Softball Takes On WAC Leading Lopes In Phoenix

Friday, April 1

Phoenix

2 PM

California Baptist University

21-17, 0

Grand Canyon

23-9, 0

CBU

Grand Canyon

Photo by: Daniel Cook

Softball Takes On WAC Leading Lopes In Phoenix

4/1/2022 7:56:00 PM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

By: Daniel Cook, Assistant Director of Athletics Communications

PHOENIX – The Western Athletic Conference's West Division leader faced off on Friday, as California Baptist University softball battled first place Grand Canyon in a doubleheader in Phoenix. The Lancers hung tough, but the Lopes would take both games, 5-2 and 3-2 (10 innings), to claim the series win.

California Baptist drops to 21-18 on the year with a 4-4 conference record while Grand Canyon widens the gap in the West Division standings, improving to 24-9 and 7-1 in league play. The two teams will close out the series with one more contest on Saturday.

Katelyn Mangrello continued her stellar season at the plate, going 4-for-8 in the doubleheader with three runs batted in and a run scored with her second home run of the season. Seven Lancers would combine for 12 hits on the day, while Jazmine Castaneda and Alyssa Argomaniz would each toss complete games against the Lopes.

GAME ONE

Grand Canyon claimed an early lead, blasting a solo homer to dead center in the bottom of the first, adding two more in the third and fourth to build a 5-0 lead before CBU could answer.

The top of the sixth started off well for the Lancers, as Raegan Cheyne led off with a pinch-hit single to left followed by Sydney Soto wearing the next pitch to put runners on first and second with no outs. Soto would be brought in two batters later as Mangrello notched her 13^th double of the season.

✌️✌️✌️✌️✌️✌️✌️✌️✌️✌️✌️✌️✌️ Mangrello smacks her 13th double of the season and gets CBU on the board in the sixth!#LanceUp⚔️ pic.twitter.com/MyWGZTmK1k
— California Baptist Softball (@CBUSoftball) April 1, 2022

Karmyna Becerra would reach second safely in the next at bat, scoring Priscilla Estrada for the second CBU run of the game. The promising sixth came to a swift end after a play at the plate and a pinch-hit ground out ended the frame.

Castaneda went the full six innings for CBU. She allowed five earned with two strikeouts and no walks. Castaneda sat down the side in order in the second and fifth innings.

Starting off the bottom of the first with a Ⓚ#LanceUp⚔️ pic.twitter.com/QIhvkUDwH7
— California Baptist Softball (@CBUSoftball) April 1, 2022

GAME TWO

The second game began as a pitching clinic as neither starting pitcher allowed a hit for the first three innings. That changed when Soto led-off the fourth with a single to right field. Mangrello would follow that up with her second home run of the season, giving the Lancers their first lead of the day at 2-0.

👋 A no-doubter from Katelyn Mangrello puts the Lancers up 2-0 in the top of the fourth!#LanceUp⚔️ pic.twitter.com/PmIRjKntZs
— California Baptist Softball (@CBUSoftball) April 2, 2022

Argomaniz got into a bit of trouble in the circle to start the bottom of the fourth, loading the bases on a walk and a pair of singles with no outs. She stayed calm and proceeded to force an infield pop-out, a strike out looking, and a fly out to center to get out of the jam with the two-run lead intact.

The Lancers would load the bases in the top of the fifth, but could not capitalize on the opportunity, remaining ahead by two runs. The bottom half of the inning saw Argomaniz make her case for defensive play of the year, knocking down a comebacker that she would chase down and scoop to her sister at first directly from her glove to record the first out of the inning.

🎶𝗗𝗨𝗛-𝗡𝗨𝗛-𝗡𝗨𝗛! 𝘿𝙐𝙃-𝙉𝙐𝙃-𝙉𝙐𝙃!🎶 Look ma, no hands! Alyssa Argomaniz makes pitchers every proud with this defensive gem!#LanceUp⚔️ | #SCTop10 | @ESPNAssignDesk pic.twitter.com/grE4voDMkA
— California Baptist Softball (@CBUSoftball) April 2, 2022

The Lopes clawed back into the game, eventually tying it after scoring one in the fifth and sixth to force extra innings. Grand Canyon would fend off Lancer baserunners in every inning from the top of the sixth on, eventually taking game two via a walk-off homer in the bottom of the 10^th.

UP NEXT

The Lancers and Lopes will close out their three-game series in Phoenix with one more game on Saturday afternoon which is slated for a 1 p.m. first pitch.