California Golden Bears Athletics
Friday, March 16
Corvallis, OR
3:00 PM
California
at
Oregon State
Cal Opens Pac-12 Play at OSU
3/14/2018 3:50 PM | Softball
BERKELEY – After five consecutive weeks on the road, No. 16 California will pack it up for one more trip to begin Pac-12 play this weekend before a four-game home stretch.
This time, the Golden Bears (23-3) head to Corvallis, Ore., for their first three-game conference series against a well-tested Beavers team (17-9), which has faced 10 top-25 opponents during preseason.
Play opens on Friday with a 3 p.m. (PT) start, while Saturday's and Sunday's games are slated for noon. The games will be broadcast on Pac-12 Network with Ann Schatz providing play-by-play. Live stats are also available on CalBears.com.
The Bears rolled through the preseason despite a heavy travel schedule with several highlights and milestones. Among the positives, newcomer and junior pitcher Kamalani Dung recorded her first-ever perfect game near her hometown in Honolulu, Hawai'i against UTEP on March 1, and also threw a career-best 15 strikeouts against Fordham on Feb. 17 to remain undefeated in the circle.
Cal's returning starting pitcher Zoe Conley has also had a couple of notables, dishing two career-high 11-strikeout (vs James Madison, March 2 and vs Longwood, March 4) performances.
A year-long celebration of Coach Diane Ninemire's 30th season at the helm of the program is also marked by her 1,300thth win, which she picked up on March 3 in Cal's 6-4 victory over East Carolina. Ninemire is one of just five active coaches with at least 1,300 wins. She holds a .670 winning percentage, which ranks fourth among the group. Those numbers rank second in the potent Pac-12 conference, behind 33-year head coach Mike Candrea at Arizona with 1,534 victories.
While the Bears registered 11 shutouts and seven run-rules, the team also clinched a season-high 17 hits to close out a perfect 5-0 weekend in Fresno, Calif., and go into the conference stretch with some momentum.
After making its 29th postseason appearance, the Bears are on track to return, but have to get through the most potent portion of its schedule. One of the nation's top softball leagues, six members of the Conference of Champions, including Cal, are currently ranked – four in the top 10 and league member Washington leads the rankings.
The Bears finished eighth in 2017 in the conference standings with a 6-17 record, but are on pace to be competitive deep into conference play.
Cal's offense is charged by freshman Mikayla Coelho who leads the starting lineup with a .391 batting average, 36 hits, five home runs and 25 RBIs. The Tracy, Calif., just snapped a 13-game hitting streak, one shy of senior Jazmyn Jackson's 14-game streak. Jackson (.349), who has contributed to the Bears success since her freshman year, has been critical in late innings for the Bears and is coming off of a weekend with timely 2 RBI doubles that lifted Cal's energy.
The bats have been alive for Cal as they outscored opponents 48-4 last weekend pulling in four homers over the three-day Fresno State tournament. Collectively, the Bears are batting .328, while limiting opponents to .188 showing at the plate.
SCOUTING OREGON STATE
A season ago, Cal notched the series win with a 2-1 showing in Berkeley to close the regular season. The Bears have gone 7-3 with the Beavers since 2014, picking up 2-1 series wins in both 2015 and 2016.
While OSU sits at the bottom of the conference, it has played a very tough schedule that's pitted the Beavers against 10 ranked opponents. The Beavers pulled a pair of upsets over the Oklahoma State Cowgirls, who were ranked as high as 16th during their matchups and also beat a then 22nd-ranked Brigham Young.
The Beavers are led at the plate by freshman utility player Missy Nunes with a .333 batting average. She's recorded 17 runs, a team high, 24 hits and 11 RBIs. As a unit, the Beavers are batting .276, just ahead of their opponent's .239. They have also outscored their foes 113-75.
In the circle, the load has been shared by junior Meehra Nelson (9-4) and freshman Mariah Mazon (7-5). Nelson is throwing a 1.58 ERA while Mazon totals a 2.34 clip. They've combined for 136 strikeouts while giving up 59 walks.
