Stanford softball (8-4) managed to fend off a late comeback effort from UC Davis (4-8) on Wednesday night, earning a 4-3 victory at Smith Family Stadium behind 11 hits on offense and some gutsy pitching performances.
Sophomore outfielder Bessie Noll first got the Cardinal on the board with a monster solo homer to center field with two outs in the bottom of the third inning. Two hitters later, freshman Arden Pettit doubled to left-center to score junior Kaitlin Schaberg, putting Stanford up 2-0.
In the top of the sixth inning, however, the Aggies took their first lead of the game when freshman Ashley Lotoszynski took a two-out, 3-1 delivery from Snyder and deposited it over the left field fence. That put UC Davis up 3-2, but the advantage was short-lived.
In the bottom of the sixth, Stanford mounted a comeback — all with two outs in the inning. Junior Kayla Bonstrom doubled to left-center, scoring senior Tylyn Wells from second and evening the score at three. And on the very next pitch, senior Cassandra Roulund slapped a ball to almost the same location as Bonstrom did, scoring her from second and giving the Cardinal a 4-3 lead.
UC Davis threatened in the top of the seventh inning but was not able to capitalize on its opportunities. The Aggies loaded the bases with three straight one-out walks, but sophomore Madi Schreyer struck out the next hitter she faced and got the final Davis hitter to ground out to end the threat.
Freshman Haley Snyder pitched a strong game for Stanford, allowing three runs on six hits over six solid innings to secure the win. Schreyer pitched an inning of relief to pick up her first save of the year.
The Cardinal will travel to Cathedral City, Calif. this weekend to play South Carolina, Oklahoma State, Fresno State, Texas A&M and San Diego State in the Mary Nutter Classic.
Contact Elizabeth Trinh at entrinh ‘at’ stanford.edu.