The CSUB softball team climbed two steps closer to its dream of a winning season in its first full year of NCAA Division I competition by sweeping UC Riverside 6-3 and 4-1 Thursday at Harrison Field in Riverside.
Bakersfield (22-21 overall) finishes the season with four games at fellow NCAA Division I Independent Utah Valley University May 2-3. At least a split of that series would make the ?Runner softball team the first team sport in CSUB history to post a winning record playing a full Division I schedule.
Sophomore first baseman Kelli Bailey led the 21-hit Roadrunner attack by going 4-for-6 with three doubles. Sophomore third baseman Heather Veitch also hit safely in both games, including her first collegiate three-hit game in the nightcap.
Freshman pitcher Brittany Johnson won her 14th game in the opener. She gave up three runs in the third inning, but surrounded that with six shutout innings to give her offense time to find its groove.
The ?Runners took an early lead thanks to a two-out, RBI single from Veitch in the second inning. But UCR used four singles, a walk and a hit batter to push three across in the third.
The ?Runners finally solved UCR starter Christin Songer in the sixth with a little help from the Highlander defense. After Brooklyn Stuart led off with a single, consecutive errors by third baseman Kristie Martinez loaded the bases. CSUB proceeded to scrap out five runs on just three hits to pull ahead for good.
Sophomore pitcher Katie Chavez made sure CSUB wouldn't need any late-inning heroics in game two. In her best start of the season, Chavez scattered a season-low five hits and allowed just one run to even her record at 5-5.
Her offense gave her all the support she would need by scoring four times in the third inning. Bailey's third double of the day drove in Cara Klein and Bethany Snow with the first two runs. Sophomore shortstop Kristen Archuleta added a two-run double of her own to cap the inning.
| TEAM |
123 |
456 |
7 |
-- |
R |
H |
E |
| CSU Bakersfield |
010 |
005 |
0 |
-- |
6 |
9 |
0 |
| UC Riverside |
003 |
000 |
0 |
-- |
3 |
11 |
2 |
BATTERIES: Johnson and Stuart; Songer and Greenwalt. WP - Brittany Johnson (14-10). LP - Christin Songer (9-7).
2B - Bailry (B) 2
| TEAMS (RECORDS) |
123 |
456 |
7 |
-- |
R |
H |
E |
| CSU Bakersfield (22-21 overall) |
004 |
000 |
0 |
-- |
4 |
12 |
0 |
| UC Riverside (18-29 overall) |
000 |
010 |
0 |
-- |
1 |
5 |
1 |
BATTERIES: Chavez and Nutter-Gaudet; Alvidrez, Klimczak (6) and Greenawalt. WP - Katie Chavez (5-5). LP - Marissa Alvidrez (4-9).
2B - Bailey (B), Archuleta (B).
