The UCSD softball team made it big Tuesday when it won a pair of games over Biola University.
The Tritons took the first game from the Eagles 3-2 in 11 innings and then won the second game, scoring four runs in the top of the 7th inning for a come-from-behind 4-2 victory.
The Tritons scored in the first inning of the first game when Amy Mettee scored on Kristina Anderson’s RBI single to give UCSD a 1-0 lead.
The score did not change until the 5th inning when the Tritons added another run. Biola scored a run in both the 6th and 7th to send the game into extra innings.
UCSD’s Christi Martinelli relieved pitcher Leea Harlan after seven innings and continued to put up goose eggs until the top of the 11th when Kim Aggabao batted in Breanne Cope to give the Tritons a 3-2 lead.
The Eagles advanced a runner to third base but could not score in the bottom of the 11th as Martinelli finished her fourth scoreless inning in relief for the win.
Martinelli would come back to start the second game and continued with another two scoreless innings until Eagles right fielder Joanna Gray hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the 3rd to give Biola a 2-0 lead.
The Eagle lead held up until the bottom of the 7th inning when fate found its way into the Triton dugout. With two outs, Mieko McCue and Mettee each got on base to give Anderson a chance to be the hero. Anderson hit a sharp groundball to the Eagle shortstop that took a bad hop off the infield dirt, bounced off the shortstop’s shoulder and rolled into left field. Two runs scored and the game was tied at two. Moments later, Harlan added a two-run double to give the Tritons a 4-2 lead.
Martinelli, who pitched a total of 11 innings on the day, commented afterward on the close games: “”We feel real good about taking these games,”” she said. “”We were in the games the whole time but it was a question of whether or not we were going to beat ourselves.””
The 9-1 Tritons will take on conference rival California State University San Bernardino at Triton Softball Field on Feb. 16.
