California State University at Northridge
UC Davis
Matadors Hit the Road for Big West Series at UC Davis
4/1/2015 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Last week, CSUN swept its Big West Conference opening serieswith Cal Poly for the first time since the 2004 season. After a tough, 10-inning loss to No. 10 UCLA earlier in the week, the Matadors took out their frustrations on the Mustangs. CSUN won both ends of a doubleheader by holding the Mustangs to one run and five hits in 14 innings of superb pitching from Zoe Conley and Brianna Elder. In Sunday's finale, Taylor Glover collected three hits and two RBIs in a 7-5 CSUN win.Â
This week, the Matadors meet UC Davis for a three-game series in Davis, Calif. The Aggies are 13-16 overall after posting a 4-1 victory over Montana on Mar. 31. Leah Munden tossed four innings and allowed four hits with four strikeouts while Dana Cruse scattered just one hit over the final three innings to earn the save. For the season, Munden is 8-6 with a 3.53 ERA and 30 strikeouts in 71.1 innings of work while Cruse is 2-4 with a 6.44 ERA and 15 Ks in 29.1 innings. Opponents have batted .324 with 80 extra-base hits in 173 innings in 2015.Â
At the plate, UCD carries a team batting average of .261 with a .359 on-base percentage for the season. Junior infielder Christa Costello leads the club with a .352 batting average and has 18 runs, two doubles and 13 RBIs on the season. Freshman Ashley Lotoszynski is batting .323 with six doubles, three home runs and 14 RBIs on the year. The Aggies own 35 doubles, three triples and seven home runs with 99 RBIs in 175 innings this season.
CSUN won its first conference series against the Aggies for the first time since the 2009 season last year, which was also the last time the Matadors won a series in Davis. The Matadors are 26-14 in the all-time series with UC Davis and 11-6 as the road team in the series. Erin Thorpe is in her first season as the head coach of UC Davis.Â
Next week, the Matadors remain on the road for another Big West Conference series. On Saturday, April 11, CSUN resumes its rivalry with UC Santa Barbara for a doubleheader at Campus Diamond. The next day, the Matadors and Gauchos play a single game with both days beginning at noon.Â
CSUN returns to Matador Diamond for a three-game league series against UC Riverside on April 18-19.
Follow Your Matadors Online
All home games this season will include live stats coverage and selected contests will also feature a free audio broadcast 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.
