THE SCHEDULE
Games 17 & 18
at No. 3 Cal State Monterey Bay (10-1, 3-1 CCAA)
Friday, Feb. 27 • 12:00 p.m. (DH)
Otter Sports Complex • Seaside
Live Audio • Live Stats
Games 19 & 20
at No. 3 Cal State Monterey Bay
Saturday, Feb. 28 • 11:00 a.m. (DH)
Otter Sports Complex • Seaside
Live Audio • Live Stats
After dominating in two California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) sets this season, the UC San Diego softball team will face its biggest test yet as it travels to No. 3 Cal State Monterey Bay. The Tritons will play a doubleheader against the Otters on Friday at noon and again on Saturday at 11:00 a.m. CSUMB sits just behind UCSD in the CCAA standings at 3-1. The Tritons are 14-2 overall with a 7-1 conference marks and are on a three-game win streak.
GOING LIVE
Live stats are available for a majority of UCSD's games, including all home contests at Triton Softball Field, and the entire series this weekend in Seaside. Follow the play-by-play action by clicking here. The games with CSUMB can also be listened to online here. Fans can access live coverage for home and away dates from the UCSD schedule page.
GERCKENS EARNS 600TH WIN
Triton head coach Patti Gerckens, in her 23rd season in charge, earned her milestone 600th career win with a doubleheader sweep against San Francisco State on Friday, Feb. 13. UCSD won the opener, 4-1, and the Tritons' 5-3 victory in game two helped Gerckens accomplish the feat. Already the winningest head coach in program history, Gerckens has led the Tritons to 10 NCAA postseason berths, six CCAA Championship appearances, one CCAA Championship title in 2012 and a national championship in 2011.
NATIONAL RANKINGS
UCSD received votes in the latest National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Division II poll for the second straight week. The Tritons earned four votes in the rankings for the week of Feb. 18 and repeated for the week of Feb. 25. The rankings feature two California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) foes with Cal State Monterey Bay coming in at No. 3 and Humboldt State at No. 19. For the complete list of rankings, click here.
CCAA STANDINGS
UCSD began conference play with a four-game series sweep over SF State at Triton Softball Field, then traveled to Turlock where it took three of four against Cal State Stanislaus. The Tritons' 7-1 start puts them in second place in the CCAA standings. Humboldt State sits in first place with a 4-0 conference mark after sweeping SF State.
CCAA LEADERS
UCSD leads the conference in ERA (1.16), opposing batting average (.205), shutouts (4), and sacrifice hits (21). The Tritons ranks second with triples (3) and third with walks (43). In addition to leading the league in four categories as a team, the Tritons hold the top spot in five individual categories: wins (7, Hannah Duarte), saves (4, Mo Omori), ERA (0.80, Alexis Edwards), putouts (107, Emma Schneider) and assists (55, McKenna Clewett).
ABEYTA TO FIRST
Junior outfielder Taylor Abeyta has reached base in 14 straight games this season, which is currently the longest streak. Freshman catcher Lauren Sanders has also reached base in 14 straight games this season, but her streak ended on Saturday in game two against Cal State Stanislaus. Abeyta also holds the longest hitting streak this season with six games, while McKenna Clewett has longest active streak with four.
STELLAR PITCHING
UCSD is off to an impressive start in the circle this season. The team currently ranks first in the CCAA with a 1.16 ERA. Additionally, all three UCSD pitchers rank among the top 5 players in the CCAA in ERA. Alexis Edwards leads the league with a 0.80 ERA, Hannah Duarte is in second place with a 1.16 ERA and Mo Omori rounds out the group in fifth place with a 1.64 ERA. The Triton pitching staff has allowed just 17 earned runs in 16 games, while recording 53 strikeouts and four total shutouts.
CLEARING THE FENCE
Freshman outfielder Kelsi Maday leads the Tritons with three home runs this season after she hit one out in game two on Feb. 16 against Adelphi. Maday is on pace to hit nine homers in the regular season, which would tie the mark former Triton standout Caitlin Brown set in 2013. Maday also leads the team with 12 RBI. Freshman catcher Lauren Sanders is second on the team with two. Sanders is on pace to hit six home runs this season, which would tie the mark that Triton assistant coach Kris Lesovsky set in 2011 and 2012.
