CARSON, Calif. — Cal State Dominguez Hills softball bounced back in a big way on Saturday afternoon, sweeping a conference doubleheader against Cal Poly Humboldt to clinch the CCAA series, 3-1. The Toros took Game 1 with a solid 5-2 win before exploding for three home runs in a 9-1 mercy-rule victory in Game 2 at Toro Diamond.
Game 1:
The Toros wasted no time getting on the board in the opener. Jay Ross singled in Alexis Aguado in the first inning, and CSUDH added three more runs in the second thanks to a pair of Lumberjack errors and an RBI single from Andrea Tellez. Kaylee Hull capped the scoring for Dominguez Hills with an RBI single in the fourth to bring in Ross, giving the home team a 5-1 lead.
Alivia Holden and Ashley Ogata teamed up in the circle to shut the door. Holden worked the first three innings, allowing just one run before Ogata took over and picked up the win, scattering two hits and striking out four across four innings of relief.
Jay Ross and Alani Nguyen each had two hits, while Torie Au, Hull, and Tellez also contributed with key hits in the 11-hit team performance. Aguado added a stolen base, her second of the weekend.
Game 2:Â
Game 2 belonged to the long ball. Alani Nguyen crushed two home runs — a pair of two-run shots in the second and third innings — to give the Toros an early five-run cushion. Ross followed with a two-run homer of her own in the fourth, and Hull went back-to-back with a solo blast to push the lead to 8-0.
Ross stayed hot at the plate with an RBI double in the sixth to enforce the run rule and seal the 9-1 victory. She finished the game 2-for-3 with three RBIs, while Nguyen tallied four RBIs and two runs scored. Tellez, Hull, and Aguado also recorded hits in the win.
Ogata earned her second victory of the day, going the distance in the six-inning contest. She gave up just three hits and one earned run while striking out one and walking one.
With the sweep, Dominguez Hills improves to 26-17 overall and 13-11 in CCAA play. The Toros will hit the road next weekend to face Sonoma State in a doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m. on Thursday, April 11, in Rohnert Park.
