A LOOK AT THE WEEK
The Cal State Fullerton softball team (23-27 overall, 8-10 Big West Conference) returns home this week to face Pacific in a three-game series. The teams will meet in a doubleheader on Friday (May 3) at 4 & 6 p.m. and then will play one game on Saturday May 4 at 12 p.m. at Anderson Family Field. The Titans enter the weekend having won seven of their last nine games after defeating UC Riverside and UC Davis last week. The Titans defeated UC Riverside 4-1 on Wednesday April 24 in Riverside, Calif., and UC Davis 4-3 on Sunday April 28.
IN THE POLLS
Neither the Titans nor Tigers are ranked in either the USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll or ESPN.com/USA Softball Coaches Poll.
RPI
The Titans currently rank 60th in the nation in Rating Percentage Index (RPI). RPI measures a team's wins and losses and its strength of schedule. Fullerton has played against four teams currently ranked in the top 10 and against nine teams in the top 25.
BE A FOLLOWER
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I NEED STATS, STAT!
Live stats will be provided for all three games this week. To access live stats for the games, go to www.FullertonTitans.com and go to the softball schedule then click live stats.
CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW?
Cal State Fullerton home softball contests will be broadcast live over the Internet at FullertonTitans.com. To access the links, click on the audio link on the schedule page.
CAN YOU SEE ME NOW? EVEN BETTER!
Cal State Fullerton Athletics now offers live streaming video for home softball contests over the Internet courtesy of the Big West TV. Fans can catch all the exclusive action from the comfort of their home computers. For more information, please visit www.BigWest.org/TV.
FIRST PITCH
Jack Bedell, Academic Senate Chair, will throw out the ceremonial first pitch prior to the 4 p.m. game on Friday May 3rd.
SCOUTING PACIFIC
Pacific (28-22 overall, 12-6 Big West) come into the three-game series versus Cal State Fullerton winning their last five of seven games. The Tigers currently are in third place behind Hawai'i and Long Beach State. Last weekend the Tigers lost two out of three games to Cal State Northridge. Pacific is led by Brian Kolze who is in his 21st season as the head coach. Pacific is 8-9 this season on the road. Center fielder Megan Hom leads the team with a .360 batting average and first team all-conference player Nikki Armagost has three home runs and a team high 38 RBI's. The Tigers only have 17 home runs this season, but have scored 214 runs and 183 RBI's.Pacific is hitting .286 as a team this season and .310 in Big West Conference play. Armagost (12-5, 1.78) leads the Tigers in the circle. The senior has tossed three shutouts and 12 complete games in 114.1 innings of work. Carly Mortensen (4-3, 2.48), Tori Shepard (6-5, 2.88), and Dani Bonnet (6-9, 4.34) all have equally produced for the Pacific pitching staff this season.
SERIES HISTORIES
Cal State Fullerton leads the all-time series against Pacific, 67-33, having won 17 of the last 24 meetings between the two programs dating back to 2005. Last season Pacific swept the series winning 7-2, 9-0, and 10-5 in Stockton, Calif. This will be the last season for the Tigers in the Big West Conference. Pacific has won five of the last six contests. The Titans are 36-15 at Anderson Family Field versus the Tigers. Fullerton was swept by Pacific in back-to-back series in 1998 and 1999.
CONFERENCE CALL
Fullerton has an all-time record of 379-173-1 (.686) against Big West Conference opponents. The Titans are 8-10 this season in the Big West.
NUMBER NINE
As the number nine hitter in the lineup, junior Leesa Harris has recorded a hit in 11 of the last 15 games. During that span she has 15 hits and five RBI's.
PLAYING SPOILER
The Titans have taken down four top 25 ranked opponents this season, which is tied for most in the Big West. This past weekend the Titans defeated No. 15 Hawai'i 11-3 at Anderson Family Field. On Feb. 26th, Fullerton defeated No. 10 11-5 at Easton Stadium in Los Angeles and defeated No. 7 Missouri 5-4 on Feb. 23, 2013 at Anderson Family Field. Fullerton also defeated No. 21 Virginia Tech 7-3 at the Judi Garman Classic on Mar. 16. The last time the Titans took down a top ten team was on March 15, 2009 when they defeated the University of Washington 3-2 at the Judi Garman Classic in Fullerton, Calif.
