LOS ANGELES — Weber State softball made history as the 2019 season came to a close Saturday evening, becoming the first school in Big Sky softball history to win an NCAA Regional game. First, WSU defeated Cal State Fullerton 7-3 to pick up the first regional win in school and conference history and then later fell to Missouri 7-0 to end the season.
GAME ONE -
How it happened: The Wildcats didn't waste very much time getting on the board as the offensive spark struck in the second inning.
Ashlyn Visser started the second off with a single to left field. Faith Hoe continued with a single through the right side. With two runners on, Lauren Hoe dialed in and crushed a ball over the left field fence for a three run bomb.
The Wildcats weren't done there. Courtney Pestka singled to center field to get on base and so did Sydney White. Takesha Saltern then singled through the right side for an RBI.
With bases loaded, Visser came up to bat for the second time in the second inning. She singled up the middle for two RBIs.
As the second inning came to a close, Weber State had a commanding 6-0 lead over the Titans.
In the top of the fourth, Visser came up with her third RBI of the game to give WSU a 7-0 lead.
Cal State Fullerton found some offensive momentum in the bottom of the sixth inning as Daisy Munoz hit a home run over the center field fence for two runs. Later in the inning, the Titans loaded up the bases with two outs.
White came up with a big unassisted putout to get WSU out of the danger zone. Heading into the final inning of play, WSU had a 7-3 lead.
In the top of the seventh, Weber State was able to get two runners on base and in scoring position, but WSU couldn't push the runners across the plate and things headed to the bottom of the seventh.
Cal State Fullerton didn't go down easily. The Titans got two runners on base and put them in scoring position. Faith Hoe ended the game for WSU by fielding a grounder and tagging the runner for the final out and gave WSU the historic victory.
WSU ended the game with a 7-3 final score. This was the first time in Weber State history the Wildcats won a NCAA Regional game and the first Big Sky Conference school to get a win in the NCAA Regionals.
At the plate: Weber State scored seven runs from 13 hits recorded seven RBIs. The Wildcats drew two walks and had just three strikeouts and left seven runners on base.
WSU was led by Visser who went 3-4 with three RBIs on the night. Lauren Hoe also had a solid offensive performance with her three RBIs from her home run.
In the field: WSU continued its strong defense, coming up with 21 putouts and five assists. White led the defense with six solo putouts and one assist.
In the circle: Addie Jensen started in the circle for Weber State. She pitched 5.1 innings and gave up six hits and three runs with three errors. She had two walks and came away with two strikeouts in the 25 batters faced.
Kate Donaldson finished the game for WSU and pitched 1.2 innings She gave up two hits and walked two batters but closed things out for WSU giving up no runs and no errors.
GAME TWO -
How it happened: Missouri was the first and only team to get on the board. In the top of the third, Missouri put four runs across off of four hits to take the lead.
In the top of the fifth the Tigers got two more runs across to push their lead to 6-0.
Weber State's offense struggled against Mizzou as Weber State was able to get runners on base and in scoring position but wasn't able to get any runs on the board.
In the top of the seventh, Mizzou was able to hit a home run off the top of the scoreboard to push its lead to 7-0.
At the plate: Weber State went scoreless against Mizzou but had three hits and drew seven walks. WSU also left nine runners on base.
In the field: WSU had 21 putouts and 12 assists. The Wildcats were led by White who had four putouts and five assists on the game.
In the circle: Tatiana Su'esu'e started in the circle for Weber State and pitched 2.2 innings. She gave up five hits, four runs, four errors and two walks. Su'esu'e had just one strikeout in the four batters faced.
Jensen came in to close out the game for WSU and pitched 4.1 innings. She gave up just four hits, three runs, two walks and came away with two strikeouts in the 20 batters faced.
Notes to know: Weber State finished the 2019 season with a 27-21 overall record. The Wildcats finished the season winning 21 of the last 25 games.
WSU came away from the season as the Big Sky regular season champ with a 14-2 record and earned the tournament title. WSU made its third NCAA Regional Appearance and came away making history with the first win in school and conference history at the NCAA Regionals.