ARCATA, Calif. - The UC San Diego softball team split its second-straight conference series on Saturday, finishing the road set against Humboldt State with a 7-2 win and a 5-1 loss.
With first-place Sonoma State (19-9) and second-place Cal State Monterey Bay (18-10) faltering in their respective trips to Cal State San Bernardino (16-11) and Cal State Dominguez Hills (16-12), the California Collegiate Athletic Association standings are becoming increasingly dramatic as the regular season nears its end. Taking two of four games at HSU puts the Tritons (27-15, 17-11 CCAA) in third place with two series remaining.
The top four teams advance to the CCAA Championship Tournament, which will be held from April 30 to May 2 in Stockton, Calif. Winning the conference title guarantees a spot in the NCAA Division II postseason bracket.
Given the importance of the series against the Lumberjacks this weekend, Tritons' head coach Patti Gerckens depended on sophomore right-hander Camille Gaito to silence the HSU lineup. Gaito threw 23 of the team's 26 innings in Arcata, going 2-1 with a 1.83 earned run average while striking out 13 of the Lumberjacks' hitters.
In the first game Saturday between UCSD and HSU, the two squads entered the fifth inning in a 1-1 deadlock. The Tritons collected three runs in the fifth inning and another three in the sixth, putting the game out of reach. Junior Rhiannon Ousley capped off the scoring with a two-out single that scored Nicole Saari and Sarah Woofter, bringing the game to its final tally of 7-2.
Woofter, Saari and Ousley finished the first contest with two hits apiece while freshman Nicole Spangler went 3-for-4 with two runs batted in out of the cleanup spot.
Hits would be hard to come by for the Tritons in game two Saturday, as the offense managed just four. After the Lumberjacks jumped out to a 2-0 lead on a first-inning homerun from Felicia Viveiros, UCSD would cut the lead in half when an error on the HSU shortstop allowed Kris Lesovsky to cross the plate in the top of the sixth.
The Lumberjacks put the game out of reach in the bottom half of the sixth though, collecting three late runs. HSU senior right-hander Gracie Perez put together a solid performance in the circle, throwing a complete game while allowing four hits and striking out nine batters en route to the 5-1 win.
The Tritons will conclude their regular season with two pivotal series, the first being a home set against CSUMB starting Friday at 1 p.m. On April 23-24, UCSD will finish with four road games at CSUSB.
