WAIPIO, Hawaii – The Pacific softball team blew past NCAA Division II-side Chaminade in an opening day sweep over the Silverswords at the Central Oahu Regional Park.
 
Kaitlyn Shikada (Sr., Honolulu, Hawaii), Kylee Yamamoto (Jr., Mililani, Hawaii) and Ashley Mitchell (Jr., Redmond, Wash.) homered in the opening game of the doubleheader, while Mitchell finished the day with five runs batted in.
 
Rachel Roberts (Jr., Oregon City, Ore.) continued her thieving habits from a season ago with five stolen bases on the first day of Pacific's 2015 season.
 
In the circle, Marissa Reichard (So., Forest Grove, Ore.) and Jessica Hotaling (Jr., Oregon City, Ore.) picked up their first pitching victories of the year.
 
Pacific's sweep of Chaminade marked the first head coaching victory for Pacific head coach Liz Yandall.
 
The Boxers return to play tomorrow in Laie, Hawaii as Pacific meets BYU-Hawaii for a doubleheader scheduled to open at 3 p.m. PST.
 
Game One: Pacific 12, Chaminade 5
Three home runs flew off of Pacific bats as the Boxers cruised to a 12-5 opening game victory over the Silverswords, while Quirena Natividad (Jr., Waipahu, Hawaii) finished the opener with four RBI on a pair of doubles and a triple.
 
In the circle, Marissa Reichard (So., Forest Grove, Ore.) earned her first victory of the season with four shutout innings against Chaminade.
 
Rachel Roberts (Jr., Oregon City, Ore.) opened the 2015 season for Pacific with a single to center before she promptly swiped second base. With one out in the opening frame, Natividad doubled to left center to plate Roberts for the Boxers' lone run of the opening frame.
 
Chaminade looked to respond in the bottom of the first when Ashley Phelps singled to lead off the inning. With one-out, the Silverswords managed to load the bases, but Reichard and the Pacific defense recorded a pair of outs to escape the inning unscathed.
 
The first big inning of the season for Pacific came in the top of the second when Kaitlyn Shikada (Sr., Honolulu, Hawaii) homered to left before Margaret Bachmeier (So., Newberg, Ore.) singled through the left side.
 
A fielder's choice and an error from the Silverswords saw Cindy Chan (Fr., Torrance, Calif.) replace Bachmeier at second base, only to see Chan advance on a Roberts single to center. A stolen base from Roberts put runners on second and third for Pacific, only to see Chan scamper home on a single from Jordan Schmerbauch (So., Mililani, Hawaii).
 
Pacific flashed speed with a double-steal to put Roberts on third and Schmerbauch on second, where the pair would stay until Natividad tripled to right center to clear the bases and give Pacific a 5-0 lead before the Silverswords recorded the third out of the inning.
 
After holding Chaminade scoreless in the second, Pacific plated one in the third as Yamamoto homered to left field to lead off the inning.
 
Pacific built upon its lead in the top of the fourth when Roberts drew a walk and stole her fourth base of the game. Roberts scored from second on a single by Schmerbauch to give the Boxers a 7-0 lead.
 
The Boxers held a 7-0 lead until the bottom of the fifth when Chaminade plated two runs against reliever Allie Sims (So., Puyallup, Wash.), off a double from Amber Manuel and a single from Jenn Betian.
 
Neither team was able to push across a run in the sixth, but the Boxers made up for the scoreless frame with a five-run seventh when with two outs and Roberts on first, Kiera Melton (Sr., Pleasanton, Calif.) singled to join Roberts on the base paths.
 
Natividad wrapped up her impressive season opener with a double to right center to score Roberts and push Melton to third. Kylee Oshiro (Sr., Aiea, Hawaii) followed Natividad with a two-run double, which was soon followed by a two-run homer from Mitchell to wrap-up Pacific's scoring for the opener.
 
Aja Keyes led the bottom of the seventh off with a homer for Chaminade. The Silverswords added to Keyes' solo home run when Manuel scored on an error and Coco Stewart scored on a single from Nicole Erichsen before the Boxers stopped the Silverswords comeback to earn Yandall's first win as Pacific's head coach.
 
Game Two: Pacific 15, Chaminade 4
Mitchell and Oshiro led the Boxers offensively in the second game of the day, as the duo drove in three runs each as Pacific topped the Silverswords 15-4.
 
Roberts opened the second game of the doubleheader with a walk and a stolen base, before scoring from second on a single to center from Hotaling. Natividad singled to center and advanced on a throw to put runners on second and third for Oshiro, who plated Hotaling on a fielder's choice that resulted in no outs for the Silverswords.
 
Pacific posted a third run in the opening inning on a Yamamoto single, which scored Natividad. Oshiro would score Pacific's fourth run of the inning after scoring on a foul out from Mitchell.
 
A dropped fly ball from Pacific allowed Chaminade to push two runs across in the bottom of the second to head to the top of the second with the Boxers leading 4-2.
 
Neither team was able to score in the second, but both added to their totals in the third. Pacific scored when Yamamoto, who reached on a walk, scored from first on a double by Megan Winans (Jr., Hood River, Ore.).
 
The Silverswords answered in the bottom of the inning with a two-run double from Erichsen.
 
Pacific's one-run lead lasted until the top of the fifth when Shmerbauch's bases loaded single drove in Oshiro and Ari Bali (Fr., Aiea, Hawaii). The Boxers' lead increased when Shikada drove followed Schmerbauch's single with one of her own to plate Mitchell.
 
The Boxers sat the Silverswords down in the bottom of the fifth, after seeing one Chaminade batter reach on a walk.
 
The sixth inning saw Pacific add to its lead as Natividad walked with one-out and advanced on an error and a Yamamoto walk to load the bases. Winans singled to center to plate Natavidad for the ninth run of the game. Three pitches later, Mitchell doubled to left center to score Chan and Yamamoto to give Pacific an 11-4 lead heading into the bottom of the sixth.
 
After shutting down the Silverswords in the bottom of the sixth, Pacific made the most of their final trip to the plate as Trisha Snydar (Fr., Lynden, Wash.) reached on a fielder's choice and advanced to second on a single from Kaitlyn Huggins (Jr., Spokane, Wash.).
 
Natavidad drew a walk to load the bases for Oshiro, who doubled to left center, scoring Snydar and Huggins. The final two runs for Pacific came in the form of a two-run pinch-hit single from Kaui Uwekoolani (Fr., Kahului, Hawaii).
 
The Boxers kept Chaminade off the board in the bottom of the seventh to leave Central Oahu Regional Park with a 15-4 game two victory.