Box Score Facing three time defending SCIAC Champion University of Redlands, Cal State San Marcos softball, put up a fight, but lost both of Sunday’s games. CSUSM fell in game one 3-0, and lost game two by a score of 9-5. Game one was a tightly-played contest that came down to a couple key at-bats. Ashley Salvino started the game with three hitless innings, overpowering Redlands’ lineup with well-located fastballs. She got an assist from left fielder Mimi Krutein, who prevented a sure base hit with a sliding catch on a blooper over the shortstop’s head with two outs in the third. Lizelle Casillas broke up the no-hit bid with a one-out single in the fourth, but Salvino escaped the inning with no harm. With Redlands starter Katie Brnca matching Salvino pitch-for-pitch, the scoreless tie persisted to the fifth. In the top half of the inning, Aleisha Martinez would lead off for Redlands with a base hit, and pinch runner Sam Ingram stole second. After a strikeout, the next batter walked, and a wild pitch moved both runners into scoring position. Cougar Coach Kelly Warren decided to go to the bullpen and put the ball in Melissa Lerno’s hands. She inherited a 2-ball count on the first hitter, and walked her to load the bases. Lerno, who has only made a couple relief appearances in her CSUSM career, then walked the next hitter, forcing in Redlands’ first run. The next batter grounded out, pushing in another run before Lerno was able to pitch out of the inning. Redlands manufactured another run in the sixth, and Brnca gave way to Olivia Ellis after throwing 5 innings of scoreless 2-hit ball. Ellis was promptly greeted with a booming triple to left-center by Cougar third-baseman Lauren Nelson, giving the Cougars potential life. But CSUSM was unable to capitalize, and Ellis pitched an uneventful seventh to earn the save in Redlands’ 3-0 win. Game two pitted Cougar starter Brenna Sandberg, coming off a shutout against Bethany yesterday, against Ellis. The Cougars got started early. With two outs and no on in the first, Eric Coelho hit a short pop-up that dropped just in front of the first baseman, and was able to get on base. Melissa Lerno then made Redlands pay, crushing an RBI double to right that gave CSUSM the early 1-0 lead. The lead would not last, however. Early on, Sandberg looked as good as she did in Saturday’s start; but with two outs in the second, a routine fly ball to the outfield was dropped. Sandberg walked the next two hitters, and Melanie Hamlin cashed in with a bases clearing RBI double to center, giving Redlands a 3-1 lead. Mimi Krutein quickly made amends for the dropped fly, knocking a two-out RBI single to left in the bottom of the second. But Redlands’ lineup had caught on to Sandberg, and quickly took a commanding lead with three consecutive booming doubles, an error, and another big double. Ashley Salvino was called in from the bullpen with the Cougars down 7-2. An error would allow a couple more runs to score, making it a 9-2 lead for Redlands. Krutein connected on yet another big hit in the fifth, hammering an RBI double over the centerfielder’s head. CSUSM got two runners on with two outs, but Lerno’s line drive to center was hauled in, and the score remained 9-3. The bottom of that inning started with plenty of excitement, as Redlands’ Nicky Neumenn hit a bomb off the left field wall, but the Krutein – Lerno – Preovolos relay thwarted her bid for a home run, nailing her on a play at the plate. Despite the large deficit, CSUSM finished the game off strong. Salvino threw 5 innings without allowing an earned run, aided by a nifty play in the seventh by third baseman Lauren Nelson, who snagged a line drive and alertly tagged the runner on third for a double-play. Krutein got yet another base hit in the seventh, making her 3-for-3 in the game and 4-for-5 in the double-header. The Cougars put together a two-out rally in the seventh, with the help of a throwing error on what should’ve been the final out. That allowed a run to score, and Lerno drove in another with a base hit. Reliever Lindsey Horta would get out of it, however, and preserve the 9-5 win for Redlands. The loss drops Cougar softball to 3-3 on the season; and it won’t get any easier, with the team’s next game at Azusa Pacific on the 12th.