By Sara Biela (@sarabielaa ):
Cassidy Clark knocked in three of the four runs to drive San Jose State softball to a 4-1 victory over UNLV.
The Spartans (22-10, 6-1 MW) recorded eight hits to take Game 1 against the Lady Rebels (20-11, 3-4 MW) in Santa Clara.
“I thought we hit the ball very well,” said head coach Peter Turner. “Very few strikeouts and a lot of line drive outs.”
Clark gave SJSU the 1-0 lead in the third inning with a sacrifice fly that drove in junior catcher Alyssa Avila.
In the fifth, the sophomore second baseman struck again with a two-run single that extended the lead to three.
“I was just thinking base hits and productive outs,” said Clark about her performance at the plate. “Her outside pitches were working for me.”
Senior center fielder Brittany Abacherli’s RBI double later in the inning gave the Spartans the 4-0 lead after five frames.
UNLV responded with its first run of the game in the sixth with a two-out RBI single from freshman first baseman Mia Trejo.
The Lady Rebels threatened in their last at-bats, but the Spartans held on to win 4-1.
Junior pitcher Madison Aurin (9-7) tossed her seventh complete game of the season.
“I felt good. There were a couple innings where I was struggling a little bit,” Aurin said after the game. “I was still able to keep the ball down and thankfully my defense was there making the plays behind me.”
Seven SJSU players recorded a hit, with senior shortstop Emma Entzminger leading the way with two.
The Spartans look to clinch the series tomorrow at noon in Game 2, also at Mission College.
“We have to remember to do the little things,” said Turner. “We have to do everything right to be a great team and we have to continue to harp on that.”