Game 1 Box Score: #20 California 3, UNLV 1
Game 2 Box Score: #20 California 9, UNLV 4

BERKELEY, Calif. (UNLVRebels.com) - The UNLV softball team (20-22) jumped out of Mountain West action with a pair of non-conference games against the #20 California Golden Bears (30-9) at Levine-Fricke Field Saturday. The Rebels played the Golden Bears tough in both contests, but came up empty handed in game one and two with 3-1 and 9-4 losses, respectively, in the doubleheader. The third and final affair of the weekend series in the East Bay is set for Sunday at 12:00 pm.

The Rebel offense was paced by four hits from Emilie Valadez, who was 4-for-4 at the plate and subsequently scored twice. Garie Blando followed closely behind with three hits in five at-bats with one home run, three RBI and a pair of runs. Brooke Stover and Emily Haslinger scattered two hits apiece with the former knocking in one RBI and scoring once, as well.

Game one turned into a pitcher's duel with each team limited to one run each through five innings of action. The home-standing Golden Bears scored their run in the third when Cheyenne Cordes drove home Britt Vonk from second base with an RBI single. UNLV countered one inning later when Stover laced an RBI single to left-center field that brought Valadez home after she had entered the contest in a pinch-running capacity for Merina Ili, who had led off with a single, and been pushed over to second following a sacrifice bunt by Jamie DePippo.

After a scoreless fifth, Cal was able to stake itself to a two-run cushion with help from back-to-back home runs by Cordes and Danielle Henderson to open up the home half of the frame against Kwyn Cooper (8-4), who was tagged with the loss in 1.1 innings of relief. Cooper was touched for two runs off of two hits.

Game two was a bit more offensive than its predecessor with the teams combining for 13 runs and 18 hits compared to four runs and nine hits earlier in the day.

UNLV got started when Ili stepped up with the bases loaded and took a base on balls issued by Katie Sutherland-Finch. The Rebels used a single by Blando, a walk to Fahren Glackin and a fielder's choice by Juarez to set up the situation.

Cal then turned the momentum in its favor with two runs in both the first and third stanzas. Each outburst was fueled by two-run base hits as Henderson smashed a home run to left in the former inning, while Taurie Pogue had a single in the latter.

The Rebels pulled even in the fifth when Blando drilled a 3-1 pitch over the fence in straight away center field after Stover and Valadez began the two-out offensive with singles.

Cordes, who played a key role in game one's victory for Cal, got things going in the bottom of the fifth. She led off with a single to short and moved into scoring position when Henderson was walked before Kobie Pettis' go-ahead RBI double. Henderson came home one batter later when Pogue grounded into a fielder's choice that resulted in a play at the plate.

The Golden Bears added three insurance tallies in the sixth when the first scored on a wild pitch and two more touched home plate as a result of a two-run double by Cordes.

For the day, Cordes was 6-for-7 with four RBI and three runs scored.

Janine Petmecky (1-7) was tagged with the loss in game two after she allowed nine runs off of 11 hits.

Sutherland-Finch (12-5) and Stephanie Trzcinski (12-3) earned wins in the circle for Cal. The duo combined to allow five runs (four earned) off of 11 hits with nine strikeouts against seven walks.