MORAGA, Calif. – Friday's start to Pacific West Conference play featured masterful pitching performances from Academy of Art softball's freshmen
Kayla Vaughan (2-2) and
Alyssa Fullmer (3-1) as the Urban Knights went ahead with timely hitting while holding Biola to singular runs in each side of the doubleheader for 4-1 and 2-1 victories out at Cottrell Field.
GAME 1 – ART U 4, BU 1
Though Vaughan allowed a baserunner in each of her complete seven innings, she was particularly stingy through the first six innings, opening the day by tossing six scoreless frames while striking out three batters and surrendering just three hits during that stretch.
Meanwhile, Biola's Raylene Roybal (1-2) could not find the same success as she gave up four runs with the first coming in the third inning off a senior outfielder
Cailee Grayhorse-Pupecki single to right center field with freshman outfielder
Lida Wos scoring easily. In the fifth inning, sophomore infielder
Audrey Allen added to the tally with a two-run double over the head of BU's left fielder that one-hopped the fence to score both Grayhorse-Pupecki and junior infielder
Alexis Folks. One more run came for the Knights in the sixth inning, as
Marissa "Roo" Menard struck a sacrifice fly to center which had enough heat to score senior infielder
Haley Randall.
Biola plated their lone unearned run of the contest off a sacrifice fly to right field, but could not create enough momentum to push a seventh-inning comeback as the first game finalized in favor of Academy of Art with a 4-1 score.
GAME 2 – ART U 2, BU 1
The second part of the doubleheader saw more quality pitching from the Knights as Fullmer also tossed a complete game in her fourth collegiate start. She gave up just six hits and two walks while finishing her second seven-inning effort with just one run allowed after she did the same to Chico State on
Feb. 10.
Three scoreless innings to start the contest gave way to Biola striking first on a run-scoring double down the left field line in the fourth. It did not take long for the Knights to respond, however, as Randall struck a ball up the middle to score senior infielder
Katie Humphreys and Allen for a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the fourth.
Fullmer would proceed to collect three more scoreless frames, retiring nine of 11 batters during that stretch, to hold the narrow lead for ART U and eventually claim the 2-1 victory for the doubleheader sweep following a groundout with the potential tying run at first.
"I'm extremely proud of Alyssa and Kayla in the circle today," said Head Coach
Geena Garabedian. "They did an extremely great job and had a great presence. To complement, we had some great key situational hitting thanks to Cailee, Audrey, and Haley."
Academy of Art moves to 6-5 overall and 2-0 to start PacWest play this season after significant production from the pitching staff with Vaughan (2.24) and Fullmer (3.07) both moving inside the conference's top 10 in earned run average. Multiple Knights showed up big in the batter's box on the day with Randall finishing the doubleheader going 3-for-6 with two runs batted in and the trio of Grayhorse-Pupecki, Folks, and Allen all racking up two hits apiece.
Biola, who drops to 2-5 overall and 0-2 in conference action on the year, was limited to no more than six hits in either contest and had just two, Abie Nowak and Kaitlyn Hawkins, account for the team's two RBIs. Roybal took the game one loss with three earned runs allowed on seven hits and two walks with four strikeouts in 6.0 innings while Kayla Bousquette (0-3), who was perfect through the first three frames, ended up with BU's second loss, surrendering two runs on three hits with one walk and two strikeouts in 3.1 innings of work.
ART U is back at it tomorrow, finishing off the four-game series hosting Biola once again at Cottrell Field in Moraga, Calif. with first pitch of the doubleheader set for noon.