SANDERS SLUGGING
Freshman Lauren Sanders currently leads the team in five hitting categories: batting average (.415), slugging percentage (.634), hits (17), total bases (26), and sacrifice flies (2). The Oakdale native also holds the second spot in on-base percentage (.469), RBI (11), doubles (3), and home runs (2).
SAVING THE DAY
Senior pitcher Mo Omori has accumulated four saves through just 16 games, putting her in a five-way tie for first place on UCSD's single-season list. Omori is on pace for 12 saves in the regular season, which would not only set a new single-season record, but would eclipse assistant coach Camille Gaito's first place all-time record of nine.
SHUT IT DOWN
The Tritons lead the CCAA with four shutouts this season. UCSD recorded its first of the season on Feb. 7 in game one against St. Martin's. Hannah Duarte started giving up just three hits in five innings of work, and Mo Omori completed the game with two perfect innings as the Tritons won, 3-0. Duarte then completed her first game en route to the Tritons second shutout in game one against San Francisco State on Feb. 14. The Long Beach native narrowly missed tossing a no-hitter. She finished the game giving up only one hit in five innings of work as the Tritons dismantled the Gators, 8-0. The entire UCSD pitching staff came together to help blank San Francisco State in game two on Feb. 14. Junior lefty Alexis Edwards got the start in the circle and allowed just four runners on base in four innings. Omori came in to relieve Edwards in the fifth for another perfect outing. The senior went 1.2 innings without allowing a single hit. Duarte then sealed up the shutout, going the final 1.1 innings and giving up just one walk as UCSD completed the four-game series sweep against San Francisco State with a 1-0 win. Against Cal State Stanislaus, UCSD recovered from a 6-1 loss that ended its 11 game win streak to blank the Warriors 5-0 on two one-run doubles from Kristin George and Taylor Abeyta, a two-run homer from McKenna Clewett and a sacrifice fly from Kelsi Maday.
WEEKEND REWIND
In its first road action of the season, UCSD saw an 11-game winning streak come to an end, splitting last Friday afternoon's doubleheader against CCAA opponent Cal State Stanislaus at Warrior Softball Field. The Tritons dropped the first game in a 6-1 decision, but bounced back with a 5-0 victory. UCSD then swept CSUS on Saturday with scores of 6-5 and 2-1.
TRITON NOTES
Head coach Patti Gerckens earned her 600th career win after the doubleheader sweep of San Francisco State on Friday, Feb. 13 ... After dropping their season opener, the Tritons won 11 straight games, the longest streak since winning 14 in a row over the span of the 2011 and 2012 seasons, and the longest single-season streak since 2001 ... UCSD, who was picked to finish fourth in the CCAA, is currently in second place in the conference with a 7-1 mark ... Junior McKenna Clewett hit her first home run of the season in game two on Friday to help the Tritons blank the Warriors, 5-0 ... On Feb. 16 against Adelphi, senior Mo Omori picked up her fourth save of the season to tie the UCSD's single-season record ... Alexis Edwards broke into UCSD's single-season list in 2014 with 32 appearances was good for ninth place and 19 wins put her in sixth on the single-season wins list ... Edwards also sits in 10th place on UCSD's all-time strikeouts list with 123 ... The Tritons welcome 10 newcomers to the 2015 squad, including two transfers: Taylor Abeyta (Penn State) and Kristin George (Palomar College) ... The Tritons have 16 California natives on their roster, with Kendall Baker (Berthoud, Colo.) being the only player from out of state ... The Tritons have three local players on the roster: Taylor Abeyta (San Diego/Mt. Carmel HS), McKenna Clewett (Escondido/Orange Glen HS) and Emma Schneider (Carlsbad/Carlsbad HS).
