BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – Behind clutch hitting from its seniors and standout pitching from freshman Cedes Saldaña, the Cal State Bakersfield softball team closed out a Big West series against UC Riverside with a 5-1 victory. The Roadrunners sent off four seniors with one final victory Sunday afternoon, a win that both clinched the series for Bakersfield and has Big West postseason implications.

With the win, Bakersfield (8-16 Big West) moved within one game of UC San Diego (9-15 Big West) for the sixth and final spot in the Big West Championship. With one week of league play remaining, the `Runners will head to San Diego to face the Tritons in a series that could very well decide which team makes the postseason. Playoff scenarios are below for the sixth and final postseason spot:

CSUN (8-16 Big West) earns the sixth seed if:

• CSUN sweeps Long Beach State (15-9 Big West)

CSUB earns the sixth seed if:

• CSUB wins at least 2-of-3 vs. UCSD
  AND
• LBSU wins at least 1-of-3 vs. CSUN
  Note: CSUB owns a tiebreaker over both UCSD and CSUN with 2 wins at UCSD.

UCSD earns the sixth seed if:

• UCSD wins at least 2-of-3 vs. CSUB
  Note: UCSD owns a tiebreaker over CSUN with 2 wins at CSUN.

Back in Bakersfield on Sunday afternoon, freshman Cedes Saldaña continued her rookie campaign by clinching both wins in Bakersfield's series victory. She struck out 8 Highlanders over the weekend, including 3 in the rubber match.

The `Runners went ahead early on Sunday and never looked back. A pair of CSUB seniors tallied 2-RBI doubles – Alexia Castro in the 2nd inning and Hannah Garcia in the 3rd – before catcher Kayla Visser tacked on the fifth and final run in the fifth inning.