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May 7, 2005
- SDSU Prepares For Rams The San Diego State softball team (24-28, 2-16 MWC) plays host to Mountain West Conference Colorado State University (29-18, 8-6 MWC) in the final conference series of the year. Senior day against the Rams will be televised nationally by College Sports Television, the first time any MWC softball team has been broadcast on national television.
Aztecs Vs. CSU SDSU and Colorado State have faced each other 53 times, with the Aztecs holding a slim 28-25 edge in the all-time series. The Rams took two from the Aztecs in Fort Collins, winning 2-0 and 6-2. Head coach Kathy Van Wyk is 21-12 against UNLV, while CSU coach Mary Yori is 6-12 against the Aztecs.
The Rams are led at the plate by Jessica Strickland (.396, 19 2B, 4 HR, 35 RBI) and Brittany Huerta (.374, 7 2B, 2 HR, 17 RBI). Top pitchers for CSU are the dual-threat Strickland (11-6, 1.89 ERA, 79 K), and Genevieve Kelly (14-8, 2.52 ERA, 105 K).
Aztecs Split With Lobos San Diego State softball split a pair of games with conference rival New Mexico, ending an eight-game losing streak in the process. The Aztecs took game one 3-0 on Celena Velasquez's four-hit shutout, before falling 3-2 in the game two.
Velasquez was not the only Aztec with an outstanding game, as Meagan Hartung and Taryin Casillas broke out of slumps to collect five of the nine SDSU hits. Casillas was 3-for-3 with two RBI, a stolen base and her third home run, the first Aztec round-tripper in conference play. Hartung began her 4-for-5 afternoon with a two-hit showing in game one, scoring a run.
In game two, the Aztecs couldn't hold a 1-0 lead, allowing three runs in the fourth inning, falling to the Lobos 3-2. SDSU stranded 12 base runners and couldn't take full advantage of six hits, five walks and four UNM errors, ending the game with a the tying run in scoring position.
Hartung was 2-for-2 with a pair of walks and a pair of stolen bases to lead the SDSU bats. Chrissie Markham picked up an RBI on an RBI single in the second, scoring Lacey Craft from second for the early lead.
National TV For Softball The San Diego State vs. Colorado State softball doubleheader on May 8 will be televised live nationally on CSTV. This game marks the first national television appearance for any MWC softball team in the league's history.
Game one of the doubleheader is scheduled for a 1 p.m. start, with the second game set to begin at 3:30 p.m. Beth Mowins will handle the play-by-play duties, while Ann Schatz will handle the analyst duties. Former UCLA all-american Stacey Nuveman will be the sideline reporter for the two-game set.
CSTV is available in the San Diego area on Time Warner Cable and DirectTV.
SDSU Senior Day Sunday Senior day is this weekend, as San Diego State says goodbye to four Aztecs Sunday afternoon against Colorado State. Playing in their final game of the season are Lacey Craft, Cori Janelli, Erin Mahoney and Danielle Touhey.
Entering the weekend, Craft has played in 106 games since transferring from Palomar Junior College, earning 87 starts. With a .975 career fielding percentage, she is among the best defenders at first base in SDSU history.
Janelli came to the Aztecs from the College of the Sequoias in 2004 and immediately became one of the top pitcher's in the Mountain West. She has 20 career victories in 46 starts, and has posted a 1.63 career ERA. This season she has become a strikeout machine, notching 147 K's in 139.1 innings, good for fifth on the single season charts. Janelli and Celena Velasquez have been a dangerous one-two punch in their time together, notching 46 wins between the two, with a combined 1.42 ERA in 569.2 innings of work.
Mahoney started out at the University of Texas, where she was first-team all-Big 12, before coming to the Mesa. The speedy Westchester, Calif., native has since become a valuable member of the Aztec program, stealing 30 bases and scoring 67 runs. She is a member of SDSU's 100-hit club, and her 35 career sacrifice hits are fifth in the all-time Aztec record books. So far this season, Mahoney has set new career-high's in doubles (5), triples (2) and slugging percentage (.353) and her 10 steals lead SDSU.
Touhey is the lone four-year senior for the Aztecs, and she is also the most experienced player on the squad. In her career, she has played in 179 games, earning 158 starts. Touhey has notched 87 hits, with 13 doubles, a triple, four home runs and 33 RBI, but her main talent is her defense and leadership. She has committed only six errors in her 158 starts as a catcher, good for a .991 career fielding percentage, while grabbing 52 assists, which is amazing from the catching position.
