May 21, 2017
Los Angeles, Calif. - The San José State softball team won it's first Mountain West Conference title and the program's first postseason game, but with a pair of losses on Saturday, 10-2 to UCLA and 1-0 to Cal State Fullerton, the 2017 season comes to an end at the Los Angeles Regional of the 2017 NCAA Divison I Softball Championship.
The Spartans finish the year with a 37-19 record. The 37 victories are the second most in program history and five seniors, Chelsea Jenner, Casey Watt, Colette Riggs, Katelyn Linford and Emily Rogers completed their careers.
UCLA 10, San Jose State 2
The Bruins scored four runs in first two innings and never looked back.
In the top of the first, Spartans starter Colette Riggs walked the leadoff batter and then allowed a bunt single. Brianna Tautalafua then hit a towering drive to straightaway center. Brittany Abacherli climbed the wall and pulled the ball back, saving a three run bomb and recording the first out of the inning. Her throw back into the infield was misplayed by second baseman Cassidy Clark, which allowed an unearned run to score.
In the second, Riggs (10-5) gave up a leadoff double and was lifted in favor of Katelyn Linford. After getting the first out of the inning, UCLA got an RBI single and then a two-run homer for a 4-0 lead.
The Spartans had multiple runners on in the first and second, but couldn't put any runs on the board against the Bruins. Finally in the third, SJSU struck.
Casey Watt doubled to open the inning and moved to third on an illegal pitch from UCLA reliever Selina Ta'amilo. Cassidy Clark (1-for-2, RBI) plated Watt on a sacrifice fly to cut the Bruins lead to 4-1. Two batters later, with two outs, Madison Aurin was hit and Brittany Abacherli (1-for-2, R) singled, but the rally ended with a groundout to the right side.
In the fourth, UCLA got a leadoff walk and on successive outs, moved the runner to third. With two outs Kylee Perez hit a dying liner to left on which Chelsea Jenner made a diving, shoestring catch to end the inning and preserve the 4-1 score.
In the fifth the Bruins got a leadoff walk off Linford followed by a two-run bomb and then a solo shot extended their lead to 7-1.
In the sixth, UCLA got a one-out single followed by a two-run shot which made it 9-1 and a fielding error allowed the 10th and final run.
SJSU loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom of the sixth and scored a run on a wild pitch to make it 10-2.
The loss meant the SJSU would face the winner of the Cal State Fullerton vs. Lehigh game for the right to face UCLA in the Regional Final on Sunday. Cal State Fullerton defeated Lehigh 10-8 which set the stage for the last game of the day.
UCLA 10, San Jose State 2 (May 20, 2017 at Los Angeles, Calif.)
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UCLA................ 130 033 - 10 13 0 (44-13)
San Jose State...... 001 001 - 2 4 3 (37-18)
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Pitchers: UCLA - Garcia; Ta'amilo(2); Grauer(4) and Halstead. San Jose State - Riggs, Colette;
LINFORD, Katelyn(2); GRESENZ, Kacie(6) and Avila, Alyssa; Luna, Alexandra.
Win-Ta'amilo(14-0) Save-Grauer(1) Loss-RIGGS, Colette(10-5) T-2:19 A-0
HR UCLA - Spaulding (16); Tautalafua (15); Jelenicki (14); Garcia (6).
Weather: 83, hotter than yesterday
RIGGS faced 1 batter in the 2nd.
Game: UCLA-SJ
Cal State Fullerton 1, San José State 0
SJSU and the Titans locked in a pitchers duel with the Spartans getting four hits and CSF seven. Each team had chances to score, but the deciding run didn't come until the top of the seventh.
Cal State Fullerton had the first opportunity. In the fourth, they got two runners on with one out. CSF then tried a double steal, but Alyssa Avila gunned the lead runner down at third. Colette Riggs, who pitched 5.1 innings giving up four hits, but no runs, then got a strikeout to end the threat.
In the Spartans fourth, Cassidy Clark (1-for-2) led off with a single and two batters later Madison Aurin (1-for-3) singled. Brittany Abacherli (2-for-2) followed Aurin with a walk to load the bases.
The Spartans had two chances to score, but Chelsea Jenner hit into a fielder's choice, which resulted in a play at the plate, and Alyssa Avila struck out to end the inning.
In the sixth SJSU got two runners on with two outs, but again couldn't come up with the clutch hit to put runs on the board.
It all came down to the seventh.
The Titans got back-to-back singles, off reliever Katelyn Linford (24-8), to open the inning and a sacrifice bunt put the runners at second and third. Linford then got a strikeout for the second out of the frame. The next batter then hit a ball into the gap between third and short, which Emma Entzminger dove and stopped. She threw to first, but was a millisecond late, which allowed the Titans to take a 1-0 lead.
In the Spartans seventh, pinch hitter Kaelin Amrein got on with one out after an error by the CSF shortstop. Emma Entzminger then hit into a fielder's choice and Casey Watt lined out to end the game and the team's season.
Cal State Fullerton 1, San Jose State 0 (May 20, 2017 at Los Angeles, Calif.)
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Cal State Fullerton. 000 000 1 - 1 7 1 (35-22)
San Jose State...... 000 000 0 - 0 4 0 (37-19)
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Pitchers: Cal State Fullerton - Rivera, C; Golden, S(4) and Padilla, K. San Jose State -
Riggs, Colette; LINFORD, Katelyn(6) and Avila, Alyssa.
Win-Golden, S(7-5) Loss-LINFORD, Katelyn(24-8) T-2:04 A-842
Weather: 76, so many bugs
Game: CSF-SJ