LANCASTER, Calif. – Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University's (Ariz.) softball team got off to a solid start in defense of their 2022 California Pacific Conference (Cal Pac) crown, beginning conference play in 2023 with a double header sweep over Antelope Valley. A seven-run, second inning provided the lift in a 10-2, 5-inning game one win. The Eagles also scored early in game 2, jumping out to a 5-0 lead on the way to a 9-4 decision. Freshman Leah Salas (Sahuarita, Ariz.) went 4-for-8 over the two games and drove in five runs while sophomore Vanessa Brink (Vail, Ariz.) struck out nine in the game one victory for the Eagles.

Game 1

After a scoreless first, Embry-Riddle (7-7, 2-0 Cal Pac) sophomore Emma Almodoba (Tucson, Ariz.) got things going with an RBI single. She later scored the second run of the inning on a double-steal before an error allowed another run to score and loaded the bases for Salas, who delivered a pair with a single. Freshman Autumn Sulusi (Kaneohe, Hawai'i) walked with the bases loaded to bring in another before Almodoba picked up her second RBI hit of the inning.

That was all the support that Brink would need as she went all the way in the circle, striking out nine in a contest that was finished after five innings due to the eight-run rule. Senior Jenna Sumpter (Ahwatukee, Ariz.) completed a perfect day at the plate (two hits and a walk in three trips) with an RBI single in the fourth that completed the scoring.

Game 2

Embry-Riddle got things going early in the second contest as well. Salas and senior Kate Delaney (Fort Collins, Colo.) knocked run scoring doubles as part of a three-run first. In the second senior Diana Miranda Montano (Tucson, Ariz.), who went 4-for-5, brought home a run with a triple, with sophomore Lily Anderson (Flagstaff, Ariz.) bringing her home with a single to make it 5-0.

Antelope Valley (4-8, 0-2 Cal Pac) came back and scored single runs in the third, fourth, and fifth to close to within two at 5-3. Embry-Riddle answered in the sixth, pushing across four to put it away. The Eagles loaded the bases with one down, and then strung together three straight singles by Anderson, Salas, and Delaney, with Salas' scoring a pair, to take a 9-3 advantage.