By Levern Johnson (@inkedjournalist) – Spear Reporter
SJSU softball’s rollercoaster series at UNLV comes to an end Sunday, with the Spartans taking two out of three games.
In its first game, SJSU softball (20-23, 8-9 MW) shutout the UNLV Running Rebels (18-24, 5-10 MW) 6-0, earning senior pitcher Jenessa Ullegue her eleventh win of the season.
Redshirt junior outfielder Adrianna Noriega and infielder Karizma Bergesen put the first two runs on the board, with Noriega hitting an RBI single in the first inning, followed by Bergesen in the second.
Although the Running Rebels managed to pull off five hits, no runs crossed home plate, and struck out seven times.
Ultimately the Spartans took control in the sixth inning, adding four more runs, two coming off Running Rebels errors.
Freshman infielder Reina Zermeno brought the last two runs in after hitting an RBI double down the left-field line.
The Spartans have five shutout victories on the season after this shutout victory over UNLV.
A game SJSU softball should have won slips away behind a late UNLV surge
SJSU softball (20-24, 8-10 MW) dropped a victory to the UNLV Running Rebels (19-24, 6-10 MW) after a last-inning collapse.
The action took off in the third inning behind Adrianna Noriega’s RBI single to left field, scoring the first run of the game.
After walking junior Mackenzie Hutchinson, the bases were now loaded. That’s when the Running Rebels senior pitcher Alana Thiede allowed three more crucial runs, increasing the Spartan’s lead to 4-0.
The Runnings Rebels returned the favor scoring a run of their own after junior outfielder Skyler Shaw hit an RBI single.
Again, the Running Rebels scored a solo run in the bottom of the sixth inning after graduate student April Visser scored after being walked with the bases loaded.
Going into the seventh inning, the score was now 4-2.
The Spartans should have brought this one home as they only needed three outs, while the Running Rebels needed three runs.
Unfortunately, those three runs came before the three out, ending in a UNLV victory 5-4.
The tide tilted in favor of the Running Rebels after loading the bases. Visser hit an RBI single, followed by an RBI double by sophomore outfielder Sofia Morales, bringing in the final two runs.
The Spartans unfortunately dropped a game they had in the bag.
SJSU softball bounces back after an upsetting loss
After dropping their previous game, SJSU softball (21-24, 9-10 MW) ended its series against UNLV (19-25, 6-11 MW) winning 7-3.
The Spartans sealed the victory, even though the Running Rebels aimed for another comeback attempt.
Firstly, the Spartans got the bulk of their runs in the second inning.
Two RBI singles by redshirt junior infielder Karizma Bergesen and freshman infielder Ahmiya Noriega gave the Spartans two of those early runs, but a 2 RBI double by junior catcher Makenzie Hutchinson put the needed distance between the two teams.
Before the Running Rebels could respond, SJSU followed that inning with three more runs in the third.
Adrianna Noriega took advantage of a wild pitch and stole home increasing the score to 5-0.
Eventually, Bergesen stepped up to the plate with junior outfielder Ashley Rico on base and smacked a homer to give the Spartans a 7-0 cushion over the Running Rebels.
Similarly to their previous game, the Running Rebels tried to make a roar, behind a three-run homer by April Visser in the bottom of the third inning.
But that wasn’t enough to bring them near the eight runs they needed to win.
Jenessa Ullegue captured her 12th win on the season, after finishing the last four innings scoreless.
The Spartans return home to host Santa Clara on April 26th at 5:00 p.m.