REDDING, Calif. – An opening game shutout for the 2025 spring season while they were held hitless didn't stop the Corban University Softball team from rolling over in game two, as the Warriors battled back from an eight-run deficit to nearly complete the comeback bid and steal a game against Simpson University, but narrowly fell short in 6-0 and 11-9 contests today in their first appearance of the year. Nine runs represent the most runs scored on opening day since the 2020 season for Corban softball, who brought the tying run to the plate in the top of the seventh of game two and nearly found a win in their second opportunity.
"I'm proud of the adjustments our ladies made from game one to game two," explained Corban head coach Jeff Covalt following his first doubleheader as the program's leader. "We collected fourteen hits and put pressure on their defense. Our pitching staff came out confident and worked through some tough situations. I'm looking forward to our next opportunity to compete."
Game 1 – Simpson 6, Corban 0
In their first contest of the 2025 regular season, the Warriors (0-2) just couldn't shake off the preseason rust and struggled offensively right from the opening pitch, yet their defense was tested early and pushed back against the Red Hawks (2-2) to keep themselves firmly in position to mount a late-game comeback. Unfortunately, the offense could never muster the willpower they needed to force Simpson into defensive pressure and instead, suffered their first loss of the year by being no-hit by starting pitcher Jacquelyn Lujan.
Corban true freshman Regan Rasmussen kicked off her collegiate career as the starting pitcher in the first half of today's doubleheader, where she surrendered two runs on four hits while walking one batter in 2.0 innings. Senior relief pitcher Emmaleena Wood came into the contest in the third inning out of the bullpen and allowed one run on two hits with a strikeout looking, while true freshman Miranda Scovil pitched the remaining 2.1 innings with three runs allowed off a single hit by the Red Hawks.
Lujan was unstoppable in the circle for Simpson in game one, as she racked up 15 strikeouts in the complete game no-hitter, needing 81 pitches to shutout the Warriors while hitting just one batter and walking none.
Red Hawks' leadoff hitter and leftfielder Nicolena Holen was the only student-athlete in game one with multiple hits, as she was 2-for-4 with three RBI and a run scored. Third baseman Brianna Lopez-Cortez match Holen with three RBI of her own via her three-run homer in the fifth inning.
Game 2 – Simpson 11, Corban 9
The second game of today's doubleheader in Northern California was much more competitive for the Navy and Gold, who scored seven runs over the final three innings of action to nearly complete the unprecedented comeback while facing a run-rule scenario in the top of the fifth.
Trailing 10-2 and just two outs between the Warriors and a fifth-inning run-rule, redshirt junior first baseman Madelyn Robinson came through with a double to score sophomore third baseman Cianna Yasutomi-Tancayo and extend the contest at least one more inning, but Corban wasn't done scoring runs in the fifth frame. After sophomore centerfielder Breanna Crosby reached via error to plate one run, both Robinson and Crosby would come around to score on singles by junior catcher Kassandra Douglas and senior rightfielder Madelynne Pierce to cut the Red Hawk's lead in half.
The very next inning, Crosby stepped to the plate with two outs and the bases loaded and once again cut the Simpson lead in half with a two-run single that allowed Rasmussen and Yasutomi-Tancayo to score and force the RedHawks into their third pitching change of the contest. A single from Scovil loaded the bases once again, but Simpson induced a groundout to escape to the bottom of the sixth without any further damage.
A solo shot by Lopez-Cortez in the bottom of the sixth, her second of the day, increased the Red Hawks' advantage on the scoreboard back to three runs, but Scovil shut down the remaining batters in front of her to setup the Warriors for a massive opening day comeback bid in the top of the seventh.
After back-to-back outs to begin the seventh, junior shortstop Isabel Carattini lined a single into rightfield and came around from first base to score on a double to the fence from Yasutomi-Tancayo, allowing the tying run to step to the plate after previously trailing by eight runs in the fifth. However, Simpson's centerfielder made a game-saving catch on the next at-bat to secure the doubleheader sweep for the hometown team despite a hearty effort from the Navy and Gold.
While the Corban pitching staff comprised of senior starter Sage Vanterpool, junior reliever Amy Jankowski, and Scovil allowed more runs than in game one, they did manage to secure five Simpson strikeouts and limited their free passes to just one walk across 30 batters, while the defense behind them committed just one error compared to four for the Red Hawks. The Warriors concluded game two with less errors and more team hits, just less runs on the scoreboard.
A four-headed pitching arsenal for Simpson allowed the host institution to squeeze out a game two win this afternoon, with reliever Hallie Prather picking up the win and closer Isabella Contreras earning the save after representing the only Red Hawk to hold the Corban offense to one or fewer runs in game two.
Three different Warriors submitted multi-hit outings in the doubleheader finale, with Yasutomi-Tancayo leading the charge with a 3-for-3 performance, scoring two runs and securing an RBI. Crosby tallied two hits with two RBI and a run scored from the fifth spot in the lineup, while Carattini reached base safely twice via hits and scored on both occasions.
Ten early runs by the Simpson offense allowed them to escape with a game two win, as designated player Kassandra Soria finished 3-for-4 with two RBI and three runs scored as the top performer from the upper third of the Red Hawks' lineup. The one-two-three batters were a combined 7-for-11 with five RBI and seven runs scored.
Corban softball will host their home opener next Saturday, February 15th at Warrior Field, as they'll welcome NCAA DIII University of Puget Sound (0-0) for 1pm and 3pm doubleheader start times.
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