Matadors All Set for Reggie Smith Invitational in San Diego

Friday, February 27

San Diego, Calif.

9:00 a.m.

California State University at Northridge

San Diego State

Photo by: Chuck Marvel

Matadors All Set for Reggie Smith Invitational in San Diego

2/26/2026 11:02:00 AM | Softball

SAN DIEGO, Calif. --- The CSUN softball team will travel south this weekend to San Diego for the Reggie Smith Invitational hosted by the University of San Diego. The Matadors will play four games beginning on Friday until the conclusion of the tournament on Sunday. First, CSUN kicks off with a 9:00 a.m. matchup against the San Diego State Aztecs on Friday. Shortly after, the Matadors will then play the Kansas City Roos for a game at 2:00 p.m. that same day.

On Saturday, CSUN will have just one game, a contest against the Washington Huskies with first pitch at 9:00 a.m. Lastly, the tournament will wrap up with CSUN playing the host school, the USD Toreros, Sunday at 2:00 p.m. Only CSUN's matchup with USD will be streamed live on ESPN+.

ABOUT LAST WEEK
CSUN went 2-2 in the annual Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic last weekend. CSUN won the first game of the tournament, beating BYU, 7-2. Maddie Padilla had a pinch-hit three-run home run to put the game out of reach for the Cougars in the seventh. Isabella Hiner had two RBIs, and Makenzi Padilla and Amber Rivas knocked in runs as well in the victory.

After dropping two in a row to Seattle University and Utah, CSUN finished strong with a win over Oregon State, 4-3. Hiner led the way with two RBIs, while Madison Okano and Amber Rivas each drove in runs as well. Malia Williams earned the win by going five innings, striking out four while only allowing three runs. Kaitlyn Tso earned her second save of the season.

HINER IS OFF TO A ROARING START
Isabella Hiner is off to a fast start in her collegiate career. The freshman is currently second in the Big West in batting average with a .438 clip. She has two multi RBI games in both wins in the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic. She has only struck out twice in 13 at-bats and she has hit safely in the last three games in a row. On defense, she has been perfect, with 10 putouts in 10 chances.

OKANO ALREADY PROVING TO LEAD WITH HER BAT
Madison Okano is a junior transfer from Arizona State. She had an impressive weekend last time out at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic. During the tournament, she batted .500, had a game with multiple home runs including a bomb on the first pitch of the game versus Seattle U on February 20, and another multi-hit game versus Oregon State the following day. She has totaled six RBIs on the season and three doubles to boot. Okano is emerging as a star from the get-go.

TSO MIGHT BE THE ANCHOR IN THE CIRCLE
Freshman Kaitlyn Tso is showing why her number might be called the most by the Matadors' pitching coaches this season. Tso currently has appeared in nine games, started in four, and thrown two complete games with two saves. She struck out a season high five batters against Saint Mary's on February 13, and she's struck out 17 batters total on the season. Have we mentioned that she's only a freshman?

ABOUT SAN DIEGO STATE
SDSU is currently 10-5 heading into this weekend. The Aztecs have a stellar rotation with the top five pitchers owning a sub 3.70 ERA. Faith Jordan and Matti Kwarta are their best pitchers. Jordan is currently 3-1 with a 3.28 ERA and 17 strikeouts while Kwarta is 4-0 with a 3.54 ERA and 15 strikeouts.

Offensively, Jade Ignacio leads the team in hitting at a .453 clip with 24 hits and 17 RBIs. She has played in all 15 games.

Series History: CSUN is currently 38-23-1 all time. The Aztecs currently hold a three game winning streak. The last time CSUN beat SDSU was in February of 2022 where the Matadors won 6-4.

ABOUT KANSAS CITY
The Roos enter the tournament with a 6-7 record and 5-4 in tournament play so far in 2026. They bat .251 as a team and have driven in 43 runs on the season. On the defensive end, opponents have hit .285 against them so far this campaign.

Offensively, they are led by Ella Husak who is batting .368 with 14 hits and seven RBIs

Series History: This is the very first matchup between these two schools.

ABOUT WASHINGTON
Washington enters the Reggie Smith Invitational with a 10-6 record but the Huskies have faced some pretty formidable foes. UW has played No. 22 South Carolina, No. 9 Nebraska twice, No. 4 Oklahoma and No. 1 Texas twice.

As a team, UW is batting .286, with a .917 OPS. The team has 117 hits with 24 home runs while four players are batting over .300 on the season. The Huskies' best player is Alexis DeBoer. She has a .381 average with seven home runs and 10 RBIs.

Series History: UW is 10-6 all time against CSUN. The Huskies are currently riding a five game winning streak.

ABOUT SAN DIEGO
USD IS 7-8 entering their own home tournament this weekend. The Toreros are 2-2 against Big West opponents this season, with two wins over Cal Poly and losses to UC Davis and UC Santa Barbara.

USD is batting .260 as a team. The Toreros have 44 RBIs on the year, but only four home runs total. They have four players batting at least .300 and three players with over 21 total bases.

In the circle, the Toreros are led by Kaitlyn Bartlow who sports a 2-1 record with a 2.15 ERA. She has one complete game with only 10 walks allowed total.

Series History: CSUN is tied with USD 8-8 all-time. The Matadors are currently on a three-game winning streak dating back to 2023.