DAVIS, Calif. -- Sophomore right fielder Megan Bower collected five total hits while freshman pitcher Kenedi Brown fanned 13 batters in 8.1 combined innings as UC Davis split its games with Saint Mary's in a Wednesday non-conference softball doubleheader at La Rue Field. The Aggies lost the opener, 4-0, then held on for a 4-3 victory in the nightcap.
UC Davis moves to 1-8 for the season.
Bower hit 3-for-4 with a double in Game 1, then was one of three Aggies with two hits in the Game 2 victory. Catcher Katie Steffen-Brune hit 2-for-2 with a double, while third baseman Leah Polson went 2-for-4 in the nightcap. Brown had a career-high 12 strikeouts in the opener, including five in the first two frames; then retired four straight SMC batters in a relief appearances for her first collegiate save in Game 2.
The Aggies scored all four of their runs thanks to seven hits in the fourth. Sarah Nakahara put UC Davis on the board when her single brought in Jessica Day. Then Bower, Sarah Starks and Marissa Jauregui followed with station-to-station RBI singles. The Aggies could have continued to pile up runs, but stranded the bases loaded when Gael left fielder Marissa Nishihara ran down a Polson fly ball to end the inning.
Game 2 starter Taylor Fitzgerald ran into some hard luck in the sixth. SMC pinch hitter Alyssa Vessel led off the inning with a ground ball to first that took an odd hop over the head of Starks. The Gaels had four more hits in the inning, including two that never left the infield. Brown entered with two outs and runners at the corners, then Steffen-Brune picked off Angelina Franco as she strayed too far off first base. Brown then put down the SMC in order in the seventh to protect the Aggies' first win of the year. Senior Marissa Jauregui made a diving catch for the final out, running down a Vessel drive into the right-center gap.
Saint Mary's provided the majority of its Game 1 offense in a three-run fourth, with Holly Lusk highlighting the rally with a two-run double to right.
UC Davis returns to action with a joint tournament with Sacramento State from March 4-7. The Aggies will take on the Hornets on the road on that Thursday, then host Pacific and Santa Clara for back-to-back doubleheaders on Saturday and Sunday, respectively.
ABOUT UC DAVIS:
With the addition of equestrian and women's beach volleyball in 2018, more than 700 student-athletes represent the fifth-ranked public school in the nation on one of 25 intercollegiate athletics teams.
UC Davis, a national leader in Title IX gender equity and leadership, is centrally located between San Francisco, Lake Tahoe, and the Napa Valley; and offers an unrivaled student-athlete experience that features the ideal combination of elite academics, Division I athletics and personal growth.
Ranked annually in the top 10 in diversity and students' social mobility, UC Davis is uncommonly committed to preparing student-athletes for life after graduation with Aggie EVO — an innovative student-athlete outcomes program that helps young women and men develop passions, gain real-world experience, and enjoy a successful launch to full-time employment or graduate school. Through Aggie EVO, Intercollegiate Athletics provides unmatched resources and a vast network of working professionals to ensure post-graduation success for its student-athletes.
