LAS VEGAS — BYU softball secured its first two wins of the season in back-to-back games at the Rebel Classic on Friday at Eller Media Stadium. The Cougars defeated Cal State Bakersfield 13-4 in five innings and won 2-1 over the University of Hawai’i, moving to 2-1 on the season.
"The team had great energy today combined with good pitching from both Carley and Chloe," said BYU associate head coach Pete Meredith. "Not only that, but a stellar defense and timely hitting allowed us to win both games."
GAME ONE VS CAL STATE BAKERSFIELD
Game Highlights
- Eight different Cougars scored
- Violet Zavodnik, HannahJo Peterson-Mills, Marissa Chavez, Huntyr Ava, Lauren Flanders, Martha Epenesa, Alexis Gilio and Taylei Williams
- Huntyr Ava hit a three-run home run
- Freshman Lauren Flanders scored her first run in a BYU uniform as a pinch runner for Huntyr Ava
Player Highlights
- Huntyr Ava: 2 hits, 1 run, 5 RBI
- Lauren Flanders (PR): 1 run
- HannahJo Peterson-Mills: 2 runs, 3 hits, 1 RBI
- Carley Brown: 8 K, 5 IP, 2.80 ERA
The Roadrunners started the game off with two runs in the top of the first inning, but the Cougars answered with four runs and four hits in the bottom of the first to bring the score to 4-2. Junior Huntyr Ava singled up the middle for HannahJo Peterson-Mills to score the first run for the Cougars. Marissa Chavez scored off of an error by the Roadrunners’ third baseman. Then, with the bases loaded, Macy Simmons singled to center field, and Alexis Gilio and Martha Epensa went home.
In the bottom of the second, Ava sent the ball flying over the center field wall to earn a three-run home run, enabling Chavez and Peterson-Mills to score, taking the score to a 7-2 for BYU.
In the next inning, the Cougars got six runs on five hits, upping the score to 13-2. Senior Taylei Williams got the first run of the inning, courtesy of a Peterson-Mills single up the middle. Zavodnik scored off another Roadrunner error. Ava singled. Then Peterson-Mills scored after Epenesa got hit by a pitch. Brooke Hill-Barrington singled through the right side, bringing home Epenesa and freshman Lauren Flanders, who scored her first collegiate run as a pinch runner for Ava. Gilio was the last Cougar to score, off a single from Simmons, in a dominant third-inning showing.
The Roadrunners didn’t score again until the top of the fifth, where they got two runs, but couldn’t fill the gap, giving BYU a 13-4 mercy-rule victory in the fifth inning.
BYU junior Carley Brown pitched the full five innings, with a career-high eight strikeouts.
GAME TWO VS HAWAI’I
Game Highlights
- Martha Epenesa hit the 11th home run of her career
Player Highlights
- Chloe Temples
- 10 K, 7 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1.0 ERA
Hawai’i scored its first and only run in the top of the first, a home run by shortstop Nawai Kaupe.
The Cougars didn’t get on the scoreboard until the bottom of the fourth, when Epenesa homered to right center. It was the eleventh home run of her career.
Chavez scored off of an error to take the lead at 2-1 in the bottom of the sixth, which would be the final score of the game.
Junior transfer Chloe Temples pitched in her first official game in a BYU uniform, playing all seven innings and registering 10 strikeouts.
Up Next
The Cougars will play both teams again tomorrow, playing Cal State Bakersfield first at 9 a.m. PST, then Hawai'i at 11:30 a.m. PST. The games will be live streamed on YouTube, and the link to watch can be found on BYU softball's schedule page.