STOCKTON, Calif. — Fueled by a barrage of home runs, including two grand slams, BYU softball swept a doubleheader against San Jose State and UC Riverside at Bill Simoni Field on Saturday afternoon.
The Cougars hit nine home runs between the two games, with Ilove’a Brittingham tallying three of their long bombs. Kate Dahle tossed nine innings of two-run ball across the doubleheader, striking out 11 on the day.
The Cougars (13-4, 0-0 Big 12) hit six home runs in the game, led by two each from Lily Owens and Brittingham. BYU opened the game with three-straight long bombs and never looked back.
Player Highlights
Owens, Hailey Morrow and Brittingham each homered on consecutive pitches to begin the contest, scoring three runs just four pitches into the game.
San Jose State loaded the bases in the bottom of the second, but starting pitcher Kate Dahle induced a fly out and swinging strikeout to keep the Cougars in front, 3-0.
BYU blew the game open with six runs in the top of the third inning. Bre Townsend singled, and her pinch runner, Abbey Gillespie moved to third after walks by Aleia Agbayani and Tristen Turlington.
Lauren Flanders slapped a single to left, scoring Gillespie, before Owens hammered a grand slam down the left field line, her second homer of the game. Brittingham went opposite field a batter later, hitting her second bomb of the game for a 9-0 Cougar advantage.
The Spartans got on board in the bottom of the fifth, plating two on a single, double, ground out and wild pitch to make it 9-2, BYU.
SJSU led off with a solo home run in the bottom of the sixth, and it was 9-3, Cougars.
BYU put up a five-spot in the top of the seventh inning on a Flanders single, Owens walk, Morrow single, Brittingham single and three-run homer by Bre Townsend, the Cougars sixth of the game, for a 14-3 lead.
BYU closed things out in the seventh with Owens making a leaping grab at the wall in the center for the final out.
The Cougars (14-4, 0-0 Big 12) put up a five spot in the first frame and a six spot in the third to lead 11-0 early while Dahle kept the Highlander bats at bat for majority of the contest en route to the run-rule win.
Player Highlights
BYU’s bats stayed hot in game two, leading off the game with walks from Owens and Milkowski sandwiching a Morrow single through the left side. A Townsend fielder’s choice scored Owens before the Cougars loaded the bases as Maddie Udall-Woolley was hit by a pitch. Agbayani then launched a homer past the center field fence on the first pitch she saw, BYU’s seventh homer and second grand slam of the day for an early 5-0 lead.
The Cougars batted around the order in the third inning, plating six as Milkowski, Townsend, Agbayani, Danica Acosta, Flanders, Owens, Morrow and Brittingham all reached safely as BYU scored six on six hits and one error, making it 11-0.
Udall-Woolley led off the fourth with a solo homer to right center. Later in the inning, Acosta and Morrow both singled before Brittingham homered for the third time on the day, a lined three-run shot to center for a 16-0 advantage.
UC Riverside plated two in the home half of the fourth, doubling before a two-run homer that had the Cougars in front 16-2.
BYU added one more in the fifth, with Jaelynn Lambert singling, Acosta doubling and Lambert scoring on an Owens sacrifice fly.
Hina Huber came on to pitch the bottom of the fifth and struck out the side, closing out the Cougars’ 17-2 run-rule victory.
On Deck
BYU will open Big 12 play at Arizona State next week. The three game series will begin on Thursday, Mar. 6 at 6 p.m. MT and will be streamed on ESPN+.
