LA JOLLA, Calif.  UC San Diego Softball split Saturday's doubleheader with Big West favorite Cal State Fullerton on April 17 at Triton Softball Field. With the outcomes, the Tritons improve to 8-15 (4-8 BWC), as CSF shifts to 27-12 (12-0 BWC).
 
GAME 3: UC San Diego 0, Cal State Fullerton 1 (9 Inn.)
Game three consisted of a pitching duel between Triton left-hander Robyn Wampler and Titan starting pitcher Sophie Frost.
 
Wampler found a grove early on and road the momentum for her sixth complete game of the season. After just two innings of play, the senior had already collected four strikeouts.
 
The Berkeley native found some trouble in the fifth when she gave up a double, with one out retired, and was forced to face the heart of the Titan lineup. A walk to Kelsie Whitmore put runners on first and second, but Wampler fanned Fullerton's three-batter and the Big West's RBI leader (33) Hannah Becerra to escape the inning.
 
Scoreless all game, the Tritons threatened in the eighth after Mikaila Pancino chopped an infield single to the short stop. Pinch running for Pancino was Kaleigh Lane who stole second a few pitches later. A single down the left field line from Kelley Renner put runners on the corners, but the Titan defense buckled down with no damage done.
 
In the top of the ninth, the Titan leadoff batter wore a pitch to take first base. A bunt put her in scoring position and a double to left gave the Titans the go ahead. UC San Diego went down 1-2-3 in its last ups to suffer the 0-1 heartbreaker.
 
On the visiting side, Frost had faced just two over the minimum through six innings of play and only four over the minimum after nine.
 
Although credited with the loss, Wampler had arguably her best outing of the season, throwing nine complete innings. She allowed seven hits, one run, and walked just two. Her six strikeouts matched her season high.  
 
GAME 4: UC San Diego 6, Cal State Fullerton 5
The Tritons tallied their first run of the series in game four. Keila Bosinger led off with a single to the shortstop. Then, it was well-executed small ball the rest of the inning. Three consecutive bunts from Sophia Real, Bobbi Aguirre, and Isabel Lavrov helped manufacture a 1-0 advantage for UC San Diego.  
 
The Titans were quick to answer in the top half of the fourth with a solo home run over the left field fence.
 
All tied up at ones, UC San Diego got it going again in the fourth. Danica Kazakoff doubled to right center and stole third to give her offense a chance at an RBI opportunity with no outs. Clarissa Reynoso put the ball in play in the 5-6 hole which was deep enough to get Kazakoff home.
 
A big fifth inning rallied the Titan offense. A bases loaded double to left center cleared them all for a 4-2 margin. Later, a defensive miscue from the Tritons allowed another run to be plated.  
 
Down by three heading into the bottom of the sixth, UC San Diego was prepared to attack. Reynoso singled up the middle, her second of the day. An error by the Titan third baseman, followed by Bosinger's single put ducks on the pond for Real. An RBI walk kept the bases juiced for three-batter Aguirre who stroked a single to right to tie it all up. With one out away, Lavrov perfected a bunt to the pitcher to put her team ahead by one with three outs to go.
 
Kaia Simpson started the contest, went four innings, surrendering four runs on six hits. Wampler replaced her in the fifth as she faced 12 Titans and struck out three to secure the triumph, her fifth win of the 2021 campaign. 
 
QUOTABLE
Watch the postgame interview with Coach Gerckens and Robyn Wampler.



TRITON TIDBITS

• Wampler matched her season-best six strikeouts in game three.
• Freshman Zoe Richards earned her first collegiate at-bat after returning from an early season injury.
• Aguirre batted .538 (7-for-13) on the weekend, with two RBIs, one double and a walk. Bosinger trailed closely behind, going 6-for-14 (.429) with a home run, a double, and a walk.
• Behind the plate, Clarissa Reynoso threw out her fourth runner of the year in game two of Saturday's doubleheader.
• Bosinger joined the 100-hit club after recording the milestone in the finale of the series.  
• Game four of the series was scheduled and ruled a non-conference game.
• Triton Assistant Coach Christina Washington played three years at Cal State Fullerton and served as a volunteer assistant pitching coach for the Titans in 2019-20.
   

UP NEXT
UC San Diego will head north to Davis next weekend, April 23-24, to take on UC Davis in a three-game conference series. Friday's game is scheduled for 3 p.m., while Saturday's doubleheader will begin at 12 p.m. All contests will be played at La Rue Field.   
 
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program has begun a new era as a member of the Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 83 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 37 have garnered prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions. For more information on the Tritons, visit UCSDtritons.com or follow UC San Diego Athletics on social media @UCSDtritons.
 
Return To Sport… Safely
In order for UC San Diego scholar-athletes to be permitted to return to training and competition safely and within federal, state, local and university guidelines, the athletic department implemented a number of measures designed to complement and enhance the university's highly-successful Return To Learn program.  Notable actions include being physically distanced when practical, including during out-of-season training sessions; wearing masks, except when undergoing physically strenuous exercise; and maintaining proper hygiene.  Athletes, coaches and staff are testing at a higher frequency than the campus population, teams adhere to CDC, NCAA and Big West Conference guidelines and department officials participate in regular meetings with conference and university-affiliated physicians and the UC San Diego emergency operations staff.