March 3, 2014
SAN DIEGO -
The San Diego State softball team dropped a 3-0 decision to Lehigh Monday night at the San Diego Classic I at SDSU Softball Stadium. The Aztecs are now 11-7 with the loss, while the Mountain Hawks (1-5) picked up their first win of the season.
SDSU committed three errors in the game, which led to two Lehigh runs.
Alexis Watanabe scored all three runs for the Mountain Hawks. The first run came in the top of the first inning when Watanabe hit a one-out triple and Morgan Decker followed with a single up the middle.
In the third, Watanabe scored from second on a San Diego State fielding error.
Lehigh tacked on another run in the fifth as Cassie Waggy's single plated Watanabe.
The Aztecs had plenty of chances to score, including the sixth when senior Katie Mathis (Grass Valley, Calif.) led off with a pinch-hit double and, after a flyout, junior Kayla Jordan (San Diego/Bonita Vista HS) drew a five-pitch walk. SDSU, however, had a fielder's choice groundout and a popout to end the threat.
San Diego State knocked on the door again in the seventh when sophomore Victoria Kobold (Concord, Calif.) had a one-out pinch-hit single down the left-field line in her first at-bat of the season and senior Dominique Dinner (Monterey, Calif.) followed with a single to right-center field. Sophomore Leia Ruiz (Chino, Calif.) moved each runner up a base on a groundout, but the Mountain Hawks' Christine Campbell got Aztec sophomore Monica Downey (San Diego/Madison HS) to ground out to Watanabe at second base to end the game.
SDSU finished the game 1-for-12 (.083) with runners on base and 0-for-8 (.000) with runners in scoring position.
San Diego State's six hits came from sophomore Kayla Bufardeci (Castro Valley, Calif.), freshman Sydnee Cable (Huntington Beach, Calif.), Dinner, Kobold, Mathis and Ruiz. Jordan also reached via walk, while Ruiz stole her third base of the year.
Freshman Andi Smith (Orangeville, Utah) (0-1) took the loss for the Aztecs, yielding three runs (one earned) on five hits and two walks over five innings, while striking out six. Classmate Erica Romero (Corona, Calif.) pitched a perfect two innings of relief with two strikeouts.
The Aztecs head to Wichita, Kan., for the Shocker Softball Classic this weekend. SDSU will play host Wichita State at 3:30 p.m. CT, UMKC (10:30 a.m. CT) and Iowa State (3:30 p.m. CT) on Friday, Northern Illinois at 3:30 p.m. CT Saturday and North Dakota at 10 a.m. CT Sunday.
San Diego Classic I
San Diego, Calif.
March 3, 2014
Lehigh 3, San Diego State 0
Lehigh (1-5) 101 010 0 -- 3 5 0
San Diego State (11-7) 000 000 0 -- 0 6 3
Campbell and Long; Smith, Romero (6) and Orlando
W - Campbell, 1-1; L - Smith, 0-1