Shannon Kaufman continued to impress at the plate on Sunday going 6-for-8 in Sacramento State's doubleheader against Saint Mary's.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. - After sweeping Saint Mary’s on Saturday, the Gaels returned the favor and walked off with a sweep of Sacramento State in a Pacific Coast Softball Conference doubleheader Sunday afternoon at Shea Stadium. The Gaels won the opener 5-2, before winning on a bases-loaded hit batter, 3-2.
With the losses, the Hornets fell to 11-21 overall and 3-5 in the PCSC. Saint Mary’s improved to 7-19 overall and 3-5 in league play.
In the opener, Saint Mary’s jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the third. Rebecca Sabatini hit a one-out double down the left field line past the diving glove of Emily McCormick. With two outs, Michelle Mounts hit a single to left, scoring Sabatini, with Mounts going down to second on the throw. Megan Smith then hit a single off the glove off of Hornet shortstop Jessica Abelia, which allowed Mounts to score all the way from second base.
The Hornets tied the game in the top of the fifth when leadoff hitter Kelli Frye reached on a throwing error by Mandy Camuso. After Shannon Kaufman hit an infield single, and Abelia grounded out advancing the runners, Frye then scored when Emily McCormick laid down a suicide squeeze bunt. Kaufman then tied it up when Marissa Navarro singled to left to knot the game at two.
Sabatini broke the 2-2 tie with a lead-off home run to left in the fifth inning. Mounts then singled off the left field wall and proceeded to steal second base. Saint Mary’s chased Hornet starter Taylor Stroud with two outs in the inning. Shelby Voelz then came on to get Brittany Sabatini looking to end the frame.
Tiffany Gonzales added a one-out, solo shot over the right field fence in the bottom of the sixth to make the score 4-2. The Gaels added one more run when Sabatini doubled home Whitney Heuser giving Saint Mary’s the final 5-2 score. Sabatini ended the game going 3-for-4 with two doubles, a home run and two RBIs.
Kaufman finished the game 3-for-4. Abelia continued her hot streak since breaking out of her offensive slump in the second game of yesterday’s doubleheader, going 2-for-3 with a walk.
Saint Mary's starter Britany Linton shut down the Hornets in the sixth, and, after allowing Kaufman and Abelia to single to start the seventh, shut down the heart of the Hornet lineup to end the game. Linton evened up her record at 6-6 after allowing two unearned runs, while allowing seven hits, striking out three and walking two Hornet batters. Stroud fell to 6-9 after giving up three runs, six hits, walking one and striking out two. Voelz finished the game pitching an inning and a third, giving up two runs on three hits, striking out two and not allowing a base on balls.
In the nightcap, Saint Mary’s had the late game heroics despite being down to their last strike in the seventh inning. The Gaels tied the game, 2-2, with a single up the middle from Mounts, scoring Heuser. The Gaels won the game in the bottom of the eigth when Stroud, who entered the game in the bottom of the fifth in relief of Hornet starter Megan Schaefer, hit Rebecca Sabatini with the bases loaded, scoring Camuso to end the game.
The Hornets jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the third when Frye scored after Abelia was able to reach first base safely on a dropped ball by Amelia McIntosh at first base. The Gaels evened it up in the fourth when Alexis Konstantinopoulos, who came on as a pinch runner after Smith singled to left, scored on a Hornet error.
Sacramento State then took the lead again in the fifth. With two outs, Kaufman hit an infield single to short. On the first pitch, she stole second and was then able to score after Gael catcher Smith overthrew the ball and it rolled all the way to the outfield fence. Kaufman combined to finish the doubleheader going 6-for-8 with two runs.
The loss overshadowed another dominant performance by Schaefer. After combining to throw a no-hitter yesterday with Voelz, Schaefer allowed just one unearned run, five hits, two walks and a strikeout. Stroud ended up with the loss for the Hornets, falling to 6-10 on the season. Linton, who came in to start the seventh, ended up with the win and improved her record to 7-6. Gael starter Jessica Lemmon was also effective in the circle, going six innings, giving up two runs (both unearned).
Sacramento State returns to action on April 22-23 when the team hosts Loyola Marymount for a four-game series. Doubleheaders on both Friday and Saturday begin at noon. Saturday will mark the Hornets' final home games of the season as seniors Schaefer, Jacquelyn Serrano, Jillian Canete and Ashlee Adkins will be honored for their contributions to the program.
