April 22 (Game 1)
UC San Diego 12, Cal State East Bay 2
In the last of their regular season matchups, the No. 10 Tritons clinched the series opener with a 12-2 rout over Cal State East Bay.
With help from Pioneer pitcher Talia Ferrari — who threw three illegal pitches in UCSD’s first time at plate to get the Tritons around the bases — the Tritons went up 2-0 in the first, though the Pioneers responded with a two-run home run in their half of the inning.
UCSD loaded the bases after senior Sarah Woofter was hit by a pitch in the second inning. With freshman Taylor Sepulveda on third and senior Kris Lesovsky on first, freshman Mya Romero singled down the left-field line for two RBI. Woofter was brought home to score on a single by Esther Strom.
In her 23rd win, junior pitcher Camile Gaito (23-2) retired the next three batters, setting the stage for a solo home run by UCSD freshman catcher Caitlin Brown in the fourth.
The Tritons put the game out of reach in the seventh, registering six runs on four hits, with seniors Woofter and Rhiannon Ousley both recording two RBI.
April 22 (Game 2)
UC San Diego 2, Cal State East Bay 1
With help from around the conference, the Tritons clinched their first-ever CCAA regular season title with a narrow win in the second game of the series.
UCSD came into the series needing to win three of four games to clinch the title. The second- and third-place teams, however, dropped a game apiece in their doubleheaders, and the 2-1 win gave the top spot to the Tritons.
Neither team got on board until the fourth inning, when Cal State East Bay pitcher Heidi McAllister hit a solo home run to centerfield.
Down 1-0, the Tritons rallied in the sixth inning to pull out the win. With two outs and Romero on third and freshman Emily McQuaid — pinch-running for Brown — on second, freshman Charly Swanberg singled to right center for two RBI.
Triton freshman starter Jennifer Manuel pitched four and two-third innings and gave up one run on four hits, but Gaito (24-2) got the win with two and one-third innings of two-hit relief.
April 23 (Game 1)
Cal State East Bay 11, UC San Diego 3 (6 innings)
The Pioneers recorded four home runs in the 3-11 victory over the Tritons.
Cal State East Bay recorded four runs off a pair of two-run home runs within the first two innings. The Tritons brought the score to 4-3 with RBI from Romero and Swanberg, as seniors Katrin Gabriel and Lesovsky came across to score. But the Pioneers put the game away in the fourth, with a grand slam by Nikki Freiberg.
Manuel (2-4) took a tough loss, allowing 11 hits — although only six of her charged 11 runs were earned.
April 23 (Game 2)
UC San Diego 4, Cal State East Bay 1 (9 innings)
The Tritons went to extra innings to get the win in their last regular season game.
Down 1-0 in the sixth inning with two outs, Lesovsky homered to centerfield to tie the game.
Gaito (25-2) went the distance, recording a career-high 12 strikeouts. The UCSD ace allowed only two hits in the remaining innings.
Both sides struggled in the box in extra innings. But the Tritons found a way to win, scoring their winning run off of a pair of errors made by Cal State East Bay infield. Swanberg homered to left field to cement the Triton win.
The No. 10 Tritons clinched the program’s first CCAA title after their pair of wins on Friday. With a 22-9 CCAA record, the Tritons matched a school record for number of conference victories. UCSD’s .710 win percentage is also the best in the program’s history since joining Division II.
The top-seeded Tritons will head into the CCAA Championships in Stockton this Friday, April 29, and will take on fourth-seeded Cal State Dominguez Hills.
Readers can contact Rachel Uda at [email protected].