SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. - The California State University San Bernardino softball team picked up three crucial wins over Cal Poly Humboldt on Saturday afternoon as the Coyotes celebrated Senior Day at the CSUSB Softball Park.

The Coyotes won the continuation of Friday's suspended game 5-4 in 10 innings, before winning game one of the scheduled doubleheader 3-2 in nine innings and game two 7-1.

With the sweep, the Coyotes move to 24-24 overall on the season and 16-16 in CCAA play heading to the final weekend. The magic number to clinch a playoff berth is just two.

Between the completion of the suspended game and the start of the third game of the series, the Cal State San Bernardino softball class of 2025 was honored for their Senior Day. Senior Brooke Blackmon (Exeter, Calif.), Jonessa Hebreo (San Diego, Calif.), Emilie Lapeña (Buena Park, Calif.), Diggy Olson (Riverside, Calif.), Bri Goris (Chino, Calif.), Samantha Vargas (Grand Terrace, Calif.), Lindsey Marschall (San Juan Capistrano, Calif.), Jordyn Villanueva (Anaheim, Calif.), Shannon Galliano (San Mateo, Calif.), and Tereise Tosi (Garden Grove, Calif.) were joined on the field by their friends and families for the special ceremony.


Friday's Game Two (Suspended due to darkness after ninth inning) - CSUSB 5, Cal Poly Humboldt 4 (10 Innings)

Cal Poly Humboldt scored three runs in the top of the first inning to take early control of the contest, but CSUSB scored single runs in each inning from two through five to take the lead.

A sacrifice fly from catcher Madison Zaro (Chino, Calif.) put CSUSB on the board in the top of the second, and Lapeña drew the Yotes to within one in the second with an RBI single.

In the fourth, Mia Escujuri (Chino, Calif.) notched an RBI single to right field to plate Marschall to the game. A base hit up the middle from Goris in the fifth completed the four-run surge.

Humboldt knotted the score in the top of the sixth, and the game remained tied through the ninth inning, when the game was suspended due to darkness.

When the game restarted on Saturday morning, the Lumberjacks got a pair of runners on with one out in the top of the 10th, but reliever Blackmon recorded back-to-back strikeouts to get out of the jam.

Marschall led off the bottom of the 10th with an infield single, followed by a Sarah Moite (Fresno, Calif.) sacrifice bunt. In the next at-bat, Alex Hooper (Auburn, Calif.) singled to right field to walk off the Lumberjacks.


Game Three - CSUSB 3, Cal Poly Humboldt 2 (9 Innings)

A home run in the top of the second inning gave the Lumberjacks a 1-0 lead, but CSUSB took the lead with a pair of runs in the bottom of the third. A Lapeña sacrifice bunt led to a throwing error by the Humboldt catcher, allowing Olson to come home to level the score, and a batter later, Tosi hit a sacrifice fly to right to put CSUSB on top.

A pinch-hit double put the game back even, where it stayed until the bottom of the ninth.

On a carbon copy play to the one that tied the game way back in the third, the throw to first on a Galliano sac bunt attempt went sailing into right field, allowing junior Annamaria Nuno (Moreno Valley, Calif.) to come around with the game-winning run from second base.

Galliano was the only Coyote with multiple hits in the win, going 2-for-4. Blackmon twirled a gem for the Yotes, throwing all nine innings and allowing two earned runs on nine hits without a walk for her third victory of the series.


Game Four - CSUSB 7, Cal Poly Humboldt 1

The game was scoreless until the bottom of the third when Lapeña and Isabella Venegas (Upland, Calif.) each recorded RBI singles to put the Yotes on top 2-0. 

An inning later, Lapeña drove in her second and third RBIs of the contest with a wall ball double to deep left, extending the advantage to 4-0.

Tosi provided some insurance in the bottom of the sixth by belting a three-run homer in her final at-bat at CSUSB Softball Park to put the Coyotes up 7-0.

Humboldt broke through for one run in the top of the seventh to end the Vargas shutout bid, but the senior still picked up the win. She needed only 75 pitches to get the complete game win, allowing only one earned run on six hits and walking only one for her 10th win of the season.

Offensively, Tosi and Lapeña combined to go 5-for-8 with six RBIs and three runs scored to help lift the Yotes to the win. Galliano was also 2-for-3 with three runs scored as the top three hitters in the order had huge days.

Next up for CSUSB, they will close out the regular season with a series at San Francisco State next weekend, starting on Friday.
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