Arizona softball starts Hillenbrand Invitational with 2-hitter from Rylie Holder

The first game of a preconference softball tournament can sometimes be a good opportunity to get players confident as they move into the weekend. Arizona’s 8-0 win over Eastern Illinois was one of those chances for freshman pitcher Rylie Holder. She came up big.

Holder took a no-hitter into the fifth inning of a game destined for a run-rule ending. She hit a batter in the first inning, but that was the only baserunner until the the Panthers’ last at-bats.

Holder didn’t pretend she didn’t know where she stood.

“I knew it was a no-hitter,” she said.

Her defense did everything they could to get her there, especially third baseman Jenna Sniffen and centerfielder Regan Shockey.

“Jenna [fielded] six balls,” said Arizona head coach Caitlin Lowe. “Anytime she’s doing that, we’re in a good spot. And some of those were dirty. Jenna did a really good job today. And I just thought defensively, we were smothering all around. I mean, Regan making those two plays in the outfield. Just when you feel like you square something up, to take something away is deflating. So I think we did a really good job just collectively.”

The Wildcats gave Holder run support immediately. The top of the order used a walk and a single to set the table. Shortstop Tayler Biehl moved them over, and Sydney Stewart did her job with a double off the wall. UA led 2-0 after the first.

Biehl had one of the most effective 0-fer days one could possibly have. In addition to the sacrifice bunt and a walk, she had a sac fly to start Arizona’s scoring in the bottom of the fourth. That helped the Wildcats get enough runs to enact the run rule in the fifth.

“I love what Tayler is doing, just kind of plugging away, going about her business,” Lowe said.

Arizona piled on in the second with two outs. The final run of the inning was the most exciting.

EIU pitcher Grace Lemke got a foul out from designated player Sina Talataina to start things. Sniffen looked like she got all of one, but it stayed in the park for centerfielder Marybeth Dyson.

“Jenna’s was, I mean, she hit it on the screws,” Lowe said. “She’s looked good every day in practice. She’s absolutely locked in. And sometimes the game gives you that, and you just got to keep plugging away. And she knows she’s right there and she’s gonna keep hitting the ball hard and making them earn those outs.”

That brought up 9-hitter Addison Duke. She drew the first of two straight two-out walks. Sereniti Trice used her power slap to send one to left field. The two-run double left another speedy runner on base.

That speed paid off when Lemke uncorked a wild pitch. Trice motored around the bases and scored from second.

“I saw the ball down, and I saw that it kind of got stuck under the mat, so I was going for it,” Trice said. “I didn’t stop.”

Arizona scored in three of the four innings in which it had at-bats. The team did not have to take their at-bats in the bottom of the fifth. It put up two in the first, three in the second, and three more in the fourth.

The only letdown was seeing the ball finally get by the Arizona defense in the top of the fifth, denying Holder the first no-hitter of her career. Abbi Hatton led off the inning with a hard grounder that got by the diving Trice.

A two-out single put two on base, but Holder buckled down. She knocked down a hard hit back to her, kept with it, and threw on to first base. EIU asked for a replay of the final out, but that just confirmed the call.

Trice led the offense with 3 for 3 day at the plate. One of the hits went for two bases. She had 2 RBI and scored 3 runs.

Arizona will return to the field to take on Long Beach State and Minnesota on Friday evening. LBSU has the biggest win of this weekend’s visiting teams. They defeated the Oklahoma team that Arizona went 1-2 against in the opening week of the season. Lowe has one thing in mind.

“It’s making sure we get in that game and, you know, they throw a punch, we throw a punch, but making sure we’re the aggressor, too,” she said. “I think that was the biggest thing we took after this weekend, is like being more in control of our own destiny and our own games. I think we did that today, and we need to make sure that we play our version of softball and not let anyone else dictate the game we’re gonna play.”