Violet Zavodnik hits a home run against SUU. (Jake Roper)

BYU softball sweeps Southern Utah in doubleheader, extends winning streak to five games

BYU softball continued their dominant ways Saturday, beating Southern Utah 7-0 and 8-0 in a doubleheader at Miller Park.

The Cougars had won three-straight games coming into Saturday, including a 14-0 obliteration of Maine on Tuesday and a 5-2 victory over Idaho State on Thursday, both at home.

Game one

The Cougars had no issue getting on the scoreboard in the first inning, thanks to a solo home run from Taylei Williams. This was her second home run in two games, after hitting a three-run home run in Thursday’s game vs. Idaho State. Williams finished the contest 2-for-4, with the home run being her highlight of the game.

Things were pretty even throughout the next few innings until the Cougars started to put the game away in the fourth inning. Mallory Barber hit an RBI double, followed up later by an RBI single by Martha Epenesa that put BYU in front 3-0.

Violet Zavodnik added a solo home run, along with a sacrifice fly by Huntyr Ava that extended the lead 5-0. The Cougars then tacked on two more runs in the sixth that put any hopes for Southern Utah to climb back in it, giving them the 7-0 victory.

Game two

Like the first game, the Cougars wasted no time getting on the board in the first inning. Williams hit an RBI bloop single, turned double thanks to her fast running on the basepath.

Ava was the star of game two, hitting not one, but two home runs in this game. Ava had a swing that was so powerful, that when she hit the ball out, you knew immediately after contact that the ball was out of the park. Ava said it “felt amazing” hitting two home runs.

Ava wasn’t the only one going long in this game, with three home runs hit in the bottom of the fifth inning. Epenesa hit one to lead off the inning, later followed up Zavodnik’s two-runner, and then Ava’s solo shot that elevated the Cougars’ lead to 6-0.

The Cougars added two more runs in the bottom of the sixth, including an RBI infield single from Alyssa Podhurcak that ended the game as a 8-0 mercy-rule win in the sixth.

Both starting pitchers for BYU played well and helped blank the Thunderbirds. Chloe Temples pitched the first game and went six innings, while allowing only three hits on zero runs and eight strikeouts for the day. Autumn Moffat-Korth pitched the second game, and also went the distance, also going six innings, while allowing five hits on zero runs and striking out four.

“We played well today, in all three facets of the game,” head coach Gordon Eakin said. “Pitching was solid, defense was solid, hitting was solid and timely, so I am proud the way they’ve competed, and I like where we are at right now.”

After having won both games today, the Cougars (19-6) are now riding a five-game winning streak into a challenging contest coming up Monday afternoon vs. Oregon at 4 p.m. MDT.

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