Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

Honolulu, HI – Though playing well enough for a sweep, Academy of Art University Softball settled for a split with Chaminade on Tuesday evening. Just one scoreless inning came in game one as five ties and two three lead changes occurred en route to an extra-inning walk off single for the Silverswords in the bottom of the eighth. Game two was another lengthy contest out at Central Oahu Regional Park, but this time, ART U exploded for seven runs in the fourth inning then added four more in the seventh to help them win 12-3.

Game one was a true roller coaster ride from the outset. ART U struck first, getting singles from Kamyle Glover and Elyse Cordova before a two-run double by Taylor Thurman got the Knights on the board. Chaminade got one run back quickly on an RBI single from Aja Keyes and, although Academy of Art put two in scoring position in the second, they were left stranded.

The Silverswords took a 3-2 lead after plating two in the second, but the Urban Knights swiped it right back by capitalizing on Chaminade miscues in the top of the third. With Elise Oldham on base, Thurman hit a ball into centerfield where an error allowed one to score before a Lauren Stover single was backed up by consecutive walks which brought in another.

Academy of Art's 4-3 lead was brief, however, as the Swords mirrored their opponent, scoring on an ART U error in the bottom of the third. The fourth saw Cordova and Thurman go back-to-back with their doubles to get back in front 5-4. Again, Chaminade came right back and tied the game on another outfield error to make it 5-5 heading to the fifth.

With two down, the Knights began another rally with singles from Haily MacDonald and Jasmine Dickenson which set up Glover's clutch two-run triple to right center. An infield error allowed one more to score and ART U now held an 8-5 advantage. Carly Emerson (1-7) came in to relieve Alexa Peters in the fifth and proceeded to strike out a pair in her first frame.

In the sixth, however, Chaminade closed the gap with an RBI single and a two-run single to once again knot the score 8-8. Both sides were retired in order in the seventh and the opening contest would move into extra innings. Glover led off the eighth with a single, but did not advance further as reliever Brett Aspel (3-7) struck out a pair in her second inning of action.

The bottom of the eighth witnessed an unfortunate end when Keyes opened with a single, reached second on a wild pitch and later scored on a walk off single from Jenn Betian despite two outs being made in between. In the end, the Silverswords prevailed 9-8 with the contest ending just after 10:00 PM PST.

"We had a couple of defensive letdowns that led to some free runs in the first game," co-head coach Randy Ward said. "We fought through a couple of tie situations to push ahead, but we gave up three free runs that kept us from winning in regulation."


Jill Johnson (4-6) got off to a fantastic start in the second contest, retiring nine of her first 10 batters faced. She would strike out six consecutive batters at one point and became just the second Urban Knight to ever do so in a single game. Meanwhile, aggressive base-running from MacDonald and Glover led to ART U's first run in the top of the third. A mistake by Johnson in the bottom half gave Kristiann Endow a solo home run to tie the game, but Academy of Art hit the gas in the fourth.

The Knights scored seven times that frame,  getting a RBI fielder's choice from MacDonald then loading the bases before Cordova smacked a two-run single to left and Thurman drove in a pair on her double to right center. A pitching change did not slow things down as Oldham plated Thurman on a double and Stover helped get another in after benefiting from an error by her Chaminade shortstop counterpart.

Given an 8-1 advantage, Johnson could continue to pitch aggressively, but Keyes had another solo shot in the fourth to make the score 8-2. Both Johnson and Chaminade's Marisella Rodriguez got themselves out of jams in bottom of the fifth and top of the sixth respectively. With two more strikeouts in the sixth, Johnson attained her new career-high of eight batters fanned.

Another rally welled forth from the ART U bats in the seventh as MacDonald, Dickenson, and Glover reached to help set up a bases loaded situation. After one came in on a wild pitch, Cordova delivered a RBI single through the right side and Thurman followed that up with a two-run single. A 12-2 game became 12-3 when the Swords' got one back in the seventh, but Peters finished off the inning with a comebacker and the Knights had their third split on the islands.

Academy of Art, who finished with a combined 20 runs scored on 26 hits, is lifted to 6-14 overall, 4-7 in PacWest and had a big doubleheader from Thurman who went 5-for-8 with seven RBIs, three doubles, and two runs scored. Cordova added two more multi-hit games, finishing the day 7-for-8 with three RBIs and a double. Glover went 4-for-8 with her second triple of the year, three RBIs, and four runs scored.

"Our top and middle of the order continue to be solid for us," Coach Ward said. "Taylor and Kamyle have been on fire as of late. Cordova remains consistent in the three hole and was one of the keys for our run production today."

In just her second career start, Peters allowed just two earned runs on nine hits through 4.0 innings pitched with a strikeout. Johnson never had much of a problem in her 6.0 innings of game two, offering a career-high eight strikeouts while allowing just two runs on five hits.

"Jill did a great job mixing her speeds and locations today," co-head coach Sami Strinz said. "She looked zeroed in all six innings. She's real tough when she wants to be."

Chaminade (7-9, 6-8 PacWest) was led by Betian's 3-for-5 game one with three RBIs including the game-winner while Keyes was 6-for-8 with a home run. The Swords sent four pitchers to the circle in the opening contest, but in both games, Aspel was received decisions, winning the first and losing the second  with a final tally of 5.2 innings pitched in which she allowed seven runs on seven hits.

The Urban Knights close out their Hawaii roadtrip this Thursday with a doubleheader at BYU-Hawaii in Laie. That twinbill is set to begin at 1:00 PM HST (4:00 PM PST).

"Thursday provides an opportunity for us to come out of this Hawaii trip with a .500 record," Coach Strinz said. "If we keep swinging the way we did today and get consistent pitching performances, then we will should come out on top."