North Florida Softball began its participation in the Purple Classic at GCU Softball Stadium in Phoenix, Arizona, by splitting two games on Friday. The Ospreys secured a 4-0 victory over San Diego before falling 9-0 to host Grand Canyon University.
In the opening game, North Florida broke a scoreless tie with a three-run fourth inning. After Bella Cimino and Ayden Oliva reached base on walks, Hannah Davila hit a double to deep center field, driving in both runners. Taylor Shephard followed with a single that brought Davila home from second base. In the sixth inning, Ayden Allen added an RBI double to extend the lead.
Junior pitcher Cameron Ponich pitched a complete game shutout for North Florida, allowing three hits and striking out seven batters over seven innings and 98 pitches. With this performance, Ponich improved her season record to 5-1.
The second game saw Grand Canyon take control early with six runs in the first inning. North Florida managed only two hits against Grand Canyon pitching and committed two errors during the contest. Kate Peters came in as relief after Taylor Cook started but was unable to prevent further scoring as Grand Canyon added runs in subsequent innings.
Statistical leaders for North Florida included Hannah Davila (one hit, one double, two RBIs), Ayden Allen (one hit, one double, one RBI), and Bella Cimino (who extended her on-base streak to 16 games). For San Diego and Grand Canyon, notable performances included Kaylee Oh’s single for San Diego and Emily Gonzalez’s two home runs for Grand Canyon.
North Florida will continue play at the Purple Classic on Saturday with games scheduled against UC Santa Barbara and another matchup against San Diego.
