Oregon
Cal Poly Halves Sunday Twinbill to Cap Mustang Classic
3/27/2011 12:00:00 AM | Softball
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. – Sophomore righthander Rebecca Patton struck out a career-high 11 batters on Sunday morning as the Cal Poly softball team opened the final day of play at the program's Mustang Classic tournament with a 6-2 triumph versus Fairfield. The Mustangs, however, failed to sustain the momentum and suffered a 3-0 defeat versus UNLV during the second leg of the twinbill at Bob Janssen Field.
Versus Fairfield (8-11), the Mustangs – playing as the visiting side – struck immediately as junior center fielder Nora Sobczak's leadoff single was followed by freshman shortstop Kim Westlund's triple into the left field gap. Westlund then scored on an errant Fairfield throw to give the Mustangs a 2-0 advantage.
The Mustangs doubled their lead during the second with Westlund lashing a one-out single to score Sobczak. Junior right fielder Nicole Lund then followed with Cal Poly's third-successive base hit to right field to score Westlund.
The Stags pulled a run back during the bottom half of the third through a one-out, bases-loaded single by designated player Rebecca Trott. However, Patton – who struck out the Fairfield side during the first and fourth – allowed just two baserunners into scoring position between the second and sixth innings. That instance came during the sixth, when Stags left fielder Tiffany Lawson produced a run-scoring triple to halve Cal Poly's lead at 4-2.
Cal Poly, however, finalized the scoreline during the seventh with freshman pinch runner Cami Brown scoring on a wild pitch by Fairfield reliever Rebecca Trott before freshman first baseman Mariah Cochiolo doubled to right field to plate freshman Whitley Gerhart.
Patton (above), who tossed 68 percent of her 118 pitches for strikes, retired 11 of the final 13 Fairfield batters she faced and issued just one walk.
Sobczak and Westlund each finished with three hits for the Mustangs versus Fairfield.
During Sunday's second game versus UNLV (16-12), Patton struck out three hitters during three and two-thirds innings of relief work, but the Mustangs enjoyed just three baserunners and failed to produce a hit versus UNLV starting righthander Amanda Oliveto (13-5).
The Rebels notched the only run they required during the third as second baseman Ashli Holland doubled home right fielder Stefany Valentino. The Rebels notched two additional runs during the sixth versus Patton through shortstop Taylor Aleman's two-run homer to left field.
Cal Poly's sole scoring opportunity versus Oliveto came during the seventh. Lund reached to lead off the inning following an error from Aleman at shortstop before stealing second base. A groundout by senior catcher Stephanie Correia sent Lund to third, but after Oliveto hit freshman left fielder Jillian Andersen with a pitch to place Mustangs at the corner bases, sophomore third baseman Shea Williams struck out to end the game.
The complete results from the 2011 Mustang Classic are below.
Selected to capture its fifth Big West title during a five-season span, Cal Poly (4-22) kickstarts conference play with a three-game series at UC Riverside from April 2-3. The series opens with a 12 noon doubleheader on Saturday.
2011 Mustang Classic
Presented by The Days Inn-San Luis Obispo
Bob Janssen Field (San Luis Obispo, Calif.)
Friday, March 25
UNLV 6, Fairfield 2
No. 15 Oregon 11, UNLV 3, five innings
No. 15 Oregon 8, Cal Poly 1
Fairfield 3, Cal Poly 1
Saturday, March 26
No. 15 Oregon 3, Fairfield 1
No. 15 Oregon 8, UNLV 4 (five innings, rain)
Sunday, March 27
Cal Poly 6, Fairfield 2
UNLV 3, Cal Poly 0
