Gianna Mares leads BYU softball to back-to-back road wins after opening blowout loss

At just 6–17, the BYU softball team entered its southern Utah road trip looking for answers.

In a season riddled with injuries and a heavily front-loaded schedule after once again being left out of the NCAA postseason, the Cougars were still trying to prove they belong, but that hasn’t shown up in the results this season.

On Friday in St. George, things went from bad to worse early against 14–6 Omaha. The game quickly got out of hand when the Mavericks put up five runs in the first inning, including a pair of home runs, anchoring their way to a 9–0 win while holding BYU hitless through five innings.

The Cougars had almost no time to dwell on the loss, as BYU was scheduled for another game later that afternoon — this time against regional foe Utah Tech. Historically, the matchup had favored the Cougars, who had won all 10 prior meetings. With the Trailblazers sitting at 10–14 on the season, it opened the door for BYU to gain some confidence.

BYU did just that in a bounce-back performance against the Trailblazers, putting up 10 runs in a 10–1 win, making this its second 10-1 in three games. Seven different players crossed the plate, while Bre Townsend and Lily Owens each added solo home runs.

This set up the final game of the road trip: a rematch against Omaha.

After a slow start through the first two innings, with the Mavericks holding a 1–0 lead, the Cougars came to life. BYU scored five runs across the next three innings, capped by a home run from Hailey Morrow.

Omaha refused to go away, responding with a two-run homer to cut BYU’s lead to 5–3.

After the Cougars rebuilt their advantage to 6–3, the Mavericks delivered the biggest swing of the game — a clutch grand slam that gave Omaha an unlikely 7–6 lead.

In the final inning, Townsend played the hero. Her fourth home run of the season — and second of the game — put BYU back in front. The Cougars eventually sealed a 9–8 win in thrilling fashion to earn revenge against Omaha who blew BYU out just the day before,

Townsend spoke postgame about what she saw before her late-game heroics.

“I was just looking to hit something hard to get Hailey in scoring position for Udall-Woolley to drive her in,” Townsend said. “I wasn’t trying to do too much — just keep the momentum going and keep our bats alive.”

She added that the win could help spark momentum moving forward.

“This win will help our momentum because we know we’re capable of beating any team when we stay where our feet are and don’t let the game get too big for us,” Townsend said. “We all have each other’s backs. Even when someone makes a mistake, we’re always there to pick them up — defensively, offensively or emotionally. In the long run, we all play for each other.”

Gianna Mares, the junior from Arizona, earned both wins in the circle, first tossing five innings with three hits, one run and six strikeouts, then later in the Omaha rematch going the distance by pitching seven innings while allowing eight hits, six earned runs and four walks.

Mares spoke of the resilience the team showed after a tough loss to open the road trip.

"We knew we were better than what we showed the first game and used that to show what we could do the next two games," Mares said. "We never gave up and were really gritty. I’m really proud of how our team kept fighting all game long."

Coach Gordon Eakin reflected on the team’s perseverance after the final game.

“The weekend ended with a hard fought victory over a very good Omaha team,” Eakin said. “We lost control of the game and the 6-3 lead in the sixth inning, falling behind after giving up a grand slam home run. Fighting back and winning in the seventh inning was a big confidence builder.”

Eakin also credited the offense for its bounce back performance against Omaha’s pitching.

“The fact we got eight runs on 11 hits off the same pitcher that no hit us the day before was huge,” Eakin said.

While BYU is still far from where it pictured itself after last season’s 32-17 campaign, the weekend could provide the boost the team needs as it looks ahead to Big 12 home games beginning later this month.

Before that, the Cougars will face another major test on the road as they travel to Stillwater this weekend for a three-game series against No. 21/15 Oklahoma State, with the opener scheduled for Thursday at 5 p.m. It will be a chance for BYU to earn its biggest win of the season and continue building momentum for the back half of the season.