SANTA CLARA, Calif. – After a strong offensive opening to the 2015 season, Santa Clara softball heads back out on the road to play at the Fresno State Bulldogs Tournament this weekend. The Broncos will play two games each on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. In the opening weekend of the season Santa Clara went 1-5 at the Grand Canyon Kick Off.
"This team has a lot of fight and potential to do big things if we clean up the little mistakes," said Santa Clara head coach Lisa Mize. "This week we want to have good starts to each game. That was something that we noted needed improvement. We also are going to try and avoid the big innings and we want to work on our bunt defense. Last week we battled until the end of every game and want to do that again this weekend."
Santa Clara batted .272 (44-162) with five home runs and eight doubles during the opening weekend. They posted an 8.03 ERA with 12 strikeouts in 37.0 innings. The Broncos were outscored 37-25.
Gianetta France, named the WCC Player of the week, hit .421 (8-19) with a .450 OBP and a 1.263 slugging percentage over the weekend. She swatted five home runs, two each in the first two games of the season, and had 11 RBI. She also added a double and scored six runs. Breezy Bernard hit .400 (8-20) with three doubles and two RBI. Geenamarie Bonilla batted .368 (7-19) with a double and three runs scored to go with two RBI. Casandra Padilla scored four runs with a double and an RBI while hitting .308 (4-13).
Ciara Gonzales threw a team-high 14.2 innings while striking out four. She appeared in five games with three starts and tossed one complete game. She also collected the win in the season-opener. McCall James threw 12.0 innings with four strikeouts in three games and one start. Briana Rios and Micaela Vierra each started one game and appeared in two and three games, respectively.
Fresno State went 4-1 on the opening weekend. They hit .250 (29-116) as a team with two home runs, two triples, and four doubles. They posted a 1.48 ERA with 32 strikeouts and 14 walks in 33.0 innings. The Bulldogs outscored their opponents 27-9.
Michelle Solomon leads the team with a .333 (4-12) average, two home runs, and four RBI. She also leads in slugging percentage (.917) and OBP (.500). She added a double and five runs scored. Brenna Moss also scored five runs while hitting .313 (5-16) with a triple and one RBI. Six other Bulldogs registered at lead one RBI and seven others had at least one hit.
Jill Compton appeared in five games and made four starts while tossing 21.2 innings. She went 3-1 with a 2.26 ERA while striking out 28 and walking 12. Hannah Harris appeared in four games and made one start covering 10.1 innings. She struck out four and walked two while picking up a win and not allowing an earned run.
UC Riverside was 3-2 in the opening week of play. They hit .299 (41-137) as a team with two triples and six doubles. They posted a 1.36 ERA with 35 strikeouts and 19 walks in 36.0 innings. The Highlanders outscored their opponents 18-9.
Haley Harris leads the team in hitting with a .438 (7-16) batting averaged. She scored three runs and drove in three with a triple. Kris DeAnda hit .417 (5-12) with a double and a run scored. Rebecca Faulkner has a team-best four RBI while hitting .357 (5-14). She added one run scored and two doubles.
Chelsea Ponce tossed 23.0 innings with a 3-1 record and a 0.61 ERA. She started four games while throwing two complete games with 25 strikeouts and 14 walks. Faulkner threw 8.1 innings in two games and one start. She struck out four with three walks.
Sacramento State is 2-1 on the season. They are hitting .257 (18-70) with one home run and six doubles. They posted a 1.94 ERA with 11 strikeouts and 15 walks in 18.0 innings. The Hornets were outscored 11-8.
Kayla Papez leads the team with a .375 (3-8) batting averaged. She scored two runs and hit one double. Alexis Martinez is also hitting .375 (3-8) with two doubles and a run scored. Paige Martin leads the team with four RBI and one home run while batting .300 (3-10).
Celina Matthias tossed 6.0 innings in one game out of the bullpen and picked up a win without allowing a run. She fanned four and walked one. Kaitlyn Yerby threw 5.1 innings out of the bullpen and also picked up a win. She struck out four and walked three.
UC Davis started the season 1-4. They are hitting .228 (28-123) with five doubles. The Aggies posted a 8.83 ERA with 13 strikeouts and 29 walks in 29.1 innings. They were outscored 43-19 on the weekend.
Alexis Carney leads the team with a .429 (3-7) batting average. She knocked in four RBI and had one double. Amy Nunez is hitting .389 (7-18) with three runs scored, two doubles, and five RBI. Christa Castello picked up two RBI and scored three runs while hitting .375 (6-16).
Justine Vela leads the team with a 3.00 ERA in 7.0 innings pitched. She appeared in four games and made one start while walking six and striking out two. Andrea Reynolds picked up the lone with for Davis and posed a 5.73 ERA in four games and one start. She walked three and struck out two over 7.1 innings.
