FULLERTON, Calif. – Fresh off a 2-1 rain-shortened weekend, Cal State Fullerton will play host to a midweek rematch against Michigan State on Tuesday.
The Titans hosted the Judi Garman Classic this past weekend and while every team was hoping the rain in the forecast wouldn't come down, Mother Nature had the final say. Going off the original schedule, there was a total of eight games cancelled with six being cancelled due to rain on Friday and two more on Saturday due to a set of lights shorting out at field two.
Two of those eight games were Fullerton games, as the Titans sat through a near two-hour rain delay before their game against Iowa was cancelled and of course, the scheduled game to follow against Stanford was cancelled as well.
In the three games they did play, the Titans were shutout in a 10-0 five-inning loss to No. 2/2 Florida, but bounced back in a big way for their next two contests. Against Fresno State on Saturday, Fullerton put up a nine-spot in their half of third inning and it propelled them to an 11-3 five-inning victory over the Bulldogs. In Sunday's game, the Titans and Spartans provided a thrilling tournament finale with CSF coming out on top thanks to a two-out two-RBI walkoff double from Emily Randall.
For the season, Cal State Fullerton now sits at 8-9 and Michigan State at 9-8.
The Titans currently sport a .275 team batting average to go along with a .373 on base percentage and a .359 slugging percentage. In the circle, they rep a 4.64 ERA and have allowed opponents to hit .319 to start the season.
Individually, Fullerton has three regulars hitting above .300 on the year. Brooke Clemetson and Ari Williams are tied for the top spot with a .348 mark as both are 16-46 on the season. Deshea Hill is right behind them hitting .347 through the first 17 games. At the top of the lineup, Clemetson has done her job beautifully sporting a a team-high .483 on base percentage and also leading the team in runs (17), walks (12), and stolen bases (15). The power has yet to really come through full force, but there are three Titans with a slugging percentage over .400 led by a .429 mark courtesy of Julia Valenzuela. Zoe Richard's .422 goes for second and Williams sits in third at .413. Richard and Williams are tied for the team-lead with 10 RBI each.
The Fullerton pitching staff has had their fair share of struggles early in the season, but there has been a pair of bright spots. Freshman Taylor Dockins has already earned her first career Big West Pitcher of the Week award the week she threw a no-hitter against San Diego. She currently leads the staff with a 5-2 record and a 2.75 ERA in 43.1 innings of work. The other main bright spot has been senior Kenzie Grimes, who has been fantastic coming out of the pen for the Titans. She currently leads the Big West Conference with two saves and tied for fourth in games finished. Her 3.71 ERA is good for second on the team.
On the other side, Michigan State is hitting .259 as a team, slugging .363, and have a .350 on-base percentage. Their pitching has been stellar throughout the season sporting a team ERA of 1.84 in 114.1 innings of work. Their staff has struck out 106 batters while walking 48 and allowing a .242 opponent batting average.
Individually, the Spartan offense is led by Lea Foerster, who is hitting .382 on the year. She also leads in SLG% (.655), runs (9), hits (21), doubles (6), home runs (3), and ranks second in RBI (9). Kaitlyn Eveland's .379 average is just behind Foerster for second on the team and Catie Ladd's .359 is good for third.
In the circle, the Spartans have only had three different arms throw for them this year. Kristina Zalewski has the best numbers of those three with a 1.14 ERA and a .210 BAA.Bridgette Rainey has the most work in the circle with 47.2 innings pitched. She also leads the team with 55 strikeouts and sports a 2.06 ERA.
ALL-TIME SERIES
First Year Played/Last Year Played: 2004/2018
Overall Record: 6-1
Current Streak: Won 6
Home Record: 3-1
Road Record: 0-0
Neutral Record: 3-0
Longest Winning Streak: 6 games (3/11/04 to pres.)
Longest Losing Streak: 1 game (3/7/04)
Most Runs Scored in a Game (CSF): 14 runs (2/22/08)
Most Runs Scored in a Game (MSU): 10 runs (2x, last 3/9/12)
Largest Margin of Victory: 4 runs, 2x, last 11-7 (3/4/12)
Largest Margin of Defeat: 2 runs, 5-7 (3/7/04)
First pitch between the Titans and Spartans is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. PT at Anderson Family Field.
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Fans can purchase tickets for various Cal State Fullerton athletic events by visiting FullertonTitans.com/Tickets. The Athletic Ticket Office can also be contacted by phone at 657-278-2783 or by email at athletictixs@fullerton.edu. The Ticket Office is located at the Titan House off of Gymnasium Drive at the eastern end of the Intramural Fields and is open from 10 am – 4 pm PT, Monday – Friday.
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Fans can keep up with the latest in Titan Athletics by following us on Facebook (Facebook/FullertonTitans), Twitter (@FullertonTitans) Instagram (FullertonTitans) and Snapchat (FullertonTitans). In addition, the softball team has established its own Twitter (@CSUFSoftball), Facebook (Cal State Fullerton Titan Softball) and Instagram accounts (@CSUFSoftball).