The four will graduate having been part of at least 143 wins, marking one of the greatest four year stretches in the SDSU softball history. The stretch includes two Mountain West championships, three trips to the MWC Tournament championship game, and the 2003 appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
Breaking All The Records SDSU is already surpassing the 2004 softball edition in numerous statistics, and doing it 52 games into the season. Aztec pitchers had 251 strikeouts last season, but the 2005 bullpen, led by Celena Velasquez and Cori Janelli, already have 362. The 362 strikeouts also set a new team record, eclipsing the 266 the 2001 team tossed. Velasquez (191) and Janelli (147) have also topped their strikeout totals from last season of 101 and 85 respectively and now rank third and fifth respectively in the Aztec single-season record book. Velasquez is just eight strikeouts shy of second place in the single-season charts, behind Bree DeSanta, and 12 behind Sandra Durazo's 203, set in 2001. Last season Velasquez had five saves, a feat she has already matched this season, and with 10 in her career, she is just a save away from the NCAA career record books.
Burlingame Has Got Game When SDSU recruited teammates Kristen Carranza and Allison Smith from Burlingame High School in Burlingame, Calif., the Aztecs felt that they could be everyday starters and top hitters for the team, but they did not know it would happen in their freshman year.
Smith is third on the team with a .281 average, mostly at third base and second base. She is tied for third on the team with 14 RBI, and has seven doubles, a triple, a home run and nine runs scored. Smith is fourth on the team in slugging (.380) and second in on base percentage (.333). She is second for the Aztecs in MWC hitting with a .278 average.
Carranza leads the Aztecs with a .294 batting average, including a .250 average in MWC play, splitting time in right field, first base and as a designated player. She is the team leader with 20 RBI and three triples, and is tied for the team lead with 17 runs scored and seven doubles. She has a team-high .364 on base average and is second with a .412 slugging percentage.
Hartung Heating Up At The Right Time On Friday afternoon, Meagan Hartung finally stopped the slump that had hampered her all season, going 4-for-5 with a run scored, two walks and a pair of stolen bases. Her four hits in the two games nearly doubled her total of five in the rest of the MWC season. She was the Aztecs leading hitter with a .364 average in 2004, but like the team, had been mired in a 1-16 losing streak dating back to the game against Oregon on March 20. Pitching Staff Among The Best In Nation Two-time Mountain West Pitcher of the Year Celena Velasquez and senior Cori Janelli are back to lead an excellent Aztec pitching staff. Velasquez, a junior, has an 12-12 record with five saves and a 1.22 ERA. She leads the team in appearances (37), strikeouts (191), and opponent batting average (.174), in 167 innings of work. She currently ranks first in the MWC in earned run average, opponent batting average, strikeouts, and saves, while she is second in innings pitched and fifth in wins. Janelli has posted a 1.91 overall ERA this season, including a 9-14 record with 147 strikeouts and 38 earned runs in 139.1 innings pitched. She ranks fifth in the conference in ERA and is fifth in opposing batting average. Janelli also places fifth in the league in innings pitched and she is third in strikeouts. Sophomore Katie Cochran is also in the mix with a 3-2 record and a 3.27 ERA. She has 24 strikeouts in 40.2 innings.
Mahoney, Hartung Join Century Club Senior outfielder Erin Mahoney recently became one of the newest members of the 100-hit club, with a single in her final at-bat against Southern Utah March 5, to cap off a 3-for-4 afternoon. Mahoney also recently reached 35 sacrifice bunts, moving her into fifth in the all-time Aztec record books.
Meagan Hartung notched her 100th hit Friday night with a fifth-inning infield single in game two against New Mexico. Hartung and Mahoney are the only members of the current Aztec squad to notch 100 career hits.
Aztecs Tough At Home Last season the Aztecs were 22-9 at home, including two-game sweeps of No. 21 Oklahoma State and Mississippi State, plus conference opponents Colorado State, New Mexico, and UNLV. SDSU was also 7-3 in San Diego during MWC play. The last two seasons combined, the Aztecs were 46-15, a .754 winning percentage, the most home wins by any team in the MWC.
So far this season the Aztecs are 12-10 at home allowing only 53 runs in 22 games (31 of which came in five contests). Over the past three seasons the Aztecs are 58-26 at home, a .690 winning percentage.
Van Wyk Is Winningest Coach In SDSU History Kathy Van Wyk is the winningest coach in SDSU history with a 295-235-1 record. She broke Linda Spradley's (1984-94) win total of 253 on March 21, 2004, when the Aztecs topped Buffalo, 6-0. The two served as co-head coaches from 1995-96 and compiled a 48-69 mark. Under Van Wyk's leadership, SDSU has advanced to its only two NCAA Tournament appearances in 2001 and 2003. The 2001 squad went 3-2 and advanced to the regional championship against host UCLA, while the 2003 team was 1-2 in tourney action.