April 2, 2004
Game 1 Box Score
Game 2 Box Score
SALT LAKE CITY - Amber Campbell hit two home runs and Pauline Glenn parked a grand slam as the UNLV softball team knocked off Mountain West Conference rival Utah 10-1 in five innings in the first game of a doubleheader at Ute Field on Friday.
The Utes (9-20, 1-1) turned the tables in the second game, hitting four home runs themselves to post a 9-1 win in six innings.
UNLV (19-23, 2-2) entered the day with just two home runs as a team, both by Glenn. But Campbell changed that with a two-run shot to left center in the top of the second, erasing a 1-0 deficit.
Utah drew first blood on the day as leadoff hitter Lynsey Wall took Jacqueline Kerrigan (15-14, 2-0) deep in her first at bat. But the Utes' lead didn't last long as Campbell hit her first bomb since Feb. 9, 2002 in the top of the next inning.
If the two runs in the second were nice support, then Kerrigan really enjoyed the third inning. The Rebels scored seven times in the inning, icing the victory. It started with a leadoff single by Brittany Freight. A Lisa Sampson walk put two aboard, and then a costly Ute fielding error allowed Freight to score. Wendy Godwin drew a second walk from Utah starter Samantha Schroeder (2-6, 0-1), loading the bases for Morgan Bostwick. After all players advanced 60 feet on Bostwick's infield single, Glenn did the rest of the work, muscling her third homer of the year over the fence to drive in four.
UNLV scored once more in the inning after Utah changed pitchers, but the runs weren't necessary as Kerrigan locked down the Ute hitters the rest of the way. Following the first-inning homer, Kerrigan allowed only a third-inning single in throwing a complete-game two-hitter.
The Rebels carried a 9-1 lead into the fifth inning, but insured the mercy-rule victory as Campbell hit her second homer of the game to put UNLV up by the final count, 10-1.
The win marked the Rebels' second come-from-behind victory in two days. UNLV rebounded against league foe BYU for a 6-3 win on Thursday.
The runs did not come as easy in the nightcap against Ute ace Brianna Gourdin (7-3, 1-0). The Rebels did continue to hit, collecting seven in the game, but could move only one run across.
Meanwhile, the Ute offense clubbed four home runs. Lefty Becky McDonald (1-3, 0-1) took the loss after surrendering a first-inning homer to Glennis Donnelly, the MWC's leading hitter. Two scored on the homer, giving the Utes all the run production they would need.
UNLV scratched back in the second, scoring a run of its own on three consecutive hits from Kacey Ellis, Godwin and Bostwick.
The pitchers maintained control until the bottom of the fifth, when Utah struck again for four runs. Wall homered to begin the inning, forcing UNLV head coach Lonni Alameda to turn to the bullpen. Kerrigan came in to relieve McDonald, but Utah stayed hot with the help of two fielding errors. After Donnelly reached by error, Melissa Stahnke doubled down the left field line. Joanna Jackson's throw home was in time to nab Donnelly at the plate, but the ball was knocked away from catcher Brittney Hillyer and the run scored. With Stahnke at third, Devina Quintero belted the next bomb, putting the Utes up 6-1.
UNLV brought in Ellis to pitch in the sixth, their third hurler of the game. After ringing up the first two outs, Utah mustered back-to-back singles, setting up Donnelly for a three-run blast, her second of the game and good enough to end the contest with a 9-1 mercy-rule victory.
For the day, Glenn was 4-for-6 at the plate with four RBI. And after recording three straight errorless games, UNLV turned three miscues in the nightcap.
The Rebels return home from their 2-2 road trip for their only home appearances of April. They continue Mountain West Conference play on Friday, April 9, in a doubleheader against New Mexico at 5 p.m. at Eller Media Stadium. The weekend wraps up with a Sunday, April 11 date at 12 noon with Colorado State.
