USUE Softball splits road series in Henderson

USU Eastern’s Mackenzie Isaacs hits the ball against CSN in a game played Friday March 16, 2018 in Henderson, Nev. Photo by Derick Levy
    Utah State Eastern softball picked up two wins against the College of Southern Nevada Coyotes in a four-game series on Friday and Saturday.
    The Eagles opened the series Friday with a tough 9-2 loss against the Coyotes. CSN scored six runs combined in the late innings to give them the victory.
    In game two the Eagles would bounce back in a big way and take down CSN 13-3.
    Trailing 3-2 in the top of the fifth, the Eagles scored two runs to take the lead off of a double from freshman Carlye Levy.
    Levy had a monster game two for USU Eastern, she had five hits and four RBIs while pitching a complete game. She threw nine strikeouts and only allowed five hits with three runs in the circle for the Eagles.
    In the seventh inning, the Eagles added 7 runs to put the ball game away on Friday evening. As a team, they had 17 hits in game two.
    In game three on Saturday the Eagles lost 11-4 but the game was closer than the box score showed.
    The game was tied 4-4 in the bottom of the sixth until the Coyotes got a couple big hits off of Levy. USU Eastern Head Coach Brittani Richins made a pitching change and the Eagles then allowed 7 runs to score in the inning.
    USU Eastern would bounce back again in the final game of the series with a 10-6 win.
    Richins said that she was proud of the way her team continued to fight back after trailing in games and losses.
    “I think they finally came together and played as a team. In the past, we are not good at rebounding after a loss but this weekend they really wanted to split the series and not lose the series all together,” said Richins.
    Levy, Cassidy Howe and Avery Blackhurst combined to hit seven RBIs with four runs and eight hits.
    On the weekend, Levy led her team at the plate with a .647 batting average, 1.000 slug percentage, .667 on-base percentage with 11 hits, two triples, two doubles and six RBIs.
    “She hits in the three hole so she could develop runs. For her to finally have a good weekend hitting wise was big for us,” said Richins.
    Levy also picked up two wins pitching for the Eagles with a 5.83 ERA.
    After the weekend split with CSN, the Eagles now have a 11-11 overall record with a 6-6 conference record.
    Currently they sit in fourth place in the Scenic West Athletic Conference standings. They are two games back of CSN for third place.
    This weekend the Eagles will hit the road again to take on the College of Southern Idaho in Twin Falls.
    Richins said that for her team to get at least the split of the four-game series they will have to do the all the small things at the plate and defensively.
    “We need to utilize our whole pitching staff and hit line drives or hard ground balls. We also need to score more runs when we have runners in scoring position,” said Richins.
    CSI is currently in second place in the conference with a 9-3 record.
    The first pitch of the series is schedule for 1 p.m. on Friday with game two following the conclusion of that game. Saturday’s doubleheader is slated to begin at noon.