MESA, Ariz. – Hope International softball stumbled in its final two regular season games, losing 8-0 in five innings and 5-4 to Benedictine Mesa on Friday at the Arizona Athletic Grounds.
The Royals secured the No. 3 seed in next week's GSAC Tournament, entering the event with a 28-20 overall record and 13-11 mark in conference.
Lily Hernandez had a pair of hits in game one, while Emma McCraw and Dejalei Visesio collected three hits apiece in the finale.
Game 1 – Benedictine Mesa 8, Hope International (5)
Nancy Velez tossed a six-hit shutout in the five-inning, mercy-rule victory. She neither walked nor struck out a Royal, scattering five singles and a double to improve to 8-7 on the season.
The Redhawks scored all eight of their runs through the first three innings. They took a 1-0 lead in the first as Chloe Wright singled in Annaleia Jenkins, who doubled to lead off the frame.
Benedictine Mesa jumped on HIU starter Kaitlyn Maaske for four runs in the second, loading the bases with no outs following two singles and a hit by pitch. Negasse Williams drove in a run with a single, and Leiana Madrazo tripled in two more. Alexa Rice's RBI base hit completed the uprising as the Redhawks led 5-0.
The home team continued to apply pressure in the third as the first two hitters reached via single and a walk. Alexandra Lopez notched a two-RBI triple to extend the lead to 7-0. That hit ended the afternoon for Maaske, who allowed eight runs in two-plus innings.Â
Samantha Elizalde entered in relief and got Jenkins to fly out, with Lopez scoring on the sacrifice fly.
Elizalde allowed just one hit and one walk in 2.0 innings.
Velez retired nine of 10 Royals until Vivian Little doubled with two outs in the fifth. But Velez got a fly out to end the game and invoke the mercy-rule.
Game 2 – Benedictine Mesa 5, Hope International 4
Similar to game one, the Redhawks attacked early and often on offense.
Jenkins led off the first with a triple and Williams brought her home with an RBI single for a 1-0 lead. The Redhawks had the bases loaded but Elizalde struck out Emma Tufnell swinging to end the threat.
HIU tied the score 1-1 in the second with Visesio hitting a double to lead off the inning. Natalie Corrales deposited a base hit into center field to bring in Visesio.
The Redhawks scored twice in the second to take a 3-1 lead. With the bases loaded and one out, Elizalde issued back-to-back walks to Madrazo and Rice, bringing in a pair of runs. That ended Elizalde's start, with the freshman walking four and yielding five hits in 1.1 innings. Maaske got the next two outs in relief to keep the game close.
Visesio halved the deficit in the third with an RBI single to plate McCraw, who had singled with two outs.
The Redhawks got the run back in the fourth. Williams reached on a one-out infield single and came home on Madrazo's base hit after the HIU center fielder committed an error.
Facing Velez for the second straight game, the Royals tied the score with single runs in the sixth and seventh. Visesio doubled to lead off the sixth and scored on Aliyah Sandoval's infield single. In the seventh, HIU got another leadoff double – this time from Jocelyn Aguilar – and she tied the game on McCraw's opposite field knock.
But the Redhawks took the 5-4 win in the bottom half. Benedictine Mesa got the first two hitters aboard, and Tufnell walked to load the bases with one out. Shayla Young walked off the Royals with a base hit to left field, scoring Wright with the winning run.
Maaske took the loss to fall to 14-11. Velez improved to 9-7.
The Royals open the GSAC Tournament on Tuesday, April 28 at noon against second-seeded OUAZ. All tournament games will be played at the OC Great Park Softball Stadium.
