Dogs remain unbeaten, extend streak to 11

Saturday, April 16

Fresno, Calif.

6:00 PM

Fresno State

29-9-1, 11-0

Utah State

19-18, 5-6

Utah State

Fresno State

Dogs remain unbeaten, extend streak to 11

4/16/2016 12:00:00 AM | Softball

Box Score

April 16, 2016

By: Kimberly Fisher
kimfisher@csufresno.edu
GoBulldogs.com

US-FS2

Bulldogs (29-9-1, 11-0 MW) vs. Aggies (19-18, 5-6 MW)
Fresno, Calif. (Margie Wright Diamond)
Sunday, April 17 - 12 p.m.

FRESNO, Calif. - Fresno State softball continued its 11-game Mountain West winning streak after edging Utah State 3-2 in come-from-behind fashion on Saturday at Margie Wright Diamond. Senior Alyssa Villalpando had all three RBI and righty Jill Compton (17-4, 8-0 MW) was the Bulldogs' winning pitcher.

No. 23 Fresno State (29-9-1) has now won 21-straight MW games dating back to the 2015 season and will return to action on Sunday at noon to compete for its fourth consecutive series sweep of the year. The Bulldogs were coming off Friday's 12-11 battle that was won on a walk-off hit in the bottom of the ninth.

"I think Jill [Compton] needed this game," head coach Trisha Ford said. "She needed to bounce back, although I didn't think she threw terrible yesterday, but she got stronger tonight as the game went on and we'll continue to build on that. We didn't have the offensive performance that we saw last night, it was a pretty tight ballgame, but I'm impressed that we got some key hits when we needed them. That's the name of the game."

Three of the five combined runs scored were logged in the first inning as Villalpando collected her first RBI of the night to make it a one-run game heading into the second.

The Aggies held a 2-1 edge through three complete scoreless innings before the veteran third baseman put Fresno State up 3-2 on a two-out double in the middle of the fifth.

Redshirt freshman Vanessa Hernandez had a team-leading two hits in three at-bats with one putout in center, and fellow outfielder Bria Kennedy (1-for-3) scored all but one of the 'Dogs runs with a double play assist at home plate on defense.

"Vanessa [Hernandez] and Bria [Kennedy] had some great at-bats tonight and did some great things for us defensively," Ford added. "They came ready to play tonight."

In the circle, Compton fanned a total of four batters and held the Aggies to just two runs through seven innings pitched as she picked up her MW-leading 17th win of the season and 80th career-wise.

QUICK HITS
Fresno State (11-0) tops the Mountain West by a three-game margin over San Jose State (8-3) meanwhile Nevada (7-4) trails in third, New Mexico (5-6) is fourth and Utah State (5-6) dropped one place to fifth among the nine-team league.

The 'Dogs 11-0 mark is the second-best start to league play in Mountain West history, behind San Diego State's 13-0 run back in 2006. The last time Fresno State opened conference with more than nine-straight wins was a 24-0 stretch, accomplished in 1999.

In the past two weeks the Bulldogs have swept Boise State and New Mexico on the road and took all three contests from San Diego State at home.

When combining the 11 conference games played this year, Fresno State has outscored their opponent 115-45 which includes four run-rule victories.

UPCOMING PROMOTIONS
Kids Weekend will wrap up Sunday with "League Day" as kids (12 and under) receive free admission with a travel or city league jersey. 150 root beer floats will be given away and the area youth are invited to run the bases postgame.

ON THE HORIZON
After the weekend series versus Utah State, the 'Dogs will make a one-day road trip to Stockton, Calif., for a nonconference game against Pacific on Apr. 19 prior to hosting Colorado State, April 22-24. The squad will visit San Jose State (April 29-May 1) and Nevada (May 6-8), followed by senior weekend versus UNLV, May 12-14.

STAY UP TO DATE
Fans can follow the Bulldog's 2016 journey and stay up-to-date with the latest news through several media outlets including Twitter (@FresnoStateSB), Facebook (Fresno State Softball), Instagram (@fresnostatesoftball) and Snapchat (FresnoStateSB). A full recap and final results can be found at GoBulldogs.com following each competition.

"Be Bold!" - The official home of Fresno State Softball is 790 AM ESPN2 "The Deuce."