SAN DIEGO – The San Diego State softball team was off to a 17-11 start and getting ready to host defending Mountain West champion Colorado State in the league-opening series when the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic struck the United States and effectively changed all sports (college and professional) as we know it. Some leagues chose to suspend events, while others, like the NCAA, chose to cancel the rest of competition.
Just like that, the season was over. No chance for a MW-record eighth regular-season title. No opportunity to play in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2015 (SDSU had been every year from 2008-15). No Senior Day game for San Diego State, which had won 12 straight Senior Day games.
For Aztec seniors Kristen Parker and Kiera Wright, their final game would be an 8-0, five-inning loss at Long Beach State on March 8.
"Looking back at how our last game ended - we got run-ruled (against Long Beach State) on a Sunday," Wright said. "We need to treat every game like it could be your last. You don't realize it and you take it for granted."
"I think when it originally happened it felt like there was unfinished business that I wanted to do, but the longer I've sat on this I know I got what I wanted out of this program," Parker said.
"Our two departing seniors were a combined nine years of experience for our program and provided such amazing leadership," head coach Kathy Van Wyk said. "I'm so proud of how they represented our program and the leadership they will continue to bring forward throughout their lives. A huge thank you to them for their dedication and sacrifice. AZTECS for life!!!"
Wright played in 167 games over her career with 151 starts in the outfield. She batted .262 overall with 128 hits, 85 runs, 24 RBIs, four doubles, two triples, 42 walks, 50 stolen bases and a .327 on-base percentage. Her 50 stolen bases tied for the fifth most in program history. A great outfielder, the Riverside, Calif., native had only four errors in her career in 214 chances for a .981 fielding percentage.
This season, Wright had 14 hits, nine runs and eight stolen bases with the eight stolen bases tied for the fourth most in the Mountain West. Wright scored at least 20 runs in each of the previous three seasons before the COVID-19 pandemic and was on her way to another 20-run campaign this year. Wright's best season statistically was 2017 when she hit .305 with 25 runs and 11 stolen bases, while owning a perfect fielding percentage in 60 chances.
Meet Kiera Wright
Hometown: Riverside, Calif.
High School: Roosevelt High
Major: Sociology
Nickname: Ki (like the key to you heart)
Favorite Food: Steak medium rare with A1 sauce, mashed potatoes, corn on the cob and garlic bread
Favorite Song: Coronao Now by El Alfa and Lil Pimp (her walkup song)
Favorite Movie: Step Brothers
Favorite Memory as an Aztec: When she robbed a home run against UC Davis and fell over the fence
Random Fact: She is currently learning Spanish to become bilingual
Advice for Young Softball Players: Love what you do. Softball is where you get away from the outside world. Never take it for granted. Thank your parents every second you get and never doubt your dreams. You can achieve anything you put your mind to no matter how big or small.
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A San Diego native who attended Mira Mesa High School, Parker played in 91 games over her four-year career with the Aztecs with 46 starts. For her career, she batted .242 with 32 hits, 17 RBIs, 28 runs, two doubles, eight walks and eight stolen bases, while owning a .287 slugging percentage.
A team captain as a senior, Parker played in 17 games with five starts in left field, driving in eight runs with four runs and a double. The eight RBIs ranked in a tie for fifth on the team despite just 26 plate appearances, while her three multi-RBI games tied for the second most on the team. Parker had a breakout season in 2019 after not recording a plate appearance over her first two seasons, batting .261 with nine RBIs, 11 runs, a double, eight walks, and six stolen bases in six attempts, posting a .311 on-base percentage.
Meet Kristen Parker
Hometown: San Diego, Calif.
High School: Mira Mesa High
Major: Business Administration
Nickname: KP or KPizzle
Favorite Food: Mashed potatoes or Texas Roadhouse rolls
Favorite Song: She's a Bad Mama Jama by Carl Carlton (her walkup song)
Favorite Movie: The Sandlot
Favorite Memory as an Aztec: When the team went through Navy Seal training her freshmen and sophomore year (2017-18)
Random Fact: She LOVE LOVE LOVE'S goats!
Advice for Young Softball Players: Softball is just like life. It's unfair at times and doesn't always reward you, but it's not about the outcome. It's about your mindset and how you respond to certain scenarios. A positive mindset can take you a long way and it's important that you don't give up when things get hard. I've learned so much about myself through this sport, so just be ready for anything and know that the lessons learned on the field go beyond those foul lines.
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Fellow seniors Marissa Moreno and Shelby Thompson, however, will return for a fifth season in 2021.
A second-team all-Mountain West pitcher in 2019, Moreno has 33 wins for her career with a 3.31 ERA, while striking out 297 in 446 1/3 innings. Among the all-time SDSU career rankings, Moreno is tied for eighth in saves (5), ninth in appearances (123), and 10th in games started (79) and strikeouts per seven innings (4.66). A 2019 NFCA All-America Scholar-Athlete and two-time MW All-Academic Team selection (2017 and 2019) so far, Moreno was 3-2 with a 3.85 ERA in 43 2/3 innings this year's shortened season, pitching in 16 games (T-3rd in MW) with seven starts, striking out 37 with 22 walks allowed, and limiting the opposition to a .275 average. The Torrance, Calif., native has twice been named the MW Pitcher of the Week.
Thompson, meanwhile, has started 173 of her 174 career appearances, batting .304 with 20 home runs, 84 RBIs, 91 runs, 23 doubles, six triples, 66 walks, 17 stolen bases, a .403 on-base percentage and a .494 slugging percentage. Among the all-time leaders with the Aztecs, the Benicia, Calif., native is second in times hit by pitch (20), third in fielding assists (398), sixth in home runs (20), ninth in slugging percentage (.494) and OPS percentage (.897), tied for ninth in walks (66), 10th in extra-base hits (49), and tied for 10th in sacrifice flies (5). This year, Thompson batted .272 (22-for-81) with four home runs, 15 RBIs, 21 runs, two doubles, three triples, 14 walks and seven times hit by pitch, owning a .417 on-base percentage and a .519 slugging percentage en route to being named to the all-MW team for a fourth straight season. The shortstop became the 12th player in league history to earn all-conference honors four seasons and just the second Aztec, joining Celena Velasquez from 2003-06. Thompson, who was a first-team selection from 2017-19, while being named the 2017 MW Freshman of the Year and 2019 MW Defensive Player of the Year, will look to be the first player in league history to be named to five all-conference teams in 2021.
Next year, SDSU is slated to have Power 5 transfers, including Jenna Holcomb (Tennessee), Alyssa Pinto (Oregon/Ole Miss), Danielle Romanello (Florida) and Nicole Seiss (Mt. SAC/Purdue), and welcomes incoming freshmen Makena Brocki, Jeweliana Perez and Elianna Reyes.