The Wildcats opened up their first series at home with a doubleheader against the California State Monterey Bay Otters on Friday, Feb. 7.

The starting pitcher for the Wildcats was Brooke Larsen. Larsen is the team’s ace, and she had no problem showing that by striking out five batters, walking zero and allowing just three hits throughout game one. 

“All my pitches seemed to be working, thankfully,” Larsen said. “My warmup felt pretty good, so I was feeling good going into it. It’s always nice when all your pitches are working.”

Larsen’s teammate, catcher Sara Mitrano, caught the entire game and was quick to comment on Larsen’s job well-done.

“I saw Brooke step up. Obviously, Brooke is our ace.” Mitrano said.

The game remained tied at the end of the seventh inning and neither team had yet to put a run up on the scoreboard. In the top of the ninth inning, the center fielder for the Otters, Aubrey Cousins, hit a ball that looked like it was going to drop in the right center field gap. However, right fielder for the Wildcats, Karter Williams, made a diving catch to keep Cousins off the basepaths!

“I was shocked,” Mitrano said. “I know Karter can do amazing things, but that was the craziest thing I’ve ever seen. That’s some ESPN stuff!”

The game ended when Kristin Worley of the Wildcats stepped up to the plate with two outs and bases loaded. She drew a walk that brought the winning run in from third base. Chico State won the game on a walk-off walk and finalized the score at 1-0.

“I think the main thing about it is just to be calm in those situations and really take in everything and try to dial everything down,” Worley said. “Know that it’s just you and the pitcher, and you just have to hit the ball when it calls for it…Your teammates are going to believe in you, and you just got to get your job done.”

Upon entering game two of the doubleheader, the Wildcats set the tone right away. This time, Sam Mulock got the ball for Chico State and picked up right where Larsen left off in game one. Mulock pitched seven innings, struck out four batters and allowed just three hits from the Otters.

“My pitches were really working, but my defense was on fire. They were hitting the ball hard, but my defense had my back.” Mulock said.

Mulock got some run support early on, as her teammate and infielder Reilani Peleti hit a home run. This gave Mulock some cushion on the mound.

“Honestly, that was a relief for me when they put up more runs,” Mulock said. “It’s less work and I don’t have to stress as much when I’m on the mound. So, I was pretty relieved.”

The Wildcats went on to add a few more runs throughout the game to eventually win by a final score of 4-0. With these two games behind them now, Chico State gets right back on the field Saturday at 11 a.m. to play another doubleheader against the Otters.

Alex Marin can be reached at [email protected] or @amjournalism130 on Twitter.