Softball drops a pair on opening day of Wildcat Invite

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Despite a four-hit day from sophomore outfielder Taylor Burger (Killingworth, Conn.), the Bryant University softball team dropped a pair of contests, falling to UC Riverside and UT Arlington, on the opening day of the Wildcat Invitational in Tucson, Ariz.

GAME 1

The Bulldogs (3-3) ran into the high-powered Highlander (13-4) offense in the first leg of Friday's doubleheader, falling to UC Riverside, 7-2.

A trio of Bulldogs led the offense as juniors Liana Ogata (Tustin, Calif.) and Elle Madsen (Wheat Ridge, Colo.), and Burger each picked up two hits in the game.

Freshman Logan Paul (Shaker Heights, Ohio) threw her first complete game as a Bulldog, allowing seven runs on 11 hits in seven innings of work.

In the top of the first inning, the first three Highlanders made their way on base before a fielder's choice broke the scoreless tie, however, Paul worked her way out of the bases loaded jam allowing only the single run. UC Riverside got back to work in the second inning, tacking on three more runs to open a 4-0 lead through one and half innings of play.

In the bottom of the second, the Black and Gold got on the board when a Jessica Benacquista (Belleville, N.J.) ground ball scored Alexandra Page (Grafton, Mass.) to cut the margin to just three runs, 4-1. The Highlanders would add three more runs in the top of the fourth with Bryant getting its second run in the bottom of the fifth when a Madsen single to center drove home Ogata.

GAME 2

In the second game, senior Madeline Velasquez (Los Angeles, Calif.) went 3-for-4 with a run scored and sophomore Lauren Keast (Holliston, Mass.) belted her first-career homerun but, the Bulldogs came up short, as UT Arlington capitalized of five Bryant errors en route to a 15-5 win.

In the top of the third, the Mavs (10-5) broke open a scoreless tie, stringing together a barrage of infield singles and fielder's choice ground balls to open up a 5-0 advantage. But, the Black and Gold responded in a big way, matching Arlington's outburst with five runs of their own.

After two quick outs, Bryant got to work when Keast sent a shot over the left-center field fence for her first homer as a Bulldog. Velasquez singled to the left side for one of her three hits in the game only to be driven in by a Madsen double to center on the subsequent at bat.

After a Hayley Bottino (Canyon Country Calif.) HBP, Burger continued her big day with an RBI double to left to cut the margin to just two runs, 5-3. Capping off the big inning, freshman Maritza Martinez (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.) belted a two-run single up the middle for her first career hit, knotting the score, 5-5, after three.

However, the tie was short lived as the Mavs went on to add 10 more runs, including seven in the top of the sixth to seal a 15-5 win.

The Black and Gold return to action on Saturday with games against Colorado St. (11 a.m. EST) and UTEP (1 p.m. EST).