The Tritons successfully rallied in the second game of their doubleheader against rival Cal State Stanislaus in Turlock, Calif., on April 15 to keep the Warriors from sweeping the series. UCSD lost the first game by a score of 3-1, before coming back to win the finale, 7-5.
Taking charge:
UCSD’s April 16 doubleheader defeat, by scores of 7-0 and 7-6, respectively, against Chico State, (22-11 overall, 13-10 California Collegiate Athletic Association) was a sad loss because the Tritons (16-22 overall, 10-15 CCAA) swept the Wildcats earlier in the first doubleheader meeting of the season, with UCSD winning by scores of 6-5 and 5-0 on Feb. 25 at home.
Although the Tritons took a 4-0 lead after two innings, Chico State fought back relentlessly with two runs in the third and four more in the fifth to take a 6-4 lead.
Nonetheless, the Tritons refused to concede the game and tied it up again in the top of the sixth.
“Offensively we did well, but we couldn’t hold them off,” Hurst said.
Both teams had plenty of scoring opportunities in the game, with Chico leaving 14 runners on base and UCSD stranding 10.
Tritons freshman pitcher Nicole Fullerton performed well and gave up one run on four hits in 3.2 innings of work.
“Fullerton shut everybody down,” Hurst said.
After a series of massive hits and RBIs from the Wildcats, the Triton rally fizzled out and the Wildcats won the day.
In the first game on April 15, the Tritons could not stop Cal State Stanislaus’ (18-22 overall, 12-13 CCAA) relentless plays. The Warriors scored three times in the first inning on some heads-up base-running to take the game, 3-1.
UCSD scored once in the third inning and had runners in scoring position in the sixth and seventh, but could not bring them in.
The second game saw the Tritons explode to a 6-1 lead. The Tritons scored five runs with two outs on the board in the second.
“We came out really strong in the first couple of innings,” senior team captain Jamie Hurst said.
Preempting the Warriors’ belated offensive, UCSD tacked on a final run in the sixth.
Although Cal State Stanislaus scored four times in the bottom of the sixth to cut the lead to 7-5, a spirited Triton defense kept their opponent from squeezing out any more runs in their final at-bat.
“We played really well and had some good hits,” Hurst said.
Several defensive standouts emerged in the Tritons’ fierce battle to reject a Cal State Stanislaus comeback.
Freshman pitcher Melissa Ward took the win to improve to 5-7.
Junior Jenny Spencer led UCSD at the plate, going 3-for-4 with a pair of runs.
Senior Breanne Cope plated a pair of runs on a home run and went 2-for-3 with two runs and a pair of RBIs.
The Tritons return to action April 22 through April 24 at the Mountain Dew Classic in Bakersfield, Calif.
