Cal State East Bay (19-12, 10-9 CCAA) took game one Friday, 5-0, as the Chico State (10-18, 9-13 CCAA) bats were unable to keep up with the offensive production from the Pioneers.
With the Wildcats looking to make a late-season playoff push and earn a spot in the CCAA tournament, this series came with some major implications.
“This series decides a lot for our season and the playoff run we are trying to make,” Coach Marcus Wilhite said. “Winning three out of four would be huge for us.”
Pioneers freshman pitcher Marissa Quintero had a spectacular performance, throwing a complete game shutout while striking out eight hitters and only allowing four hits.
Sophomore Wildcats pitcher, Amelie Valdez, who has proven herself as the team’s ace, took the mound in the series opener. However, the outing wasn’t up to Valdez’s recent standards as she threw 100 pitches in only five innings, while giving up three earned runs.
East Bay maintained control throughout the game after getting out to an early two-run lead in the third inning. Chico State kept it close and threatened to score multiple times, but in the end, leaving seven runners on base was costly to the comeback aspirations.
To lead off the top of the sixth, Pioneers sophomore Jeslyn Cuellar blasted a solo home run to left field which ultimately felt like the nail in the coffin for the Wildcats.
In game two, the Wildcats completely flipped the script.
Junior Katelyn Oldwin started the game for the Wildcats and hadn’t lost a step from the Monterey series. Oldwin threw her second complete game of the year, this one being a shutout, striking out her season-high 10 batters while only allowing two hits.
“Having a lead like that is the greatest thing ever, it relieves a lot of stress and it allows me to go out there carefree and just throw the ball,” Oldwin said.
Oldwin also got it done at the plate, hitting a line drive single to left center after freshman Lilly Cante left the game with an injury.
Senior Taylor Berens knocked in the first run of the day for the Wildcats with a triple to right field, bringing home sophomore Mia Santos and opening the floodgates. Freshmen Ali Lewis and Italia Abrenica kept the party alive after going double-single to clear the bases and cap off an impressive six-run inning.
After getting out to a seven-to-nothing lead, the Wildcats never looked back as Oldwin shut the door on the Pioneers and secured the win 7-0.
The Wildcats are back in action Saturday with another pair of games at noon and 2 p.m. at the Wildcat Softball Field. The games can be live-streamed online from this link.
Lukas Mann can be reached at [email protected].
