Dixie State softball started its Division I debut with a double header at UNLV and the Trailblazers aimed to impress. First, DSU took on the No. 2 team in the country and fell 6-5. In the second game of the day, Dixie State took on tournament host UNLV and fell in five innings 8-0.
What head coach Randy Simkins said: "I'm very proud of our girls in game one. Carissa threw a fantastic game and gave us a chance to beat one of the top teams in the country. We played well defensively and came up with some very timely hitting to put us in a position to win. Game two we didn't bring the aggressive approach at the plate that we needed to match a good hitting UNLV team. I'm confident that we'll bounce back tomorrow with a great effort against SUU & UNLV."
GAME 1 -
How it happened: Dixie State got on the board first in the top of the third inning. Kirsten Quigley led off in the inning and drew a walk to put a runner on base. Hannah Hughbanks singled to left field advancing the runner. Then, Shea Clements came up with a single to load the bases up with just one out. The Huskies threw a wild pitch advancing Quigley across home plate to give the Trailblazers a 1-0 lead.
In the bottom of the third inning, UW had a runner on first when Mikaela Thomson on first base fielded a ball, touched the bag and gunned it to Quigley on short to tag out the runner for a double play.
The fourth and fifth innings were a defensive battle as both teams went scoreless. Heading into the sixth inning, Dixie State maintained the 1-0 lead.
In the bottom of the sixth inning, Washington came up with a two run homerun to take a 2-1 lead. Before the sixth ended UW was able to get one more run across to take a 3-1 lead over Dixie State heading into the final inning of play.
The Trailblazers weren't going down without a fight and it showed as Emma Sweet started the top of seven off with a double to center field. Brylee Rudd followed suit with a single through the right side. Runners on the corner and Hughbanks doubled to left center scoring Sweet and putting Rudd in scoring position. Meagan Anders drew a walk to load up the bases. Clements also drew a walk, this time scoring a run to tie the game up at 3-3. Mikaela Thomson showed her patience at the plate and drew a walk to score another run and Dixie State had a 4-3 lead.
Mallory Eldredge then came up with an RBI to give the Trailblazers a 5-3 lead going into the bottom of the seventh.
In the bottom of the seventh, Dixie State came up with two quick outs. With two outs and a runner on first, Washington hit another home run for two RBIs to tie the game up at 5-5. The Huskies then loaded up the bases and scored a run after drawing a walk to end the game with a final score of 6-5.
At the plate: The Trailblazers scored five runs from five hits and four RBIs. DSU drew seven walks and had 11 strikeouts. Hughbanks led Dixie state with two hits, including one double, one run, one RBI and one walk.
In the field: Dixie State had 20 putouts and six assists. Thomson closed out six putouts for the game high.
In the circle: Carissa Burgess started in the circle for DSU and pitched 6.2 innings and faced 33 batters. She gave up seven hits, six runs and six walks. She also came away with two strikeouts.
GAME TWO -
How it happened: UNLV got on the board first in the bottom of the second inning coming up with three runs, thanks in large part to a home run for two RBIs.
In the top of the fourth, Dixie State found themselves in scoring position for the first time in the game thanks to a double by Clements. The Trailblazers weren't able to push the runner across the plate as UNLV came up to bat in the fourth.
The Rebels started the bottom of the fourth off with another two run homer to push the lead to 5-0 over Dixie State.
In the bottom of the fifth, UNLV came up with a walk off homer to end the game with a final score of 8-0.
At the plate: Dixie State ended the game with two hits from 17 at bats. DSU drew one walk and had three strikeouts.
Meagan Anders and
Shea Clements came up with DSU's two hits on the game.
In the field: The Trailblazers ended the game with 14 putouts and nine assists. Thomson closed out seven out while Anders contributed four assists.
In the circle: Ashtyn Bauerle started in the circle for Dixie State and pitched 4.2 innings. She gave up seven hits, eight runs and three walks. Bauerle also had one strikeout in the 25 batters faced.
Notes to know: Dixie State has a 0-2 overall record now on the season.
Up Next: Dixie State will take on Southern Utah and UNLV tomorrow as they continue action in Las Vegas, Nev.
