California State University at Northridge
UCLA
Matadors Host No. 10 UCLA, Open Big West Play vs. Cal Poly
3/25/2015 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Last week, CSUN went 4-1 at the Louisville Slugger Invitational in Stockton, Calif. on the campus of the University of the Pacific. CSUN knocked off the Connecticut Huskies and the host Pacific Tigers twice over the weekend as the Matadors batted .365 as a team with nine doubles, three triples and seven home runs. Freshman Savannah Horvath recorded three home runs and eight RBIs while Taylor Glover and Kaitlin Toerner each batted over .500 over the five games.
This week, CSUN hosts a pair of talented squads at Matador Diamond for four important games. UCLA is ranked No. 10 in both major national polls and is 29-6 overall on the season. As a team, the Bruins are batting .362 as a team with 70 doubles, nine triples and 32 home runs. Allexis Bennett leads UCLA with a .525 batting average, having collected 52 hits in 99 at bats this year. Delaney Spaulding is batting .408 with 14 doubles, two triples, six home runs and team-high 37 RBIs. In the circle, Ally Carda is 15-3 with a 1.54 ERA and a .143 opponent batting average in 109.1 innings of work. UCLA leads the all-time series 40-10 with the Matadors, though the last time the two teams met at Matador Diamond, CSUN walked off with a 3-2 victory on a two-run home run from Tanna Bindi.
Following the game with UCLA, CSUN opens its 2015 Big West campaign with a three-game series against the Cal Poly Mustangs. Cal Poly is 17-17 overall after splitting a doubleheader at Bakersfield on Mar. 24. The Mustangs feature one of the Big West's top pitchers in sophomore Sierra Hyland. The right hander is 12-10 on the year with a 1.77 ERA and 153 strikeouts in 150.1 innings of work. Opponents are batting just .183 off Hyland this season with 30 extra-base hits and 62 walks.
At the plate Hyland is a dual-threat, sporting a .282 average with seven doubles, a home run and 14 RBIs. Courtney Tyler leads the Mustangs with a .359 average, 14 runs, 33 hits and 16 walks on the season. Stephanie Heyward is second on the team with a .322 average and is tied for the team lead with eight doubles. As a squad, Cal Poly is batting .258 with 44 doubles, two triples and 10 home runs. CSUN owns a 72-45-1 record against Cal Poly in the all-time series, although the Mustangs took two out of three last year in San Luis Obispo, Calif.
Following the series with the Mustangs, CSUN hits the road for its next two Big West series for contests at UC Davis and UC Santa Barbara. First up will be three games in Davis against the Aggies from April 3-4 and from there, three games in Santa Barbara from April 11-12.
Follow Your Matadors Online
All home games this season will include live stats coverage on GoMatadors.com. For road games, related links to the game, including for any live stats, audio and video, will be posted before the game on the softball schedule page of GoMatadors.com. Fans are also encouraged to check the CSUN Athletics Department's official Twitter feed (@GoMatadors) for updates of games in progress and news and notes throughout the week.
Take Your Seat in the Front Row
Fans can now follow all of the action for CSUN's 19 varsity sports right from their phone or tablet! CSUN Front Row, the official mobile app of Matador Athletics, is available for free for iOS and Android devices. Fans can also access live stats coverage of a majority of CSUN home events, as well as audio and video links when available. For more information, search for CSUN Front Row on the App Store or Google Play or visit GoMatadors.com/frontrow.
