Strong pitching performances and small-ball offense gave the Eagles two impressive team wins in a home doubleheader against Lewis and Clark College on Feb. 10. Freshman outfielder Jay Perez provided a key spark in game one then recorded two RBIs during the second game, doing her part to back up solid pitching performances from junior Selina Sherlin and senior Kimmy Triolo.
“We’re getting confidence and kind of that swag that we really didn’t have last year,” Triolo said.
Biola got off to a fast start in game one. Senior second baseman Miranda Galindo led off the first inning with a sacrifice groundout from freshman catcher Kayla Neff. Lewis and Clark did not tie the game until the fifth inning against Sherlin, who only allowed one hit through the first four frames in her first start of the season.
The Eagles retook the lead in the bottom of the fifth, however, when Perez scored on a wild pitch. Biola tacked on another run a few pitches later when Sherlin hit a ground ball that was fumbled by the Pioneers shortstop, allowing Galindo to score. The Eagles added to their lead in the sixth, when freshman Paula Damas scored on a single from senior Kasey Hormel.
The Eagles again struck first in the second game when a Neff double brought Hormel around to score in the first inning. After Triolo allowed the Pioneers to tie the game in the top of the second, the Eagles again took back the lead in the bottom of the frame. Sophomore Hailey Boyett scored on a botched Lewis and Clark pickoff move, then Triolo scored on a single by Perez to make it 3-1. They tacked on another run in the third when Perez worked a bases-loaded, two-out walk, and again in the fourth when sophomore Andi Hormel singled home senior Brianna Acuna. The Eagles’ bats came alive in the sixth as well when Sherlin singled, Neff tripled, Andi Hormel walked, Boyett hit a sacrifice fly, and Triolo singled to stretch the lead to 8-1.
“It’s such a great group of girls, where we thrive off of each other,” Triolo said. “Hitting is contagious, and it’s so cool to see hit after hit after hit.”
Sophomore Kalie Chavez started the fifth in relief of Triolo and did not give up a hit while retiring nine of the ten batters she faced.
The Eagles now have a three-game win streak as they head into a road doubleheader against University of Antelope Valley on Feb. 11. Game start times are listed at 12 p.m. and 2 p.m.
