CHICO – With the Chico State softball team suddenly scuffling at the plate during their current homestand, the Wildcats were badly in need of a clutch hit to turn their fortunes around. They actually got two in the second game of the ’Cats Tuesday doubleheader – Hailey Stockman’s sixth-inning line-drive homer to left gave Chico State a brief lead, and after seeing Cal State East Bay tie the game in the top of the seventh, Taylor Hanamaikai’s RBI double in the bottom of the seventh gave the Wildcats a 3-2 victory and a split of the twinbill at University Softball Field. Earlier in the day, the visiting Pioneers downed the ’Cats, 5-2.
With the doubleheader split, Chico State is now 10-5 on the season and 7-3 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA). Cal State East Bay is 8-10 overall and 5-9 in conference play.
The first game of the doubleheader was all East Bay – coming into the series hitting just .215 as a team, the Pioneers had little trouble figuring out Sam Baker, pinning five earned runs and seven hits on the Wildcat ace in five-and-two-thirds innings. East Bay scored a run in the top of the second on a Nikki Freiberg RBI double, then went up 2-0 in the third when Emily Montanez singled home Kassandra Winger. A Stockman double was Chico State’s lone hit against Pioneers starter Kelly Lowe through the first five innings; then in the top of the sixth East Bay broke it open on an RBI single by Dani Foster, a run-scoring double by Freiberg and an RBI triple by Jamie Yaller, putting the Pioneers comfortably in front, 5-0. Chico State made the score respectable with two runs in the bottom of the seventh – Hanamaikai singled home Baker and Kelly Head scored on an East Bay error – but it was far too little and far too late, as East Bay cruised to the 5-2 victory. Lowe allowed just one earned run in going the distance to improve to 3-3 on the year; Baker took the loss to fall to 7-2.
BOX SCORE - Game One
Jessica McDermott turned in another great pitching performance for the Wildcats in the second game of the double dip, allowing just one earned run and tying her single-game career high by striking out 10 East Bay batters. But it was the Pioneers who drew first blood, taking a 1-0 lead in the top of the third when Devon Mercurio walked, advanced to second on a passed ball and scored on Mishka Hamor’s double down the left field line. Chico State could muster just two hits against Pioneers starter Heidi McAllister before taking the lead in the bottom of the sixth inning – with one out, Diana Payan doubled to right field, and Stockman followed with her third home run of the year, a line shot that just cleared the left field fence, putting the Wildcats on top, 2-1.
The lead was short lived – down to its final out in the top of the seventh, East Bay knotted up the score when Taylor Neumann singled off Baker to plate Hamor and make it a 2-2 contest. Chico State prevented extra innings by scoring the game-winner in the bottom of the seventh – Christina Wieck was walked to lead off the frame, and following a fly out by Head, pinch runner Jessie Minch advanced to second on an Pioneers error. That set the stage for Hanamaikai, who drove a Cat Schorn pitch into the right field gap, easily plating Minch to give the Wildcats the 3-2 victory. Despite blowing the save, Baker (8-2) picked up the win in relief for the ’Cats, with Schorn taking the loss to fall to 2-1 on the season. Stockman had two of the five Chico State hits in the contest.
BOX SCORE - Game Two
The Wildcats and Pioneers are back in action Wednesday, wrapping up their four-game series with a doubleheader beginning at noon at University Softball Field. Fans who can’t make the twinbill in person can follow the play-by-play on the Internet via LiveStats through the Wildcat Athletics website.
