BOISE, Id. – The Fresno State softball team clinched the series against Boise State, defeating the Broncos 5-2 in game three on Sunday afternoon at Dona Larsen Park.
Fresno State (28-13, 8-5) recorded eight hits in the contest. Two Bulldogs tallied multiple hits in Natalie Elias (2-for-4) and Keahilele Mattson (2-for-3).
Senior right-handed pitcher Taylor Gilmore earned her 16th win of the season, after going 4.2 innings with six strikeouts. Sophomore left-handed pitcher Serayah Neiss recorded her fourth save of the season, going 2.1 innings with four strikeouts.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Both teams recorded hits in the first inning, but neither team could capitalize on these opportunities to score runs.
Mattson drew a leadoff walk to start the second. Juliana Wilson belted her third home run of the season to take a 2-0 lead.
Boise State tied the game in the bottom of the third inning. The Broncos looked to start a two-out rally with a base hit, and the next batter blasted a two-run home run over the right field wall.
Fresno State responded in the next frame. Mattson reached base again as the leadoff, taking advantage of a throwing error by the second baseman. Wilson drew a walk and Lauren Almeida followed with a single, loading the bases. The Broncos retired the next two batters, looking to shut down the inning, but Emma Martinez drew a two-out walk to retake the lead. The Broncos' shortstop committed a fielding error, allowing two more runs to score.
After retiring the batters in the bottom half of the frame in order, Fresno State owned a 5-2 lead through four innings.
Boise State hit two singles in the bottom of the fifth, putting two runners on base with two outs. Neiss entered the circle for the Bulldogs and delivered a strikeout to strand the Broncos.
The Bronco had another comeback attempt in the bottom of the seventh inning. After the first batter was retired, Boise State drew back-to-back walks. The next batter singled to center field, loading the bases with one out. Neiss ended the game with two strikeouts, securing the series win for the Bulldogs.
UP NEXT
Fresno State will host No. 20/23 Cal at Margie Wright Diamond on Wednesday, April 17 at 6 p.m. PT.
GAME NOTES
Fresno State has won six out of its last seven conference games.
Fresno State won the series against Boise State for the first time since 2021.
Sophomore Natalie Elias recorded her 16th game of the season with multiple hits.
Senior Keahilele Mattson recorded her 12th game of the season with multiple hits.
Redshirt Junior Juliana Wilson recorded her second game of the season with multiple RBIs.
Freshman Kealani Nitta extended her hitting streak to 11 games.
Senior Taylor Gilmore improves to 16-3 on the season.
Sophomore Serayah Neiss earned her fourth save of the season.