BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – The 2015 CSU Bakersfield softball team came up just one victory short of earning its first Western Athletic Conference Tournament title in Las Cruces, N.M. One year later and over 1,300 miles away, the 2016 edition of the Roadrunners will make another run at the conference's Championships in Seattle, Wash. this week.
After wrapping up the regular season with their second-best conference record since joining the WAC in 2014 (13-32, 5-10 WAC), the 'Runners are ready to take on the rest of the league in the double-elimination tournament hosted by Seattle U.
In order to best the rest of the conference, the 'Runners will look to a pair of outfielders to continue to be the team's offensive catalysts. Sophomore Julea Cavazos has paced the 'Runners near the top of the lineup, providing a baserunner for CSUB in 46% of her plate appearances. The native of Temecula, Calif. also heated up during WAC play as the left fielder batted .404 over the 15 conference games. Senior Sydney Raeber has packed a punch for the 'Runners all season and the center fielder will take a team-high nine doubles and 21 RBI into the tournament.
In the circle, CSUB will look to senior Amber Mills to lead the way. The native of Fresno, Calif. has kept her season ERA below 3.00 while leading the 'Runners with 30 appearances and 20 starts this year. Junior Lyndsay Klimenko has been the next most frequent starter while freshman Alyssa Stockton and Raeber are the go-to options out of the bullpen for Head Coach Crissy Buck-Ziegler.
An automatic bid to the NCAA Regionals is at stake as CSUB will kick off the tournament on Thursday, May 12 at 1 p.m.. The 'Runners open the tournament with a game against Missouri-Kansas City, which earned a series sweep in Kansas City, Mo. over CSUB earlier this year. The winner moves on to play again Friday at 1 p.m. while the loser will fight in an elimination game Thursday night at 6 p.m.
For the full tournament bracket, information on tickets, links to live stats, and everything related to the 2016 WAC Tournament, visit the Tournament Central page at WACSports.com. Every game of the WAC Tournament will be live streamed for free via the WAC Digital Network.
~GoRunners.com~
