BOX SCORE 1 | BOX SCORE 2

TURLOCK, Calif. — The No. 9 Cal State Monterey Bay softball team found itself in an unexpected dogfight Friday afternoon before emerging with a split at Cal State Stanislaus. Stanislaus parlayed three unearned runs into a 3–2 victory in the opener before the Otters raced to a 5–0 lead then held on for a 6–4 win in the nightcap.

Freshman pitcher Cori Reinhardt (Riverside Poly HS) fanned four and allowed just two unearned runs while taking a no decision in game one. In game two, she came on in relief to work out of a second and third, one out jam in the fourth. She earned her 14th victory by tossing 3 2/3 innings of scoreless, two–hit relief.

Freshman first baseman Nina Villanueva (San Diego/Mt. Carmel HS) ran her hitting streak to a team season best 12 games by going 1–for–4 in each game. She added three RBIs—extending her school season record to 49—and added her team–leading 10th home run in the fifth inning to give Reinhardt an insurance marker in the nightcap.

A two–out error opened the door to a two–run Stanislaus first inning in the opener. The Otters fought their way back with a Nikki Rodriguez (San Jose/Evergreen Valley HS) sacrifice fly in the third and a Villanueva RBI single in the fifth. But a leadoff double in the bottom of the seventh and a one–out passed ball set the table for Sarah Locarini to single home the winning run.

Danielle Onken's (Oakdale HS) squeeze bunt capped a three–run first for the Otters in game two. The Otters scrapped out two more in the second before Stanislaus answered with two in the third and two in the fourth. With the Warriors threatening to take the lead, Reinhardt came in with runners on second and third and one out. Reinhardt fanned Kristen Burns on a 2–2 pitch then coaxed a pop up from Vanessa Del Toro to end the threat.

Otter junior Alyssa Rivera (Fontana HS/Riverside CC) went 3–for–3 in game one for her first 3–hit game in the opener while freshman Danica Arterburn (Sparks, Nev./Spanish Springs HS) picked up her first two collegiate hits while going 2–for–3 in the nightcap.

CSUMB (31–9, 16–6 CCAA) and Stanislaus (15–32, 6–18) will conclude their series with a doubleheader Saturday at noon.