LOGAN, Utah - Utah State softball (14-19, 6-7 Mountain West) posted an 8-2 victory over Fresno State (17-24, 6-7 MW) on Sunday.
 
"It was a big weekend in the race for the conference tournament," head coach Steve Johnson said. "We talked about the importance of these two games in terms of where we're going to finish and everything. It was a disappointing loss yesterday, but that just meant we had to win this game.
 
"They came out and did a good job of responding after the first inning. They kept putting the ball in play a lot and, of course, Hailey came in and shut things down again. We just needed that win and we were able to get it, so it was big momentum for us."
 
After the Bulldogs scored two runs in the top of the first, the Aggies equaled the playing field in the bottom of the frame with a two-RBI double from graduate first baseman Gabriella Jimenez.
 
USU took the lead in the bottom of the third with another two-RBI double, this time from freshman designated player Grace Matej for the 4-2 edge.
 
The teams went scoreless for the next couple of innings as Utah State maintained a 4-2 advantage heading into the bottom of the sixth where USU quickly loaded the bases. Senior center fielder Tyler Thornton drew a walk to score Jimenez, while freshman right fielder Kya Pratt singled to left field to score sophomore pinch hitter Taryn Edds.
 
Matej then logged her third and fourth RBIs of the day with a two-RBI single to left field to score sophomore shortstop Ariel Fifita and Thornton as USU took a six-run lead into the final frame and held on for the 8-2 victory.
 
"It felt great," Matej said. "We were all over the ball. We've been hitting really good, and our defense had no errors. We've been really working on that, so it was really good."
 
A pair of freshmen saw time in the circle on Sunday as Tess Bumiller made the start, pitching 1.1 frames. Hailey McLean earned her eighth win of the season, striking out seven batters in her 5.2 innings of work. McLean has struck out 121 batters so far this season and is just nine Ks away from entering the USU single-season record list.
 
Up Next
Utah State next hosts Utah Valley (14-23, 7-8 WAC) on Tuesday, April 18, at 4 p.m., and Idaho State (11-21, 3-3 Big Sky) on Wednesday, April 19, at 2 p.m.
 
For more information on the Utah State softball program, follow the Aggies on Twitter at @USUSoftball, on Facebook at USUSoftball and on Instagram at ususoftball.
 
- USU -