FULLERTON, Calif.-No. 1 Arizona State scored a pair of unearned runs and added a third run and claimed a 3-1 victory over No. 16 Louisiana in the first game of the second day of the Judi Garman Classic in Fullerton, Calif.
The Sun Devils improved to 33-2, while the Cajuns fell to 19-6.
In the circle, Ashley Brignac (River Ridge, La.) got the start for the Cajuns. Brignac worked 3.0 innings, scattering two hits while striking out three. She was the victim of a pair of unearned runs.
Brignac was relieved by Donna Bourgeois (Lafayette, La.). The freshman hurler worked 3.0 innings allowing just one run on four hits. She struck out four batters without issuing a walk.
The Cajuns pieced together just three hits on the day, but benefited from a home run from senior right fielder Holly Tankersley (Kirbyville, Texas). The home run was Tankersley's 10th of the season and 58th of her illustrious career.
The Cajuns worked their way out of an early jam in the first inning. A leadoff single marked the first runner of the day for the Sun Devils. A four-pitch walk gave ASU a pair of runners, and a sacrifice bunt placed both runners in scoring position. Brignac induced a pop up to first baseman Gabriele Bridges (Lafitte, La.) for the second out of the inning. The Cajuns got out of the inning as left fielder Katie Smith (Ruston, La.) made an impressive diving catch in foul territory close to the third base dugout to end the inning.
Arizona State was the first team to score. In the third inning, the Sun Devils were aided by a fielding error for the Cajuns for the first base runner of the inning. Brignac hit the next batter with a pitch to give ASU a pair of base runners. A fly ball to right field advanced the runners and a pop up to second base was the second out of the inning. A single up the middle plated both runners and saw the Cajuns on the wrong side of a 2-0 score.
The Cajuns cut the deficit in half with one swing of the bat. Tankersley drove the first pitch she saw over the right field fence for her 10th home run of the season. The homer marked the 58th of her career, tying Tankersley with Lacey Bertucci (2004-07) for second all-time in Cajuns history.
The Sun Devils added a run in the bottom of the sixth inning. Back-to-back one out singles gave Arizona State runners on first and second. A fielder's choice left ASU with runners on the corners. With two outs, Arizona State Caylyn Carlson beat out a throw, which would have been the final out of the inning. Instead the RBI single pushed the score to 3-1, which proved to be the final score of the game.
The Ragin' Cajuns softball team will continue play at the 2008 Judi Garman Classic at 3:30 p.m. (Central Time) when UL squares off against UNLV.
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