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By Friday night, the ninth-ranked Wildcats were ready to move on. The UA belted eight home runs in two wins — an 11-1, six-inning victory over UC Santa Barbara and a 7-3 victory over Long Beach on the first night of the Hillenbrand Invitational at Hillenbrand Stadium.

ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s offense wasted little time in Friday’s first game. Carlie Scupin reached on a Gauchos error in the first inning and Jasmine Perezchica scored, giving the Wildcats a 1-0 lead. Sharlize Palacios ripped a grand slam one inning later, making it 5-0; she ripped a second home run, a three-run shot, in the sixth inning, helping the Wildcats win via the run rule.

Palacios, ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s starting catcher, finished 2 for 3 with seven RBIs in Game. 1. Scupin and Izzy Pacho also homered, and Devyn Netz pitched a complete game, allowing one run on three hits while striking out two.

Scupin homered twice and Pacho homered once in the nightcap, a four-run win over The Beach. Palacios’ lone hit, an RBI double, tied the game at 3 in the third inning. Allie Skaggs then hit a two-run shot to give the Wildcats a lead that they wouldn’t relinquish.

Ace Hanah Bowen pitched six innings against Long Beach State, giving up two runs on six hits while striking out two and walking one. She worked around trouble in the fifth inning, retiring three in a row after The Beach reached on a hit batsman and bunt single to open the frame.

The UA (5-1) will take on Loyola Marymount and No. 16 Kentucky in Saturday’s portion of the invitational. First pitch for Game 1 against LMU is scheduled for 3 p.m., with the UA-UK game to follow.