SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Catie Caldwell hit a grand slam and pitched 4.2 scoreless innings of relief to lead the Troubadours to a 14-4 victory over Monterey Trail.

“It feels pretty great,” said Caldwell. “After I hit the home run, I started shaking because I was so excited. I helped my team out and did my best. I put my part into the team effort.”

Caldwell went 3-for-4 with two runs scored and four runs batted in. She entered the game on the mound in the second trailing 4-0. She tied the game with her grand slam in second and then held the Lady Mustangs scoreless the rest of the game, allowing just six hits with four strikeouts.

“I was not trying to do anything special, thinking up the middle to score at least one run,” said Caldwell about her first at-bat. “

Monterey Trail opened the game with a 4-0 lead on a pair of home runs off starter Jada Kanemasu.

“My curves and rises were working really well today,” said Caldwell. “I was trying to keep it away from them because I knew they were pretty good hitters and could do some damage.

St. Francis added four runs in the third and fifth innings to break open the contest. The top five batters in the order combined for 13 hits and eight runs scored to set up the offense.

“Catie was a big part of the win on both sides on offense and defense,” said Mary Baccay, who went 3-for-5 in the game. “I have been struggling so it was nice to get in the flow.”

Sophomore Sydney Littles and senior Rhyann O’Mara joined Baccay and Caldwell with three hits in the game.

The Troubadours start the second half of league play against Grant on Thursday.

“We have to trust ourselves but more importantly trust the coaches and what they have planned,” said Baccay.