings with a walk and Reveles doubled to left field but the Toros were unable to push any more runs across home plate.
Kalyn Paque helped herself out in the circle by hitting a walk-off homerun to lift HSU to victory.
After Humboldt's early 1-0 lead, Sharie Albert shut down the No. 1 team in the nation pitching five consecutive scoreless innings and tossing her second complete game of the season.
The series concludes Saturday with game one set for 11 a.m.
