BERKELEY – California opens the weekend with the prestigious Mary Nutter Classic in Palm Springs, Calif., a five-game slate that includes a top-25 opponent and growing rivals.
 
To open, Cal faces Duke (5-5) on Friday at 4 p.m. (PT) (time has been updated due to weather) in the inaugural matchup between the programs. On Saturday the Bears open a doubleheader day against No. 16 Kentucky (6-5) at 2:30 p.m., the first faceoff since 2016. Game 2 will pit the Bears against New Mexico State at 5 p.m.
 
Cal closes the weekend with a stacked two-game slate against in-state rivals Long Beach State (5-5) at 11:30 a.m. and Fullerton (8-3) at 2 p.m. The Bears went 2-0 against both teams in 2018 after closely-contested bouts.
 
Games will be live streamed on FloSoftball (fee required).
 
The Bears (6-5) head into the weekend with winning momentum after a demonstrative 13-5 victory over neighboring Saint Mary's on Wednesday in Moraga, Calif, where the team recorded a season-high in runs and with 16 hits.
 
Behind those numbers, is Cal's dual-threat offense led by senior Lindsay Rood (.444) and sophomore Mikayla Coelho (.382) who lead the Bears in nearly every offensive category.
 
The base-stealing guru Rood is a perfect 10 on the season in that category, but has also remained efficient at the plate with 16 hits including two doubles, two triples and two homers. She also leads the Bears with 13 runs.
 
Coelho's 13 hits has translated into 12 RBIs as the Bears have outscored 52-46. She brought in a career-high six runners against the Gaels on Wednesday and has added four runs to the tab, including a dinger in Cal's last outing.
 

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vs. Duke

• Duke will play in the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic for the first time in program history this weekend, which also marks its final non-conference road tournament of the 2019 season.
• The Blue Devils face four first-time opponents this weekend, with Ohio State being the only team they have faced before. Duke fell to OSU last year on opening weekend, 5-2, in Boca Raton, Fla.
•  In their last contest, the Blue Devils dominated NC Central for an 8-0 victory on Tuesday in six innings, their first run-rule win of the season

 
vs. Kentucky

• Rachel Lawson is in her 12th season at the helm of the UK softball program and already ranks as the winningest head coach in school history. She was named SEC Coach of the Year in 2016 for the first time in her career.
• In February alone, UK plays 3 top-10 teams, and 11 of 16 games will be vs. a ranked team or RV.
• Kentucky ended the 2018 season with the No. 1 national strength of schedule.
•  UK is one of just 19 teams in the nation with 10-straight NCAA Tournament appearances.
• 2018 was Kentucky's third-straight year earning a national seed, and the fifth time in program history.

 
vs. New Mexico State

• Kelsey Horton continues to climb in the record books following the first weekend of the season. The senior sits in second for home runs (57) and fourth for runs scored (166), total bases (418) and RBI (177). She broke the single-season record for total bases (154) and home runs during her junior campaign.
• Outfielder Victoria Castro leads the Western Athletic Conference in several statistical categories heading into the Mary Nutter Classic. The senior's .600 batting average and 1.360 slugging percentage is a league best. She also sits in first for on-base percentage (.714), total bases (24), runs scored (14), and walks (10).
• All four seniors on the NM State squad have earned postseason honors from the WAC. Kayla Green received All-WAC honors in 2017 and 2018. Kennedy Johnson was named to the All-tournament team in 2018. Both Victoria Castro and Kelsey Horton have received both All-WAC and all-tournament honors during the course of their careers.

 
vs. Long Beach State

• Long Beach State opened 2019 with five games in Las Vegas, and had a big weekend offensively, piling up 43 runs in total on the way to a 3-2 record, with both losses coming by a single run. The Beach finished the weekend hitting .342 as a team, and hit eight home runs and 13 doubles in the opening weekend.
• The Beach returns all of the top of the lineup from a 2018 team that set multiple offensive records. The team's .306 batting average, 486 hits and 91 doubles were new season marks, with the runs and RBI totals just behind new records. Combined, the top three hitters for the Beach (Hernandez, Fry, Rowland) hit .370 to pace the team one year ago.
• Senior Jamie Wren had the big bat for Long Beach State in the opening weekend, hitting .421 with eight hits, including three doubles and two home runs. Wren hit a grand slam in the season opening win against Southern Utah, and had 13 RBI in the first five games of the season after finishing last season with 23 total on the year.

 
vs. Cal State Fullerton

• After becoming three-peat Big West champions last season, the Titans have been picked to take the crown yet again in the Big West pre-season poll. If the pre-season rankings come to light, it will be the fourth straight title for Fullerton.
• The Titans' second weekend of action was in Tucson at the Hillenbrand Invitational hosted by the Arizona Wildcats. The Fullerton bats came alive as they belted 8 home runs as a team in their five games.
• The Titan pitching staff has done a great job at keeping their opponents' hits to a minimum. Through the first 2 weeks, they are leading the conference in opponent batting average allowing a low .244 clip to opposing hitters.

  
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