Junior pitcher Grayson Harvey has been a steady force from the circle all year for the Eagles, and Friday she showed why against the second place Trailblazers. Harvey held Dixie State, now 18-6 in the PacWest, to a two-hitter in game one of the double header for the win.
In her 15th win, Harvey struck out 10 Trailblazers, walked two and allowed one earned run. The lone run she did allow came early in the game. After allowing the second inning run on two hits, Harvey and the Eagle defense kept the Trailblazers quiet.
Concordia came through with their first run in the second inning. Nicole Chavez led off with a single to left center and flew to second on a pass ball. Catcher Lauren Rodriguez drew a walk after a lengthy at bat to put runners on first and second for Ryann Ferguson. With two outs, Ferguson found a gap in left center for one RBI.
Amanda Gjertsen started out the third with a double to left center and Alyssa Turner took charge with a RBI single for the 2-1 lead. Gjertsen added three more RBIs when she blasted a homer in the sixth to bring home McKinsey Thorpe and Ferguson.
Harvey slammed the door on the Trailblazers in the top of the seventh with three consecutive strike outs. The Eagles combined for 12 hits on the day. Chavez was 3-3 and Gjertsen was 3-4 with two runs and three RBIs.
When game two got underway, Dixie State took advantage of hit and a walk in the second by converting them into three runs off of a homer. They extended the lead to four in the fourth.
Concordia nearly caught up during their next at bats with three runs. Thorpe singled, Gjertsen hit one through the left side and Amy Eilefson was hit by a pitch to juice the bases for Chavez. Chavez knocked a two RBI single and Mackenzie Graham kept the inning alive with another base hit. Sarah Kretschmar clutched up and hit a single down the line to put the Eagles within one. They continued to battle in the fifth and tallied one more on a RBI from Eilefson.
In the top of the seventh, the Trailblazers utilized a series of singles and an Eagle error to go up 7-4. Concordia was unable to fight their way back and fell by a score of 7-4.
The Eagles return to their home field Saturday for games three and four against Dixie State. The double header begins at 12 p.m. at Eagles Field. Â
