TUCSON, Ariz. -- Arizona walked off with a 2-1 win over Boise State in game 1 before run-ruling SIUE in game 2, 15-2, on Saturday at the Wildcat Invitational.
The Wildcats improved to 20-3 on the season with the wins, their eighth and ninth consecutive. Arizona finishes the Wildcat Invitational on Sunday vs. Indiana at 11:15 a.m. MST.
Game 1: #4 Arizona 2, Boise State 1
Alyssa Palomino-Cardoza led off the bottom of the seventh with a walkoff home run, breaking a 1-1 tie and lifting the Wildcats on a day their offense struggled to drive in runs.
Alyssa Denham was excellent in the circle for the Wildcats, allowing just run, a second-inning solo homer, on four hits. She struck out seven Broncos and walked just one. She improved to 8-1 on the year.
Both pitchers allowed early runs -- UA scored in the first and Boise State answered right back in the top of the first -- before bearing down and pitching out of some jams the rest of the way until Palomino-Cardoza ended it in the seventh.
Hannah Martinez stayed hot for the Wildcats, ripping a pair of opposite-field doubles in the game, her sixth and seventh extra-base hit in her last 11 at-bats dating back to last week's Easton Crimson Classic. Palomino-Cardoza and
Reyna Carranco also posted two-hit games for the Wildcats.
Arizona broke through in the bottom of the first inning to grab the early lead. An
Alyssa Palomino-Cardoza double and a pair of infield singles by
Reyna Carranco and
Jessie Harper loaded the bases with nobody out.
Malia Martinez hit a sacrifice fly to right before a sharp line drive was turned into a double play to limit the Cats to a single run.
Boise State answered back with a solo homer in the top of the second.
That 1-1 tie stood until the bottom of the seventh inning, when Palomino-Cardoza took a 1-2 pitch out to deep right-center to end the game.
Game 2: #4 Arizona 15, SIUE 2 (5 innings)
In its most productive offensive game of the season, Arizona plated 15 runs, helped out by five doubles and two home runs, in a 15-2, five-inning win over SIUE in the nightcap.
Hanah Bowen earned the win for the Cats in relief. She pitched three scoreless innings, striking out four and walking one. She improved to 1-0 on the year. She replaced
Mariah Lopez, who pitched the first two innings and gave up two runs on five hits with four punchouts and no walks.
With runners on the corners, SIUE executed a suicide squeeze to plate a run in the top of the first to take the early lead.
Arizona responded in a big way in the home half of the first. The first five Wildcats reached, punctuated by back-to-back-to-back RBI doubles from
Jessie Harper,
Malia Martinez and
Hanah Bowen to give Arizona a 4-1 lead after one inning.
SIUE hit back-to-back doubles of its own in the top of the second to plate a run and cut into the UA lead.
Arizona's bats came alive once again int he third. A pair of home runs, first by
Jessie Harper and later by
Ivy Davis, sandwiched an
Izzy Pacho RBI double. In all, the Cats plated four runs on the three hits to take an 8-2 lead after three innings.
The Cats were helped out by some free passes in the fourth inning, scoring seven runs on just two hits in the frame.
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