For more information on Cal softball, follow the team @CalSB on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
This time, the Golden Bears (23-3) head to Corvallis, Ore., for their first three-game conference series against a well-tested Beavers team (17-9), which has faced 10 top-25 opponents during preseason.
Play opens on Friday with a 3 p.m. (PT) start, while Saturday's and Sunday's games are slated for noon. The games will be broadcast on Pac-12 Network with Ann Schatz providing play-by-play. Live stats are also available on CalBears.com.
The Bears rolled through the preseason despite a heavy travel schedule with several highlights and milestones. Among the positives, newcomer and junior pitcher Kamalani Dung recorded her first-ever perfect game near her hometown in Honolulu, Hawai'i against UTEP on March 1, and also threw a career-best 15 strikeouts against Fordham on Feb. 17 to remain undefeated in the circle.
Cal's returning starting pitcher Zoe Conley has also had a couple of notables, dishing two career-high 11-strikeout (vs James Madison, March 2 and vs Longwood, March 4) performances.
A year-long celebration of Coach Diane Ninemire's 30th season at the helm of the program is also marked by her 1,300thth win, which she picked up on March 3 in Cal's 6-4 victory over East Carolina. Ninemire is one of just five active coaches with at least 1,300 wins. She holds a .670 winning percentage, which ranks fourth among the group. Those numbers rank second in the potent Pac-12 conference, behind 33-year head coach Mike Candrea at Arizona with 1,534 victories.
While the Bears registered 11 shutouts and seven run-rules, the team also clinched a season-high 17 hits to close out a perfect 5-0 weekend in Fresno, Calif., and go into the conference stretch with some momentum.
After making its 29th postseason appearance, the Bears are on track to return, but have to get through the most potent portion of its schedule. One of the nation's top softball leagues, six members of the Conference of Champions, including Cal, are currently ranked – four in the top 10 and league member Washington leads the rankings.
The Bears finished eighth in 2017 in the conference standings with a 6-17 record, but are on pace to be competitive deep into conference play.
Cal's offense is charged by freshman Mikayla Coelho who leads the starting lineup with a .391 batting average, 36 hits, five home runs and 25 RBIs. The Tracy, Calif., just snapped a 13-game hitting streak, one shy of senior Jazmyn Jackson's 14-game streak. Jackson (.349), who has contributed to the Bears success since her freshman year, has been critical in late innings for the Bears and is coming off of a weekend with timely 2 RBI doubles that lifted Cal's energy.
The bats have been alive for Cal as they outscored opponents 48-4 last weekend pulling in four homers over the three-day Fresno State tournament. Collectively, the Bears are batting .328, while limiting opponents to .188 showing at the plate.
SCOUTING OREGON STATE
A season ago, Cal notched the series win with a 2-1 showing in Berkeley to close the regular season. The Bears have gone 7-3 with the Beavers since 2014, picking up 2-1 series wins in both 2015 and 2016.
While OSU sits at the bottom of the conference, it has played a very tough schedule that's pitted the Beavers against 10 ranked opponents. The Beavers pulled a pair of upsets over the Oklahoma State Cowgirls, who were ranked as high as 16th during their matchups and also beat a then 22nd-ranked Brigham Young.
The Beavers are led at the plate by freshman utility player Missy Nunes with a .333 batting average. She's recorded 17 runs, a team high, 24 hits and 11 RBIs. As a unit, the Beavers are batting .276, just ahead of their opponent's .239. They have also outscored their foes 113-75.
In the circle, the load has been shared by junior Meehra Nelson (9-4) and freshman Mariah Mazon (7-5). Nelson is throwing a 1.58 ERA while Mazon totals a 2.34 clip. They've combined for 136 strikeouts while giving up 59 walks.
For more information on Cal softball, follow the team @CalSB on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Players Mentioned
OF
/ Softball
RHP
/ Softball
RHP
/ Softball
UTIL
/ SoftballSunday, May 21
Sunday, May 21
Tuesday, May 09
Tuesday, May 09