PACIFIC HITTING
The Titan pitching staff will have its hands full this weekend with the Tigers. Pacific enters the weekend ranked second in the Big West in hits (380) and on-base percentage (.366), third in RBI's (183), runs scored (214), and batting average (.286).
PACIFIC'S HOT HITTER
Megan Hom enters this series as one of the best offensive players in the Big West. The Irvine, Calif., native is batting .360 this season and ranks second in runs scored (36) and hits (58). The senior also leads the conference in sacrifice bunts (14).
PACIFIC IN THE CIRCLE
The Tigers rank third in the conference in ERA (2.73) compared to Fullerton's 3.17 ERA. Pacific has allowed 166 runs (131 earned) this season and opponents are batting .268 against the staff.
ALLOWING THE LONG BALL
Pacific has allowed 41 round trippers this season, which is the most in the Big West. Fullerton has hit 14 of their 23 home runs this season at Anderson Family Field.
SMALL BALL
Pacific leads the Big West in sacrifice bunts with 75 and Fullerton is sixth in the confererence with 34. However, the Titans are second in the conference in sacrifice flies with 14 and the Tigers are tied for seventh with six this season.
PICKED OFF
Fullerton is going to have to be careful on the bases this weekend as Pacific has picked off a conference high seven runners. Catcher Amy Moore leads the Big West with six pickoffs this season. CSF catcher Ariel Tsuchiyama is second in the Big West with three pickoffs.
DONT RUN ON THE CATCHERS
Fullerton and Pacific have both allowed the least amount of stolen bases this season to opposing teams. Both teams have allowed only 26 stolen bases.
PLAY THEM ALL
Only senior Ashley Carter and redshirt sophomore Eliza Crawford have played and started in all 50 contests so far this season.
LABAN MOVING UP ON RECORDS
Senior Katey Laban recorded her second save of the season and fourth in her career moving her up to sixth all-time in career saves for a Cal State Fullerton pitcher.
PITCHING RECOVERY
In 51 games last season the Titans pitching staff finished with a 5.20 ERA. In 2013, the Titans pitching staff holds a 3.17 ERA, which is the best earned run average by a Fullerton softball team since 2009 (2.59).
CRAWFORD ENJOYING BREAKOUT ROLE
After hitting only three home runs and recording 28 RBI's through her first two seasons as a Titan, red-shirt sophomore Eliza Crawford has batted .305 with eight home runs and 26 RBI's. Crawford leads the team in home runs and RBI's. Through 14 Big West games, Crawford is batting .340 with four home runs and 12 RBI's. The Lakewood, Calif. native has also managed ten multiple hit games this season and nine multiple RBI games this season.
GETTIN' ON THE BOARD FIRST
When the Titans score first in a game they are 17-4 compared to 6-23 when the opposing team scores first. In game two last weekend the Titans went up 2-0 after the second inning against UC Davis, but eventually lost 3-2.
WE NEED HITS
The Titans are batting .255 this season and .278 in conference play, but when Cal State Fullerton out-hits the opponent they are 19-2 compared to 4-22 when the opponent out-hits them. Last weekend versus UC Davis, the Titans were out-hit in every game, going 1-2 against the Aggies.
CONTROLLING THE LEAD
The Titans have been perfect so far this season when leading after five innings. Fullerton is 15-0 in games they have led after five innings and a whopping 17-0 after six innings. However, they are 4-18 when trailing after four innings.
CARTER STEALING BASES
Ashley Carter leads the team with 12 stolen bases this season. The Fontana, Calif. native swiped three bases versus UC Santa Barbara. The senior had only stolen 11 bases in her career.
BIG WEST STOLEN BASES
After 18 Big West Conference games, the Cal State Fullerton softball team leads the Big West in stolen bases with 27. The Titans are tied for the second most stolen bases (61) in the Big West for the whole season.
