Softball knocks off No. 15 Redlands...twice
ORANGE, Calif. – Chapman University softball team earned two huge upset wins over No. 15 University of Redlands, sweeping the Bulldogs with a pair of 2-1 decisions in a SCIAC doubleheader on Saturday afternoon at El Camino Real Park. The wins helped the Panthers go 4-0 on the weekend and grab sole possession of the third place standing in the conference.
Red-hot Chapman (22-14 overall, 15-9 in SCIAC) has now won five in a row and 19 of its past 23 games with four remaining. Chapman teamed up with Redlands to "Strike Out Cancer" as part of a conference-wide initiative to raise money and awareness.
Game 1: Chapman 2, Redlands 1
A delayed double steal by the Panthers led to the winning run in the bottom of the sixth inning as Chapman held on for the win. Junior IF Lindsay Holt – who reached on an infield single – stole second, drawing the throw during which junior DP Mindy Gibson swiped home.
Junior RHP Cassie Oregel retired the side in the seventh, despite Redlands (26-8 overall, 20-4 SCIAC) getting the tying runner to third base. Oregel gathered five strikeouts over seven innings and improved her record to 13-5 overall.
The Panthers jumped on the board early as junior OF Karina Muniz homered to deep right-center in the third inning to take a 1-0 lead. The Bulldogs battled back to tie it in the fifth as Janelle Carrasco reached on a bunt single and was later knocked in by Vicki King who singled down the third base line.
Boxscore: http://www.chapmanathletics.com/sports/sball/2013-14/boxscores/20140412_nj4r.xml
Game 2: Chapman 2, Redlands 1
With the score knotted at 1-1 in the bottom of the seventh, sophomore C Lisa Perez doubled in sophomore OF Amy Serven with the game-winning run to complete the sweep in walkoff fashion. Serven led off the inning with a single to left, followed by a base hit by junior IF Taylor Cartwright.
Sophomore RHP Natalie Both racked up a seven strikeouts and scattered eight hits for the win, evening her win-loss mark at 9-9 and bringing her strikeout total to 152 on the season.
Trailing 1-0 in the top of the bottom of the fifth the Panthers rallied with a two-out double by sophomore IF Larissa Rinauro followed by a single by Serven. Rinauro scored on an errant pickoff throw to tie up the game.
The loss was the third straight for Redlands and the first time this season the Bulldogs have been swept by a conference opponent.
Boxscore: http://www.chapmanathletics.com/sports/sball/2013-14/boxscores/20140412_6ukq.xml
The Panthers now have a one-game advantage over fourth-place Cal Lutheran in the SCIAC standings and a two-game lead over fifth-place Whittier. Chapman returns home to host the University of La Verne (12-18 overall, 8-12 in SCIAC) at El Camino Real Park, Tuesday, April 22 on 'Senior Day'.
by Doug Aiken & Raquel Rinauro
Sports Information Director & Sports Information Assistant
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