Top Performers
APU: Sona Babayan (both games) 4/6, 2 R, 5 RBI
CSUSB: Cassandra Williams 7 IP, 9 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K
APU softball split a doubleheader Tuesday night against Cal State San Bernardino. The Cougars dropped the first game 4-2 before pulling out an 8-4 win in the nightcap.
The Coyotes put up two runs in the second inning and another in the third that proved to be the winner. The Cougars were able to put up a run in both the second and the third innings, but weren’t able to mount a comeback in the late frames.
Coyotes’ pitcher Cassandra Williams threw a complete game, allowing only one earned run and notching five strikeouts in the 127-pitch outing.
The Cougars struggled defensively, committing four errors.
The Cougars were able to turn around in the nightcap, riding pitcher Carly Xepoleas’ solid performance to an 8-4 victory. The sophomore lefty threw all seven innings, allowing only five hits and three earned runs.
Offensively, APU doubled its run output from the first three games (4) in just the first and second innings by scoring eight runs. The Cougars were led by left fielder Sona Babayan, who notched a triple and an inside-the-park home run and drove in five of the Cougars’ eight runs in the second game.
The game saw an unusual delay in the middle of the fourth inning when the lights suddenly switched off. This was attributed to a wrongly set timer for the lights, The teams waited for 21 minutes before resuming play.
Nicole Nobbe had two hits and a run for the Coyotes in the loss.
The split moved the Cougars’ record to 2-2. The team will travel to Las Vegas this weekend to play five games before returning home Feb. 17 for a doubleheader against Adelphi.