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Titans
Split Softball Twinbill With No. 1 UCLA Feb. 27, 2002 – Westwood, Calif. Box Score – Game #1 | Box Score – Game #2 The No. 17 Cal State Fullerton softball team battled the top-ranked team in the nation for just over five hours of softball and emerged with a split of an afternoon doubleheader against No. 1 UCLA, defeated the Bruins 3-1 in the opener and falling 5-2 in the night cap at Easton Stadium in front of 218 fans on Wednesday afternoon. The Titans remain at the .500 mark for the season at 9-9 while the Bruins are now 18-2 overall on the season. The victory for Cal State Fullerton was the first in the last six meetings with UCLA dating back to a 5-1 win over the Bruins in the 1996 NCAA Regionals at Cal State Fullerton. In game one, a pair of seniors knocked RBI hits in the sixth inning and helped the Titans come from behind to defeat the Bruins, 3-1. Cal State Fullerton junior Gina Oaks and UCLA starter Keira Goerl were locked in a pitchers duel for the entire contest to set the stage for an exciting afternoon of softball. Oaks (5-2) went the distance, allowing just one run on four hits, walking three and striking out four Bruins. Goerl (9-1) was handed her first loss of the season after allowing three runs (all unearned) on four hits with two walks and seven strikeouts. Both teams were scoreless through four innings until UCLA drew first blood in the fifth on an RBI triple by shortstop Natasha Watley for a 1-0 lead. However, the Titans came right back in the sixth with three runs of their own, as first baseman Monica Lucatero had an RBI single to centerfield with two out to score Jodie Cox and outfielder Yasmin Mossadeghi followed with a two-run single down the rightfield line to score Heather Saltarelli and Jennifer Holt for the 3-1 advantage. That was all Oaks would need as she set the Bruins down in order over the next two innings to secure the victory. Eight different players accounted for the eight hits in the game while both pitchers threw the exact same number of pitches (87). In game two, UCLA pitcher Amanda Freed held the Titans hitless for 6 2/3 innings and the Bruin bats finally awoke in a 5-2 victory. With Freed just one out away from a no-hitter, Lucatero reached on an error for the Titans to set the table for Mossadeghi, who proceeded to smash an 0-2 offering from Freed deep over the scoreboard in left field to break up the no-no and erase the shutout. Freed (8-1) went the distance, striking out 12 Titan batters in the game. Junior Jodie Cox was the loser for the Titans, allowing five runs on seven hits, walking two and striking out five. Senior Christy Robitaille pitched superbly in relief, getting the Titans out of a bases loaded jam in the fourth and not surrendering a hit in 2.1 innings. Four different Bruins had RBI’s on the afternoon while senior catcher Stacey Nuveman was 2-for-3 at the plate to lead all hitters. For Mossadeghi, it was her third home run of the season and the first since hitting a pair against Florida Interational at the Campbell/Cartier Classic Tournament two weeks ago to help the Titans to the 4-3 victory over the Golden Panthers. Cal State Fullerton returns to action this weekend as the Titans host the 10-team Worth Invitational at the Titan Softball Complex from March 1-3. It will be the first home game for the Titans since the end of January after spending the entire month of February playing at tournaments on the road. ####
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