LOS ANGELES -- The San Diego State softball team closed out the regular season with a pair of losses Friday night at Easton Stadium. The Aztecs (32-15) opened with a 7-2 loss to LMU before falling at No. 2/2 UCLA, 4-3, on a walk-off home run in the nightcap.
In the nightcap, SDSU trailed the Bruins (50-4), 3-0, until the top of the sixth inning when Cali Decker tied it with a three-run home run over the right-field fence. It was her third of the season.
After San Diego State reliever Allie Light worked around a two-out triple in the sixth by UCLA, the Aztecs tried to take the lead in the seventh. Bella Espinoza reached on a one-out throwing error and went to second on the play. Mac Barbara then drew a five-pitch walk, but Megan Fairaimo struck out Jillian Celis looking and got Makena Brocki to fly out to center field to get out of the jam.
Light (10-6) struck out USA Softball Collegiate Player-of-the-Year finalist Maya Brady, but Aaliyah Jordan followed with a pinch-hit homer to end the game.
Barbara singled and walked to lead the SDSU offense, while Brocki reached twice with two walks.
Light took the loss after allowing one run on one hit in 2/3 innings of relief, striking out one. Dani Martinez got the start and yielded three runs on five hits and a walk over 1 1/3 innings, posting one strikeout. Dee Dee Hernandez pitched 4 1/3 scoreless innings of relief with four hits and no walks given up, while striking out two.
In the opener, the Lions (26-18) scored four runs in the bottom of the third to take a 5-2 lead and added single runs in the fourth and fifth, respectively, to beat San Diego State, 7-2. The LMU win evened the series for the season as the Aztecs won the first meeting, 3-0, on Feb. 17.
SDSU scored its first run in the top of the first inning when Decker's groundout plated Barbara.
A leadoff home run by Barbara in the third was the final run of the game for San Diego State. It was her 12th homer of the year.
Barbara had two hits and two runs to lead the Aztecs, while Espinoza singled and walked.
Sarah Lehman took the loss after giving up four runs on four hits and a walk over two innings, striking out two. Light relieved Lehman (10-4) in the third and allowed three runs on five hits over three innings, striking out three. Hernandez worked around three hits in the sixth, striking out one without issuing a walk.
THE NOTE
SDSU fell to 1-4 on the season against teams in the top-25 of the latest RPI with its four losses coming by a combined 10 runs.
THE NOTE II
San Diego State fell to 12-4 against teams from California this season, snapping a six-game winning streak heading into today.
STAT OF THE DAY
DP Mac Barbara became the fifth Aztec in program history with 30 home runs in the opener vs. LMU, something she accomplished in her 100th game at SDSU (she has now played 101). Barbara's 12 home runs this season are 10th in San Diego State single-season history.
UP NEXT
The Aztecs play host to the 2023 Mountain West Softball Championship, May 11-13, at SDSU Softball Stadium. SDSU earned the No. 2 seed in the six-team tournament and will play the winner of the No. 3 seed and No. 6 seed at 6:30 p.m. PT Thursday.
Game 1: LMU 7, San Diego State 2
San Diego State 101 000 0 -- 2 6 1
LMU (26-18) 104 110 x -- 7 12 1
Lehman, Light (3), Hernandez (6) and Decker; O'Dell, Caymol (3), Hubbard (6) and Thomas
W - Caymol, 1-2; L - Lehman, 10-4
HR: San Diego State, Barbara (11); LMU, Sofowora
Game 2: No. 2/2 UCLA 4, San Diego State 3
San Diego State (32-15) 000 003 0 -- 3 4 0
UCLA (50-4) 120 000 1 -- 4 10 1
Martinez, Hernandez (2), Light (6) and Ignacio, Decker (2); Yanez, Tinsley (7), Faraimo (7) and Garcia
W - Faraimo, 28-2; L - Light, 10-6
HR: San Diego State, Decker (3); UCLA, Jordan
SDSU Softball Loses a Pair of Games in Los Angeles
