SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. – The Manhattan Jaspers softball team (3-7), dropped its first two games at the Mustang Classic against the Hornets from Sacramento State (10-2) and Spartans from San Jose State (2-9) by the final scores of 5-4 and 3-2 at Bob Janssen Field on Friday.
GAME ONE: Manhattan 4, Sacramento State 5
- Brianna Estevez and Isabella Coulman led off the game with two leadoff singles, putting a runner in scoring position in the blink of an eye.
- Newcomer Natalye DeBus broke another single bagger through the left side, scoring Estevez from second.
- Kaitlyn Moody's single doubled the lead up at two to score Coulman.
- Following a scoreless opening frame, Sacramento State used a double and single to knot the contest at two apiece by the end of the second frame.
- The next three innings went by without another score, with starter Karissa Spring holding the Hornets to two hits before Abby Turnpaugh entered in relief.
- DeBus connected on a deep shot for her second home run in 2026 to kick off the sixth inning.
- With Angelina Gencarelli at third base, Lainey Brown hit into a fielder's choice to once again bring the Jasper lead to two runs.
- Sacramento State brought that deficit to only one thanks to a home half single, setting up the final frame.
- After an uneventful visitor half of the seventh, the Hornets walked their leadoff batter to bring the winning run to the plate.
- The Hornets' Katie Marsh got just enough of the pitch from Caitlin Gaetani, with her two-run home run acting as a walk-off to give the win to Sacramento State.
- Spring allowed just one earned run on six hits, striking out three.
GAME TWO: Manhattan 2, San Jose State 3
- With the first nine batters of the contest being retired, an RBI single from the Spartans in the bottom of the second acted as the first hit of the game to give San Jose State an early lead.
- Another RBI ended the inning, as Estevez gunned down a runner in line to DeBus at third.
- Starting pitcher Caitlin Mullen held the Spartans hitless through the third and fourth, with the only runners reaching on error.
- Kendall Penny found the next deep shot to open up the fifth, slashing the lead from SJSU in half.
- Sophia Kiseloski drove a two-out single to tie the game at two apiece in the sixth, bringing home Estevez.
- Despite runners on the corners in the road half of the seventh, a lineout from Estevez thwarted any previous momentum to send the game to the bottom half.
- With a runner in scoring position, Taylor Chillingworth of San Jose State broke a single through the left side, scoring the winning and walk-off run.
STATS AND NOTES
- Senior utility player Brianna Estevez led the Jaspers with three hits on the day, left on base an equal amount of times.
- Freshman utility player Natalye DeBus and catcher Kendall Penny were the two Jaspers to go yard, for their second and first times this season.
- Junior pitcher Caitlin Mullen allowed two earned runs on five hits across six and a third innings pitched in the nightcap.
NEXT UP:
Manhattan will continue its 2026 campaign at the Mustang Classic tomorrow, February 21 when the Jaspers continue their weekend against both San Jose State and host Cal Poly. First pitch against the Spartans is scheduled for 3:00 PM EST while first pitch against the Mustangs is slated for 8:00 PM EST. There will only be a video broadcast of the latter contest, streaming live on ESPN+, accessible with a paid subscription.
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