HONOLULU – Academy of Art softball concluded its 12-game Hawaii road trip on a truly victorious note on Sunday as the Urban Knights secured two Pacific West Conference victories over Chaminade out at Silversword Field At Sand Island Park. Setting the tone with a four-run second inning, ART U then rode an impressive complete game from freshman pitcher
Alyssa Fullmer (5-8) to the 6-2 win then, the Knights gained another early advantage in the series finale which featured freshman pitcher
Kayla Vaughan (4-14) also going the distance in a 3-1 triumph.
GAME 1 – ART U 6, CUH 2
A scoreless opening frame gave way to Academy of Art putting senior infielders
Haley Randall and
Katie Humphreys on to first set up a run-scoring single off the bat of junior catcher
Liberty Herrera. Two pitches later, the bases were cleared twice on back-to-back triples by sophomore infielder
Audrey Allen and senior outfielder
Maddie Sticka who quickly elevated the Knights to a 4-0 advantage.
Fullmer proceeded to shut down Chaminade in the home half of the inning on just five pitches while holding the Silverswords to isolated hits in the two frames that followed. Consecutive singles by senior infielder
Elle Edeker and Humphreys once again put ART U in a threatening position and this time two straight errors turned the game into 6-0 in favor of the visitors.
Though CUH would score twice later in the fifth, an error made both unearned for Fullmer who continued to roll, getting out of the sixth in just 12 pitches then the seventh in 14 pitches while helping secure the 6-2 win for her team. Fullmer's fifth complete game of the season saw her not allow an earned run on seven hits with two walks in 7.0 innings of work.
GAME 2 – ART U 3, CUH 1
Academy of Art once again made its move in the second inning of the series finale as a leadoff single by Edeker eventually helped load the bases for junior utility
Alexis Folks. On the first pitch of her at-bat, the Communications & Media Technologies major sent the ball back up the middle, making it 2-0 ART U.
A single to start the third ended Vaughan's stretch of six consecutive Silverswords retired to start the game, but thereafter the San Diego native regained her rhythm with seven straight sat down across the third, fourth, and fifth. Meanwhile, Academy of Art had senior outfielder
Cailee Grayhorse-Pupecki deliver another run with the third single to begin the fifth inning and, though Chaminade got one run back in the sixth then got the potential tying run to second base in the seventh, Vaughan and her defense kept the 3-1 margin intact to close the series.
Vaughan wrapped up the complete 7.0-inning performance with only one run allowed on five hits plus one walk and four strikeouts. It was her ninth complete game of the year and put her over 100.0 innings pitched thus far.
ART U improves to 10-30 overall and 6-20 in conference play with Allen's 2-for-4 game one effort including two runs batted in, one run scored, a double, and a triple while Folks provided her own 2-for-4 second contest, driving in two with one scored as well. Singular runs were driven in by Sticka (1-for-3 with a triple) and Herrera (1-for-4) in the day's opener and Grayhorse-Pupecki finished the finale 3-for-4 with one RBI and a stolen base.
The Silverswords, who move to 14-17 on the year and 10-10 in PacWest play, had Kobe Brown drive in two of the team's three runs on the day as part of a 1-for-4 first contest while losses were charged to Ashley Ogata (3-7) after four runs allowed on four hits plus one walk in 1.1 innings pitched and Bailey Benson (2-6) following three runs surrendered on seven hits and one walk.
Academy of Art will next be in action in its final non-conference doubleheader at Jessup on Apr. 17 in Lincoln.
