LA JOLLA – California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) schools have been officially put on alert – the Chico State softball team has no plans to be the conference doormat this year. Friday the Wildcats not only spoiled the opening of the new UC San Diego softball field, but beat the Tritons in both ends of a conference-opening doubleheader, winning the first game 2-0 and then hanging in the nightcap for a 7-6 victory. With the two wins, the ’Cats remain undefeated on the young season and become the first Chico State softball team to win its first four games since 1995.
The Wildcats improved to 4-0 on the year with the sweep of Friday’s twinbill; after losing all five meetings with UC San Diego last year, Chico State has opened the 2010 campaign with three straight wins over the Tritons. UC San Diego dropped to 1-3 on the season.
Freshman Kacie McCarthy, the winning pitcher in Chico State’s two Best of the West Invitational games last week, delivered her best outing to date in Friday’s doubleheader opener, tossing a complete game, three-hit shutout. The Wildcats staked McCarthy to an early lead, as Courtney Brock knocked in Sam Quadt with a two-out single in the top of the first inning to put the ’Cats up 1-0; then Bec Johnson smacked a home run to lead off the seventh inning to give Chico State a 2-0 cushion. UC San Diego got the tying run to the plate in the bottom of the seventh, but McCarthy was able to get the final three outs without incident to seal the Wildcat win.
BOX SCORE - Game One
In the second game, the ’Cats jumped out to a commanding 7-0 lead…and then had to hang on for dear life. Chico State took the lead in the top of the third inning, as Jenna Wermes plated two with a bases loaded, two-out single, then Rachel Failla followed with an RBI single to plate Brock and make the score 3-0. The Wildcats added four more in the top of the fourth – an RBI double by Quadt and run-scoring singles by Wermes and Failla providing the key blows. Starting pitcher Jessica McDermott allowed just two hits through four shutout innings, but in the bottom of the fifth UC San Diego began to chip away at Chico State’s huge lead, plating a pair of runs to make the score 7-2. It remained that way until the bottom of the seventh inning, when the Tritons scored twice off Wildcat reliever Sarah Marcia to cut the deficit to three. McCarthy was summoned from the bullpen to get the final two outs, but she promptly surrendered a walk and an RBI single to make the score 7-5, and suddenly UC San Diego was just two runs down and had the bases loaded with only one out. McCarthy got Katrin Gabriel to hit into a force play, as third baseman Bec Johnson threw out Nikki Spangler at the plate. Jennifer DeFazio delivered an infield hit that knocked in the fourth Tritons run of the inning and make it a 7-6 ballgame…but with the tying run at third and the potential winning run in scoring position, McCarthy got Sarah Woofter to ground out to Failla at first base, and Chico State escaped with the nail-biting 7-6 win and the doubleheader sweep. McDermott got credit for the victory, with McCarthy earning the save.
BOX SCORE - Game Two
Wermes finished with two hits and three RBI for the Wildcats, with Failla and Quadt each collecting three hits on the day. Chico State, which entered Friday’s doubleheader batting .340 as a team, piled up a combined 17 hits against UC San Diego pitching.
The Wildcats and Tritons wrap up their four game series with another doubleheader on Saturday, with the opener of the twinbill scheduled to start at 11:00 a.m.
