Griz up winning streak to seven

Saturday, May 4

Cedar City, Utah

1:00 PM

Montana

22-29, 0

Southern Utah

6-32, 0

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
Montana	4	2	0	0	0	0	0	6	11	1
Southern Utah	0	0	1	3	0	0	0	4	10	3

5/4/2019 7:46:00 PM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

By: Montana Sports Information

The Montana softball team struck early and struck decisively on Saturday as the Grizzlies opened their three-game series at Southern Utah with a doubleheader at SUU's Kathryn Berg Field.

Montana jumped out to a 6-0 lead in Game 1, a 13-0 lead in Game 2 and cruised to a pair of wins -- 6-4 and 15-7 -- that upped the Grizzlies' winning streak to a season-high seven games.

With the Big Sky Conference Championship opening on Wednesday at Sacramento State, Montana will go into its regular-season finale on Sunday having won 12 of its last 15 games.

"Over the last month, month and a half, we've started to see the buildup of confidence of each player within themselves and within the team," said UM coach Melanie Meuchel.

"It's fun to watch them continue to grow every day, and it's exciting to see it happening at this time of year."

Montana (23-29, 9-8 BSC) had gotten outscored 56-26 in the first inning this season prior to Saturday, but the Grizzlies flipped that statistic on its head. Twice.

Montana opened Game 1 with four straight hits -- triple, triple, single, home run -- and would lead 4-0 before Southern Utah took its first swings of the series.

That felt explosive until Game 2, when the Grizzlies opened with eight first-inning runs. It was the third-highest-scoring inning in program history and the most runs ever scored by Montana in the top of the first.

"It's something we've talked about for a while this year, of just coming out and starting games," said Meuchel. "I felt like offensively and defensively, we really started both games today.

"We swung the bat pretty well today through the whole lineup. We just had good presence."

Starter Colleen Driscoll was given a 6-0 lead in the opener after Montana added two more runs in the top of the second. She would give up one in the third, three in the fourth before being relieved by Tristin Achenbach.

The sophomore right-hander would keep the Thunderbirds (6-33, 4-13 BSC) off the scoreboard the final 3 2/3 innings to pick up her sixth win of the season.

Any concerns that Montana wouldn't be able to bring another big start to Game 2 lasted only a few batters. Kylie Becker led off with a hit for the second straight game, and Cami Sellers drove her in.

By the end of the top of the first it was 8-0, with Montana collecting seven hits and chasing Southern Utah's starting pitcher in the opening inning for the second time in two games.

Sellers had two hits in the inning, driving in three.

But unlike the opener, when the Grizzlies' offense went quiet after building a big lead, this time they kept at it.

Morgan Johnson had a two-run home run in the third, her fifth in 11 games, and Maddy Stensby followed with her own two-run shot two batters later, the second of her career, to make it 13-0.

In the fourth it was Sellers with her own two-run shot, giving her five RBIs for the game, tied for fifth in program history.

Maddy Stensby got the start and allowed one earned run for her sixth win of the season. Michaela Hood threw the final two innings of a game that ended after five innings because of Montana's eight-run lead.

Stensby would finish 4 for 4, with four RBIs and two runs scored. Sellers, Lexi Knauss and Jessica McAlister all had three-hit games, with McAlister scoring three times.

Montana's 15 runs was the third-highest offensive output in program history, two shy of the program record.

"In Game 1 we jumped out early and then got a little bit quiet as the game went on," said Meuchel. "In Game 2 I thought we stayed on the gas pedal."

The loss officially knocked Southern Utah out of the chase for the sixth and final spot at next week's tournament. That now goes to Northern Colorado, setting the field.

The win pulled Montana even with preseason Big Sky favorite Sacramento State in the standings. A victory on Sunday would give the Grizzlies the No. 3 seed and keep them on the opposite side of the bracket of top-seeded Weber State.

Idaho State claimed the No. 2 seed on Saturday afternoon by completing a sweep of the Hornets in Pocatello with a walk-off home run in the bottom of the seventh.