CHICO – Saturday started out disappointingly for the Chico State softball team, losing to UC San Diego 3-1 in 11 innings in the NCAA West Regional winner’s bracket game, but the day ended on a high note as the Wildcats staved off elimination with a 3-2 victory over Central Washington at University Softball Field. With the win, the ’Cats are still in the hunt for the tournament crown and now earn a return match against UC San Diego Sunday…Chico State must defeat the Tritons twice to advance to the NCAA West Super Regional, while top-seeded UC San Diego needs just one victory to move on in postseason play.

The Wildcats now stand at 31-18 on the season thanks to the Saturday split, and are scheduled to face UC San Diego Sunday at 10 a.m., weather permitting. You can follow the action on Live Stats via the Wildcat Athletics website, available about 10 minutes before the scheduled start time.

Saturday’s Wildcats-Tritons matchup was a low-scoring duel between two of the top pitchers in the California Collegiate Athletic Association, Sam Baker of Chico State and UC San Diego’s Camille Gaito. The Tritons jumped out in front 1-0 when Kris Lesovsky led off the game with a double and later scored from third on an illegal pitch call against Baker. Chico State had a chance to tie the game in the bottom of the fourth inning, but after giving up a leadoff double to Hailey Stockman, Gaito retired the next three hitters to wiggle out of the jam unscatched.

UC San Diego was still nursing its 1-0 lead when the Wildcats pulled even in the bottom of the sixth – Sam Quadt led off the inning with a triple and would score on Diana Payan’s single up the middle. Neither team could plate a run in the seventh, sending the contest into extra innings.

Baker and Gaito kept matching each other zero for zero for the next three innings, though Chico State just missed winning the game in the bottom of the 10th – with two out and Jessie Minch on second, UC San Diego left fielder Taylor Sepulveda made a shoestring grab of a sinking liner off the bat of Payan, ending the inning. In the top of the 11th, the Tritons finally broke through on a two-out, two-run single by Jennifer De Fazio to make the score 3-1. Gaito disposed of the ’Cats in order in the bottom of the 11th to secure the UC San Diego win and move the Tritons into Sunday’s championship round.

Gaito (28-4) struck out seven in her 11-inning complete game effort to help UC San Diego improve to 38-13 on the season. Baker also went the distance for Chico State, but saw her record fall to 21-10 overall. The Wildcats had seven hits in the contest, with Quadt and Stockman collecting two safeties apiece.

BOX SCORE vs. UC San Diego

The loss meant Chico State had to play another game Saturday, and would need to win to stay alive in the NCAA West Regional. The Wildcats’ opponent was No. 8 seed Central Washington, who earlier in the afternoon ended Western Washington’s season with a convincing 8-4 victory over the fifth-seeded Vikings.

Chico State drew first blood, taking a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning on an RBI single by Christina Wieck. The Wildcats went up 2-0 with another run in the third, as Taylor Hanamaikai walked and eventually scored from third on an illegal pitch. Central Washington would come back to tie the game in the top of the fourth inning thanks to run-scoring singles by Liz Jusko and Carrina Wagner. Chico State head coach Angel Shamblin brought in Baker to replace starting pitcher Jessica McDermott, and it turned out to be a shrewd move, as Baker retired 11 of the 12 Central Washington batters she faced.

The Wildcats plated what turned out to be the winning run in the bottom of the sixth inning – Jackie Munoz’s bloop single to center knocked in pinch-runner Erin O’Hara, giving Chico State a 3-2 lead. Central Washington put the potential tying run aboard with one out in the top of the seventh, but Baker struck out Molly Coppinger and got Bre Thomas to fly out to left to end it, securing the win for Chico State and keeping the 2011 season alive for at least another day. Baker got credit for the victory to raise her record to 22-10, tying former Wildcat great Kathy Arendsen for the most single-season victories in Chico State history.

BOX SCORE vs. Central Washington