SACRIFICE FLIES
Sophomore Desiree Ybarra leads the NCAA in sacrifice flies with seven and the Titans as a team are second in the Big West with 14.
SHOULDERING THE LOAD
In 41 appearances, 35 starts, as a freshman, Antunez is second in the Big West in appearances (41), one behind Hawai'i's Kaia Parnaby, third in strikeouts (163), and second in innings pitched (178.2). Antunez is holding opponents to a .218 batting average this season, which ranks third in the Big West. Antunez enters the weekend with a record of 16-14 and 2.59 ERA.
TAKE CARE OF THE SOFTBALL
Cal State Fullerton are only 14-12 when they commit no errors in a game and 9-15 when they do commit an error. Fullerton still ranks first in the Big West in fielding percentage (.973) compared to UC Santa Barbara (.967). The Titans rank 19th in the NCAA in fielding percentage.
YBARRA DOES IT ALL
Sophomore Desiree Ybarra was the Titan's ace last season, but this season she has contributed not only in the circle, but at the plate as well. Ybarra in the circle is 6-12 with one save. Ybarra has closed out 21 games for the Titans this season, which is the most in the Big West. Ybarra's bat has been a big addition for the Titans. The primary number three hitter for the Titans has a .254 batting average, three home runs, and 21 RBI's.
WINNER, WINNER, CHICKEN DINNER
11 different Titans have tallied game-winning hits this season, led by three from Jasmine Antunez, Eliza Crawford, and Melissa Sechrest
SOMEONE TURNED UP THE A.C
After blasting a triple to the center field fence in game two versus McNeese State on Feb. 11, 2013, Ashley Carter moved up to fourth on the all-time list in career triples with nine tieing Carey Hess, who played for the Titans from 1987-90.
FORD UPDATES 2013 SEASON: Cal State Fullerton Head Coach Kelly Ford sat down with the sports information staff to discuss the 2013 season thus far. Filmed by department videographer Matt Brown, fans can view the entire video via Youtube.com/CSFAthletics.
IRON WOMEN
Catcher Ariel Tsuchiyama has started all, but two games behind the backstop for the Titans this season, while helping the Titans with nine doubles and has 20 RBI's to go along with her .299 batting average. She missed all of 2012 due to an injury.
SAVES
Cal State Fullerton is tied with Long Beach State and UC Santa Barbara for most saves in the Big West with four. Each Titan pitcher has recorded a save this season, and senior Katey Laban has two.
GETTING ON BASE
The Titans are last in the Big West in on-base percentage (.310) compared to Hawai'i who has an on-base percentage of .379. Pacific enters this weekend ranked second in the conference with a .366 on-base percentage.
DOUBLE TROUBLE
Eliza Crawford, Desiree Ybarra, and Ariel Tsuchiyama have combined for 27 doubles this season. All three players have nine two-base hits.
PITCHER OF THE WEEK
Cal State Fullerton freshman Jasmine Antunez posted a 4-0 record, including her first career no-hitter, to claim the Big West Softball Pitcher of the Week award for the week of April 15-21. Antunez's no-no came in the first game of a doubleheader against UNLV. The hurler notched a 0.58 earned run average and allowed just 11 hits with 20 strikeouts on her stat line.
NO-NO!
Jasmine Antunez tossed her first career no-hitter. The no-no came in the first game of a doubleheader against UNLV (Apr. 20). The hurler walked three and fanned four on 87 pitches in the 3-0 victory. The no-hitter was the first for a CSF pitcher since March 2, 2007 when Candice Baker accomplished the feat in a 1-0 win over Stanford.
RECYCLED NOTES:
NEW ERA
Head Coach Kelly Ford began her first stint as the head coach of Cal State Fullerton softball program on Feb. 7, 2013. Ford recorded her first win in game two versus Southern Miss, 4-2. Ford spent 11 seasons at Mount San Antonio College in Walnut, Calif., recording a 455-102-1 record overall (.812 winning percentage). Prior to her time at Mt. SAC, Ford worked under former coach Michelle Gromacki as an assistant in 2000 and 2001.
