SALT LAKE CITY — Montana Fouts delivered another dominant performance in the circle and the Utah Talons used a four-run third inning to defeat the Oklahoma City Spark 5-1 on Monday night at Dumke Family Softball Stadium.

The victory was the fourth straight for the Talons, who improved to 7-3 on the Athletes Unlimited Softball League season while handing the Spark just their second game of the year scoring two runs or fewer.

Fouts continued Utah’s streak of complete-game pitching performances, allowing one run on four hits while striking out five. The right-hander worked through several lengthy at-bats and held Oklahoma City hitless in seven opportunities that reached a full count.

The Talons broke open a scoreless game in the bottom of the third inning with a two-out rally that produced four runs.

After Tayler Biehl and Jordan Woolery extended their respective hitting streaks with base hits, Jadelyn Allchin lined a single through the right side to score the game’s first two runs. The hit extended Allchin’s hitting streak to four games and gave Utah a lead it would never relinquish.

Moments later, rookie Kailey Wyckoff delivered the biggest hit of the inning, drilling a two-run double to left-center field to stretch the advantage to 4-0. Wyckoff’s double extended her team-leading hitting streak to five games and capped a decisive offensive surge for the Talons.

Utah nearly added another run earlier in the inning when Caroline Jacobsen tripled down the left-field line. Jacobsen attempted to score on the same play but was thrown out at the plate after a coach’s challenge upheld the original call.

The Spark answered with their lone run in the fifth inning when Grace Jenkins lifted a sacrifice fly to score a runner from third. Oklahoma City threatened at times but struggled to generate sustained offense against Fouts, who recorded her third consecutive complete game.

The Talons added an insurance run and finished with a 9-4 advantage in hits. Eight of Utah’s nine starters recorded at least one hit, showcasing the lineup depth that has fueled the club’s recent success.

Allchin paced the offense with two hits and two runs batted in, while Wyckoff added two RBIs of her own. Woolery, Biehl and Jacobsen each contributed key hits as Utah improved to 5-0 this season when scoring five or more runs.

For Oklahoma City, Maya Brady extended her AUSL-record hitting streak to 16 consecutive games with a single in the third inning. The Spark entered the contest leading the league with 49 runs scored but were largely contained by Utah’s pitching staff.

Ruby Meylan took the loss for Oklahoma City after allowing two runs in 2.1 innings. Reliever Alana Vawter made her season debut and scattered two hits over 1.1 innings of work.

The Talons improved to 7-3 with the victory and remained one of the league’s hottest teams heading into the second game of the series. Oklahoma City fell to 5-5.

The teams continued their series Tuesday night at Dumke Family Softball Stadium.

Tags: Athletes Unlimited Softball League, AUSL, Portland Cascade, softball, Utah Talons