College Softball's Top Performances From The Weekend (Feb. 21-24)

Danielle Gibson

It took just four at-bats for the sophomore slugger to blast her way to NCAA history. In the second game of a doubleheader on Saturday, the Razorbacks' first baseman achieved the mythical home run cycle in just four innings, hitting a two-run, three-run, grand slam and finally a solo homer in a 15-3 win in five innings over SIUE at the Razorback Invitational in Fayetteville, AR, marking just the sixth four-homer game in DI softball history.

Stanford

The Cardinal had a huge weekend in the Bayou, sweeping through five games at the LSU Invitational in Baton Rouge, LA. Sixth-inning explosions powered the two biggest victories of the weekend, starting with scoring all 7 of their runs in the sixth vs host #11 LSU on Thursday to erase a 5-0 deficit. Junior outfielder Alyssa Horeczko made plays with her bat and her arm, hitting a go-ahead two-run single in the sixth after throwing out two different LSU runners at the plate in the third inning alone.
A day later, the Card blew open a 1-1 tie with a six-run sixth to knock off Michigan 7-1. At 11-2, Stanford is off to its best 13-game start since 2014, when they opened 13-0.

Jaelynn Chesson

Three months ago, Chesson was in a hospital for two weeks as they treated a ruptured appendix. On Friday, the freshman outfielder had a massive collegiate debut as Lehigh split a doubleheader at Seton Hall. Chesson piled up a 7-for-8 line in the two games, driving in and scoring a pair of runs each.

Bethune-Cookman

The Wildcats pulled one of the season's biggest upsets as they shocked No. 21 Oregon 5-3 on Thursday at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic in Cathedral City, CA. Sophomore lefty Victoria Guzman held UO to just two hits over four scoreless innings to get the win, while senior outfielder Cheyenne Smith had a pair of hits and drove in what would end up being the deciding two runs. The win over the Ducks was the program's first top-25 win since 2005, when BCU stunned host Florida in the opening round of the NCAA tournament on their way to a Gainesville Regional title.

Bella Loya

The cleanup hitter for No. 18 Illinois did plenty of cleaning off the bases this weekend as the Illini went 3-1 at the Mardi Gras Invitational in Mobile, AL. The sophomore catcher went 10-for-15 with three homers, a double, eight RBIs and four runs scored over the four games, highlighted by a 4-for-4, four RBI outing in an 11-2 win over host South Alabama on Friday.

Appalachian State

The pitching and defense shined for the Mountaineers as they went 5-0 at the Holy City Showdown in Charleston, SC. App State allowed just four total runs, including 2-1 upset wins over Iowa State and Marshall. The win over Iowa State was the first win over a Power Five opponent since a 4-3 win over North Carolina in 2014. Dating back to Feb. 15, the Mountaineers have just allowed four runs on their current 7-game winning streak, tied for the longest in program history set just last year.

UCLA

The Bruins flexed their muscle in a dominant 5-0 weekend at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic in Cathedral City, CA. No. 2 UCLA opened their weekend by turning a marquee matchup with No. 4 Oklahoma into a surprisingly one-sided 7-1 win. The Bruins then run-ruled their next three opponents, including a 12-4, six-inning romp over No. 17 Kentucky. On Sunday, the offense cooled but Megan Faraimo picked up the slack, as she tossed her second no-hitter in eight days as the Bruins blanked Colorado State 3-0.

Alyssa Oakes

The junior catcher took just one day to pile up double-digit RBIs as USC Upstate routed NC Central 14-0 and Robert Morris 8-0 on Sunday, with both wins coming in the minimum five innings at the Wings Etc. Classic in Spartanburg, SC. Oakes had five hits including a homer and a double in each game while driving in a total of 10 runs.

Drexel

The Dragons entered the weekend winless after dropping all five games during the first half of the Madeira Beach Spring Invitational in Madeira Beach, FL. They made up for lost time in a big way, finishing the weekend on a four-game winning streak. Sophomores ran the show for Drexel, as righty Brooklyn Daly tossed a six-inning perfect game in an 11-0 win over Cornell on Saturday and first baseman Kristi DiMeo cranked out four homers and 13 RBIs in the five games. Saturday's second game, a 20-5 rout of South Dakota in six innings, was not only a significant upset of the Coyotes sitting at 11-4 overall, but also avenged an 11-8 loss during the first weekend of the tournament.

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