Friday, February 20
Phoenix, Ariz.
11:30 AM
Montana
4-7
4
vs
9
UC Santa Barbara
4-10
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
R
H
E
Montana
0
0
0
2
0
0
2
4
6
0
UC Santa Barbara
2
0
0
3
0
4
X
9
14
0
Griz drop two games in Phoenix
2/20/2026 7:47:00 PM | Softball
The Montana softball team opened the high-level Purple Classic on Friday in Phoenix with a pair of losses against programs that played in the NCAA tournament last spring.
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The Grizzlies started their day with a 9-4 loss against UC Santa Barbara, then dropped an 8-0 five-inning run-rule decision to host Grand Canyon, which improved to 12-0 with the win.
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Montana batted .196 against the Gauchos and the Lopes while allowing 17 earned runs.
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"We did not play well. We have to be better in all facets of the game, defensively, making adjustments on offense and pitching," said coach Stef Ewing.
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"We've got to clean it up and come out tomorrow and be hungry and make some changes."
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The Grizzlies gave up a pair of runs in the bottom of the first against UC Santa Barbara, then tied it in the top of the fourth on a two-run home run by Chloe Saxton.
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It was her first home run of the season, the second of her career and her first since her freshman season of 2023, her first also coming at GCU Softball Stadium.
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The Gauchos answered right back with three runs in the bottom of the fourth to go up 5-2, then added four runs in the bottom of the sixth.
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Montana tacked on two runs in the top of the seventh, on an RBI double by Anna Cockhill and an RBI ground out by JoJo Christiaens.
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Cameryn Ortega, Carah Sweet and Audri Elias all pitched at least an inning, with Ortega (1-3) taking the loss.
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Grace Lopez went 2 for 3, her fourth multiple-hit game of the season.
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In Montana's second game of the day, Grand Canyon went up big in the bottom of the second, scoring six runs on five singles and a lot of aggressive base-running.
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"They put the ball in play hard but I thought we gave them a lot of extra bases and a lot of extra opportunities," said Ewing.
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"We left some outs out there that we could have had. We played timid instead of looking for opportunities. When people try to take extra bases, we have to trust our ability to stop them."
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Kaiana Kong (2-2) got the start and the loss, going 1 2/3 innings. She was replaced by Brooklynn Braun, who pitched a scoreless third and fourth before the Lopes walked it off with a pair of runs in the fifth.
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The freshman was making just her second collegiate appearance, facing an undefeated Grand Canyon team after pitching against No. 4 Oklahoma last week at New Mexico State.
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"I really like how Brooklynn came in. She settled in nicely," said Ewing. "It was only her second outing but it was her best outing."
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Cockhill had an infield single in the first to extend her hitting streak to seven games. Christiaens and Kaci Kiblen had singles in the fifth, when the Grizzlies left two runners on base.
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Montana will face San Diego at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday in the Grizzlies' only game of the day. Montana will face North Florida and Grand Canyon for a second time on Sunday.
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The Grizzlies started their day with a 9-4 loss against UC Santa Barbara, then dropped an 8-0 five-inning run-rule decision to host Grand Canyon, which improved to 12-0 with the win.
Â
Montana batted .196 against the Gauchos and the Lopes while allowing 17 earned runs.
Â
"We did not play well. We have to be better in all facets of the game, defensively, making adjustments on offense and pitching," said coach Stef Ewing.
Â
"We've got to clean it up and come out tomorrow and be hungry and make some changes."
Â
The Grizzlies gave up a pair of runs in the bottom of the first against UC Santa Barbara, then tied it in the top of the fourth on a two-run home run by Chloe Saxton.
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It was her first home run of the season, the second of her career and her first since her freshman season of 2023, her first also coming at GCU Softball Stadium.
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The Gauchos answered right back with three runs in the bottom of the fourth to go up 5-2, then added four runs in the bottom of the sixth.
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Montana tacked on two runs in the top of the seventh, on an RBI double by Anna Cockhill and an RBI ground out by JoJo Christiaens.
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Cameryn Ortega, Carah Sweet and Audri Elias all pitched at least an inning, with Ortega (1-3) taking the loss.
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Grace Lopez went 2 for 3, her fourth multiple-hit game of the season.
Â
In Montana's second game of the day, Grand Canyon went up big in the bottom of the second, scoring six runs on five singles and a lot of aggressive base-running.
Â
"They put the ball in play hard but I thought we gave them a lot of extra bases and a lot of extra opportunities," said Ewing.
Â
"We left some outs out there that we could have had. We played timid instead of looking for opportunities. When people try to take extra bases, we have to trust our ability to stop them."
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Kaiana Kong (2-2) got the start and the loss, going 1 2/3 innings. She was replaced by Brooklynn Braun, who pitched a scoreless third and fourth before the Lopes walked it off with a pair of runs in the fifth.
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The freshman was making just her second collegiate appearance, facing an undefeated Grand Canyon team after pitching against No. 4 Oklahoma last week at New Mexico State.
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"I really like how Brooklynn came in. She settled in nicely," said Ewing. "It was only her second outing but it was her best outing."
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Cockhill had an infield single in the first to extend her hitting streak to seven games. Christiaens and Kaci Kiblen had singles in the fifth, when the Grizzlies left two runners on base.
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Montana will face San Diego at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday in the Grizzlies' only game of the day. Montana will face North Florida and Grand Canyon for a second time on Sunday.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Johnson, Jazmyn (2-4)
L: Ortega, Cameryn (1-3)
Batting:
2B: Cockhill, Anna 1 ; Cherms, Jessica 1
HR: Saxton, Chloe 1
RBI: Cockhill, Anna 1 ; Christiaens, JoJo 1 ; Saxton, Chloe 2
SH: Lopez, Grace 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Cockhill, Anna 1 ; Cherms, Jessica 1 ; Saxton, Chloe 1 ; Gutierrez, Brianna 1
HBP: Cockhill, Anna 1 ; Gutierrez, Brianna 1
Batting:
2B: Santos, Jazzy 1 ; Mejia, Giselle 1 ; Siegel, Daryn 1
HR: Santos, Jazzy 1 ; Waddell, Ainsley 1
RBI: Banks, Tehya 1 ; Santos, Jazzy 3 ; Waddell, Ainsley 2 ; Siegel, Daryn 1 ; Rauscher, Dani 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Banks, Tehya 1 ; Santos, Jazzy 2 ; Toledo, Jaelyn 1 ; Waddell, Ainsley 1 ; Carr, Emily 1 ; Mejia, Giselle 1 ; Garcia, Kaylin 1 ; Rauscher, Dani 1
SB: Toledo, Jaelyn 1
CS: Waddell, Ainsley 1
Game Leaders
AB
3
R
0
H
2
RBI
0
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
1
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
2
Players Mentioned
P
/ Softball
INF/C
/ SoftballINF/OF
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
OF/INF
/ Softball
P
/ SoftballINF
/ Softball
P
/ SoftballINF
/ Softball
P
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