April 17, 2014
SAN DIEGO -
SDSU 6, UTAH STATE 2 | VIDEO REPLAY
Senior Patrice Jackson (Kansas City, Mo.) and junior Hayley Miles (Antelope, Calif.) each drove in three runs apiece to lead the San Diego State softball team to a 6-2 win over Utah State Thursday night at SDSU Softball Stadium. The Aztecs are 30-11 on the season, matching their best start in school history (also 2006 and 2008), and are now tied for first in the Mountain West at 7-3 (Fresno State is 8-4).
Jackson had a two-run double in the bottom of the first inning and an RBI single in the sixth, while Miles had a three-run homer in the third. It was Miles' fourth home run of the season.
After trailing, 5-0, the Aggies (16-23, 4-6 MW) got their first run in the fourth on a solo homer by Victoria Saucedo.
After SDSU answered with Jackson's single in the sixth that scored senior Katie Mathis (Grass Valley, Calif.), USU took advantage of a San Diego State error to score an unearned run in the seventh.
Mathis had two hits, two runs and a walk for the Aztecs, who outhit Utah State, 11-7, in the contest. Jackson added two hits and three RBIs, while Miles had the three-run home run.
Jordan had a single, run and walk, and freshmen Sydnee Cable (Huntington Beach, Calif.) and Jaylene Ignacio (Oceanside/El Camino HS) singled and scored SDSU's other runs.
Nine different players had at least one hit for San Diego State, including eight of the nine starters in the lineup.
The runs were plenty for sophomore Danielle O'Toole (Upland, Calif.). O'Toole (22-5) allowed two runs (one earned) on seven hits and a walk over seven innings. The left-hander struck out five for her 22nd win of the year.
The Aztecs and Aggies play game No. 2 of the season at 6 p.m. PT Friday at SDSU Softball Stadium.
NOTES: The Aztecs reached 30 wins for the ninth consecutive season and 14th time over the last 15 years ... SDSU improved to 16-4 at home this year with nine straight wins ... San Diego State improved to 17-1 this year when scoring six or more runs and 17-3 when its opponent scores two or less times ... The Aztecs are also now 10-3 when scoring in the first inning and 20-4 when scoring first ... SDSU won its 26th straight game (18-0 this year) when leading after five innings ... San Diego State is now 28-4 this year when leading at any point in the game ... The Aztecs are also 23-2 when outhitting their opponent ... SDSU homered for the first time since March 23, 2014 ... The seven-game draught was its longest of the season ... San Diego State is now 14-2 when homering this year (16-9 when not homering) ... CF Hayley Miles tied her season high with three RBIs ... Miles also recorded her seventh multi-RBI game and team-leading sixth game-winning RBI ... RF Patrice Jackson became the seventh Aztec in school history with 40 RBIs in a season ... Jackson is also just five RBIs shy of breaking the all-time record of 133 ... Jackson had her team-leading 12th multi-hit game of the year, team-leading 14th multi-RBI game of the season and team-leading ninth go-ahead RBI of the year ... 2B Katie Mathis recorded her ninth multi-hit game of the year and third multi-run game ... Mathis also extended her career-long hitting streak to 10 games and has now reached base safely in 13 straight contests ... Mathis also had a career-high three stolen bases ... DP Kayla Jordan stole two bases and moved into seventh place on the school's all-time list with 41 total ... Jordan's .837 stolen base percentage (41-for-49) is now the eighth-best in program history, while her .941 single-season stolen base percentage (16-for-17) is tied with teammate Dominique Dinner for fifth in school history ... LHP Danielle O'Toole is now 22-5 (.815) on the season, which is the best record in school history (No. 2 is Celena Velasquez' 16-5 mark (.762) in 2004.
San Diego State 6, Utah State 2
Utah State (16-23, 4-6 MW) 000 100 1 -- 2 7 1
San Diego State (30-11, 7-3 MW) 203 001 x -- 6 11 1
Johnson and Webster; O'Toole and Orlando
W - O'Toole, 22-5; L - Johnson, 15-14
HR: San Diego State, Miles (4); Utah State, Saucedo (6)