April 30, 2008
NORTHRIDGE, Calif. -
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Hitting the road one final time this season, the Cal State Northridge softball team (18-23, 7-8 BWC) ventures to the Inland Empire of California to face UC Riverside in a three-game Big West series. The Matadors still possess hopes of finishing the season over .500, but will need to take their final six games of the season to do so. Last year, Northridge swept the series with the Highlanders.
In action last week, Northridge dropped two of three games against Cal State Fullerton. After winning game one, 4-0, the Matadors appeared poised to win the pivotal series against the Titans. However, CSUN would drop a closely contested game two, 4-3, before dropping game three on Sunday, 7-0.
Junior Amanda Peek continues to pace the Matadors at the plate, leading the team in batting average (.400), hits (42), runs scored (24), RBIs (24), home runs (6) and total bases (71). With 33 walks on the season, Peek currently owns a .543 on-base percentage, tops in the Big West Conference and 13th in NCAA Division I.
Another junior, Micah Putnam, is the other Matador hitting over .300 for the season, checking in at .309 entering the series against UC Riverside. In her third season with head coach Barbara Jordan, Putnam has established new career highs in runs scored (24), hits (34), doubles (7), home runs (4) and total bases (53). She also owns a .978 fielding percentage, leading the team with 70 assists in addition to 105 putouts.
Since the start of Big West play, sophomore Lauren Olivas has been the Matadors' best hitter. The outfielder is hitting .333 in 14 conference games to lead the team. Her 10 hits in league play are tied for the second most on the team and she has also scored a pair of runs. Overall, Olivas is hitting .228 for the season and she leads the team with a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage (37 PO, 2 A).
Another second-year player, sophomore Amanda Pitzenberger, continues to play a dual role for the Matadors this season, splitting time at third base and in the pitching circle. This season, Pitzenberger owns a team-best 3.02 ERA in 65 innings of work. She has walked only nine batters, which is the fewest among all qualifying pitchers in the Big West Conference. In the series against Cal St. Fullerton, Pitzenberger picked up her second save of the season in Northridge's 4-0 victory. The two saves are the most on the team and are tied for first in the Big West Conference. Overall, she stands at 3-6 with 24 strikeouts.
For their final roadtrip of the season, the Matadors head to UC Riverside, which enters the weekend at 18-32 overall and 4-11 in Big West action. While the 4-11 mark does not appear to sterling, it represents a dramatic improvement from last season, when UC Riverside finished conference play 0-18. Connie Miner is in her fifth season as head coach of the Highlanders, sporting an 84-189 record in her 4+ seasons.
On offense, the Highlanders feature one of the top hitters in the conference, Marissa Alvidrez, who enters the weekend hitting a league-best .435 for the season. She also has 10 home runs and 35 RBIs, plus 11 doubles, raising her slugging percentage to a conference-best .732. Finally, her 60 hits is the most in the Big West Conference and her 101 total bases is tied for first in the league. She is also a pitcher for Riverside, sporting a 4-7 record with a 4.06 ERA in 21 appearances this season.
Following Alvidrez is Kristie Martinez, who is hitting .290 on the season with four home runs and 15 RBIs. Veronica Yee leads the team with 29 runs scored and also has a team-high 13 stolen bases. As a team. UC Riverside is hitting .244 for the season and .225 in Big West play.
In the circle, Christina Songer leads the team with a 9-8 record and a 3.30 ERA. She has tossed a team-high 118.2 innings of work this season, striking out 83 while allowing opponents to hit .273. After Songer and Alvidrez, Stephanie Marshall is 2-12 in 15 starts this season, posting a 4.33 ERA and 12 strikeouts in 53.1 innings of work.
On defense, Riverside owns a .954 fielding percentage, which ranks eighth in the Big West Conference. As a team, the Highlanders have committed 67 errors in the field, the third-most in the league. Kristie Matinez leads the team with 17 miscues while Veronica Yee sports a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage this season.
Following the series against UC Riverside, the Matadors will play their regular-season finale at Matador Diamond when they host UC Davis in a three-game series. The Aggies, who are in their first year as a member of the Big West Conference, and Northridge will play a three-game series starting with a doubleheader on Friday, May 11.
The following day, Northridge will honor its three seniors, Jackie Duree, Mercedes Lovato and Samantha Schroeder as part of Senior Day Festivites before the Aggies and Matadors tangle one final time. Both days are slated to start at noon at Matador Diamond.
