Sac State baseball team dominates doubleheader 

The Sacramento State baseball team faced off against Utah Valley in a doubleheader in Utah.

The Hornets (12-5, 5-1 Big Sky), playing only seven innings in their first game, soundly defeated the Wolverines (2-11, 0-2 Big Sky) with a final score of 8-3.

Sac State senior Ryan Walstad got things rolling early with a two-run homer in the top of the first, giving the team a 2-0 lead start to the game. It was Walstad’s first home run of the season. 

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Goodbye, baseball! Ryan Walstad’s first homer of the season, a two-run shot, puts the Hornets ahead in the first. #StingersUp #WACbsb

B1 | SAC 2, UVU 0 pic.twitter.com/zL4bpbrldC

— Sac State Baseball (@SacStBaseball) March 19, 2021

Walstad wasn’t the only one with a homer in the first game of Friday’s doubleheader. In the top of the second, junior Steven Moretto crushed one to left field, adding to Sac State’s lead 3-0.

Back-to-back scores pushed the Hornets’ lead to 5-1. First was an RBI double from senior Matt Smith, who advanced to third after a throw to home was overthrown. Then right after Smith was at bat, Walstad had an RBI single that brought Smith home. 

The Hornets put the game away in the top of the seventh, scoring three runs. Walstad, sophomore Martin Vincelli-Simard, and junior Dawsen Bacho all had RBIs. 

Utah Valley had two home runs, one in the bottom of the second and one in the bottom of the sixth, and an RBI late in the seventh to give them three runs. In the end, it wouldn’t be enough enough to win the first game. 

The scoring didn’t slow up for the Hornets going into their second game against Utah Valley either. Sac State finished off the doubleheader by beating the Wolverines 8-5.

Like the first game, the Hornets took an early lead of 1-0 due to an RBI single from Walstad. Unlike this first game the lead did not last.

In the bottom of the fourth, Utah Valley took the lead after a home run, making the score 2-1. 

In the top of the fifth, Bacho had an RBI, tying the score up for Sac State at 2-2. 

The Hornets regained the lead in the sixth inning with junior Keith Torres, Moretto, and freshman Jack Bollengier all scored, giving Sac State a 5-2 lead.

Moretto went on to score in the eighth inning as well off a home run, his second of the day.

Two more RBIs, one in the eighth from freshman Jorge Bojorquez and one in the final inning from Moretto sealed the victory for Sac State. 

The Sac State baseball team will again play against Utah Valley on Saturday at noon.

Women’s tennis secures first win of the season

All Hornets were wearing pink in Friday’s match to show their support in the fight against breast cancer, and they just might have also found their lucky color. 

The Sac State women’s tennis team (1-10) secured their first win of the season in a dominating performance beating William Jessup (0-7) 7-0. 

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Sydney Roll

Sophomore Shauna Casey prepares her backhand swing in a doubles match against William Jessup at Sac State on Friday, March 19, 2021. Casey scored the last point of the day, resulting in a 7-0 victory for the Hornets.

Numbers one and two doubles for Sac State won convincingly. Freshman Paige Alter and sophomore Shauna Casey won 6-1. Freshmen Grace Dodd and Tsveti Yotova won their doubles match 6-0. William Jessup didn’t have enough players for a third doubles match, so senior Frana Ugarkovic and freshman Jin Yu won by default.

The women’s tennis team also took victories in all their singles matches. Sophomore Megan Tagaloa won her match against William Jessup’s Aysha Hayes 6-1, 6-2. Alter won her match against William Jessup’s McKenzie Hawkins 6-0, 6-0. Casey won her singles match against Ryanda Guerrero from William Jessup 6-3, 6-3. Sac State’s Yu beat Karen Ramos-Paglino 6-1, 6-0. William Jessup didn’t have enough players to compete in all of the singles matches, so Dodd and Ugarkovic won by default.

The team will play its final home match against Northern Arizona on Sunday at noon. Sunday will also be their first conference match of the season. We’ll see if the Hornets can use this win as momentum going into Sunday. 

Conference play has begun, another tie for women’s soccer

The Sac State women’s soccer team played its first conference game on Friday against Eastern Washington. 

The Hornets’ (1-0-3, 0-0-1 Big Sky) first conference game ended in a tie, their third of the season. 

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Gallery • 2 Photos

Sydney Roll

Senior forward/midfielder Ariana Nino goes toe-to-toe with opponents in Sac State’s home game against Eastern Washington on Friday, March 19, 2021. After their game on March 21, the Hornets and the Eagles will have faced off in four consecutive matches in the Big Sky Conference dating back to the conference tournament in 2019.

The women’s soccer team took only 5 shots to Eastern Washington’s 17. Senior Tiffany Miras led the Hornets in shots with 3. The other 2 shots were taken by seniors Aubrey Goodwill and Julia Herrera.

Herrera had Sac State’s only shot on goal. Eastern Washington (3-2-1, 2-0-1 Big Sky) had 9 in total.

It was a busy day for Sac State’s keeper, junior Aaliyah Fesili, who had nine saves. 

The women’s soccer team will face off against Eastern Washington again Sunday at 1 p.m.