By Autumn Blue (@AutumnBlue3) – WSB Beat Reporter
San Jose State softball (9-5, 0-0 MW) closed out the Silicon Valley Classic with a double header win against the Sacramento State Hornets (6-8, 0-0 MW) and Saint Mary’s College Gaels (5-10, 0-0 MW).
The Spartans and the Hornets started their Sunday morning with energy most could not have after a couple cups of coffee.
During the top of the third inning, Sac State got its first two runs from sophomore outfielder Alexis Parish and junior outfielder Nevaeh Piñon.
SJSU did not let the Hornets’ celebration go far as when it came to the bottom of the fourth inning the Spartans exploded with eight runs.
Sophomore infielder Ashley Rico was on second base when junior first baseman Karizma Bergesen hit, bringing her to home plate while Bergesen ran to second base. Freshman first baseman, Ashley Goard tied the game with an RBI single.
The bases were loaded as SJSU’s star senior third baseman and leading hitter Alyssa Graham stepped up to the plate, Graham’s hit led the Spartans to home plate and gave them a triple 2 RBI during the bottom of the fourth, 5-2.
This wasn’t even the end of the Spartan’s momentum, it was just the beginning of what would be the inning of the day.
The bases were loaded once again during the fourth when senior second baseman Jessica Giacoma came to the plate and brought junior catcher Trenity Edwards, junior shortstop Jocylyn Vidal, and Rico to home, ending the inning 8-2.
After the fourth, the energy between both teams were different. The back and forth between the two teams showed they were determined to win.
“The bickering going back and forth that we had with Sac really made it interesting and made us want it more,” says Graham.
The Hornets were not going down without a fight, gaining three runs during the top of the third inning, 8-5. The Spartans bounced back during the bottom with four runs ending the fifth at 12-5. The game ended after the top of the seventh where Sac State only accomplished two more runs during its sixth inning.
“The energy that they were giving us, we took that and turned it back on them. It really goes to show how the momentum can change the outcome of the game,” says junior pitcher Jenessa Ullegue.
By the second game, the energy was off for the Spartans. The momentum was down, but this did not stop them from defeating the SMC.
Unlike when playing the Hornets the game against the Gaels was moving a lot slower with back-to-back strike outs from both teams. It wasn’t until the bottom of the third inning Spartans were able to get two runs and take the lead of the game, 2-0.
Fortunately for SJSU, these were the only two runs of the whole game, giving the team its fifth win of this weekend.
Coach Tammy Lohmann gave her thoughts of the games and what the team can improve on for next week’s invitational.
“Sometimes you just gotta find a way to put runs across and it might not be a big hit, it might just be hitting behind a runner and putting runners in scoring positions,” says Lohmann. “We definitely need to have more energy and find a way to continue to get better. Better quality at bats and timely hitting.”
The Spartans knew exactly what they were doing this weekend and are preparing to be even more energized for next week’s Grand Canyon Invitational starting Friday morning against Binghamton University.
