SAN DIEGO – The San Diego State softball team entered this season’s Mountain West Tournament as the two-time defending tournament champions with an undefeated 6-0 record since the tournament was brought back in 2023. The Aztecs suffered the first blemish on that mark on Thursday night, falling by a 3-0 score to Fresno State in SDSU’s opening game of the week.
San Diego State (33-17) sent Grace Uribe, who also started the Aztecs’ first game of the season, to the circle on Thursday night. She worked around a two-out single to keep Fresno State (36-18) off the board in the first inning. Bella Espinoza walked to open SDSU’s half of the frame but was left stranded on second, the first of ten runners left on base on the night for the Aztecs.
Alyssa Orr doubled for the Bulldogs in the second, but Uribe was able to keep her on second base, getting Emma Martinez to foul out to end the inning. Quinn Waiki came through with a one-out double in the bottom of the inning. The next batter, Shannon Cunningham, hit a bloop single into right field and Waiki rounded third base but was thrown out heading for home plate.
The Bulldogs struck first in the third when Natalie Elias led off with a single before a Kennedy Bunker double to center left two runners in scoring position and only one out. Uribe got the next two hitters to fly out, but Elias trotted home on a sacrifice fly to right field off the bat of Taryn Irigoyen. In the bottom of the frame, Espinoza and Julie Holcomb knocked consecutive singles and both moved into scoring position on a wild pitch with only one out. The Bulldogs’ Serayah Neiss, the Mountain West Pitcher of the Year, coaxed a shallow flyout and a strikeout to end the inning.
Madison Rey and Martinez each reached on infield singles in the fourth inning. With two outs, Marissa Montelongo hit a fly ball to right center field. San Diego State’s right fielder and center fielder collided on the play, allowing both runners to cross the plate and ending Uribe’s night with one earned run allowed on six hits and no walks across 3.2 innings. A four-time Mountain West Pitcher of the Week this season, Cece Cellura entered the game and pitched the rest of the way, only allowing one hit, a two-out single in the sixth, and no walks the rest of the way while striking out two. Cali Decker and Cunningham each singled in the bottom of the inning.
Angie Yellen doubled to center field in the bottom of the fifth for the Aztecs but was unable to advance to third. The Aztecs got runners in scoring position again in the sixth when Decker led off with a double and was followed by a Waiki walk. After a fielder’s choice, Cunningham stole second to put two runners in scoring position with one out, but Neiss worked her way out of the jam once again. Holcomb reached for the second time of the game on an infield single in the seventh to get the tying run to the on-deck circle, but Neiss escaped once more, this time finishing out the game with a 3-0 score.
THE NOTE
The defeat was the first one suffered by the Aztecs in the Mountain West Tournament since the 2006 Championship game against Utah. It was the second time in tournament history that San Diego State was shut out (a 3-0 score against Utah in the 2004 Championship Game). The tournament was not held between 2007 and 2022.
THE NOTE II
San Diego State suffered just its second home defeat of the season against an unranked opponent with both coming against Fresno State. The other times the Aztecs dropped home games came against then No. 2/3 Oklahoma, No. 6/6 UCLA and No. 12/13 Arizona.
THE NOTE III
Thursday marked the first time that San Diego State was shut out by a Mountain West opponent since a 1-0 game against Utah State on March 17, 2024.
UP NEXT
San Diego State will play at 3 p.m. on Friday against fourth-seeded Boise State. The winner will play the loser of top-seeded Nevada and third-seeded Fresno State at 6 p.m. on Friday for the right to face the winner of the Nevada-Fresno State game in the Mountain West Championship game at noon on Saturday.
Fresno State 3, San Diego State 0
Fresno State (36-18) 001 200 0 – 3 7 0
San Diego State (33-17) 000 000 0 – 0 9 3
W – Neiss, 19-5; L – Uribe, 9-2
HR: None