Sacramento State faced Loyola Marymount this past weekend in a string of gut-wrenching losses. The Hornets fell apart in the late innings of the 2-day, 3-game series.
Saturday: Loyola Marymount 6, Sac State 3
The first game of the series started as a defensive affair, with a bunch of groundouts and retirements from both sides until the third inning.
With two runners on base, Hornet junior outfielder Andrea Lira singled to bring in two runs in the third, starting the game 2-0.
In the fourth, the tides changed drastically. Back-to-back home runs by the Lions tied the game, and soon after, fielding errors led to a double that brought in two more runs.
The Lions started to gain control by adding another run in the following inning to grow the lead to 5-2.
The Hornets faced a 3-run deficit in the sixth, but a solo home run by sophomore first baseman Malissa George closed the gap to just two.
In the seventh, the Hornets had to get a few outs to have a chance at coming back. That potential crumbled, as the defense struggled in the field which all, but ended their comeback effort.
An eventual sixth score by the Lions in the seventh ended the game, as Hornets lost momentum and couldn’t respond in their last at bat.
Not closing the game and hitting woes played a huge factor in the 6-3 loss. Sac State had eight hits to their opponents’ 11.
Saturday: Loyola Marymount 6, Sac State 4
The second game of the double header had the same theme as the previous one: the Hornets letting their foot off the gas early.
The Hornets started up one run early in the game off a single from senior outfielder Nikki Barboza in the second. In the next inning, a home run to left field by junior infielder Jenna Birch made the score 2-0.
In the fourth and fifth innings, the Lions started to slow down the Hornets offensively with outs. Their fans started to roar, as momentum was gearing to switch over.
Sac State had been pitching well, with senior pitcher Caroline Evans delivering five strikeouts, but disaster struck in the sixth inning.
While the Hornets were up 2-0, the Lions went on a mean tear, with two doubles and a single bringing in six runs, completely changing the game.
The Hornets attempted to mount a late comeback push with runs scored by Lira and senior shortstop Gwen Ludwig, but the damage had been done.
The Hornets were out-hit six to eight in this game, and the devastating sixth inning was the catalyst for the shift in the 6-4 loss.
Sunday: Loyola Marymount 5, Sac State 3
In the last showdown of the 3-game series, Sac State struck first.
Wanting to get on the board quickly after yesterday’s games junior outfielder Faith Epperson made a stellar play. While the ball was in play, Epperson turned on the burners and sped from second to home to put the Hornets up 1-0.
“When I was running, all I thought was to be fast and score. It was important for us to score first and get ahead,” Epperson said. “It felt good to be able to do that for my team.”
The Hornets held a two-run lead, but as the game went on, the previous pattern of not being able to add on runs or put away the game started to show its head.
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With a 3-1 lead in the sixth, the Hornets couldn’t make contact with the bats, losing the hit battle 12 to nine or defensively retire batters. The Lions got hot late again, and the Hornets just couldn’t recover, losing 3-5.
“Losses never feel good, especially on your home turf, but we are going to come out with even more fire for our next series,” George said. “We are going to use this week to grind, not only mentally but physically, prepare and get after it this series against Idaho State.”
Sac State head coach Lori Perez said games like this are beneficial in the long run.
“It was a tough weekend to lose all three. We struggled to keep the lead and close out for the wins,” Perez said. “Games like these allow for a lot of growth and learning. We are a young team, and I know we will continue to get better every day.”
Sac State now sits at 13-15 on the season and looks to bounce back as Big Sky Conference play begins this weekend versus Idaho State in a 3-game series that begins at home on Friday at noon.
