PHOENIX-- Two games, 36 runs, five and a half hours, and one stadium lights delay later, the CSU Bakersfield softball team closed a wild day of Western Athletic Conference action. The Roadrunners split their doubleheader against Grand Canyon with a pair of offensive contests Friday night.

Game 1 - CSUB 12, GCU 7

The 'Runners got out to a quick start with three runs in the top of the first inning in Game 1. Julea Cavazos (Fr., Temecula, Calif., Temecula Valley HS) started the scoring with a sacrifice fly that scored Adrianna Cardoza (R-Jr., Santa Ana, Calif., La  Quinta HS). RBI singles from Nicole Curry (Fr., Martinez, Calif., Alhambra HS) and Ashley Carter (Sr., Tehachapi, Calif., Tehachapi HS) allowed CSUB to take a 3-0 lead.

Grand Canyon responded in the bottom half of the first. Kelsey Barak doubled to right center and scored Kayla Henry to make the score 3-1. GCU loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom half of the second inning but Kelsie Monroe (Sr., Los Banos, Calif., San Joaquin Delta College), Bakersfield's starter, got revenge on Barak with a strikeout to end the threat.

Curry broke the score open in the top of the third with a three-run home run to dead center. The freshman's second homer of the season gave the 'Runners a 6-1 lead. Monroe continued to pitch well but ran into trouble in the bottom of the fourth inning. Grand Canyon put together four runs off of three hits and a hit batter to cut the CSUB lead to 6-5.

The 'Runners did not cave under pressure and scored two runs in the sixth inning to stretch the lead to 8-5. An RBI-double from Alexandrea Simmons (Jr., Ontario, Calif., Mt. SAC) capped the scoring for the inning, but not for the game.

A seventh-inning explosion gave Bakersfield the 12 runs it would use to win the game. Curry started the scoring by recording her third hit and fifth RBI of the day. The freshman's outburst marks the first time a 'Runner had five RBI in a game since 2012 (Emily Bliss vs. Cal State Fullerton, 2/17/12) and tied for second-most in CSUB Division I history for RBI in a game (6, Jazmin Lee vs. UC Riverside, 4/6/11). After Madison Bundy's (Sr., Anacortes, Wash., Oregon State) RBI-single, Sydney Raeber (Jr., Hanford, Calif., Hanford HS) hit the first home run of her career to finish the scoring.

Monroe picked up the complete-game win and moved to 11-8 on the season. The 12 runs tied for third-most runs in a single game for CSUB in Division I history. Eight of the nine Roadrunner starters recorded a hit in the game while four 'Runners had two hits or more.

Game 2 - GCU 9, CSUB 8

The Antelopes struck first in the second game of the doubleheader, scoring two runs in the bottom of the first inning. Three hits and a walk allowed GCU to take an early 2-0 lead on Bakersifled and their starter, Lyndsay Klimenko (So. Half Moon Bay, Calif., Half Moon Bay HS). The 'Runners finally made contact in the third inning, scoring a pair of runs of their own. With two outs, Karsyn Guzman (So., Hanford, Calif., Hanford HS) picked up two RBI with a double to the right center gap.

In the next inning, CSUB put up another pair of runs thanks to back-to-back RBI hits from Bundy and Raeber. The runs gave the 'Runners a 4-2 lead, but GCU scored a run in the bottom half of the inning to make the score 4-3.

A Guzman solo home run in the top of the fifth extended the CSUB lead to 5-3, but the advantage was short lived. A six-run fifth inning for the 'Lopes, which was highlighted by a bases-clearing double from Brittany Medina, helped GCU take a 9-5 lead.

CSUB would not go down without a fight, scoring three runs in the top of the sixth inning. RBI hits from Bundy, Simmons, and Guzman cut the GCU lead to just one run. A 30-minute delay when a timer shut the stadium lights forced the 'Runners to wait for their last chance to tie the game or take the lead. CSUB was able to get one 'Runner aboard in the top of the seventh, but GCU closed out the game to take a 9-8 victory.

Klimenko took the loss while Taylor Nowlin improved to 11-6 with the win in relief for Grand Canyon. Guzman went 3-for-4 in the game with four RBI while Bundy added two more hits and two more RBI.

The 'Runners (15-20, 3-5 WAC) and 'Lopes (25-18, 6-2 WAC) will conclude the series with a single game on Saturday. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. while the final game of the series will again be available on the WAC Digital Network.

~GoRunners.com~