FRESNO, Calif. – Utah State softball (11-14, 1-0 MW) opened Mountain West play with a win Friday night at Margie Wright Diamond in Fresno, beginning a three-game series against Fresno State with a 9-2 victory.
The Aggies were tasked with playing from behind early after allowing a pair of quick Bulldog runs in the first inning. A triple, an Aggie error and a base hit helped the hosts establish an early 2-0 lead, but after a scoreless second, Utah State answered with four runs of its own.
First, it was an RBI single for sophomore outfielder Faith Kroening to put the Aggies on the board. A hit by pitch followed, then an RBI double for senior catcher Kaylee Erickson. Both Erickson and senior outfielder Kya Pratt scored on the next two at-bats with a groundout for freshman infielder Jazmin Ramirez then a single up the middle for senior infielder Alex Bunton to round out the team's scoring in the inning.
In the fifth, the Aggies tacked on another run courtesy of a leadoff full-count home run over the left center field fence by Erickson, her third moonshot of the season. Erickson came up big again in the following inning with a 2 RBI double to score Kroening and Pratt, followed by another USU run scored on a Fresno State error to make it 8-2. The final Utah State run of the night came on a bases-loaded walk, drawn by Pratt in the seventh inning.
In total, the Aggies recorded 12 hits led by a 3-of-5 performance at the plate by Erickson, who had a home run, two doubles, four RBIs and two runs scored. Bunton also recorded a pair of hits, along with freshman catcher Sofia Trejo and junior infielder Keely Goushá.
Senior right-hander Rylie Pindel was outstanding in the circle for USU, pitching all 7.0 innings with just four hits and two earned runs allowed. She struck out two batters and walked just two to earn the win, her fourth of the year.
UP NEXT
Utah State (11-14, 1-0 MW) will play part two of a three-game series against the Wolf Pack tomorrow in Reno, beginning at 3 p.m. (MT). The game will be streamed for free on Mountain West Network.
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.
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