LAS VEGAS – Day two of the 2017 Desert Stinger Classic saw the Western Oregon softball splitting a pair of games. The Wolves held off Minot State in Saturday's opener for a 5-4 victory before falling in a walk-off effort against Cal State San Bernardino in the nightcap, 5-4.
 
Game One – Western Oregon 5, Minot State 4
Ryanne Huffman and Ku'ulei Siolo each had two hits while a Zoe Clark RBI groundout in the top of the fifth proved to be the game-winner in a 5-4 victory over Minot State at Majestic Park.
 
The Wolves got on the board with two runs in the first. After a lead-off walk to Kelsie Gardner, Huffman doubled into the left-center gap to get Gardner in for a 1-0 lead. Later in the frame with the bases empty, Ashlee Lynch blasted a home run to double the Wolves' lead.
 
Minot State tallied single runs in the second, third and fourth innings for a slim 3-2 lead.
 
WOU did not have a hit in their half of the fifth inning, but it did not stop the club from posting a three-spot. Consecutive errors and a walk loaded the bags for Destiny Kuehl, who reached on a fielder's choice scoring Courtney Lau Hee for the tying. Jenna Kelly's sacrifice fly to right plated Gardner and Huffman scored on Clark's grounder to second base.
 
Minot State got one back in the sixth, but a double play stymied their effort in the final frame.
 
Chandler Bishop earned the win in relief for WOU striking out three in four relief innings.
 
Game Two – Cal State San Bernardino 5, Western Oregon 4
A three-run home run from Emma Alfonso in the top of the sixth inning gave Western Oregon a 4-2 lead but three runs over the final two innings pushed Cal State San Bernardino past the Wolves in walkoff fashion, 5-4.
 
Huffman singled in the first innings and scored after an error in left field off a swing from Clark.
 
Haley Fabian kept the Coyotes scoreless over three innings before surrendering single runs in the fourth and fifth innings.
 
Trailing 2-1 in the top of the sixth, Clark reached via an error and Chandler Bishop, who entered to pitch in the previous half inning, singled to right. With runners at the corners, Alfonso homered to give Western Oregon a 4-2 lead.
 
CSUSB had two hits and capitalized on two WOU errors to pull even heading to the seventh.
 
The Wolves got a runner into scoring position, but did not get the go-ahead run across. The Coyotes got a one-out RBI double from Taylor Ancona in the home half to end the game.
 
Huffman had three of the Wolves' nine hits while Ashley Doyle swatted two hits. Bishop took the loss allowing three unearned runs in two innings to fall to 1-1.
 
Next Up
The Wolves close out play in Las Vegas with one game on Sunday at 2 p.m. against Cal State Monterey Bay.