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Turlock, CA – In its first-ever appearance at the Tournament of Champions presented by Mizuno, Academy of Art University battled hard and was in every game during a Friday tripleheader not often seen on collegiate softball schedules. A one-run game turned in favor of Western Washington 5-1  to start before a back-and-forth rematch with Azusa Pacific ended up going the Cougars' way 7-2. In the nightcap, which finished just 10 minutes before midnight, the Urban Knights pushed past Montana State-Billings 5-1.

"Playing late night games under the lights is always really special," co-head coach Sami Strinz said. "As a ball player you feel like a big leaguer. Our ladies did a great job of coming together as a team when our backs were against the walls."

Beginning the day against Western Washington, Academy of Art had hits in each of the first four innings, but was unable to plate a run before the Vikings. ART U freshman Jessica Marin doubled in the second, but it was WWU who came back to take a 1-0 lead in the bottom half of that inning on a RBI single from Cheyenne Best.

Behind 1-0 in the fourth, Marin was able to smash her second double of the game to right center, bringing in sophomore Taylor Thurman who had coaxed a walk. Further damage was prevented as the chance ended on a strikeout and the teams found themselves separated by just a single run heading into the sixth.

Although ART U starter Haily MacDonald (3-4) had allowed just one run on four hits, her leadoff walk to start the sixth brought in sophomore Kristin Valdivia (2-1) in relief. A sacrifice bunt followed by a single and an intentional walk loaded the bases for Best and she proceeded to hit a grand slam, putting Western Washington up 5-1. Using the momentum from that hit, WWU held on for the victory.


The Knights' game two of the Tournament of Champions saw Academy of Art challenge a familiar foe in Azusa Pacific whom ART U had defeated twice earlier this season. The contest began with junior Elyse Cordova and Marin each reaching base on a single and walk respectively, however, APU starter Rita Kim (6-5) was able to get out of jam.

In the bottom of the second inning, the Cougars went ahead 1-0 on an error by the ART U infield, but the Knights fought back to take a 2-1 lead in the fourth when Thurman, who had been hit by a pitch and stolen second, scored on an interference play after sophomore Kamyle Glover hit a single. MacDonald would double home Glover shortly thereafter and Academy of Art held its first lead of the day.

Azusa Pacific came right back and tied the ballgame 2-2 in their half of the fourth when an unearned run came home following another error. Junior Lauren Stover reached third in the top of the fifth, but it was not until the bottom half of that inning that the tie would be broken. APU capitalized on another miscue and went ahead 3-2 with the unearned run.

It appeared as though Academy of Art was going to respond right back in the top of the sixth when freshman Shelby Gill led off with a single and the bases were later loaded on Cordova's single. However, a popout ended the chance and the momentum swung to Azusa Pacific in the bottom half when four more runs came home on three hits. The end result was a 7-2 win for the Cougars though Gill had pitched effectively, going 5.1 innings with only four earned runs allowed on seven hits and two strikeouts.


Despite over an hour delay causing the first pitch of ART U's nightcap against Montana State-Billings to be thrown at 9:40 PM, the Knights were more than ready to grab an early lead. In the bottom of the first, four consecutive singles were hit starting with Cordova then Stover and Marin. Redshirt sophomore Jasmine Dickenson kept the streak alive with an RBI single next and senior Andrea Hanchey grounded out, but brought in Stover on the play, making it 2-0 Academy of Art.

Following a scoreless second, both teams rallied in the third. MSUB's Emily Osborn doubled in the Yellow Jackets' first run of the game (another unearned) while a big three-run ART U surge started with Dickenson reach on an error. After Hanchey singled, Thurman drove in Dickenson on a single and, soon thereafter, Hanchey touched home on a wild pitch. The second of what would be three errors for Montana State-Billings then allowed Thurman to score and it was 5-1 Knights. Though MSUB made one last comeback attempt by loading the bases in the seventh, senior Kimberly Dauer (6-11) got the final batter to pop out and give her team a big win to end what was an incredibly long day.

Dauer, who had struck out four Yellow Jackets in the course of the first two innings, made it a night to remember for Academy of Art. She would finish off her 11th complete game of the season with no earned runs allowed on nine hits with zero walks and eight strikeouts (just two off her career-high) in 7.0 innings pitched.

"Kim threw like Kim today," Coach Strinz said. "She's a really tough pitcher when she trusts herself and she's getting back to that point right now. She's going right at hitters and challenging them. That's the aggressiveness that she displays when she is successful."

On the day, Cordova was 4-for-11 with a run scored after having hits in all three contests to give her a six-game hitting streak. Some of the standout performances included Marin's 2-for-3 contest (two doubles) against Western Washington, MacDonald's 2-for-4 game with an RBI versus Azusa Pacific, and Thurman's 2-for-3 nightcap against MSUB that included a run and an RBI. Following three non-conference battles, Academy of Art is now 11-23 overall this season.

"Our team had a moment today where they came together and decided that enough is enough," Coach Strinz said. "They are sick and tired of cheating themselves out of games. Conversations like that show a lot of maturity and we couldn't be prouder of our team for empowering themselves!"

The Urban Knights will continue Tournament of Champions play tomorrow with a doubleheader against Saint Martin's (3:45 PM) and Central Washington (8:00 PM).