SAN RAFAEL, Calif. – Academy of Art softball walked away from its first Pacific West Conference doubleheader of the season with a 4-3 win and a 10-6 loss to Dominican out at Penguin Field on Friday. After a big comeback rally in the fifth, ART U saw a pinch-hit game-winning single came off the bat of graduate student outfielder Cailee Grayhorse-Pupecki in the opening contest then two homers in the final frame of the second was not enough to overcome DU's early offense.

GAME 1 – ART U 4, DU 3
The Urban Knights drew a pair of walks in the opening frame, but the first three innings would see neither side touch home plate as junior pitcher Kamielle Powell (2-5) exchanged scoreless sequences with Taylor Rodriguez (5-0). The Penguins struck first with a sacrifice fly in the fourth, but that margin did not last long.

The fifth inning began with sophomore outfielder Lida Wos singling and sophomore outfielder Ari Mallari doubling on the first and second pitches to set up an eventual bases-loaded situation for junior infielder Audrey Allen. Much like she did against Simon Fraser on Feb. 19, the Interior Architecture & Design major proceeded to clear the bases with a double, effectively putting Academy of Art ahead 3-1.

DU would mount a comeback by way of a two-run single in the sixth, but ART U had the counterpunch after singles by freshman outfielder Danielle Shinko and Allen put the go-ahead run at third in the seventh with Grayhorse-Pupecki stepping to the plate as a pinch hitter. She fouled off two pitches before roping a single into center to drive in her teammate for the 4-3 advantage. Powell needed just eight pitches to shut the door on the Penguins in the bottom half, finishing her third complete game of the season with only three runs allowed on six hits and three walks plus one strikeout in a victorious outing.

GAME 2 – DU 10, ART U 6
After both Mallari and Shinko reached base to start game two of the series, Allen continued to wield a hot bat with a double to plate both teammates. Senior catcher/infielder Liberty Herrera followed that up with a single to deliver Allen and a 3-0 lead.

Dominican responded with a solo homer in the first, a grand slam in the second, and a five-run rally in the third to quickly build a 10-3 advantage which Academy of Art eventually cut into though it came late into the afternoon. The seventh inning saw Wos leg out a leadoff infield single then Mallari blast her first home run of the season to center. Three batters later, Allen connected on her second homer of the year, a solo shot, but time ran out on the comeback with the score settling at 10-6 DU.

The Knights head into the weekend 2-13 overall and 1-1 in PacWest play. Allen ended a memorable day 5-for-9 with six runs batted in, two doubles, one homer, and two runs scored. Meanwhile, Mallari went 4-for-7 with a double and a home run (both part of a 3-for-3 second game) plus three runs scored and Wos wrapped up her first games of the season 3-for-6 with two runs scored.

Dominican, now 11-9 and 3-3 in conference, were led by Annabelle Burke's four runs batted in during the second contest as well as Morgan Saucedo's three driven in across two pinch-hit appearances. Nay Torres-Gonzalez (3-4) was charged with the game one loss after surrendering one run on three hits in 2.0 innings pitched. The day's finale was won by Kassidy Stetler (2-3) and her complete 7.0 innings with six runs allowed on 12 hits.

With half of its PacWest-opening series versus Dominican complete, Academy of Art next hosts the Penguins from Mission Blue Field in another noon doubleheader tomorrow.