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'Cats conclude season with doubleheader split vs. Academy of Art
Lauren Walker picked up her 10th win and 14th complete game Saturday in the Wildcats' 5-1 victory over Academy of Art University.
4/25/2009 6:02:34 PM
CHICO, Calif. – The Chico State softball team put the finishing touches on the 2009 season Saturday, splitting a doubleheader against visiting Academy of Art University. Lauren Walker tossed a complete game four-hitter in the opener as the Wildcats posted a 5-1 victory, but in the nightcap Jessica McDermott was outdueled by Ericka Ames and the Urban Knights came away with a 2-1 win.
Game one of the double dip featured a Chico State milestone in the very first frame. Senior Gwen Cox led off the Wildcats’ half of the first inning with a walk and promptly stole second – her 26th swipe of the year breaking the Chico State single season stolen base record that had stood since 1995 (Cox would add another stolen base to her record-setting total later in the game). Ashley Roy’s RBI single gave Academy of Art a 1-0 lead in the top of third inning, but in the fourth the Wildcats took the lead for good – Charlotte Honciano singled home Christina Wieck to tie the score…Rachel Failla scored on a fielder’s choice off the bat of Sam Quadt…and Christine Johnson’s two-out infield single chased home Honciano to make it a 3-1 ballgame. Chico State put the contest away with two more runs in the fifth on RBI singles by Failla and Jenna Wermes. Walker did the rest, retiring the last five batters in succession to bring home the ’Cats 5-1 victory. Walker (10-16) notched her career single-season best 14th complete game to pick up the win; Academy of Art starter Sierrah Garcia (9-14) took the loss. Honciano went 2-for-3 to lead Chico State’s seven hit attack.
In the nightcap the Urban Knights did all their damage in the third inning…but they got plenty of help from the Wildcats. After McDermott set down the first seven batters she faced, a walk and two singles loaded the bases. Ashley Petty scored from third on a grounder to second when catcher Reina Andreatta mishandled Honciano’s throw to the plate…then McDermott walked Alana Aweau to force home Shelby LaFond to up the Academy of Art lead to 2-0. Chico State missed a pair of golden scoring opportunities early in the ballgame, but in the fifth the ’Cats sliced the Urban Knights lead in half when Jesse Minch singled home Cox to make it a 2-1 contest. In the bottom of the seventh Chico State got the potential tying run to second with only one out, but Ames got Cox to fly out to center and Minch to ground out to second to end the threat and give Academy of Art the 2-1 win and a split of the doubleheader. Ames (6-15) allowed just one unearned run in picking up the victory; McDermott (8-20) allowed just one earned run and tied her season high with seven strikeouts in going the distance, but suffered the hard-luck loss. Cox, playing her last game as a Wildcat, had two of Chico State’s five hits in the nightcap.
With the doubleheader split, the Wildcats finished the 2009 season with an overall record of 19-36 and a CCAA mark of 6-26. Academy of Art, also concluding its season, posted a 15-29 mark on the year.
GAME ONE - Box Score
GAME TWO - Box Score
Softball at Humboldt State (DH)
3.12.10 | 1:00 p.m.
Softball at Humboldt State (DH)
3.13.10 | 12:00 p.m.
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Wildcats of the Week
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Women's Track
There’s something about the annual Chico Multi that always brings out the best in heptathlete Kelly Clancey. For the second straight year, the junior from Modesto earned an NCAA Championships provisional bid in the heptathlon during the two-day Chico Multi, collecting 4,743 total points over the seven events, easily surpassing the 4,400 points needed to secure the provisional bid.
Clancey was the dominant athlete in the 12-person field, taking first place in four of the seven hepthatlon events. She took top honors in the high jump (5 feet, 3.25 inches), long jump (17 feet, 9.5 inches), 100-meter hurdles (15.42 seconds) and the 800-meter run (2 minutes, 20.25 second), while finishing second in the 200-meter dash (26.34 seconds), fourth in the shot put and sixth in the javelin throw.
Clancey, already well ahead of last season's schedule in which she scored a 4,400 in the Chico Multi and went on to post a career-best 4,811 at the CCAA Championships and advance to the NCAA Championships, will try to better her provisional mark March 24-25 at the California Multi, hosted by UC Berkeley.
