(Cedar City, Utah - April 11, 2025) - The Trailblazers split a high-scoring doubleheader at Southern Utah on Friday winning game one, 12-6 before falling narrowly in the second contest, 9-8 at Kathryn Berg Field.

Utah Tech (15-26, 6-11 WAC) totaled 20 runs on the day with its 12 runs in game one being the most runs scored since tallying 15 on Feb. 22 against Utah State and then reached the eight-run mark for the 10th time this season in the nightcap.

The Trailblazers totaled 14 hits in the first game and 11 hits in the second contest with Carly Eldredge leading the way in game one going 3-for-3 and drove in a career-high four RBI.

Kinley Pappas, Drew McKown and Gabi Giroux all notched two hits apiece with McKown scoring a pair of runs and Giroux driving in a pair of RBI.

The second game saw two hits apiece from Giroux, Marisa Rubio and Jorja Crider, who smacked a pair of solo home runs.

In the circle, Sauren Garton earned her seventh win of the season limiting Southern Utah (10-23, 5-9 WAC) to seven hits and six runs, five earned as it was her eighth complete game of the season.

The second game saw three Trailblazers in the circle with Riley Price getting the start going 3.1 innings before giving way to Lexie Wilson and Cemryn Pickett to round out the contest.

Game One Recap
Game one saw the Trailblazers open with a pair of runs in the first inning with on an two-run RBI single by Eldredge for a 2-0 lead.

The Thunderbirds came back with a run in the bottom of the frame to cut the Trailblazers lead in half with UT tacking on two more RBI from Eldredge in the third on an RBI single up the middle.

SUU countered back with a pair of runs in the bottom of the frame to make it 4-3 before UT ripped off a five-run fifth inning to push their lead to 9-3.

Maka Sonognini led off the inning reaching base on a fielding error and Eldredge singled to put a pair on base for Giroux, who drove both home with an RBI single back up the middle.

After a single by Rubio and a walk to Jayda Gleave, freshman Kennedy Embrey came in to pinch hit and smacked a three-run home run to center field for her first career round-tripper as a Trailblazer.

A sacrifice fly by Ellie Evans in the sixth and a pair of RBI singles by Pappas and McKown in the seventh pushed UT's lead to 12-3 before a three-run home run by the Thunderbirds gave the Blazers a six-run win.

Game Two Recap
The second game of the doubleheader saw the Thunderbirds open with a pair of runs in the first before Crider led off the second with a home run to center.

A four-run third inning for the Trailblazers pushed UT ahead, 5-2 with Pappas scoring on an SUU error followed by an RBI ground out by Eldredge, an RBI double by Giroux and an RBI single from Rubio.

SUU answered back with a pair of runs in the bottom of the frame, but the Trailblazers responded back with an RBI single by Cassidy Hornung up the middle in the fourth for a 6-4 lead.

The Thunderbirds again rallied back to knot the game at six tallying a solo home run and scored on a wild pitch.

A two-out RBI single by Arianna Ramirez in the fifth pushed the Thunderbirds in front, 7-6 and SUU tacked on two insurance runs in the sixth to push their lead to three.

The Trailblazers refused to go away in the seventh belting solo home runs from Embrey and Crider to pull within one at 9-8, but back-to-back ground outs ended the Utah Tech rally.

Up Next
The series wraps up with the rubber match on Saturday at noon in Cedar City.