STOCKTON – For the second straight day, the Chico State softball team was stung by a big inning in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Championship Tournament – after giving up six runs in an inning Friday versus Sonoma State, Cal State Dominguez Hills burned the ’Cats not once, but twice on Saturday. After spotting the Toros five third inning runs, the Wildcats rallied with five runs in the bottom of the seventh to force extra innings, only to see Dominguez Hills score four times in the eighth to win 9-5, ending Chico State’s weekend in Stockton and making the ’Cats the first team to be eliminated from the tournament.
The Wildcats fell to 29-17 on the season and will no doubt fall from the No. 3 position in the NCAA West Region rankings. Chico State now has to wait a week to find out their postseason fortunes, and if they will earn a berth in the upcoming NCAA Championships. Cal State Dominguez Hills kept its postseason hopes alive with Saturday’s victory, improving to 28-23 on the year.
Offensive was the name of the game Saturday, as the two teams combined for 14 runs and 29 hits. Chico State pounded out 15 hits on the afternoon; Taylor Hanamaikai went 3-for-5, while Diana Payan, Rachel Failla, Jackie Munoz and Christina Wieck had two hits apiece. Krista Gould led Dominguez Hills’ 14-hit attack, going 4-for-4 and driving in a pair of runs.
The contest actually began as a pitcher’s duel, as Chico State’s Jessica McDermott and Lauren Harper of Dominguez Hills each tossed a pair of scoreless innings. In the third, though, the Toros batted around and plated five runs – after two singles and a Wildcat error loaded the bases, Melissa Pacheco singled home Jessica Amador; Veronica Vazquez was then hit by a McDermott pitch to force another run home. Sam Baker came on in relief, but Gould greeted her with a two-run double, and before the inning was over, an RBI groundout by Cassandra Snodgrass put the Toros up 5-0.
The Wildcats tried to climb back into the contest, but Stephanie Jimenez – who came on in the bottom of the fourth inning in relief of starter Lauren Harper – frustrated Chico State at every turn. The ’Cats stranded runners in scoring position in both the fourth and fifth innings, then in the sixth Failla was thrown out at the plate trying to score on a Wieck single to end the frame.
Chico State was still down 5-0 when the ’Cats finally came alive in the bottom of the seventh inning. Following singles by Hanamaikai and Jessie Minch, Payan hit a tailor-made double play grounder to shortstop, but Emiley McEwen let the ball skip between her legs and into center, allowing Minch to score. Hailey Stockman delivered a base hit to plate Hanamaikai to make it a 5-2 contest; then Baker’s fly ball to right was dropped by Vazquez to load the bases. Failla’s sacrifice fly down the right field line knocked in pinch runner Erin O’Hara to pull the Wildcats to within two, and with two outs, Wieck and Jackie Munoz each came through with RBI singles to tie the game. Chico State actually had a chance to win in regulation, but with Baker at third base, Minch flied out to left, and the game went into extra innings.
If the Toros were shellshocked by letting a five run lead get away, they didn’t show it in the top of the eighth inning, pounding out five hits against Baker in the frame, with a bases-loaded groundout by Jackie Reyes put Dominguez Hills back on top. Destiney Ruiz followed with an RBI single, and Amador knocked in a run with a double to the left-center field gap. Ruiz scored the fourth run of the inning, coming home from third on a throwing error by Stockman, giving the Toros a 9-5 lead. Chico State tried to come back again in the bottom of the eighth, but after Hanamaikai and Payan singled with one out, Stockman grounded into a game-ending double play, and Dominguez Hills escaped with the 9-5 victory.
Despite giving up 11 hits to the Wildcats in five innings of work, Jimenez got credit for the win to improve to 14-10 on the season. Baker lost for the fourth time in her last six appearances to drop to 20-9 overall.
BOX SCORE
Sunday, Sonoma State captured its second straight CCAA Championship Tournament title, as Samantha Lipperd tossed a no-hitter to lead the Seawolves to a 1-0 victory over UC San Diego. The All-Tournament team was announced following Sunday's championship game, with Hailey Stockman and Diana Payan representing Chico State.
