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Box Score

TEMPE, Ariz. – Senior Whitney Burks connected for a pair of home runs as Stanford (1-0) broke a 4-4 tie with an eight-run top of the seventh en route to earning a 12-5 victory over Bradley (0-1) on Opening Day from the Kajiwaka Classic in Tempe, Ariz.

Burks, who led the Card in home runs with five in 2018, wasted no time getting her first in 2019, sending a leadoff shot out to straight-away centerfield in the second inning before capping the eight-run seventh with a three-run home run. The native of Fairfax Station, Va. finished the game 2-for-3 with two runs scored, the four RBI and a pair of walks. The multi-homer game was the first of Burks' career, and the first for the Cardinal since Kylie Sorenson hit a pair at Hawaii on March 4, 2016.

Including Burks, Stanford's offense featured six players with multi-hit games, as the Cardinal scored its 12 runs on 13 hits. Juniors Teaghan Cowles, Montana Dixon, Kristina Inouye and Alyssa Horeczko, along with freshman Emily Young, each posted a pair of hits in the victory. Horeczko, who finished 2-for-3 with three RBI, drove in the first two of her three runs in the third inning to highlight a three-run frame that left Stanford on top, 4-0.

Senior Carolyn Lee retired the first nine batters she faced, but ran into a bit of trouble in the fourth. A leadoff bunt single from Lucy Mead handed Bradley its first runner before a single and a walk loaded the bases with one out. Lee induced a sacrifice fly on the ensuing play, but two errors charged to the Cardinal allowed three more runs to plate, leaving the game knotted at four apiece after four.

Still even headed into the seventh, the Cardinal exploded for eight runs on six hits to blow the game open. After loading the bases with one out, Inouye came up clutch with a triple into right-centerfield, chasing home Emily Klingaman, Young and Hannah Howell. Horeczko and Dixon each followed with RBI-singles, setting the stage for Burks to finish off her spectacular debut with a monster homer to left field.

After taking over for Lee in the sixth inning, junior Kiana Pancino was credited with the victory and moved to 1-0. Taise Thompson was charged with the loss and fell to 0-1 after allowing three runs on two hits and three walks over 3.1 innings of work.

Stanford will finish up play on Opening Day against Kansas. The Jayhawks will meet Oregon prior to the clash that is tentatively scheduled for 1 p.m. PT.