Recap: Denham, Alexander lead Team Denham to shutout win
ROSEMONT, Ill. — Pitchers Alyssa Denham and Odicci Alexander limited Team Mulipola to just two hits as Team Denham registered the first shutout of the 2023 Athletes Unlimited Softball Championship Season with a 4-0 verdict to close Sunday’s doubleheader at Parkway Bank Sports Complex.
The win elevated Team Denham’s record to 2-0 in the opening week, while Team Mulipola stands at 1-1.
Denham and Alexander, who claimed the top two Game MVP honors, limited Team Mulipola to a hit in the second inning and another hit in the sixth inning. Denham, the MVP 2 selection, earned her second win of the season after throwing four shutout innings with one strikeout en route to 208 leaderboard points.
Alexander, meanwhile, nailed down her first save of the campaign after throwing the final three frames and giving up one hit with five strikeouts while securing a game-high 216 leaderboard points.
Corner infielder Kelsey Stewart-Hunter secured MVP 3 recognition with two hits while accounting for three of the team’s four runs. She scored in the seventh inning while driving in a pair of runs, closing the game with 160 points.
Pitcher Aleshia Ocasio (0-1) took the loss after giving up one run on two hits in 4.0 innings with two strikeouts.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Team Denham got the scoring started in the top of the third inning on a sacrifice fly by middle infielder Anissa Urtez before adding another run on a single by Stewart-Hunter in the fifth inning. Stewart-Hunter and Urtez teamed up again to drive in two more runs in the seventh inning for the 4-0 advantage.
LEADERBOARD IMPACT
Team Denham holds the top six spots on the leaderboard after the pair of victories. Outfielder Morgan Zerkle enters Monday’s action as the league leader with 380 points, while Urtez and Alexander follow in second and third places, respectively.
GAME NOTES
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Team Denham and Team Mulipola combined to score four runs in Sunday’s second game … Aspiration is committed to planting 10 trees for every run scored during the season as part of its ‘Aspiration Assists’ initiative.
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Team Mulipola initiated a captain’s challenge of a strikeout by corner infielder Nadia Taylor with one out in the bottom of the fifth inning, which was unsuccessful.
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Team Denham completed the 24th win points sweep in Athletes Unlimited Softball Championship Season history with its 4-0 victory on Sunday … It marked the first time a team claimed all 120 possible win points since Team Denham blanked Team Mulipola by a 4-0 margin on August 27, 2022.
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The teams were a combined 4-for-17 in two-out situations and saw leadoff hitters reach safely in 4-of-14 opportunities.
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Team Denham was 9-for-18 in advancement opportunities, while Team Mulipola was 0-of-7 in those situations.
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Zerkle posted her second consecutive multi-hit effort after going 2-for-3 with two runs scored … She also had a three-hit outing in Saturday’s win over Team Rhodes.
GAME MVPS
- #1 – Odicci Alexander (Team Denham, +60)
- #2 – Alyssa Denham (Team Denham, +40)
- #3 – Kelsey Stewart-Hunter (Team Denham, +20)
