LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) – It was quite the day at Eller Media Stadium Saturday as the UNLV softball team swept the competition to improve to 10-4 on the season, but it didn't come without some drama.
Game one was a rematch between UNLV and Seattle as the Rebels aimed to avenge its 4-1 Friday night loss. UNLV fell behind early and trailed by two runs heading into the bottom of the seventh, but used a three-run rally to walk it off with the 8-7 comeback victory. The night finished with a brilliant performance by junior ace Jenny Bressler, who pitched a complete-game shutout against Utah Valley for the 2-0 win. Bressler tallied a career-high 13 strikeouts, including striking out five of the final six batters she faced to end the game.
The 2-0 day also represented a milestone for head coach Kristie Fox, who reached 100 wins at UNLV with the victory over the Wolverines. Fox is the fastest coach to reach the 100-win mark for Rebel softball, doing it in just 143 games. After the game, Fox was greeted with an ice bath and a ball signed by the team to celebrate.
Two-way player Jasmine Martin delivered the other standout performance of the day as the freshman entered the Seattle game in relief in the third inning with UNLV trailing 6-4. After allowing her lone run on a bases-loaded walk, Martin clamped down and pitched four scoreless frames to keep the Rebels within striking distance. At the plate, Martin launched her first career home run to cut the Seattle lead to 7-5 in the fourth, then started the Rebel rally in the seventh with an infield hit to second and scored the first of three runs in the final frame. Martin also earned the win in the circle - her first as a Rebel.
Game 1 Recap (UNLV vs. Seattle): UNLV didn't have the start it imagined when the Redhawks took a 4-0 lead in the opening frame on starter Charlie Masterson and freshman Kaylie Northrop, but the Rebels didn't panic. After senior Lauren Tycksen drew a one-out walk, senior Mia Trejo cut the Seattle lead in half with her second two-run home run in as many days. When the Redhawks went back up by four at 6-2 in the top of the second, the Rebels again responded, this time with a Lauryn Barker two-run home run - her first of the year - to bring UNLV back within two. Seattle went up 7-4 in the third, but that run was quickly erased in the fourth on the Martin home run. At one point in the game, all three UNLV hits were home runs, but that changed in the seventh. Down to their final three outs, Martin sparked the rally with an infield hit to second, which was followed by a Barker infield single and a Maddie Schmidt walk to load the bases. With one out, Mia Trejo drew a bases loaded walk to cut the lead to one and then freshman Janyssa Martin delivered a clutch single through the right side to tie the game up at seven, but it didn't end there. The right fielder tried to hit her catcher to keep Maddie Schmidt at third, but the ball skipped past the Redhawk into foul territory, allowing Schmidt to score the game-winner from third.
Game 2 Recap (UNLV vs. Utah Valley): While game one was an offensive rollercoaster, UNLV and Utah Valley settled in for a pitcher's duel. The two teams traded scoreless frames until the bottom of the third, when Lauren Tycksen singled, stole second and advanced to third on the errant attempt to tag her out on the steal. With one out, Trejo sent a towering fly ball to left center, allowing Tycksen to score from third on the sacrifice fly for what proved to be the game-winning run. The Rebels added an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth when junior Statia Cermak knocked a pinch-hit double and the next batter Samantha Diaz brought her home with a double of her own. Bressler stumped the Wolverine hitters as the visitors managed to scatter just five hits over the seven frames. With the win, the Canton, Michigan, native moved to 5-2 on the year.
UP NEXT: The Rebels will wrap up the Boyd Gaming Classic Sunday at 11 a.m. with a second matchup against Utah Valley.
