Saturday, April 1
Santa Barbara, CA
12 noon
at
UC Santa Barbara
Photo by: Maddie Harrell
Cal Poly Caps Six-Game Road Trip at UC Santa Barbara April 1-2
3/28/2023 7:34:00 PM | Softball
SAN LUIS OBISPO – The Cal Poly softball program completes a six-game road trip and seeks a second successive Big West series victory when visiting Blue-Green rival UC Santa Barbara for a Saturday, April 1 doubleheader at 12 noon and Sunday, April 2 single matchup at 1 p.m. Cal Poly (10-11, 3-3) enters Saturday's doubleheader tied with UC Santa Barbara (16-11, 3-3), Hawai'i (20-12, 3-3) and UC San Diego (13-17, 3-3) for fourth place in the Big West standings. All four sit just a game out of second place and three behind Big West leader Long Beach State (16-14, 6-0). Cal Poly resumes action after taking two of three series games at UC Riverside (March 25-26). The Gauchos, meanwhile, snapped a three-game slide by winning their final two series games at UC San Diego (March 26-27).
FOLLOW CAL POLY THIS WEEK: Streaming video via ESPN+ and live stats will be available for all three series games at UC Santa Barbara HERE.
CAL POLY VERSUS UC SANTA BARBARA: Cal Poly captured two of three games from UC Santa Barbara at home last season to earn its first series win against the Gauchos since 2017. The Gauchos, however, have won 13 of the last 15 matchups in Santa Barbara with Cal Poly's last road series victory a 2010 sweep. The first and most frequent opponent in Cal Poly's program history, UC Santa Barbara initially faced the Mustangs on April 12, 1975, dropping a 16-9 decision. Cal Poly leads the all-time series, 75-72.
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS: Four of Cal Poly's six Big West matchups have been decided by a single run with the Mustangs holding a 2-2 mark by virtue of 1-0 victories versus CSUN (March 18) and at UC Riverside (March 25). A fifth matchup went to extra innings before sophomore Jessica Clements helped decide a 6-2, eight-inning win at UC Riverside with a grand slam.
LEADOFF BY EXAMPLE: Cal Poly's leadoff batter in all 69 games since the start of her career last spring, sophomore center fielder Jessica Clements enters the program's April 1-2 series at UC Santa Barbara with an 11-game hitting streak while leading Cal Poly and ranked sixth among Big West hitters with a .373 (25-for-67) mark. She also tops Cal Poly with 25 hits, seven multi-hit games, six doubles, 34 total bases, 14 runs, a .507 slugging percentage and a .488 on-base percentage. Having reached base in all but one game this season, Clements has hit safely in 17 of 21 appearances. The leading hitter in Cal Poly's 49-year program history with a .389 (88-for-226) mark, Clements has produced 25 collegiate multi-hit outings.
RAMUNO RISES IN THE CIRCLE: With 77 strikeouts – the third highest total among Big West pitchers and 33 shy of leader Myka Sutherlin (Cal State Fullerton) in three fewer appearances – Cal Poly freshman righthander Sophia Ramuno ranks seventh among conference pitchers in victories (six) and eighth in innings pitched (73.0). Featuring a 2.6-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio, Ramuno is averaging 1.06 strikeouts per inning. She produced a career best 10 strikeouts during a March 25 victory at UC Riverside while enjoying eight-strikeout performances against Nevada (Feb. 12), Fresno State (March 3) and CSUN (March 19).
BARNETT'S SUPERB SOPHOMORE EFFORT: The 50th toughest Division I player to strike out, sophomore catcher Julia Barnett has been fanned just three times in 64 at-bats and 73 plate appearances. Having reached base in 16 of 21 games and hit safely in all but seven matchups this season, Barnett – limited to just four hits in 15 appearances last year – ranks second in Cal Poly's lineup with a .328 (21-for-64) batting average, 21 hits, five multi-hit games, 25 total bases, a .411 on-base percentage and a .391 slugging percentage. With career high three-hit efforts during wins against North Dakota (Feb. 11), Idaho State (Feb. 21) and at UC Riverside (March 25), Barnett belted her first career homer during an opening-day victory versus North Dakota. Defensively, Barnett owns a .984 mark in 127 chances.
CONDON ON VERGE OF HISTORY: Ranked seventh in Big West Conference history with 440 career victories, 19th-year head coach Jenny Condon requires just four more Mustang wins to overtake Lisa Boyer (1989-04) for total victories by a Cal Poly softball head coach. Condon (440) and Boyer (443) have combined for 76.8 (883 of 1,150) percent of the victories in Cal Poly softball history. In Cal Poly Athletics Department history, only current baseball head coach Larry Lee (2003-) has overseen more victories (620) than Boyer or Condon.
CAL POLY SELECTED SIXTH IN BIG WEST PRESEASON POLL: With sophomore outfielder Jessica Clements earning a position on the preseason coaches' team, the Cal Poly softball program was selected for a sixth-place finish in the 2023 Big West Preseason Poll. Cal Poly collected 40 total points in the poll and one first-place vote to finish just one point behind CSUN. Defending Big West champion Cal State Fullerton was selected to retain its title with 80 points and eight of 10 first-place votes. Last year's runner-up, Long Beach State, finished second with 68 points and the remaining first-place vote. Hawai'i (59 points) and UC San Diego (56) finished third and fourth in the poll, respectively.
