Sacramento State’s softball team got back on the right track Saturday, beating Idaho State (21-20) in six innings by a final score of 10-1 on the road.

After weather caused a late start to the game, the Hornets (23-17, 12-3 in the Big Sky Conference) got started early, with a Zamari Hinton double followed by a home run by designated player Sasha Margulies, her fourth of the year, to put the Hornets up 2-0 after the first.

Sac State starter Celina Matthias got into trouble in the first, allowing a double and putting runners at the corners with two outs before inducing a ground ball for the third out of the inning and preserving the early lead.

The third saw right fielder Natalie Alas save a run for the Hornets during a close moment in the game. With a runner on base and two outs, Alas made a diving catch to end the frame, ending the Bengal rally in the middle of their lineup.

Margulies led off the top of the fourth with a single, followed by two fielder’s choices. With a runner at first and two outs, catcher Kortney Solis hit a two-run shot, her first of the year, to give the Hornets some breathing room at a score of 4-0.

On the other side of the ball, Matthias had the Bengals off balance all day. Although she collected just one strikeout, she went the distance while giving up one run off just five hits and two walks on the way to her 17th win of the year. The only times a runner got into scoring position were the first and last frames.

The Hornets kept adding on in the later innings. The fifth inning saw center fielder Shelby Johnston hit a lead-off single and steal second before coming around to score off an Alas triple to right. The next batter, shortstop Sydney Rasmussen, brought Alas in with an RBI groundout, to bring the score to 6-0.

The sixth saw four Hornets cross the plate to extend the lead to 10-0. The first six batters reached base, with third baseman Kailey Olcott leading off the inning and getting plunked, followed by a Solis single. Left fielder Kayla Papez hit the first of back-to-back doubles to bring in a run, and Johnston hit another to bring in two more.

A single by Alas moved the runner to third and Rasmussen loaded the bases with an infield single. A strikeout and a fielder’s choice got the first two outs of the frame, but first baseman Jessica Ravetti hit an RBI single to left field to top off the scoring and give the Hornets double-digit runs.

The Bengals scored a meaningless run in the bottom half of the sixth. Matthias allowed back-to-back singles to lead off the frame before giving up a two-out RBI single to bring the score to 10-1. She then induced a fly-out to the left to end the game.

Five Hornets collected two hits, seven had RBIs, and all players either scored a run or drove one in during what was the Hornet’s largest scoring output since April 8.

The Hornets are now 12-3 in conference play, entering the final weeks of the season. With this win, Sac State remains a half game in first place, ahead of second-place Weber State, who the Hornets face next in a huge series. Sac State will now travel to Weber State on April 29 for the team’s second-to-last series and the final time the Hornets will hit the road during the regular season.