Feb. 22, 2008
CATHEDRAL CITY, Calif. - Senior Christina Ross (Santa Clarita, Calif./Univ. of Kansas) struck out a season-high 11 batters to lead the No. 25 San Diego State softball team to a 2-1 upset over defending NCAA champion Arizona Friday night at the Palm Springs Classic in Cathedral City, Calif. It was the eighth consecutive victory for the Aztecs, who at 10-1 are off to their best start in school history.
Ross (6-1), who was named the Mountain West Conference Pitcher of the Week on Tuesday, allowed one unearned run on seven hits and two walks over seven innings. Her 11 strikeouts are one short of her career high.
Ross stranded nine Wildcat (2-4) baserunners and got out of many jams, including two crucial predicaments in the fifth and seventh innings. In the fifth, Arizona's Lauren Schutzler and Adrienne Acton each singled and moved up a base on a SDSU error. With runners on second and third with no outs, Ross got the Wildcats' 1-2-3 hitters out on a groundout, a strikeout and another ground out to end the threat.
Ross ran into trouble in the seventh after allowing two runners to reach on a walk and a single with one out. Ross, however, got Arizona's No. 3 batter Sam Bannister to strike out looking and then retired Jenae Leles on an 11-pitch pop out to first.
Sophomore Brittany Knudsen (San Diego, Calif./Escondido HS) had two hits to pace the Aztec offense, while senior Tamani Wells added her fourth double of the season.
San Diego State got on the scoreboard first with a run in the top of the first second inning. Junior Erin Floros (San Diego, Calif./Mt. Carmel HS) singled to right and was replaced at first base by sophomore Katy Erickson (Tustin, Calif.). Erickson moved to second on Knudsen's infield single and, after an errant throw by Arizona's K'Lee Arredondo, advanced all the way home on the error.
The Wildcats answered with a run in the third when Brittany Lastrapes' single up the middle scored Acton from second, tying the game at 1-1.
Knudsen got the Aztecs going again in the fourth with a one-out triple, the first allowed by an Arizona pitcher since April 2, 2005 (132 games). Two batters later, redshirt junior Dani Sidoti (Tucson, Ariz.) beat out an infield single to score Knudsen to put SDSU up for good at 2-1.
SDSU is scheduled to play No. 3/2 Northwestern at 8:30 tonight (Friday), but because of delays to earlier games, will most likely start around 9:15 p.m.