NAKKEN’S HOMER AND VOELZ’S SHUTOUT LEAD SOFTBALL TO 6-0 WIN OVER DELAWARE

3/4/2012

Sacramento State right-hander Shelby Voelz tossed a seven-hit shutout to lead the Hornets to a 6-0 win

STOCKTON, Calif. -- Sacramento State right-hander Shelby Voelz tossed a seven-hit shutout and first baseman Alyssa Nakken had two doubles, a home run and four RBIs to lead the Hornets to a 6-0 win over Delaware in the Louisville Slugger Softball Invitational consolation game Sunday morning at Bill Simoni Field.

With the victory, the Hornets (8-8 overall) complete the tournament with a 2-3 record. During tournament play, Sacramento State defeated Delaware (3-13) twice, lost to host Pacific on two occasions, and fell once to third-ranked Washington. The Huskies won the tournament title after defeating Pacific in the championship game.

Voelz delivered a much-needed performance in the circle today as Sacramento State’s pitching staff had not fared well during the first four games of the tournament. The fourth-year senior allowed seven hits (all singles) while walking two and striking out four over seven innings. Voelz (1-1) needed 100 pitches to secure her first victory of the season while retiring 12 of the final 15 batters she faced.

Meanwhile, Nakken had a monster day, going 3-for-3 with two runs scored, two doubles, a home run and four RBIs. It was her three-run blast in the third inning which gave the Hornets a 5-0 lead. Over last four games, Nakken has been nearly unstoppable, hitting .615 (8-for-13) with five runs, two doubles, two home runs and seven RBIs. The Woodland, Calif., native has raised her batting average to a team-high .353, and has yet to commit an error in 16 games at first base.

Sacramento State opened the scoring in the second inning of today’s game after Kelli Frye’s double to deep right field scored Nakken. A Kaitlyn Taylor RBI-singe in the third inning gave the Hornets a 2-0 lead before Nakken’s blast over the left field wall scored Marissa Navarro and Nicole Clark. The Hornets added one more run in the fifth after Nakken’s double scored pinch runner Sade Estes from first base.

The six runs were more than enough for Voelz as the shutout was the third of her career. Nakken, Devin Caldwell (2-for-4) and Shannon Kaufman (2-for-4 with a run scored) combined for seven of Sacramento State’s 10 hits. Frye increased her career-high tying hitting streak to five games while Caldwell and Nakken both have four-game hitting streaks.

Delaware’s Chenxi Jiao (0-5) allowed five runs and seven hits over 2.1 innings to pick up the loss.

Sacramento State returns to action for a doubleheader at Nevada on Wednesday at 1 p.m. The Hornets will also take part in the four-game Aggie Stampede II in Davis from March 9-11.

NOTES -- Sacramento State’s offense came alive during the tournament play. Over the five games, the Hornets hit .316 with four home runs, 22 RBIs and 59 total bases. Nakken (.533), Taylor (.500), Frye (.438), Marissa Navarro (.417), Caldwell (.389) and Kaufman (.353) all hit better than .350 during tournament play.