BOX SCORE 1 | BOX SCORE 2

SEASIDE, Calif. — The No. 8 Cal State Monterey Bay softball team enjoyed a walk–off win to cap a senior day—courtesy of a freshman. Freshman catcher Nicole Pires (Ontario/Colony HS) made her fifth home run of the season a walk–off shot to lift the Otters to a 15–7 victory and a sweep of San Francisco State Saturday at the Otter Sports Complex.

Freshmen also helped decided the opener as CSUMB (37–9, 22–6 CCAA) won 5–2 behind the three–hit pitching of Cori Reinhardt (Riverside Poly HS) and Nina Villanueva's (San Diego/Mt. Carmel HS) 14th home run of the season.

With the wins, CSUMB breaks the school record for wins (36) set by the 2009 team. Pires' home run also marked the eight time this season the Otters won via the eight-run rule. It was the fourth walk-off by CSUMB at the Otter Sports Complex this season.

While freshmen played prominent roles, seniors made their presence known as well. Center fielder Jamie Moon (Torrance HS) went 4–for–7 with a double, four runs and three RBIs while Jackie Serna (Corona HS) went 5–for–6 with a double, two runs and two RBIs of her own.

Game one Saturday opened very much like game one Friday, with SFSU (14–30, 7–23) manufacturing danger with an infield single, a fielder's choice, a walk and an error to load the bases with no outs, producing the first run of the game. But Otter left fielder Angelina Orozco (Clovis East HS) caught Gator designated player Ashley Huff napping off third base after a fly to short left before inducing Courtney Gravel to ground to first to end the threat.

The Otters responded quickly as Villanueva extended her hitting streak to 17 games with a two–run homer in the first. A Serna RBI single and a Reinhardt sac fly doubled the Otter scoreline in the third before Moon's bases–loaded walk closed the scoring in the sixth.

As she did Friday, Reinhardt found her grove after the unlucky start. She retired 20 of the final 23 Gators she faced, striking out six over the final six innings.

The nightcap was a much more wild affair, with the teams trading big innings like two rams challenging for supremacy of the mountain top. CSUMB opened the affair by scoring three in the first, thanks to run–scoring singles from Moon and Serna and a bases–loaded walk by Pires.

SFSU responded with a six–run fourth inning to take the lead—the biggest inning by an Otter opponent this season. Doubles from Jordan Brenner and Huff knocked in the first three runs before a three–run homer from Monterey native Kelly Mast put a cherry on the inning.

But Alyssa Rivera's (Fontana/Riverside CC) first collegiate extra base hit—a two–run rouble—brought the Otters even in their half of the fourth. Back–to–back doubles from Serna and Reinhardt led off the fifth inning, igniting a seven–run rally that put the game on ice.

Kylie Grabowski's homer leading off the sixth gave SFSU a glimmer of hope, but senior Jessica Moon (Torrance HS) retired the next three batters to quell any thoughts of a rally and set the stage for Pires' walk–off heroics.

CSUMB returns to action at the Otter Sports Complex Wednesday, April 18 to host No. 19 Chico State in a series fraught with CCAA and NCAA West Region implications. First pitch is scheduled for noon.