RIVERSIDE, Calif. - UC Riverside returned to Amy S. Harrison Field on Friday, March 4 to open the Amy S. Harrison Classic, routing Sacred Heart 12-0 and falling 9-1 to Oregon State. 

Friday's opener was another day of growth for the Highlanders, whose 12 runs against the Pioneers came on six hits that included three doubles and two home runs. 

"I'm super proud of the way we've been trusting our process with what we've been working on in practice on offense, and it really showed in the first game," head coach Nikki Palmer said. "We were patient, had a lot of precision in the box and really found a lot of barrels. I'm really proud of the work we've been doing and the trust they've had."

UCR put up four spots in the first and fourth innings in the rout over Sacred Heart, led by two home runs from Gigi Araki and her six RBIs, the first six-RBI game for a Highlander since 2017. 

Chrys Hildebrand struck out five of her first six batters faced and eight straight in the morning opener, going the distance and finishing with 12 strikeouts for her third 10-strikeout game of the season and second in her last three appearances.

Marissa Burk launched her first home run of the season for the Highlanders' only run against Oregon State, in addition to Lauryn Garewal, Kat Montuya and Haylee Kela recording hits. 

UC Riverside continues the Amy S Harrison Classic on Saturday with a doubleheader against North Dakota State, starting at 11:00 a.m.