April 5, 2008
SAN DIEGO -
Senior Tamani Wells (Concord, Calif.) drove in two runs and senior Christina Ross (Santa Clarita, Calif.) extended her consecutive scoreless streak to 25 2/3 innings to give the No. 19/22 San Diego State softball team a 4-0 victory over UNLV in the Mountain West Conference opener for both teams Saturday afternoon at SDSU Softball Stadium. The Aztecs improved to 27-10 (1-0 MWC) with their third straight shutout, while the Rebels dropped to 20-21-1 (0-1 MWC).
Wells went 2-for-3 with two RBI and a run scored to lead the SDSU offense. Junior Tonye McCorkle (Santa Ana Heights, Calif.) added two hits and an RBI, while sophomore Brittany Knudsen (San Diego, Calif./Escondido HS) doubled and scored twice.
Ross allowed five hits and two walks over seven innings to improve to 17-8 on the season. She struck out five for her 23rd career shutout (tied for third in school history). Ross, a two-time all-MWC selection, has now gone 25 2/3 innings without allowing a run and 30 2/3 innings without giving up an earned run.
San Diego State played solid in the field once again with its fourth consecutive errorless game, led by freshman shortstop Jen Wisneski (Riverside, Calif.), sophomore second baseman Lindsey Marquez (Tustin, Calif.) and senior catcher Megan McDonald (Glendale, Calif.).
The Aztecs spread out their runs over four innings with a score each in the first, second, fourth and sixth frames.
In the first, Wells (single), McCorkle (single) and Floros (fielding error) loaded the bases with one out. Following a fly out to center that wasn't deep enough to score Wells, McDonald patiently took four straight pitches for the walk and RBI.
In the second, SDSU did all its damage with two outs. Knudsen got things going with a double to right-center field. Wells followed with her first triple of the season and fifth of her career to give San Diego State the 2-0 lead.
The Aztecs tacked on another run in the fourth thanks to some small ball. Junior Christine Kulick (Aliso Viejo, Calif.) walked and was replaced at first by freshman Jessica Camello (Temecula, Calif.). Wisneski followed with a single through the left side and each runner moved up a bag on Knudsen's sacrifice bunt. Wells then lofted a long fly ball to center to score Camello with San Diego State's third run of the game.
SDSU's final run of the game came in the sixth, once again with two outs. After Wells lined into a double play, Knudsen, who reached on a fielder's choice, stole second to put a runner in scoring position with two outs. McCorkle then took a 1-2 pitch through the right side to plate Knudsen with the Aztecs' final run of the contest.
San Diego State looks to remain perfect in MWC play when it takes on the Rebels at 1 p.m. Sunday.
NOTES: The Aztecs are now 28-10 (.737) overall and 17-2 (.895) at SDSU Softball Stadium, on pace to break the school single-season records of 34-15 (.694) and 20-6 (.769), respectively ... SDSU is 11-1 this season in solo games (17-9 in multiple-game days) ... San Diego State now has 14 shutouts, eight away from tying the school record of 22 set in 1985 ... The Aztecs are 23-3 when scoring three or more runs, 12-1 when they score in the first inning, 25-2 when the score first and 20-1 when they lead after five innings ... CF Tonye McCorkle recorded her team-leading 14th multi-hit game against UNLV on Saturday, while LF Tamani Wells had her 12th (second on team) ... C Megan McDonald drew her 62nd career walk, tying her with Meagan Hartung (2003-06) for third on the all-time list ... LHP Christina Ross earned her 23rd career shutout against the Rebels, moving her into a tie for third with Michelle Wesson (1988-91) and Robyn Reid (1983-85) on the career charts.