LAS VEGAS, Nev.—Cyanne Fernandez pitched Hawai`i Hilo to a gutty win in game one (3-2) but Montana State Billings brought out the bats in game two, pounding out 13 hits during a 6-3 nightcap win during a neutral site split at Majestic Park.
Both teams left the ballpark with 5-2 overall records and will head to the Dixie State Easton Classic.
In the first game, Fernandez worked out of trouble three times, including getting the final out with the bases loaded and the tying run on third base. In the fourth inning, the Yellowjackets had runners on second and third with no outs, but the senior right-hander struck out the next batter and then induced two pop ups to get out of the jam.
In the sixth, a single, a double by Heather Tracy and an error led to MSUB's first run, and a sacrifice fly made it a one-run game (3-2).
In the seventh, two singles and a walk jammed the bases, but Fernandez got the final out of the contest on a comebacker. For the game, she scattered six hits, struck out six and did not walk a batter.
Earlier, the Vulcans got on top in their very first at-bat. An RBI-single by
Isabelle Mejia and a run-scoring double by
Brinell Kaleikini made it 2-0 before Montana State-Billings came to bat. UH Hilo added an unearned run in the third, but left runners stranded on second and third.
Mejia finished 2-for-3 in the opener, as did
Kacie Freudenberger.
In the second game, the teams changed home and visitor positions, and the Yellowjackets got on the board in the top of the first, using three hits to chase across a run. They added two more in the fourth on a Jessica Bagnell RBI-double and a run-scoring single by Amanda Barham to make it 3-0.
Meanwhile, the Vulcans struggled to get anything at the plate against Megan Dettling. They had only two hits through the first three innings before getting their first breakthrough in the fourth.
Bailey Gaspar doubled to lead off the inning, and two batters later Freudenberger hit her second home run of the season to bring home Gaspar and make it a one-run game (3-2).
But the Yellowjackets answered with a run in the fifth and two more in the sixth to add to their lead, 6-2. UH Hilo got one plate crossing back on a Mejia home run in the sixth (her third of the season) to make it 6-3, but MSUB's Maddy Lincoln entered the pitcher's circle in the seventh and set the Vulcans down 1-2-3 to get the save.
The Vulcans had just five hits in the game, two of them via the home runs by Mejia and Freudenberger.
The Vulcans will now drive north for the Dixie State Easton Classic in St. George, Utah. On Thursday, they will take on defending GNAC champion Western Washington (10 a.m. MT) and No. 8 nationally ranked Colorado Mesa (12:30 p.m.).