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Men's Golf
Sylvester Gama carded three consecutive sub-par rounds and finished alone in second place at 7-under par at the Coyote Classic last Monday and Tuesday. Gama, competing as an individual, finished six strokes clear of third place in a standout performance that was bettered only by Cal State San Bernardino's Gene Webster, Jr.
Gama went 2-under in the opening round on the par-70 course at Arrowhead Country Club. He went 1-under in the afternoon. And on Tuesday, Gama's 66 was bettered only by Webster and matched his teammate Kyle Souza for the third lowest round of the tournament.
A 6-foot senior from Santa Barbara (Santa Barbara CC), Gama has now gone under par in eight of his 16 rounds of the 2009-10 season. His stroke average of 72.1 is second on the Wildcats as are his three top-five finishes.
Those efforts have made him easily the team's most improved player thus far this season. His stroke average was 75.3 last season and he had just one top-10 finish - an eighth-place finish at the CCAA Championships.
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3.10.10 | Softball
CHICO – With just a pair of non-conference games over the past couple of weeks, the Chico State softball team is itching to get back between the chalk lines. The Wildcats will definitely get their wish and then some, playing a minimum of 13 games scheduled over the next 17 days, including a four-game series this weekend in Arcata against California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) rival Humboldt State.
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3.5.10 | Softball
CHICO – Since joining the Chico State softball team a little over a year ago, Jessica McDermott has been the Wildcats’ original hard luck pitcher. In 2009, the sophomore from San Diego lost eight games in which she gave up just two runs or less…and this season she’s already experienced her share of ups and downs. But Friday at University Softball Field, McDermott was not to be denied, twirling a four-hit shutout and striking out a career-high 10 batters – including the final three to end the game – to give the Wildcats a 1-0 victory over Oregon Tech and salvaging a split of their doubleheader with the Hustlin’ Owls. Earlier in the day, Oregon Tech bested the ’Cats by a final of 7-2.
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3.4.10 | Softball
CHICO – Some say momentum is overrated; a cliché sports term that downplays what actually makes a team a winner. But one thing that can’t be debated is that the Chico State softball team is currently riding a three game winning streak, highlighted by an exciting 11-inning, 3-2 series-ending victory last Sunday against Cal State Dominguez Hills. The Wildcats look to build on the momentum built up in the Toros series this Friday with a non-conference doubleheader against Oregon Tech. The first game of the twinbill is scheduled to start at noon at University Softball Field.
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3.1.10 | Softball
CHICO – Several members of the Chico State softball team turned in outstanding performances over the weekend, leading to the Wildcats winning three out of four against Cal State Dominguez Hills at University Softball Field. But two ’Cats in particular – third baseman Bec Johnson and lefty reliever Caitlin Byrne – played major roles in the team’s success, and Monday they were honored as the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Softball Player and Pitcher of the Week, respectively, for the period of Feb. 22-28.
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2.28.10 | Softball
CHICO – The resurgance of the Chico State softball team has already yielded some pretty impressive results – just 14 games into the 2010 campaign, the Wildcats have matched last season’s number of home victories and conference wins, and are two games above the .500 mark thanks to Sunday’s doubleheader sweep of Cal State Dominguez Hills at University Softball Field. The ’Cats piled up a dozen hits to handily win the opener 9-1, then came from behind twice in the nightcap, finally topping the Toros 3-2 in 11 innings.
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2.27.10 | Softball
CHICO – Freshman Caitlin Byrne had to wait patiently to make her Chico State pitching debut, and after sitting on the sidelines for the team’s first 10 games of the season, the San Diego native finally got the call in the Wildcats’ home-opening doubleheader against Cal State Dominguez Hills. The San Diego native did not disappoint, tossing a combined four-and-a-third innings of shutout ball and picking up the victory as Chico State beat the visiting Toros 7-5 in the nightcap at University Softball Field. In the first game of the twinbill, Cal State Dominguez Hills survived a seventh inning Wildcat rally to win 3-2.
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2.25.10 | Softball
CHICO – With a solid day of rain in the forecast for Friday, the scheduled softball doubleheader between Chico State and Cal State Dominguez Hills that was to kick off a four game series has been postponed. The Wildcats – set to play their first home games of the 2010 season – will now take on the visiting Toros in doubleheader action this Saturday and Sunday at University Softball Field. Exact start times are still to be determined.
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