With the Chico State softball team needing a sweep of Cal State Stanislaus in the final series of the regular season to earn a California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Championship Tournament berth, Jenna Wermes stepped up in a big way – the sophomore catcher from Grass Valley delivered the game-winning hit in not one, but two of the four Wildcat victories over the Warriors to qualify the ’Cats for postseason play for the first time since 2005. Her efforts on the diamond also earned Wermes Wildcat of the Week recognition.
Wermes batted .300 in the Stanislaus series, with a double and four RBI. Defensively, she threw out three out of four Warrior baserunners attempting to steal.
In Friday’s doubleheader opener, Wermes reached base three times – following a pair of walks early in the contest, her single to center in the bottom of the seventh inning drove in Christine Johnson with the winning run as Chico State topped Stanislaus 2-1. In the opener of Saturday’s twinbill, Wermes was again the hero, doubling home Sam Quadt in the bottom of the sixth inning for the Wildcats’ lone run in a 1-0 victory over the Warriors. Wermes went 1-for-3 in the nightcap, delivering a two-run single as Chico State scored seven times in the first inning and cruised to a 9-1 win.
Her four RBI over the weekend gives Wermes a single season career-high 17 ribbies for the year.
As a result of the series sweep, Chico State grabbed the No. 4 seed in the CCAA Championship Tournament and will face Cal State Monterey Bay Friday night in first round action at Arnaiz Stadium in Stockton.
