Feb. 24, 2006

Box Score

Palm Springs, Calif. - Looking for a sweep in day one action, the Pacific softball team posted an impressive 4-1 win over No. 18 Baylor on Friday, February 24. The win improved the Tigers record to 5-6 on the season and 2-0 in the Palm Springs Classic while dropping the Bears to 6-4 on the year. The game was the Bears first of the tournament.

Unlike their first game of the day, the Tigers entered the afternoon contest dialed in and ready to play offensively. Over the course of the game, Pacific would pound out 10 hits, initiated by two in the first that led to two quick runs.

The opening inning began with a Gina Carbonatto (Lake Stevens, Wash.) hit, followed by a walk of senior Brittany Hyams (Huntington Beach, Calif.). With the first two runners on, junior Jennifer Curtier (Lancaster, Calif.) drove in her first run of the tournament with a solid shot back up the middle. Senior Kristen Allen (Citrus Heights, Calif.) added to her first game total, knocking in her third run of the day.

Playing out in front the entire day, the Tigers continued to build their lead in the fourth as freshman Lauren Weyman (Carlsbad, Calif.) singled through the left side to start the inning. She would come around to score Pacific's third run of the day on a single by Carbonatto. Carbonatto finished the game at a .750 clip as she went 3-for-4 with one run scored and one run driven in.

The bottom half of the inning saw starter sophomore Alyce Jorgensen (Los Altos, Calif.) get into a jam after Brette Reagan led the inning off with a solo home run. After the home run, Jorgensen walked the next two batters prompting the Tigers to make a pitching change. Jorgensen struggled in the game to find the control she had against No. 1 Arizona a week ago, but was able to fall back on her teammate, freshman Chelsea Engle (Folsom, Calif.) to finish things off for the Tigers. In relief, Engle retired all 11 batters she faced, striking out four in 3.2 innings pitched to pick up the victory, her second of the season. Jorgensen relinquished four hits and one earned run while striking out four and walking four in 3.1 innings pitched.

The Tigers would add an insurance run in the sixth inning, taking advantage of a leadoff walk to senior Crystal Presson (Livermore, Calif.) to push across their fourth run of the game and eighth of the day.

For the Bears, Ashley Monceaux picked up the loss after giving up seven hits and four runs in 5.0 innings of work. Monceaux also recorded two strike outs and walked three Tigers hitters.

The Tigers will continue Palm Springs Classic action tomorrow, Saturday, February 25, as they take on Long Island at 10:30 am and No. 10 Oklahoma in the night cap at 8:30 pm.