OMORI AND SANDERS EARN WEEKLY HONORS
Senior pitcher Mo Omori and freshman catcher Lauren Sanders were named CCAA Softball Pitcher and Player of the Week, respectively, for the week of Feb. 2-8. Omori shined in the circle in UCSD's opening week, making five appearances in six games with two starts. In Omori's 16 innings, she has given up just two runs, only one of which was earned, while striking out seven batters. With her performance in the first week, Omori picked up two wins of the season with an ERA of 0.44. Sanders was also a huge part in UCSD's 5-1. In the second game of the series against SMU, Sanders led off the second inning by hitting the first home run of 2015 on a deep shot over the center field fence, putting UCSD up 1-0. She came up big again for the Tritons in the sixth with her second homer of the night to give the Tritons the 3-2 victory. Sanders went 6-for-11 against the Saints with three RBI, two home runs and a walk. The Tritons picked up three player of the week honors in 2014 and Edwards was UCSD's only pitcher of the week honoree last season.
WHO'S BACK, WHO'S NOT SNAPSHOT
UCSD is coming off a 34-18 overall season while finishing third in the CCAA with a 20-10 mark. The Tritons made their eighth DII NCAA postseason appearance, where they were eliminated from West Regional after losses to Dixie State, 5-3, and Central Washington, 10-1. Head coach Patti Gerckens, going into her 23rd season leading the Tritons, welcomes back the seven players, including Daktronics All-West Region Second Team selection and All-CCAA First Team honoree Alexis Edwards and All-CCAA Second Team member McKenna Clewett. Edwards compiled a 19-10 record and a 2.12 ERA in 168.1 innings last year while leading the Tritons in ERA (2.12), opposing batting average (.230), wins (19), innings pitched (168.1), strikeouts (80) and appearances (32). Clewett finished the 2014 season hitting .372, good for second on the team and scored 27 runs, hit one home run and tallied 25 RBI in 52 games.
HEAD COACH PATTI GERCKENS
Patti Gerckens is in her 23rd season in charge at UCSD. The winningest head coach in program history, Gerckens has led the Tritons to four straight NCAA postseason berths, beginning with back-to-back school-record 45-win seasons and appearances in the Division II championship game, the first of which brought UCSD its first softball title in 2011. The Tritons finished as national runners-up in her milestone 20th campaign in 2012. Gerckens has amassed an overall record of 607-501 (.548), with eight straight 30-win seasons among 10 total. The Tritons have gone 449-335 (.569) in 14 years since Gerckens guided the team's transition from Division III to Division II in 2001, including 269-189 (.587) as a member of the ultra-competitive CCAA, widely considered the best Division II conference in the country. Gerckens has led UCSD softball to 10 NCAA postseason appearances, with eight at the Division II level. UCSD is 21-16 (.568) in the NCAA Division II Championship. Since taking over the team in 1993, 26 of Gerckens' players have combined for 50 All-West Region selections. Thirty-four of her players have earned All-CCAA honors since 2001. She has also coached four All-Americans. Two of her players have earned CCAA Freshman of the Year honors and two Tritons have won CCAA Player or Pitcher of the Year during her tenure. A native of Old Tappan, N.J., Gerckens graduated from the University of North Carolina in 1989 with a bachelor's degree in health and physical education. She was a four-year starter at second base for the Tar Heels and also played for the New Jersey Blue Jays of the Amateur Softball Association for nine years, winning a championship in 1992.
ABOUT THE OTTERS
Cal State Monterey Bay opened the season ranked No. 10 in the NCAA Division II Top 25 poll released by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) and have sinced moved up to the No. 3 spot. The Otters, who return most of their 2014 squad that finished as CCAA champions with a 48-12 record, started the season strong winning their first eight games. The only blemish on CSUMB's record is a 11-3 loss from Cal State San Bernardino. Still the Otters took three of four from the Coyotes on the road.
SERIES HISTORY
UCSD holds a 22-18 all-time series record against Cal State Monterey Bay. The Tritons faced the Otters just one time last season, with the regular-season set in La Jolla washed out by bad weather in early March. The two met at the CCAA Tournament, where CSUMB eliminated UCSD with a final score of 10-8.
GEAR HERE
UCSD Athletics has partnered with Advanced-Online to provide a web-based, on-demand option for UCSD apparel and merchandise. Fans have access to over 600 products that can be processed and shipped within 24 hours. Visit the site at UCSDTritonsGear.com.
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UP NEXT
UCSD will return to Triton Softball Field next weekend to host CCAA foe Sonoma State. The Tritons will play a doubleheader on Friday starting at 1 p.m., and Saturday at 11 a.m.
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