BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – The Utah Valley University softball team snapped a 16-game losing streak with a 4-2 win over CSU Bakersfield in its 2016 Western Athletic Conference opener on Friday afternoon at the Roadrunner Softball Complex in Southern California.
 
Sophomore catcher Dana De La Torre led the Wolverine (5-22, 1-0 WAC) offense by going 2-for-3 with two RBIs and a run scored, while junior Brittney Vansway added a 1-for-4 performance with an RBI single.

"It was a huge win for us today. The players capitalized on their opportunities and had confidence in each other," UVU head coach Nikki Palmer said. "Overall it was a great team win and sets the tone for us in conference play."
 
With the game still scoreless in the fourth, the Wolverines were the first to break through with a pair of runs to take a 2-0 advantage. Following a leadoff walk by Breezy Roth and a single from Taleigh Williams, Vansway and De La Torre delivered clutch back-to-back RBI singles to give UVU the two-run lead. With the bases later loaded and still nobody out in the frame, CSUB reliever Alyssa Stockton managed to escape the jam by drawing a force out at the plate followed by an inning-ending double play.  
 
The Roadrunners (8-22, 0-1 WAC) then struck back with a run of their own in the last of the fourth to make it a 2-1 game. With a runner on second and two away, Chris Hippa plated the run with an RBI single up the middle to make it a one-run contest.
 
The Wolverines later added two insurance runs in the sixth when De La Torre blasted out a solo home run and Tiani Hensley later scored on an error to give UVU a 4-1 lead. With one out and nobody on, the UVU catcher blasted out a full-count pitch over the center field wall for Utah Valley's third run of the game and Hensley later made it a three-run cushion by scoring on a dropped fly ball by the CSUB left fielder.
 
Bakersfield struck back with a run in the last of the sixth and looked for more with two on and two out, but Wolverine catcher Kori Barrios managed to pickoff the lead runner to keep it a 4-2 game. 
 
Following a scoreless top of the seventh, UVU starter Bailey Moore reentered in the circle in the last of the seventh to mow down the 'Runners in order and complete the win.
 
Moore (3-12) earned the win for the Wolverines in the ballgame by going 6.0 innings and allowing just one run on three hits while striking out three. Amber Mills suffered the loss for CSUB to drop to 4-7 on the season.
 
The UVU offense tallied a total of eight hits in the game, as seven different Wolverines recorded a hit.
 
With the win, the Wolverines have now won 10 of their last 12 ballgames over Bakersfield, including seven of eight as Western Athletic Conference foes. 
 
The three-game league series will conclude on Saturday with a doubleheader at CSUB's Roadrunner Softball Complex. Game one of the twin bill is set for 2 p.m. MT/1 p.m. PT while game two will follow at approximately 4 p.m. MT/3 p.m. PT.