The Cal State Fullerton softball team will host the Easton Tournament this weekend. The Titans will play four games against the universities of Alabama, Oklahoma, Arkansas and New Mexico.
(Patrick Do/Daily Titan Stock Photo)
The Cal State Fullerton softball team hopes to continue its impressive play in this weekend’s Easton Tournament at Anderson Family Field.
The Titans (20-8) will look to improve on their seven-game winning streak following their back-to-back shutouts over Ivy League squads Yale and Princeton. Fullerton pitchers Christina Washington and Cerissa Rivera each picked up a win on Tuesday, going a combined total of nine innings pitched with no runs allowed.
As a team, Fullerton enters the tournament with a .304 batting average and an on-base percentage of .383. The pitching rotation has been solid thus far, recording a total of 140 strikeouts while owning an ERA of 2.65.
In terms of driving in runs, junior catcher Alexis Gonzalez and senior outfielder Sarah Moore have been the Titans’ best options, notching RBI totals of 17 and 16, respectively.
The Easton Tournament will feature highly competitive games against nationally ranked opponents, No. 6 Alabama (22-4) and No. 13 Oklahoma (17-5). The Titans will also play Arkansas (11-13) and New Mexico (13-8).
Vs. Alabama
To kick off the four-day tournament, CSUF will face the Alabama Crimson Tide on Thursday night. Unlike the Titans, Alabama is coming off a tough 2-1 road series loss to the No. 4 Louisiana State University Tigers this past weekend.
Alabama sophomore infielder Peyton Grantham leads the Crimson Tide in home runs and RBIs with five and 30, respectively. Senior outfielder Haylie McCleney is also contributing offensively, posting a formidable .472 BA. On the pitching side, junior Sydney Littlejohn continues to dominate this season as she currently boasts a 9-2 record with a 1.71 ERA.
Vs. Oklahoma
On Friday night, Titans take on a hot University of Oklahoma Sooners team. Riding a season-high nine-game winning streak, the Sooners have yet to drop a game in the month of March.
In their latest outing, the Sooners thrashed the University of Maryland in a two-game series, taking both contests by a combined score of 22-2 over the Terrapins. Over the course of their winning streak, Oklahoma has overwhelmed its opponents 72-15 in total runs scored.
Vs. Arkansas
The Titans will square off Saturday night against the Arkansas Razorbacks, who were swept over the weekend by the No. 16 Tennessee Volunteers in a three-game series in Knoxville.
Freshman infielder Ashley Diaz leads the Razorbacks starters in a handful of offensive categories. Along with recording 31 hits and 29 RBIs this season, Diaz has also homered a total of nine times.
Vs. New Mexico
Finally, the Titans will conclude the tournament Sunday when they look to knock off the New Mexico Lobos. In the batter’s box for the Lobos, senior outfielder Mariah Rimmer leads the team with 31 hits and is batting .431 in the 2016 season.
The Lobos are fresh off a successful road series in which they swept the UTEP Miners in a doubleheader with 8-2 in the first game and a comeback 7-6 victory in game two.
The first game of the tournament against Alabama will be Thursday at 5:30 p.m. at Anderson Family Field.