CATHEDRAL CITY, Calif. - The LIU Brooklyn softball team scored three times in the second inning against No. 11 Kentucky and was tied with the nationally-ranked Wildcats into the fifth but ultimately dropped a narrow 5-3 decision on the second day of the Cathedral City Classic on Friday. Graduate student Lauren Morizi went 2-for-4 with an RBI while junior Whitney West also drove in a run for the Blackbirds, who will continue play at one of the top college softball events in the nation on Saturday, Feb. 21 against Cal Poly.

LIU put a pair on base in the top of the first but did not score, before Kentucky jumped out to a 1-0 advantage in the bottom half when Nikki Sagermann drove home Sylver Samuel with a run-scoring base hit. The lead would not last long, however, as the Blackbirds came right back with three runs to take the lead.

Senior Nicole Archer led off and reached on an error before sophomore Kylie Mulholland doubled down the left-field line two batters later to put a pair in scoring position with just one out. A walk to sophomore Nikki Schroeder loaded the bases for West, who smacked an RBI single through the left side to tie the score at 1-1.

A pitching change followed for the Wildcats and left-hander Meghan Prince entered the circle to face Morizi. LIU's top hitter each of the last two seasons drove a base hit up the middle to plate Mulholland and give the Blackbirds a 2-1 lead. A two-out, bases-loaded walk by freshman Victoria Zamora pushed across another run for LIU, who finished its trip to the plate in the second on top, 3-1.

After sophomore Shelley Procter worked around a two-out single in the bottom of the second, the Blackbirds threatened in the third when junior Celinna Cosio and Schroeder each recorded opposite-field singles with two outs to set up West. But Prince was able to get the red-hot West on a fielder's choice to end the potential scoring rally.

In the bottom of the third, Kentucky put a pair on with nobody out before a line-drive double play that Procter snared and tossed to first for the force brought the Blackbirds an out away from avoiding trouble. But Griffin Joiner hit a two-run home run over the right-field fence a batter after the twin killing to tie the game at 3-3.

Joiner did damage once again in the fifth, when her single through the right side scored Samuel to give the Wildcats a 4-3 cushion. Joiner drove in three runs on the afternoon while Samuel went a perfect 4-for-4 from the plate and scored twice.

A solo home run from Rachael Metzger in the sixth doubled Kentucky's lead to 5-3 heading to the seventh. Morizi led off the final inning with a base hit, but Prince shut the door with three straight outs to secure the win for the Wildcats.