FRESNO, Calif. -- Left fielder
Alyse Rojas, catcher
Riley Siegel and center fielder
Marissa Jauregui each hit home runs, first baseman
Maddie Rojas delivered a two-run triple, while senior right-hander
Katie Kibby earned her 18th career shutout, as UC Davis swept its first day of action at the Bulldog Classic softball tournament at Margie Wright Diamond Friday.
The Aggies blanked East Carolina, 7-0, then finished the day with a 9-4 victory over BYU. They move to 14-10 for the year.
The two Rojas sisters combined for 8-for-15 hitting on the day: Alyse finishing 5-for-9 with two doubles and a homer, Maddie at 3-for-6 with a double and triple. Jauregui went 4-for-6 in the two games with three runs scored. Siegel,
Sarah Starks,
Marisa Given,
Isabella Leon and
Megan Bower also had multiple hits during the two Friday games.
Kibby, who improves to 7-4, scattered five hits with three strikeouts with no walks in her second shutout of the year. Her 18th shutout puts her ahead of Justine Vela for the most in UC Davis' Division I era. Kibby only allowed Pirate runners in scoring position in the fourth and seventh. ECU shortstop Ashleigh Inae led off the fourth with a double, only to have Kibby begin a run on nine straight retired.
In the seventh, Rachel McCollum reached on a single, then Logyn Estes moved pinch runner Sydney Griggs up 60 feet to second. However, Kibby battled back from a 2-0 count to fan ECU second baseman Bailey Ledvina for the final out.
Alyse Rojas and Siegel each had solo shots in the first inning to boost UC Davis to an initial 2-0 lead, then a two-run blast from Jauregui brought in Starks to extend the margin to 4-0.
Marisa Given made it 6-0 with her two run-double in the third, then the Aggies capitalized on a Pirate error for their seventh run in the sixth.
Against BYU, the Aggies came back from an early 1-0 hole, first by taking a 2-1 lead on
Maddie Rojas' triple to right in the third, then by widening their lead to 5-1 in an active fourth.
Alyse Rojas had an RBI double, then scored on
Sommer Kisling's hit. In turn, Kisling crossed the plate on Leon's double to center.
The Cougars whittled away at the UC Davis lead, taking advantage of three total Aggie errors in the fifth and sixth to pull within a 5-4 margin. The Aggie responded with four runs in the top of the seventh, as Given, Bower, Jauregui,
Alexis Villalobos and
Alyse Rojas posted consecutive hits.
Freshman
Taylor Fitzgerald entered in relief of fellow rookie
Kenedi Brown in the first inning, then went 7.0 full innings with just one earned run allowed for her third win of the year.
UC Davis will face ECU again to begin Saturday's portion of the Capital Classic at 9 a.m., then will take on North Dakota State immediately after. The Aggies will finish their tourney against host Fresno State on Sunday in an 11:30 a.m. tilt.
ABOUT UC DAVIS: Providing a small-town community feel while providing a world-class academic experience, UC Davis is home to more than 37,000 students and centrally located between San Francisco, Lake Tahoe, and the Napa Valley. The No. 5-ranked public university in the nation according to the Wall Street Journal, and among the top 10 public universities nationwide according to U.S. News and World Report, UC Davis offers nearly 100 graduate programs and more than 100 academic majors across four colleges and six professional schools, ranking among the world and nation's best in numerous disciplines, including veterinary science, agriculture, and plant and animal programs.
AGGIE EVO: Established in 2017-18, the Aggie EVO System is UC Davis Athletics' investment in the primary mission of preparing student-athletes for a successful "launch" after graduation. Thanks to a collaboration of alumni, university resources, corporate partners, coaches and Student-Athlete Outcomes staff, all Aggies are guided over four years to acquire the skills, knowledge, opportunities and tools to better know and navigate the "World of Work" after graduating from UC Davis. Follow the Aggie EVO system on Twitter and Instagram at @AggieEVO.
MARYA WELCH INITIATIVE: Named after the former physical education instructor, coach and Dean of Women who founded women's sports on the campus 25 years before the passage of Title IX, the Marya Welch Initiative for Women's Athletics provides comprehensive support for UC Davis' 16 women's athletics programs. Through the support of the Marya Welch Initiative and its group members, student-athletes are provided the best possible opportunity to succeed inside the classroom, and in competition, through special project gifts and by increasing visibility and participation at women's events throughout the year. All gifts to the Marya Welch Initiative are matched 1:1, doubling the impact on our women's programs. Visit this site for more information.
DON'T MISS OUT: Tickets for all UC Davis sports are on sale by contacting the Athletics Ticket Office at (530) 752-AGS1 or by visiting us online at tickets.ucdavis.edu.
