Syracuse beats UTSA, falls to Houston at Houston Hilton Plaza Invitational

UPDATED: Feb. 25, 2018 at 4:12 p.m.

Syracuse (7-5) split its games on day two of the Houston Hilton Plaza Invitational.The Orange started Saturday’s games in Houston with an 8-0 shutout over UTSA (7-4) and ended the day with an extra innings, 2-1 loss to Houston (6-4).

Alexa Romero pitched the UTSA shutout, tying her career-high in strikeouts (12). Candice Hadd recorded the only hit against Romero in the bottom of the fifth inning.

Six different players crossed home that game for the Orange, starting in the first when Gabby Teran hit a triple, driving in Alicia Hansen and Sammy Fernandez. That put SU up 2-0. The next batter, Bryce Holmgren, doubled to drive in Teran. Holmgren crossed home before the inning ended off a Toni Martin fly ball to right field.

The Orange didn’t get on the board again until the fifth inning, when Hansen and Teran both scored. Rachel Burkhardt scored in the sixth, pinch-running for catcher Michala Maciolek. Lailoni Mayfield was the last SU player to score in the UTSA game.

The team totaled 11 hits, led by Fernandez with three. Only two of SU’s batters struck out.

Later in the day against Houston, SU went the standard seven innings scoreless to force the game into extra innings. An eighth inning was all that was needed.

AnnaMarie Gatti started in the circle for the Orange, pitching five innings before Romero entered the game.

Batting in the top of the eighth, SU scored one run when Teran singled, driving Fernandez home. Fernandez started the inning on second because of the International Tie Breaker rule ­– in softball when the game goes into extra innings, a runner is placed on second to increase scoring opportunities.

When Houston’s Arielle James stepped up to the plate in the bottom half, runners were on first and second. She hit a double and the runner on second, Mariah Garcia, ran home to tie the game at 1-1. Freshman Caela Kincade came in as a pinch hitter and sent a line-drive double into right field, sending in the walk-off run.

Syracuse will end the Houston Hilton Plaza International against Yale on Sunday morning at 10 a.m.

CORRECTION: In a previous version of this post, Sammy Fernandez was misnamed. The Daily Orange regrets this error.