The UCSD softball team traveled to Turlock, Calif., last weekend to compete in the Cal State Stanislaus Tournament of Champions, in which it finished 3-2 to improve to 18-18 overall on the season.
Junior outfielder Brittni Carino and the Tritons went 3-2 at the Cal State Stanislaus Tournament of Champions in Turlock, Calif., with wins over Hawaii-Pacific, Chaminade and Western Oregon.
The Tritons faced Hawaii-Pacific University in their first match of the tournament, coming off six-straight losses, including sweeps in two California Collegiate Athletic Association doubleheaders against No. 7 Cal State Bakersfield and No. 8 Cal State Dominguez Hills on March 26 and 27, respectively.
Seemingly unfazed by the losses earlier in the week, the Tritons returned to the field in top form, trumping Hawaii-Pacific early on March 31.
Though they fell behind 1-0 in the first inning, the Tritons fought back, tying the score at 1-1 on a sacrifice RBI ground out by freshman first baseman Jenni Habib in the third. UCSD then surged ahead 5-2 in the sixth on a three-hit rally that led to four runs, two of which came off of a triple by sophomore third baseman Jenny Maze.
Hawaii-Pacific was only able to scrounge up one hit in the final two innings as sophomore pitcher Melissa Ward picked up her 10th win of the season. She allowed only one run on five hits, with five strikeouts in seven innings of work.
However, the first day of tournament play ended with a loss for the Tritons, as they dropped their contest against No. 3 Humboldt State by a score of 8-0 in only five innings.
The Triton offense was quiet, but Habib continued her hot streak by contributing two of UCSD’s six total hits.
Sophomore pitcher Nicole Fullerton fell to 5-5 on the year after the loss, in which she allowed eight runs — seven earned — on 10 hits.
The Tritons returned to action on day two of the tournament with games against Chaminade University and Western Oregon University on April 1. UCSD defeated Chaminade by a 10-4 margin in its first game of day two before handing Western Oregon a hard-fought 3-2 loss in nine innings in the nightcap.
Against Chaminade, the Tritons scored three runs in the fifth inning and added four more in the seventh to come from behind for the 10-4 victory. Freshman catcher Megan Grace went 3-for-4 with three RBIs and a run scored to carry the Triton offense.
Beating Western Oregon required the Tritons to rally from a deficit again, this time coming from two runs back to tie the game in the fifth inning, forcing extra innings. They would go on to add the game winner in the top of the ninth. Senior outfielder Jenny Spencer doubled home the go-ahead run and Ward shut the door in the bottom half of the inning to secure the win.
Ward’s record improved to 12-7 with five solid innings of relief work, in which she allowed no hits with three walks and three strikeouts.
In the final game of the tournament on April 2, UCSD lost to Western Washington University by a score of 8-1. Details were unavailable at press time.
Before heading to the Tournament of Champions, the Tritons finished up the winter quarter schedule by dropping four consecutive California Collegiate Athletic Association road games in doubleheaders against both Cal State Bakersfield and Cal State Dominguez Hills.
The Tritons lost 5-4 and 11-1 against Cal State Bakersfield on March 26. The first game ended in heartbreaking fashion, as the Tritons gave up a 4-0 lead in the bottom of the seventh. The team was unable to hold off the Roadrunners, giving up five runs on six hits in the tough loss.
After shutting out the Roadrunners through the first six innings, Ward ended up with the loss, falling to 9-5 on the season.
The second matchup also ended in disappointment for the Tritons, as the game was called due to the mercy rule with Bakersfield winning 11-1 in the fifth inning. The Roadrunners put the game out of reach early on, scoring 11 runs on six hits in the bottom half of the first inning. The Tritons committed three errors in the inning and never recovered.
Freshman pitcher Lauren Chastain took the loss and fell to 1-4 on the year for the Tritons after allowing seven runs, six of which were earned, on four hits in only one-third of an inning to begin the game.
UCSD traveled to face Cal State Dominguez Hills the next day and took another pair of losses, 6-1 and 3-1. The second game was another tough loss for the Tritons as Dominguez Hills took advantage of more of UCSD’s sloppy defense to take an insurmountable lead. The Toros had no hits in the second inning, but scored all three of their runs on a hit batter, an error and two walks.
The Tritons leave Turlock with a 3-2 record in the tournament, bringing their season record to an even 18-18.
The Tritons will continue with CCAA play, facing Cal State San Bernardino on April 5 at home and Cal State Monterey Bay on April 7 on the road. After returning from Monterey, UCSD will host No. 7 Cal State Bakersfield, No. 8 Cal State Dominguez Hills for two games each to start an eight-game homestand.
