CARSON, Calif. – The Cal State East Bay softball team split the opening doubleheader of their weekend road series against Cal State Dominguez Hill on Saturday, March 18 at Toro Softball Field.
The Pioneers dropped game one 6-5 and bounced back to close the doubleheader with a 13-10 victory to move to 12-12 on the season and 8-12 in California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) action.
CSUEB controlled the opening game from the opening pitch, carrying a 5-2 lead into the final frame of play. The Toros put in four runs in the bottom of the ninth inning to escape the game with 6-5 win.
Courtney Leyba paced the Pioneers by going 4-of-5 from the plate with two runs scored.
Ashley Allen also turned in a multi-hit performance with two hits, a RBI and one run.
Sarah Fukushima,
Tanya Galvan,
Jennifer Palmares,
Haley Keahi and
Emilie Portesi all added a hit as East Bay totaled 11 hits. Palmares chipped in a RBI and a run and Galvan also finished with a RBI.
Abby Greer (L, 6-6) led the Pioneer charge from the mound tossing 5.1 innings with one strikeout. She gave up six runs on six hits.
The doubleheader finale was highlighted by freshman
Sarah Fukushima's two home runs in back-to-back innings. She is now second in the conference with a team leading seven home run blasts on the season. She also tied the team season high with six RBIs. She tallied three runs and three hits in the win.
East Bay ripped off eight runs in the top of the second inning to take control of the game after the Toros scored six runs in the bottom of the first inning. The Pioneers 19 hits were a team season high.
Juniors
Ashley Allen and
Haley Keahi both turned in career performances for the Pioneers in the win.
Ashley Allen finished with a career best four hits with three runs, two RBIs and a stolen base.
Haley Keahi also tallied a career-high four hits with a RBI and a run scored.
Freshman
Jennifer Palmares compiled her third three-hit outing of the season and also scored two runs. While her freshman counterpart
Emilie Portesi added two hits, including a double, with two RBIs.
Courtney Leyba,
Ali Cerminara,
Tanya Galvan each added one hit to the Pioneer 19-hit attack. Each of the trio also scored a run led by two runs scored by Leyba.
Freshman
Olivia McWhorter (W, 3-5) led the Pioneer barrage from the mound with two strikeouts and only four walks.
The Pioneers will complete their weekend road series with a Sunday doubleheader set to start at 11:00 a.m. at Toro Softball Field.
