AWC avoids sweep, tops Colorado Northwestern

JUCO SOFTBALL

The Matadors softball team managed to avoid a three-game sweep in the first day of the Great Western Shootout on Thursday.

Arizona Western (6-4) beat Colorado Northwestern (8-0) in six innings after falling to both No. 17 Southern Idaho and Western Nevada.

Megan Lerno (2-2) pitched six innings of hitless ball with seven strikeouts in the Matadors win. Savanna Baggett went 2 for 4 with a double and a pair of RBIs and Tori Rich went 3 for 4 with three stolen bases and two runs scored.

“We didn't show up until the third game, so that's something we'll certainly need to improve on, making sure we're physically and mentally ready to play in the first game,” Matadors coach Nikki Bethurum said.

In their first game against No. 17 Southern Idaho, the Matadors made a last-inning rally — scoring two in the seventh — but it came up short, losing 5-3. Rich went 3 for 4 with a double and two RBIs.

Against Western Nevada, Arizona Western let a close game get away from them. After closing a 7-0 deficit to 7-5 into the top of the seventh, the Matadors allowed four runs in the final inning to keep the game out of reach in a 11-6 Matador loss. Rich went 2 for 4 with two RBIs for the Matadors.

The Matadors open up the second day of the Great Western Shootout at 11 a.m. today against Southern Idaho at the Arizona Western softball field.