Two-run walk off homer keeps Lopes undefeated

Saturday, February 13

Phoenix, Ariz.

11:30 a.m.

Grand Canyon

3-0

UMBC

0-4

Maryland -BC

Grand Canyon

2/13/2016 11:10:00 PM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

By: Imani Suber

PHOENIX- The GCU softball team improved to 4-0 in the second day of tournament action. To start the day, the Lopes downed UMBC 9-0 for the second straight time and would finish the day reclaiming the lead to beat Idaho State off a two-run walk off home run by freshman Nikki Gonzalez in a 15-12 decision.

Game 1:
On the second day of tournament play, the Lopes swept the series against UMBC and posted a 9-0 victory Saturday afternoon. GCU got off to a solid start. Leadoff batter Shea Smith notched her fourth double of the short season and was pulled in for a run by her sister Sierra Smith who singled to first and posted her first RBI of the day. GCU would go on to garner two more runs in the inning. With two in scoring position, Laney Gomez singled and earned a pair of RBI's as Sierra Smith and Nicole Newbury rolled in for two more runs.

In the second inning GCU kept the runs coming, adding three more to the scoreboard, two of which occurred as a result of two Retriever errors. Newbury garnered the fifth run of the day which resulted in Newbury's second score and Shea Smith's second RBI. UMBC's second error at third base pushed Wartman in to put the Lopes up 6-0 heading into the fourth.

In the fourth, Camree Wartman blasted in the first home run of the season, bringing in teammates Shea Smith and Jamilia Cosay in the process for a combined three RBI's.
Bailey Bergman pitched her first full game of the year and posted her second-win of the season in the 9-0 rout of University of Maryland Bakersfield.

Game 2: In a stunning finish on Saturday afternoon, the Lopes reclaimed the lead to win 15-12 off of a two run walk off home run hit by freshman Nikki Gonzalez in the bottom of the seventh.

GCU started hot, blasting in five runs in the first inning. Shea Smith put the Lopes on the board with her first home run of the year. To close out the inning Bianca Boiling posted a double bag hit to right center field with the bases loaded to earn three RBI's, leaving the score 5-0 heading into the second.

The Lopes would continue to tally run after run, including a homer by Bianca Boling in the following innings and posted an 11-2 advantage heading into the third. In the fourth, Idaho State started chipping away at the deficit. Garnering runs in each of the following innings, Idaho State overcame the 10 point deficit and snagged the lead in the sixth inning. The Bengals Kacie Burnett flied out to center field to give teammate Dara Kolar the one run advantage leaving the score at 12-11 heading into the seventh.

With the top of the batting order on deck, GCU arrived in the bottom of the seventh focused and poised for a comeback. Nicole Newbury singled to earn a spot on first base. Wartman followed suit with a double hit that landed Newbury in prime scoring positon. Madelyn Dowdle reached first on a fielder's choice, but Newbury was called out at home off a tag by the Bengal catcher. In the following moments, Wartman who then occupied third would run in for the tie on a wild pitch by ISU pitcher Sophie Slagle, leaving each team with 11 runs each. With the count at two outs after Shea Smith was thrown out at home plate, it was left to the freshman pinch hitter Nikki Gonzalez to determine the outcome with two Lopes on base. Gonzalez fouled off the first pitch, but hammered the second ball out of the park to earn her first career home run in addition to two RBI's to snatch the 15-12 victory from Idaho State's grasp.

Quote of the game:
Ann Pierson
"Anytime we can keep putting that many runs on the board that takes away the momentum from the other team's offense. They are of course a very feisty, scrappy, tough team and we already knew that. I never felt like we took our foot off the gas, but I don't know if at some point we got careful and got cautious and you can't play that way ever especially against a team like this that is so scrappy and is so aggressive. They sparked and they were just like, 'nah we're not going to lose this.' And we talked about winning the games we feel we should win and still some that maybe we're not supposed to. This was one of those games because of the lead we had we should have won that game, but we were able to overcome the adversity and pull it out."

Next up: The Lopes look to sweep its tournament foes in the final day of the GCU Kickoff Tournament and will play Idaho State for the third time at 9:00 am. GCU will then meet Loyola Marymount for the first time this weekend, first pitch is set for 11:30 am.