Box Score SAN ANTONIO, Texas - The University of the Incarnate Word softball team earned a 9-7 home victory over BYU on Thursday in the first ever matchup between the two schools. The Cardinals improved to 6-0 this season.
 
BYU plated two runs in the top of the first inning, but UIW struck back in the bottom half. Victoria Altamirano led off with a double, moved to third on a sacrifice bunt and scored on a single by Jaisy Caceres. Caceres made her way to third on a single by Bryanna Fuentes. She crossed the plate courtesy of a Dominique Guerra RBI groundout and tied the score at 2-2.
 
The Cardinals sailed ahead in the second. They scored one run early in the frame on a fielding error. UIW then put two on with two out and tallied two more, one on a second RBI single by Caceres in as many innings and another through a Fuentes RBI base hit. The Cardinals claimed a 5-2 through two.
 
After neither team scored in the third, BYU put together a five-run top of the fourth and took a 7-5 advantage. The score remained the same until the bottom of the sixth.
 
The Cardinals loaded the bases with nobody out on singles by Altamirano and Sydney Zenon and through Caceres being hit by a pitch. A sacrifice fly that advanced all three runners by Fuentes scored Altamirano and made it 7-6, and UIW subsequently tied the score with a bunt single from Guerra.
 
The Cardinals re-loaded the bases with one out and took the lead on a ground ball to shortstop that resulted in an error being charged to the Cougars' catcher on a mishandled throw to the plate attempting to retire the lead runner. UIW managed to score two on that play and claim a 9-7 lead heading into the seventh inning.
 
Jenny Robledo worked around a hit by pitch in the top of the seventh to seal the win for the Cardinals in the circle. The sophomore earned her second victory of the season in as many appearances. Robledo pitched three scoreless frames while allowing just one hit, walking none and striking out three. Meanwhile, three UIW batters, Caceres, Fuentes and Guerra, set the pace offensively with two RBI each.
 
The Cardinals (6-0, 0-0) are back in action tomorrow when they travel to Houston for a weekend tournament. UIW faces Lafayette at 10:30 a.m. on Friday followed by a 1 p.m. battle against Penn State.