BRISBANE, Calif. – On a sunny Saturday afternoon, Academy of Art softball was welcomed back with a win its first game at Mission Blue Field since Mar. 11, 2020. Three separate rallies allowed the Urban Knights to build a 3-0 lead which would be preserved by way of a combined shutout by senior pitcher Hannah Rose Balke (1-1) and junior pitcher Cecilia Lopez (0-1). Early offense in the series finale saw the Penguins conclude with a 7-2 win for the day's split.

"It felt good to bounce back and get the offense going after a rough day yesterday at the plate," said Head Coach Nikki Gentile. "Hannah and CeCe got us key ground and flyballs and had command on a variety of pitches. They looked great; I think we can predict that caliber of pitching every time they are on the mound. They are confident veterans."

GAME 1 – ART U 3, DU 0
Academy of Art was the first to strike on Saturday when a leadoff walk drawn by junior catcher Lauryn Henderson later resulted in the Knights' first run on a triple by junior utility Neenah Pangilinan. The lead doubled in the third when graduate student outfielder Gabi Hirsch used her speed, singling before swiping two bases and coming home on a single from sophomore outfielder Bethany Mitchell.

Meanwhile, Balke had registered one strikeout in each of her first three innings and, after being challenged by an error and two walks in the fourth, her fourth strikeout ended the inning's drama. Up 3-0 after graduate student infielder Chelsea Sligh drove one more in on a single in the fifth, Lopez would close out the final three innings of the game with no runs on just hits allowed for her first career save.

GAME 2 – DU 7, ART U 2
Two hits and an error produced the Penguins' first run of the second contest in the second inning and a rocky two more innings ensued. Multiple hits in each frame enabled Dominican to establish a 6-0 lead, but Academy of Art did not go without a fight.

The sixth inning began with freshman outfielder Maddie Sticka and Hirsch each singling their way aboard for freshman infielder Katie Humphreys to drive both in with her first collegiate hit, a two-run single. The Penguins added one more in the seventh before holding on for the 7-2 victory.

ART U, now 1-3 overall and in PacWest play, saw its top three hitters in the batting order (Hirsch, Mitchell, Sligh) each register two hits apiece in the game one victory. Hirsch was 2-for-3 with a run scored in each contest, adding two more stolen bases in the first.

Improving to 3-1 both overall and in conference after its first week of action, Dominican was once again led by Peyton Mott who finished the day 3-for-6 with two runs scored while Lauren Lapinid and McKenna Daley each drove in a pair in the finale. Alyssa Waltman (1-0) picked up the win in that game after not allowing a run in 5.0 innings while the first contest's loss went to Shelby Keltner (1-1).

Academy of Art will next be in action against Holy Names for four games across two days on Mar. 19-20.