‘Lack of fight’ costs Boise State softball in key Mountain West matchup vs. UNLV
A 10-game winning streak and perfect mark in Mountain West play propelled the Boise State softball team into the Top 25 rankings this week.
It took UNLV less than an inning to unravel the Broncos’ momentum.
The Rebels plated seven runs in the top of the first on their way to a 9-0 five-inning-rule win over the Broncos on Friday afternoon at Dona Larsen Park.
Senior right-handed pitcher Jenny Bressler tossed a one-hit shutout for UNLV (25-6, 3-1 MW), adding to a dominant season in which she’s already thrown a perfect game.
“She’s a good pitcher. We tip our cap to her,” Boise State coach Justin Shults said. “She did a very good job mixing up and down against us. We just have to make adjustments throughout the weekend, so we’ll go and study film and get back after it.”
The Broncos (27-6, 6-1) fell out of a share of first place in the conference standings with the loss, but they’ll get two more shots at UNLV this weekend. Boise State can try to even the series Saturday, with first pitch at 4 p.m., and the third game of the series begins at noon Sunday.
“It was just lack of fight,” Shults said. “We got off to slow start, and we just weren’t able to recover. That’s something that we preach all the time. It doesn’t matter what the score says, we always have fight in us, so I think in that aspect, a little disappointed, but we’ll see a completely different team tomorrow.”
Boise State sophomore Taylor Caudill was saddled with the loss, lasting just a third of an inning. She walked four of the first six batters she faced and was relieved by fifth-year senior Hannah Bailey. The Broncos later turned to freshman Brook Thompson, who earned the first strikeout of her career while pitching the final two innings.
Right fielder Alycia Flores was the only Bronco to register a hit, reaching on a single in the bottom of the first. Despite being limited to one hit, the Broncos stranded five runners after Kelsey Hall, Eliyah Flores and Abby Bumcrot were each hit by a pitch, and Bella Rucco reached on an error.
Boise State entered Friday’s game leading the Mountain West in runs scored (231), hits (282), doubles (59), home runs (47) and RBIs (211). Shults doesn’t expect his Broncos’ bats to be stymied for long.
“I think we let our emotions get to us, and it’s hard to do anything other than take a 9-0 loss when you give up seven in the first,” Shults said.
This story was originally published April 1, 2022 at 7:55 PM.
