Cougars fall to Mustangs in final day of Kajikawa

TEMPE, ARIZ. – In its final game of the Kajikawa Classic, BYU softball fell to Cal Poly 3-1 Saturday morning.

“It was a hard-fought and well-played game,” BYU head coach Gordon Eakin said. “In the bottom of the fifth, Gordy Bravo made a sensational catch crashing through the temporary outfield fence, but the ball came loose on the play. That was the turning point of the game.”

Bravo went 1-for-3 at the plate, Alexa Strid hit 1-for-3 with a double and Lacey Hofstedt also collected a hit on three at-bats while chipping in with the RBI for the Cougars (2-3).

From the circle McKenna Bull pitched all seven innings allowing nine hits and three earned runs while striking out five.

With effective pitching and strong defense, BYU stymied the Mustangs (2-1) for the first three innings, carrying a scoreless tie into the top of the fourth.

BYU then struck first as Coco Tauali'i scored from third on a Hofstedt single after being advanced by a Strid double. 

In the bottom half of the frame Cal Poly evened the score with a two-out RBI double to left field by Stephanie Heyward. 

In the bottom of the fifth the Mustangs hit their solo home run to take a 2-1 lead. Cal Poly extended its lead to 3-1 in the bottom of the next inning, scoring on a two-out single to right field.

BYU then loaded the bases at the top of the seventh. Bravo led off the frame with a base hit to right-center field. Two outs later Ashley Thompson drew a walk, and then Sydney Broderick reached base on an error. The two-out rally came up short as McKenzie St. Clair went down swinging to end the game.

“We saw things we’ll have to work on,” Eakin said. “We’ll build on the positives.”

The Cougars head down to Las Vegas for the Wilson/DeMarini Desert Classic next weekend Feb. 12-14. Their first game is against Hawai’i Thursday at 4:30 p.m. PST at UNLV’s Eller Media Stadium.