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Las Vegas, NV - The Simon Fraser University softball team continued non-conference play at the season opening Desert Stinger hosted by the Montana State University Billings Yellowjackets with a pair of losses to the defending NCAA Division II West Region Champions and fourth ranked team in the pre-season polls, the Humboldt State Lumberjacks and to the Fort Lewis College Skyhawks.
The Clan dropped their first game of the day 6-4 to Humboldt State before losing 9-1 to Fort Lewis in a game that was shortened to five innings because of the mercy rule.
"It was tale of two outings," said Head Coach Mike Renney. "Very early in our season we played our best game and our worst game."
Against the defending NCAA Division II West Region Champions Humboldt State, the Clan fell behind early and charged back late, coming just shy in the end of picking up the victory.
Jessica Goulet (Cambridge, ON) got the start for the Clan and took the loss, pitching two and two thirds innings, allowing five hits and four runs, all of them earned against the Lumberjacks.
Jessica Fortier (Three Hills, AB) came on in relief of Goulet, pitching three and a third innings of relief, allowing seven hits and two runs and two walks.
Junior Danielle Raison (Langley, BC) went two for three for the Clan in the game while Mackenzie Bender (St. Albert, AB) came off the bench and earned one hit and two runs batted in in her only at bat.
Alex Baylak (Regina, SK) and Nicole Ratel (Langley, BC) also had RBI's for the Clan.
Humboldt State, playing as the home team in the neutral site game, scored one in the second and four in the third to take a 5-0 lead.
In the fourth, the Clan put two on the board in an inning that started with a Katilyn Cameron (Langley, BC) double to left centre.
Raison then reached on an error and then Baylak doubled sending Raison to third and Cameron in to score the Clan's first run of the game. After a ground out and fly out Ratel singled through the left side to score Raison and bring the Clan within three.
After a scoreless fifth the Lumberjacks added one in the sixth to put the Clan down 6-2.
In the seventh with one out, Alexis Johnston (Abbotsford, BC) walked and with two out, Bender hit a pinch hit two run home run to bring SFU within striking distance but that was as close as the Clan would get as Humboldt State won the game 6-4.
"We battled hard against one of the top teams in the tournament and in Division II against Humboldt. We had our chances to give them a good run and possibly have a successful outcome. I was pleased with that game and we had good performances in many regards. We showed that we can compete against anyone," continued Renney.
While the Clan opened the scoring with a run in the top of the first inning against Fort Lewis, the Skyhawks scored one in the first, one in the second, three in the third and four in the fourth before holding the Clan scoreless in the top of the fifth to secure the win via the mercy rule.
Fortier and Bender pitched the majority of the game for SFU, going a combined three and two thirds innings as Goulet pitched a third of an inning.
Proctor had the lone RBI and the lone run scored in the game for the Clan as she hit a solo home run in the top of the first inning against Fort Lewis.
"Our focus wasn't there against Fort Lewis and we played to our experience. We couldn't get timing going offensively, our pitching struggled and our defence made errors. The performance was unacceptable. We know we are going to be challenged at times with our youth and make mistakes as we're learning but we certainly cannot roll over and play dead and I think we gave up in that game. That's not the kind of performance we expect from players in our program," finished Renney.
With the losses the Clan drop to 0-4 in non-conference play and will wrap up the Desert Stinger on Sunday in Las Vegas against Regis University.
