HONOLULU — Saint Mary's Softball opened the second day of the Hawaii Paradise Classic looking to get in the win column for the first time all season. That's just what they did in their first game, taking down Utah Tech with a final of 6-3 before falling to Hawaii in their final game of the afternoon 16-2. The Gaels are 1-3 through the first four games of the season and will close out the tournament on Sunday afternoon.
 
Game 1: Saint Mary's 6, Utah Tech 3
EARLY IGNITION
After scoring just three runs in the first two games of the season, Saint Mary's broke out for three runs in the top of the first against Utah Tech. It started with an infield single from Hannah Ferguson, who moved to second on a throwing error, and then to third on a groundout. She took care of the first run, scoring on a wild pitch to make it a quick 1-0 lead. Then the Gaels put a flurry of runners on, with a single from Alex Casas and a walk from yesterday's start Claudia Kirchner putting two runners on. Back-to-back RBI singles followed the walk, with Rylee Gomez and Taylor Lane bringing home their first runs of the season.
 
FAMILIAR FACES
It was Kirchner and Lane again teaming up in the top of the third to give the Gaels offense another run. With one away, Kirchner singled to center field for her fourth hit on the year, and after moving to third base with two outs, Lane smacked a double to right field to plate Kirchner and make it a 4-0 game. While hopes were certainly high at the beginning of the season for both infielders, they have exceeded those expectations in the first few games. After the first three games of the season, the two are a combined 10-16 with five runs batted in.
 
CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE…
…to Saint Mary's starter Kailey O'Connor, who got her first win of the season and just her second career win in the circle. In her fourth collegiate start, she went the distance, going all seven innings and allowing just two earned runs. Perhaps most importantly, she limited the amount of free passes allowed, which was an issue on Friday. She sprinkled just three walks and six hits across seven innings to pick up the win, the first of the season for the Gaels.
 
Game 2: Hawaii 16, Saint Mary's 2 (5 innings)
ANOTHER GOOD START
Things got going in a positive direction for the Gaels just one batter into the game, when Hannah Ferguson ripped a triple down the right field line on a full count to begin the top of the first. After a walk by Marissa Nishihara, Alex Casas reached on an error by the Hawaii shortstop, and it plated Ferguson from third base, giving the Gaels an early 1-0 lead. Despite having two runners on and nobody out, the Gaels could not capitalize, after a lucky bounce gave Hawaii a double play on the next at bat, and then they got out of the inning.
 
BIG INNINGS
The game tilted towards the hosts in the second inning, and from that point on, Hawaii ran away with the game. The Rainbow Wahine scored five runs in the second and then eight more in the third to put the game away, with the score sitting at 13-2 at the time. During those two innings alone, Hawaii racked up 11 hits and were aided by six Saint Mary's errors, all while the Gaels rotated through three pitchers to try and find the combination to get out of harm's way. It also helped for Hawaii to launch two more home runs (five against the Gaels in two games), and they received seven walks to boot.
 
UP NEXT
The Paradise Classic wraps up on Sunday afternoon with the Gaels playing just a single game against the Rainbow Wahine. First pitch is scheduled for 2:00 pm PT, or 12:00 pm HT. After the first weekend concludes, the Gaels will head back across the Pacific Ocean for the Saint Mary's Tournament, which takes place on February 17-19. The tournament features seven games, with SMC playing in four of those. All Saint Mary's games will be streamed live on the WCC Network.