BOX SCORE Cal State Dominguez Hills 1, Sonoma State 0 -- Box Score  |  Archived Video Broadcast

ST. GEORGE, Utah -- Samantha Lipperd allowed just three hits and one walk, striking out six and Megan Konieczka went 2 for 2 at the plate, but a sacrifice fly in the top of the seventh inning by Cal State Dominguez Hills broke a scoreless tie and that is all CSUDH would need as it held on to defeat SSU, 1-0, in Friday's NCAA Division II West 2 Regional opener at Karl Brooks Field in St. George, Utah. 

The Seawolves (36-20) now face elimination from postseason play when they take on No. 7 seed Hawai'i-Hilo in a loser-out game on Saturday at 12:30 pm Pacific Daylight Savings Time.  The Toros (25-21), seeded at No. 6 in the west region, will play Dixie State at 10:00 am Saturday for the right to advance to Championship Sunday.

To view the post-game press conference with both teams, click here.

It would be the definition of a pitcher's duel between SSU's Lipperd and CSUDH's Stephanie Jimenez, as it was announced on Friday morning that the two were selected to the NFCA Division II All-West Region First Team.  Lipperd and Jimenez yielded just three hits and one walk apiece to opposing batters, but it would be in the seventh inning that a run would finally cross the plate.  Unfortunately for Lipperd, it would be the Toros' Christina Chavez to come home on a sacrifice fly by pinch-hitter Jazmine Ruiz after a lengthy weather delay.

Chavez doubled to lead off the top of the seventh inning, then moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by Daisy Beltran.  Ruiz came to bat for Jamie Duran, and with a 1-2 count, a lightning strike eight miles from the Dixie State campus suspended play.  Once it was determined that play could resume 40 minutes later, Ruiz lifted the ensuing 1-2 pitch into left field.  Vanessa Currie made the catch in left field, but Chavez would tag and sprint for home.  Currie's throw was on time, but just a bit off line and Chavez put the Toros on the board.

In the Seawolves' last at bat in the bottom of the seventh inning, Jimenez shut the door on SSU, retiring all three batters in order to advance to the winner's bracket.

While, CSUDH threatened just once, Sonoma State had its opportunities in the ballgame, but a base-running error in the second inning and a failed sacrifice bunt attempt that resulted in a double play in the fourth would deflate the Seawolves' momentum in those frames.

Konieczka accounted for two of the three SSU base hits, while Danielle D'Eccliss had the other.  Lipperd struckout seven batters in the contest.

For Cal State Dominguez Hills, Chavez recorded two of the three CSUDH base hits, both doubles, and also scored the lone run of the contest on the sac fly by Ruiz.  Jimenez fanned six batters in her winning effort.

Sonoma State will now have to win four straight elimination games to advance beyond the West 2 Regional, starting with Saturday's 12:30 pm PDT game against Hawai'i-Hilo, which lost 14-5 in five innings to host Dixie State in the other first round game on Friday.