GLENDALE, Ariz. – The Bushnell softball team kicked off a six-game Arizona road trip on Thursday afternoon, splitting with Arizona Christian University as the dropped the opener 5-1 before taking the night-cap, 10-6.
 
GAME ONE: Arizona Christian 5, Bushnell 1
 
The Beacons ran into a tough pitching test for the first time this season in the opener as junior Dayna Herrera threw a complete game and held Bushnell to just four singles. One of those hits came off the bat of Makenzie Alexander, whose RBI single in the second inning scored Ashlyn Martin to give the Beacons a 1-0 lead.
 
The Firestorm came back with two runs n the fourth and three in the sixth to put the game out of reach.
 
Sara Martin (1-1) went the distance for the Beacons, allowing four earned runs and striking out two batters.
 
GAME TWO: Bushnell 10, Arizona Christian 6
 
The Beacons got the bats going in game two with 12 hits, getting two apiece from Alexander, Ashlyn Martin and starting pitcher Violet Richardson.
 
Richardson (1-1) also earned the victory, allowing five earned in 6.1 innings of work. Leading 10-2 heading into the bottom of the seventh, the Beacons got in a little trouble, but Sara Martin came in to shut the door, recording the final two outs for her first save of the season.
 
Bushnell held a slim 4-2 lead heading into the final frame when they broke out for six runs of their own, including a three-run double from freshman Madi Johnson in her first collegiate at bat. Earlier in the inning, Alexander had picked up her second triple of the season.
 
UP NEXT: The Beacons (2-2) head to Phoenix for their next double-header on Friday, facing Nelson University beginning at 10:00 am (MT). The Warriors (1-7) picked up their first win of the season on Thursday at home, upsetting CCC foe The College of Idaho, 6-5.