Recap: Rachel Garcia leads team to victory against Team Mulipola

Lilli Piper drives in four runs

Eric Rhew

Jun 15, 2023

ROSEMONT, Ill. — Any questions of how Team Garcia would respond after losing both of its games to begin the opening week of the 2023 Athletes Unlimited AUX Softball season were answered in its clash with Team Mulipola on Wednesday night.

And they were answered quickly with six runs in the squad’s first four visits to the plate en route to a commanding 12-3 victory over Team Mulipola to close the doubleheader at Parkway Bank Sports Complex.

The result allowed both teams to close the evening with identical 1-2 records. While Team Garcia snapped a two-game losing skid, Team Mulipola dropped its second straight game after an opening victory on Monday.

Team captain Rachel Garcia piloted her team to the victory at the plate and in the circle. The former UCLA standout, who secured MVP 1 honors in the win, went 3-for-4 at the plate and finished a triple shy of the cycle while driving in three runs.

Garcia also secured the win in the circle after giving up one unearned run on one hit with six strikeouts over 4.0 innings, giving her 298 leaderboard points.

Corner infielder Lilli Piper secured MVP 2 distinction after posting a 2-for-3 effort at the plate with four runs batted in. Piper, who tallied 210 points, clubbed her first home run of the season with a three-run shot to left center field in the fifth inning.

Middle infielder Sis Bates completed the MVP sweep for Team Garcia with a 1-for-4 performance, including the first home run of her Athletes Unlimited career.

Outfielder Victoria Hayward and corner infielder Tori Vidales each registered two hits in the setback for Team Mulipola. Making her season debut, pitcher Peyton St. George (0-1) took the loss after allowing eight runs on 11 hits over 4.0 innings with six strikeouts.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Team Garcia jumped out to a 6-0 lead in the first four innings. Garcia drove in two runs with a double in the first inning before the squad added three more markers in the second frame. An RBI single by corner infielder Sam Fischer upped the advantage to 6-0 in the top of the fourth. Vidales ended the shutout bid with a run-scoring single in the bottom of the fourth inning, but Team Garcia put the game out of reach with four more runs in the fifth inning.

LEADERBOARD IMPACT

Garcia took over the top spot in the league standings with 418 leaderboard points after her 298-point explosion on Wednesday night. Piper, meanwhile, surged into fifth place after rising 19 spots on the strength of her 210 leaderboard points.

GAME NOTES

Team Garcia and Team Mulipola combined to score 15 runs in Wednesday’s nightcap, upping the league’s season total to 57 runs through four games … Aspiration is committed to planting 10 trees for every run scored during the AUX season as part of its ‘Round the Bases’ initiative.
Team Garcia set an AUX Softball single-game record with its 18-hit barrage, while the squad’s 12 runs matched the single-game mark … Team Ocasio set the standard with 12 runs during a June 14, 2022, victory over Team Chidester at SDSU Softball Stadium.
The 18 hits by Team Garcia are the fourth-highest single-game total in any Athletes Unlimited Softball contest.
Team Garcia also set a new AUX record with five doubles in the victory on Wednesday night.
The designated visiting team has won all four games this season.
Outfielder Amanda Lorenz became the third player in AUX Softball history to register multiple doubles in a single game after posting a pair of two-base hits … She doubled down the left field line in the second inning before adding a second double in the fourth inning.
Garcia, rookie Brooke Yanez and Oddici Alexander combined to strike out 10 Team Mulipola hitters in Wednesday’s victory, equaling the AUX single-game record for strikeouts by a team.
In the first four games this season, there have been 16 home runs, including 10 during Wednesday night’s doubleheader … In 18 games last season, there were 36 total home runs.
Team Garcia saw its lead-off hitter reach base six times in its seven trips to the plate … The squad was also 7-for-14 with runners in scoring position.