Softball Splits Again in Ames

Sunday, February 8

Ames, Iowa

9:00 AM

South Dakota State University

Utah State

2/8/2015 3:52:00 PM | Softball

By: SDSU Sports Info

AMES, Iowa – For the second straight day, the South Dakota State softball team split a pair of games at the Cyclone Invitational, and just like the first day, the Jackrabbits downed Utah State in the first game of the day before falling to host Iowa State in the second.

The Jackrabbits, who end the day with an even 2-2 record on the season, held off a late comeback from the Aggies to win 7-6, and then came up short with a rally in a 5-3 loss to the Cyclones.

The Aggies struck first with one run in the bottom of the first inning, but Alyssa D'Agostino got that run back with one swing of the bat in the top of the second inning with her second homer of the season. The Jacks tacked on three more in the third, starting with a Devan Larsen home run, followed by a D'Agostino RBI double and a Vanessa Kellems sacrifice fly that put SDSU up 4-1.

Cassidy Vlot made it 5-1 Jacks with her first home run of the season, a lead-off bomb to center to start the fourth inning, a run the Aggies got back in the bottom of the fourth to cut the SDSU lead to 5-2.

The Jacks capitalized on an Aggie error to score a pair of unearned insurance runs in the seventh, including another RBI double from D'Agostino, to take a commanding 7-2 lead, but it turns out that SDSU would need those runs.

Utah State touched-up the Jacks for four runs on three hits in bottom of the seventh, but Ashlyn Bender returned to finish what she started, and recorded the final two outs to preserve the win, her first of the season.

Down 5-0 after three complete against Iowa State in the tournament finale, the Jackrabbits cut the Cyclones lead to 5-3 on Jordyn Sturgeon's first-career home run, but neither team scored again.

SDSU stranded eight runners in the game, compared to just one by the Cyclones.

The Jackrabbits return to action next weekend with five games at the Dot Richardson Invitational in Clermont, Fla., starting with games on Friday against Kansas City at 10 a.m. and against Middle Tennessee State at 3 p.m.