CATHEDRAL CITY, Calif. – Stanford dropped a heartbreaker against San Diego State but rebounded quickly to earn a convincing victory against Purdue to conclude play at the Mary Nutter Classic on Saturday night.
The Cardinal (10-5) either led or was tied with the Aztecs (6-5) until the bottom of the sixth inning. San Diego State took a 3-2 lead into the seventh inning but Stanford rallied for two runs to retake the lead, 4-3.
The Aztecs led off the bottom half of the frame with a solo home run to right field. San Diego State sealed the victory with a one-out sacrifice fly to center for a 5-4 win.
The Cardinal refocused quickly for its game against the Boilermakers (2-11), jumping out to an early lead and never looking back. Kiana Pancino (2-0) made the first start of her career in the circle and the defense played well to secure a 10-6 win.
Stanford finished the weekend 3-2 with wins against Bethune-Cookman, St. John's and Purdue.
Alyssa Horeczko led the team offensively, batting .538 (7-for-13) with five runs, two walks, a triple and a .692 slugging percentage. Bessie Noll also had a terrific weekend at the plate, going 9-for-17 (.529) with a team-high eight RBIs, five runs two doubles and a home run.
Teaghan Cowles hit .500 or better for the third straight weekend and contributed six runs, two doubles, a triple, two RBIs and two walks. She has at least one hit in 14-of-15 games this season.
Pancino (2-0) earned the first two victories of her collegiate career and held the opposition to a .259 batting average. Carolyn Lee (4-4) took the loss in both of her appearances against No. 1 Florida State and San Diego State but pitched well and kept the Cardinal within striking distance to win both games.
.@kristina_inouye went 2-for-4 with three RBIs in Stanford's victory against Purdue.
— Stanford Softball (@StanfordSball) February 26, 2017
She recapped the Cardinal's night. #GoStanford ?? pic.twitter.com/GaSnlL0K7n
Kristina Inouye went 2-for-4 with three RBIs against Purdue.
Stanford took an early 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning against San Diego State. Kylie Sorenson singled then advanced to second on a deep fly ball to foul territory in left field. Bessie Noll singled through the right side of the infield to bring Sorenson around from second.
San Diego State loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom of the second inning but Lee forced a ground out to Sorenson at shortstop to end the inning and preserve Stanford's 1-0 lead.
The Aztecs capitalized on a Stanford error in the bottom of the fourth inning to level the score at, 1-1.
Cowles reached base on an error in the top of the fifth inning and Noll made San Diego State pay with an infield-RBI-single to retake the lead for the Cardinal, 2-1.
With runner on first and third with one out, some confusion between Stanford players on a shallow fly ball allowed the ball to fall and a run to score, tying the game at 2-2.
The Aztecs took their first lead in the bottom of the sixth inning on a sacrifice fly.
Facing a one-run deficit, Cowles led off the seventh inning with a double. Sorenson followed with a walk to put runners on first and second with no outs.
After a wild pitch advanced both runners, Whitney Burks hit a two-RBI single to score both runners and give Stanford a 4-3 lead.
The Cardinal could not hold on to the lead, however, as San Diego State scored twice in the bottom half of the inning to take the victory.
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Stanford jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the first inning against Purdue. Sorenson singled and Noll drew a walk with one out. Lauren Bertoy hit a grounder to the left side of the infield that Purdue's shortstop could not handle.
The shortstop picked up the ball with her glove and tried to shovel the ball to her second baseman at second. However, the toss was too far wide and rolled into the outfield, allowing Sorenson to score from second.
Inouye singled in the following at bat to bring in Noll from third and give the Cardinal a 2-0 lead.
Horeczko singled with one out in the bottom of the second inning and worked her way around the bases to extend Stanford's lead to 3-0.
Stanford added to its lead in the top of the fifth when Burks led off with a single and was brought home on a two-run home run by Noll. It was Noll's first homer of the season and it gave the Cardinal a 5-0 lead.
The Boilermakers closed the gap quickly with three runs in the bottom half of the inning to cut Stanford's led to 5-3.
The Cardinal produced a five-run sixth inning to take a commanding 10-4 lead.
After Purdue added a run in the sixth, the Boilermakers rallied for two runs in the seventh and loaded the bases. Nikki Bauer entered the circle for the Cardinal with two outs and shut the door to end the game and secure the victory. It is the first save of Bauer's career.
Stanford remains on the road next week for five games at the Easton Crimson Classic in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.