Cal State Fullerton sent 10 batters to the plate in the first inning to
set the tone for the offense while senior Jodie Cox and freshman Roxy
Moran combined on a two-hit shutout as the No. 8 Titans swept the three-game
series from Pacific with a 9-0, five-inning victory on Sunday at the Titan
Softball Complex.
The Titans improved to 28-12 overall and 9-0 in conference play, winning
their last nine consecutive games and posting a sweep in each of their
last six Big West Conference series dating back to last year. Fullerton
has started 9-0 in conference play in each of the last three years.
The Tigers fell to 25-18 overall and 3-6 in the Big West.
Cal State Fullerton immediately got on the board in the opening inning,
sending the first six batters to the plate and scoring three runs without
benefit of a hit. Sophomore Heather Saltarelli plated the Titans' first
run, scoring on a wild pitch to make it 1-0.
Senior Amanda Hockett brought home Fullerton's second run when she was
hit by a pitch for the 45th time in her career to make it 2-0. Krista
O'Hanian then followed with a run-scoring fielder's choice to make it
3-0.
The Titans got their first hit when Jody Campbell, the eighth batter to
come to the plate in the inning, smacked a ground-rule double over the
centerfield fence, scoring Hocket and O'Hanian for the 5-0 lead.
Fullerton piled it on in the third, scoring four runs with two outs. An
RBI triple by Saltarelli got things going and she was followed by the
middle of the Titan lineup, which banged out four consecutive hits --
including RBI's from Jodie Cox, Hockett and O'Hanian to increase the lead
to 9-0.
Cox (13-7) went three innings, surrendering a hit and striking out six
on the day and throwing only 38 pitches. Moran pitched the final two innings,
allowing a hit and striking out a pair in relief.
Cathie Hacker (3-3) suffered the loss, allowing nine runs (eight earned)
on eight hits, walking five and striking out one. Jennifer Dacre pitched
the final inning, allowing a hit and walking one.
Cal State Fullerton returns to action next Friday (April 18) when the
Titans open a three-game series with Long Beach State at 3 p.m. The two
teams will finish the series with a doubleheader on Saturday (April 19)
at 1 p.m.
