CHICO – A busy week for the Chico State softball team will conclude this Friday and Saturday with one of its biggest challenges of the year. The Wildcats – ranked sixth in the nation by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association – will be is Seaside to take on the No. 19 Monterey Bay Otters, pitting two of the California Collegiate Athletic Association’s (CCAA) top teams in a four-game series that could drastically alter the conference standings and the postseason aspirations of both teams. The set will start Friday with a 1:00 p.m. doubleheader, with an 11:00 a.m. twinbill slated for Saturday.
Chico State heads into the weekend showdown with Monterey Bay 21-6 on the season and sitting in fourth place in the CCAA standings with a 15-5 conference record. The Wildcats, winners of 12 of their last 15 contests, took three of four against San Francisco State Tuesday and Wednesday. Cal State Monterey Bay is 22-6 overall and in second place in the CCAA with a 14-4 conference mark. The Otters had won 14 of 15 games before losing two straight to conference leader Cal State Dominguez Hills in a rain-shortened series last weekend.
The weather forecast for the Wildcats-Otters series is calling for partly cloudy skies in the Monterey area Friday, with a chance of rain on Saturday. Temperatures will be in the mid- to upper-50s both days.
The series features two extremely evenly-matched ballclubs that are both at or near the top of the conference’s team hitting and pitching rankings. Cal State Monterey Bay, averaging 6.8 runs and 8.5 hits a game, is batting a CCAA-best .339 as a unit, with Chico State (6.1 runs, 9.3 hits a contest) right behind with a team batting average of .334. The Otters are fourth in the conference in pitching, boasting a team earned run average of 2.49; the Wildcats are fifth with a 3.01 team ERA.
Several of the CCAA’s top performers will be in the spotlight when the ’Cats and Otters tangle this weekend. No less than seven of the conference’s leading hitters will be in action, including Monterey Bay’s Cori Reinhardt (leading the CCAA with a .506 batting average to go along with three home runs, a nation-topping six triples, and 26 runs batted in), Nina Villanueva (third in the conference at .449, seven homers, 36 RBI) and Jamie Moon (.373, 21 RBI, 12 extra-base hits). The Wildcats will counter with Sam Quadt (second in the CCAA, .466, 26 RBI), Britt Wright (.391), Hailey Stockman (.388, seven home runs, 34 RBI) and Diana Payan (.380, 20 RBI). Bianca Lopez has emerged as Chico State’s hottest hitter, raising her season batting average 71 points to .310 after going 9-for-13 in the San Francisco State series.
In the pitcher’s circle, Sam Baker is 9-3 for Chico State and is among the CCAA leaders in wins, strikeouts (tied for fourth with 80) and earned run average (seventh, 2.25). Jessica McDermott has won seven games for the Wildcats and is also in the CCAA Top 10 in strikeouts (44) and ERA (2.99). Reinhardt, a freshman righthander from Riverside, is Monterey Bay’s top hurler, sporting an 11-2 record with the fourth-best ERA in the conference (1.60). Sophomore righty Kylie Linnane is 8-2 on the year with an impressive 2.40 ERA.
Chico State and Monterey Bay have played it pretty evenly over the years as well, with the Wildcats holding a slim 15-14 edge in the all-time series. The ’Cats and Otters split their four meetings last season at University Softball Field. Monterey Bay has been tough to beat at home in 2012, having won 11 of their 12 games at the Otter Softball Complex; Chico State is 13-4 on the road this season.
Fans can follow the action onlive via Live Stats, available a few minutes prior to each day's doubleheader.
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