ELK GROVE, Calif. – Juniors Francesca Guerrera, Alex Garcia and Hailey Strange each knocked out two hits, with Strange opening with a triple for one of her two total RBIs, but St. Francis' early 3-1 lead ultimately spoiled by a four-run Husky sixth, as the Troubadours fell to Sheldon, 7-5, in Delta League softball action Wednesday afternoon.

St. Francis varsity evens its overall record to 8-8 while slipping to 4-2 in league play. The defending Delta champs improve to 12-9 for the year and 3-3 in conference.

The Troubies took a 2-0 lead in the opening frame, held a 3-1 edge into the fifth, and a 5-3 advantage by the middle of the sixth before surrendering the four tallies in the bottom half. Guerrera put SF on the board with her RBI infield single, then came home on Strange's triple two batters later. Strange later brought in Garcia on a single through the middle with two on in the third. Garcia scored her second run in the fifth on Jazzy Basquez' single to left, extending the lead to 4-1.

Sheldon got one back on a two-run homer by senior shortstop Sakora Harvell, before St. Francis added another in the next half inning. Alexis McFarland led off with a double, Guerrera moved McFarland to third, then Claire Krotine plated McFarland on a single, making it 5-3.

The Husky bats answered in the bottom of the sixth, beginning with a Briana Lewis double on the first pitch. Jaylee Marshall and Madison Chapman followed with back-to-back singles. Sheldon turned to a pinch hitter, senior Jaylee Ojo, who led her team with 11 homers two seasons ago. Ojo responded with a three-run blast to center, lifting Sheldon to its first lead of the game.

St. Francis had a glimmer of hope in the seventh when Garcia reached on an error with two down, but freshman Kwinci Brown finished off the complete-game victory with a pop-up to first.

Meanwhile, the Troubie junior varsity dominated its host by a 15-7 final, piling up nine runs in the fourth alone. First baseman Addison Hutchcraft hit 3-for-4 with two doubles, while Jaeya Leavitt, Gianna Palermo, Marissa Jensen and Layla Werner each had two hits. Palermo, Werner and Lilian Desmond each had two RBIs in the monster fourth frame.

St. Francis returns to action in another road doubleheader on Friday, this time at Pleasant Grove. Game times are 4 p.m.