Bombs Away

BERKELEY – The No. 19 California softball team hit four home runs in the fifth inning to run-rule Oregon State, 9-0, in game one of the series on Friday afternoon at Levine-Fricke Field.

Lagi Quiroga, Tatum Anzaldo and Tianna Bell went back-to-back-to-back for the Golden Bears (35-15, 8-12 Pac-12) before Mika Lee hit a 3-run walk-off shot to secure the win. Eliana Gottlieb doubled to lead the Beavers (20-27, 8-14 Pac-12).

Scoreless through two innings, the Cal bats got going in the third. Anzaldo got the Bears on the board with a sacrifice fly and Bell's RBI single made it 2-0 after three full frames. Lee recorded a sac fly of her own in the fourth to make it 3-0 before the big bats came to the plate in the fifth.

Quiroga led off the inning with a solo shot just over the fence in left field, her 14th of the year, to move into a second-place tie in the conference. Anzaldo hit a laser shot to right center on the fourth pitch she saw before Bell made it three straight long balls on her third hit of the day for a 6-0 advantage.

The Bears kept the rally going with Elon Butler's third base knock of the game and a single off the bat of Pond to set the table for Lee's walk-off bomb. She took a 2-1 pitch deep to dead center field for a 3-run shot, her sixth of the season and third in the last four games.

Haylei Archer picked up her 11th win of the season in the circle after going 4.0 innings while allowing just three hits. Cal's four home runs increase the season total to 74 as a team, tying last year's squad for the second-most in a season in program history.

UP NEXT
Cal and Oregon State meet for game two of the series on Saturday with first pitch scheduled for 2 p.m. PT at Levine-Fricke Field.      

STAY POSTED
For coverage of Cal softball, please follow the Bears on Twitter (@CalSB), Instagram (@calsb) and Facebook (/CalSoftball/).