OREM, Utah — Kalena Shepherd dunked an RBI single into left field to drive in Angelique Mann to give Utah Valley a 7-6 walk-off win over Idaho State on Wednesday afternoon at Wolverine Softball Field.
Shepherd picked up her first hit of the afternoon at the perfect time to bring home Mann from second, who scored two runs for the Wolverines.
"Sometimes your hard work doesn't pay off for you. Bug crushed one earlier that got knocked down by the wind, and she's been struggling of late," said Cody Thomson. "To have her come up in the end and get that hit is a good boost of morale for her."
Brooke Saili started in the circle and surrendered four runs over 2.1 innings pitched. Katie Zuniga came on in relief and allowed two runs over 4.2 innings to earn the win.
Megan Gibbs had another strong outing at the plate, going 3-for-4 with a trio of singles and three RBIs. Gibbs also turned a crucial double play in the third to help the Wolverines get out of a bases-loaded jam.
Libbie Hawker and Britney Moreno each went 2-for-4 at the top of the lineup for Utah Valley. Moreno drove in the game-tying run in the bottom of the second at the start of a three-run rally for the Wolverines. Rylee Thorpe went 1-for-3 with a key two-out, two-RBI double in the bottom of the first.
"Those three big hitters — Rylee, Bug, and Gibbs — we need them to catch fire and get our RBIs, and I think they're on the right path right now," said Thomson.
ISU plated four runs in the top of the first, all with two outs. Four-straight Bengals had hits with two outs before Saili was able to get the final out of the inning.
Utah Valley responded well in the bottom half of the inning, putting up a three-spot of their own. A pair of ISU errors extended the inning, allowing Gibbs to plate Hawker. After Shepherd reached on an error by the third baseman, Thorpe roped a double into the gap in right-center to bring home both Gibbs and Shepherd.
Saili retired the side in order in the top of the second to keep it a 4-3 game. The Wolverines were able to rally for three more in the bottom of the second to take the lead. Moreno drove in Emma Haygood to start the rally, then Gibbs plated Moreno and Mann to make it a 6-4 ballgame.
The Bengals pushed two across in the fourth to tie the game, and the two teams would trade zeroes until the bottom of the seventh.
A trio of singles — including two with two outs — plated the winning run for the Wolverines. After Gibbs' single advanced Mann into scoring position, Shepherd poked a single to the opposite field to bring in the winning run.
Utah Valley will now hit the road for a three-game WAC series at California Baptist in Riverside, California. Friday's doubleheader is slated to start at 5 p.m. MDT, and Saturday's series finale has been pushed up to a 2 p.m. MDT start. All three games will be streamed live on ESPN+ and live stats will be available at UVUStats.com.
