Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 SAN FRANCISCO — The Dominican University of California women's softball team's strong start continued on Sunday with a 2-1 victory over Humboldt State as part of a split against the No. 1 team in the latest NFCA poll.

Ashlyn Moriarity (4-1, 2.20 ERA) earned her second win in as many days with her fifth complete game and didn't allow an earned run while allowing seven hits. She came up big when she needed to. After allowing a leadoff walk in the fourth, Moriarity worked her way out of a one-out, bases-loaded jam. Third baseman Rachel Ditta fielded a grounder and threw home to catcher Dominique Perry for the force for the second out, then Moriarity induced a foul popup that Ditta caught.

That momentum spilled over into the bottom half of the inning. Tori Johnson singled the first pitch to center field and advanced to second on Leslie Mesa's sacrifice bunt. Moriarity helped her cause with a shot up the middle to score Johnson. Two batters later, Kayleigh Klingberg added a crucial insurance run for Dominican (6-5) with a single to center field that scored pinch runner Sarah McKenzie.

The Jacks (15-4) got an unearned run back in the fifth but Moriarity limited the damage yet again and an HSU runner on the basepaths, one of nine for the day. She worked out of trouble yet again in the sixth and stranded a pair and Ditta had a great diving catch in the seventh to the end game and strand another runner.

"Today was obviously a huge win. Everything came together: pitching, defense, and timely hitting," said Head Coach Sarah Iwata. "Humboldt State is a good hitting team and we made some great plays and got out of some jams."

An early run in the second inning of game two gave Humboldt State the lead. That run was unearned off of senior Karly Harris (1-3, 5.35 ERA), who scattered six hits over seven innings and allowed just a pair of earned runs.

A Ditta throwing error in the fifth moved runners into scoring position and helped keep the inning going, as the Jacks piled on for four runs with just three hits.

Dominican pieced together three singles in the fifth, capped by a Ditta single that scored Catlyn Cavender and Leslie Mesa.

Humbodlt State tacked on a run in the seventh that would provide some cushion, as Dominican rallied in the seventh with another pair of runs on three hits. Two HSU errors kept the inning alive but a dropped ball by the left fielder turned into a chance fielder's choice double play. In all, the Penguins outhit HSU 7-6 in game two before falling 6-4 when Julie Pena snagged a Johnson screamer down the third base line.

"We continued to fight in game two with our backs against the wall and the bats came alive," added Iwata. "We had some miscues and their third baseman made a great play to save the game."

Johnson finished her day 4-for-6 with a walk and a run. She's now batting a team-best .455. Mesa went 2-for-5 with a pair of runs. Cavender, who got the start at second base in game two, went 2-for-3 with a run and an RBI.

The Penguins begin Pacific West Conference action on Saturday, March 1 at Academy of Art University. First pitch is set for 12:00 p.m. at Mission Blue Field in Brisbane, Calif.