The Talons are heading into the two-week break on a high, making Athletes Unlimited Softball League history with the first four-game sweep. They boasted 23 runs while holding the Volts to 11 in the series. It couldn’t have come at a better time.
“Yeah, it’s anytime you get a sweep, it’s a big deal. But also going into the break, it’s always nice to be able to have that last win, and going home on a high note,” said head coach Howard Dobson. “So, going into that break, it really gives us some motivation, hey, what we’ve done is working, so let’s keep working.”
The Talons are now tied with the Bandits with a 9-3 record, both sitting at the top of the AUSL standings.
GAME 1 | TALONS 3 – VOLTS 2
The Talons scored early in the first inning thanks to RBIs off the bat of Caroline Jacobsen and Tori Vidales. Hannah Flippen scored in the third inning, adding some insurance to the Talons’ lead, which would be the run to keep them ahead despite efforts from the Volts late in the game. Rachel Garcia was responsible for the Volts’ two runs, a home run in the fifth, and a sac-fly in the seventh. She also pitched five innings for the Volts with four strikeouts.
Utility Sahvanna Jaquish, who returned from the Japan Diamond League, made her AUSL debut, earning a walk at the plate in her first at-bat of the season. Jaquish’s bat would come alive later in the weekend. Megan Faraimo earned her second save of the season and kept the Volts to just two runs in the seventh. Raelin Chaffin earned her third win of the season, allowing one run across her four innings pitched.
“She has a lot of tools in her tool bag, for sure, that she can go to at any moment, and so that her pitches are good enough to get people out,” said Dobson of Chaffin.
GAME 2 | TALONS 4 – VOLTS 0
Georgina Corrick made AUSL history with a stellar performance, recording the first complete game shutout. Corrick went the distance with seven strikeouts and only three hits on the day, improving her record to 2-0. Corrick praised her defense for their contributions as well.
“It’s really easy, honestly, to throw a complete game when you have the defensive staff that I had behind me,” said Corrick.
Flippen plated the first two runs of the game with an RBI in the third inning and again in the fifth inning. Jacobsen scored two more in the fifth, and the Talons took the 4-0 lead that they would sustain until the end of the game.
Paige Sinicki made her professional debut at third base in place of Sydney Romero, who was placed on the Injured List. Jadelyn Allchin also became the first player in AUSL history to steal multiple bases in one game.
GAME 3 | TALONS 8 – VOLTS 3
The Talons took the win in their first extra innings outing, erupting for five in the top of the eighth inning. After an unearned run in the first, Ali Aguilar and Sharlize Palacios had back-to-back homers. The Volts responded in the bottom of the fifth, tying the score.
Flippen scored the first run in the extra innings. Jacobsen, Jaquish and Bri Ellis also had RBIs contributing to the Talons’ five-run edge. Corrick earned another win, improving her record to 3-0.
“As soon as Hannah Flippen hit that double in the eighth, I was like ‘she just refuses to lose’, and that’s the attitude that our whole team [has]… Let’s just refuse to lose, like refuse to lose individually and refuse to lose this game,” Jaquish said.
GAME 4 | TALONS 8 – VOLTS 6
The Talons kept their poise in this four-game series and earned the sweep, despite the Volts’ efforts on Monday.
Volts’ infielder Amanda Lorenz launched two home runs in the day, one in the third and again in the bottom of the seventh, that would shrink the Talons’ lead to 8-6. Aguilar and Allchin had a pair of hits on the day. Allchin led with three RBIs, and Sierra Sacco had two of her own.
A collective effort from Raelin Chaffin, Mariah Lopez and Corrick got the job done as Chaffin earned the win.
The Talons will resume on Monday July 7, at 9:30 pm ET in Rosemont, Ill., against the Blaze. You can follow along on MLB.com.
Cayla Sweazie is a former collegiate softball player turned sports reporter with a passion for telling the stories of athletes. She is serving as a correspondent for the Talons of the AUSL. You can follow her on Instagram @caysweazie.