NEW LOOK BIG WEST
The Big West Conference Board of Directors announced on Dec. 10, 2010 that Hawai'i will re-join the Big West as of July 2012. The Warriors, women's programs were previously part of the Big West from 1984-96. The Titans and Warriors will face off on April 13-14 at Anderson Family Field.
FORD PREVIEWS 2013: Cal State Fullerton Head Coach Kelly Ford and Associate Head Coach Dee Dee Kingsbury sat down with the sports information staff to discuss the upcoming 2013 campaign. Filmed by department videographer Matt Brown, fans can view the entire video via Youtube.com/CSFAthletics.
A QUICK LOOK AT THE TITANS
Fullerton finished sixth in the Big West race a season ago with a 8-13 mark in conference play to go along with a 20-31 overall record. The Titans return six position starters and three pitchers while welcoming nine newcomers to the fold for the 2013 season. Leading the way for returners is senior outfielder Ashley Carter, an all-conference first-team selection who hit .325 to go along with 55 hits and 27 runs scored. In the circle, sophomore Desiree Ybarra returns after earning all-conference honorable mention accolades a season ago, finishing 13-17 with a 4.66 ERA.
FIVE SIGN WITH CAL STATE FULLERTON FOR 2014
Cal State Fullerton softball Head Coach Kelly Ford announced that high school standouts Sydney Colenzo, Megan Estacio, Olivia Martinez, Delynn Rippy, and Kayla Silverstein have signed National Letters of Intent to continue their academic and athletic careers with the Titans beginning with the 2014 season.
PLAYING JAPAN TOYOTA
The Titans played against the Japan Toyota professional softball team on Wednesday February 20, 2013 at Anderson Family Field, losing 7-1. The Titans and Japan Toyota played seven-inning exhibition contest, as Japan Toyota gets ready for their upcoming season. Team Toyota comes over to the United States annually to play collegiate and professional teams to prepare for the Japan Softball League. Team Toyota features USA Softball Olympians Monica Abbott and Natasha Watley, who have won back-to-back Japan Softball League Championships (2011 & 2012).
HAWAI'I'S FIRST BIG WEST LOSS
The Titans handed the University of Hawai'i their first Big West Loss of the season on April 14. Fullerton run-ruled the Rainbow Wahine 11-3.
PRESEASON POLL
The Cal State Fullerton softball team was picked to finish sixth in the race for the 2013 Big West Conference title according to a vote of the league's head coaches released on Jan. 30, 2013. The Titans received 33 points to finish behind newcomer Hawai'i, which received four first-place votes and 76 points to top defending champion Long Beach State (73 points):
1. Hawai'i, 76
2. Long Beach State, 73
3. Pacific, 58
4. UC Santa Barbara, 52
5. UC Davis, 51
6. Cal State Fullerton, 33
7. Cal Poly, 24
8. UC Riverside, 22
9. Cal State Northridge, 16
TITANS VERSUS RANKED TEAMS
DATE OPPONENT LOCATION RESULT
FEB. 17 No. 7 Oregon Las Vegas, Nev. L, 6-0
FEB. 21 No. 4 Tennessee Palm Springs, Calif. L, 5-0
FEB. 23 No. 7 Missouri Fullerton, Calif. W, 5-4
FEB. 23 No. 7 Missouri Fullerton, Calif. L, 7-0
FEB. 26 No. 10 UCLA Los Angeles, Calif. W, 11-5
MAR. 2 No. 15 Stanford Fullerton, Calif. L, 14-1
MAR. 7 No. 24 Virginia Tech Lakewood, Calif. L, 3-2
MAR. 14 No. 2 Arizona State Fullerton, Calif. L, 9-0
MAR. 16 No. 21 Virginia Tech Fullerton, Calif. W, 7-3
MAR. 17 No. 1 Oklahoma Fullerton, Calif. L, 9-0
APR. 14 No. 15 Hawai'i Fullerton, Calif. W, 11-3
*Ranking when game occurred