ETC.: Now in its 49th year of varsity competition, Cal Poly played the program's 2,200th game during a 6-5, eight-inning home win against Idaho State (Feb. 21) … Cal Poly has lost six scheduled games to rain: a Feb. 24 matchup with Iowa State (Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic) and five games at the program's March 10-12 Mustang Classic (two each versus Loyola University Chicago and South Dakota State and one against Saint Mary's).
FOLLOW CAL POLY THIS WEEK: Streaming video via ESPN+ and live stats will be available for all three series games at UC Santa Barbara HERE.
CAL POLY VERSUS UC SANTA BARBARA: Cal Poly captured two of three games from UC Santa Barbara at home last season to earn its first series win against the Gauchos since 2017. The Gauchos, however, have won 13 of the last 15 matchups in Santa Barbara with Cal Poly's last road series victory a 2010 sweep. The first and most frequent opponent in Cal Poly's program history, UC Santa Barbara initially faced the Mustangs on April 12, 1975, dropping a 16-9 decision. Cal Poly leads the all-time series, 75-72.
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS: Four of Cal Poly's six Big West matchups have been decided by a single run with the Mustangs holding a 2-2 mark by virtue of 1-0 victories versus CSUN (March 18) and at UC Riverside (March 25). A fifth matchup went to extra innings before sophomore Jessica Clements helped decide a 6-2, eight-inning win at UC Riverside with a grand slam.
LEADOFF BY EXAMPLE: Cal Poly's leadoff batter in all 69 games since the start of her career last spring, sophomore center fielder Jessica Clements enters the program's April 1-2 series at UC Santa Barbara with an 11-game hitting streak while leading Cal Poly and ranked sixth among Big West hitters with a .373 (25-for-67) mark. She also tops Cal Poly with 25 hits, seven multi-hit games, six doubles, 34 total bases, 14 runs, a .507 slugging percentage and a .488 on-base percentage. Having reached base in all but one game this season, Clements has hit safely in 17 of 21 appearances. The leading hitter in Cal Poly's 49-year program history with a .389 (88-for-226) mark, Clements has produced 25 collegiate multi-hit outings.
RAMUNO RISES IN THE CIRCLE: With 77 strikeouts – the third highest total among Big West pitchers and 33 shy of leader Myka Sutherlin (Cal State Fullerton) in three fewer appearances – Cal Poly freshman righthander Sophia Ramuno ranks seventh among conference pitchers in victories (six) and eighth in innings pitched (73.0). Featuring a 2.6-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio, Ramuno is averaging 1.06 strikeouts per inning. She produced a career best 10 strikeouts during a March 25 victory at UC Riverside while enjoying eight-strikeout performances against Nevada (Feb. 12), Fresno State (March 3) and CSUN (March 19).
BARNETT'S SUPERB SOPHOMORE EFFORT: The 50th toughest Division I player to strike out, sophomore catcher Julia Barnett has been fanned just three times in 64 at-bats and 73 plate appearances. Having reached base in 16 of 21 games and hit safely in all but seven matchups this season, Barnett – limited to just four hits in 15 appearances last year – ranks second in Cal Poly's lineup with a .328 (21-for-64) batting average, 21 hits, five multi-hit games, 25 total bases, a .411 on-base percentage and a .391 slugging percentage. With career high three-hit efforts during wins against North Dakota (Feb. 11), Idaho State (Feb. 21) and at UC Riverside (March 25), Barnett belted her first career homer during an opening-day victory versus North Dakota. Defensively, Barnett owns a .984 mark in 127 chances.
CONDON ON VERGE OF HISTORY: Ranked seventh in Big West Conference history with 440 career victories, 19th-year head coach Jenny Condon requires just four more Mustang wins to overtake Lisa Boyer (1989-04) for total victories by a Cal Poly softball head coach. Condon (440) and Boyer (443) have combined for 76.8 (883 of 1,150) percent of the victories in Cal Poly softball history. In Cal Poly Athletics Department history, only current baseball head coach Larry Lee (2003-) has overseen more victories (620) than Boyer or Condon.
CAL POLY SELECTED SIXTH IN BIG WEST PRESEASON POLL: With sophomore outfielder Jessica Clements earning a position on the preseason coaches' team, the Cal Poly softball program was selected for a sixth-place finish in the 2023 Big West Preseason Poll. Cal Poly collected 40 total points in the poll and one first-place vote to finish just one point behind CSUN. Defending Big West champion Cal State Fullerton was selected to retain its title with 80 points and eight of 10 first-place votes. Last year's runner-up, Long Beach State, finished second with 68 points and the remaining first-place vote. Hawai'i (59 points) and UC San Diego (56) finished third and fourth in the poll, respectively.
ETC.: Now in its 49th year of varsity competition, Cal Poly played the program's 2,200th game during a 6-5, eight-inning home win against Idaho State (Feb. 21) … Cal Poly has lost six scheduled games to rain: a Feb. 24 matchup with Iowa State (Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic) and five games at the program's March 10-12 Mustang Classic (two each versus Loyola University Chicago and South Dakota State and one against Saint Mary's).
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