After two weeks on the road, the Cal State Fullerton softball team returns home to Anderson Family Field to host the Judi Garman Classic. The annual tournament features some of the top teams in the nation in No. 19/17 Arizona State. No 24/22 Baylor, Cal, No. 22/21 Fresno State, Long Beach State, No. 2/3 Michigan, No. 18/14 Missouri, North Carolina, Northwester, No. 22 Oregon State, San Jose State and Wisconson.
The Titans will play five games over four days against No. 19/17 Arizona State (March 3), San Jose State (March 3), Wisconsin (March 4), Northwestern (March 5) and North Carolina (March 6).
Cal State Fullerton students receive free admission to Titan home games with their Titan I.D. card.
All-session passes for the Judi Garman Classic are on sale for $38 (adults), $33 (seniors 65+) and $28 (youth - 8th grade and younger). Day 1 and Day 4 of the Classic are on sale for $10 for adults, while Day 2 and Day 3 are on sale for $14 for adults.
For all pricing and additional ticket information, please click HERE.
Fans can keep up with the latest in Cal State Fullerton athletics by following us on Facebook (FullertonTitans), Twitter (@FullertonTitans) and Instagram (FullertonTitans). In addition, the softball team has established its own official Facebook (csufsoftball), Twitter (@CSUFSoftball) and Instagram (csufsoftball) accounts.
Live stats will be provided for all games this weekend. To access live stats for the games, log onto www.FullertonTitans.com and go to the softball schedule then click live stats.
Cal State Fullerton home softball contests will be broadcast live over the Internet at FullertonTitans.com. The Titans also offer live streaming video for home softball contests over the Internet courtesy of Big West.TV. Fans can catch all the exclusive action from the comfort of their home computers. To access the links, click on the audio or live video link on the schedule page.
To watch the Titans in action at the Judi Garman Classic, fans must purchase the package through FloSoftball.com.
Cal State Fullerton went 1-4 at the Mary Nutter Classic last weekend in Cathedral City, Calif. The Titans opened the Classic with a pair of losses to Utah (7-2) and No. 8/9 Georgia (7-6). Cal State Fullerton defeated Oklahoma State 4-2 on the second day of the tournament, but fell to BYU (7-6) and New Mexico State (5-4) on the final day of the tournament.
The game against New Mexico State began as a pitcher's duel as Desiree Ybarra (2-4) and Karysta Donisthorpe matched each other through the first three innings keeping their counterparts' offenses at bay.
In the bottom of the fourth, New Mexico State broke through and recorded a pair of singles and drew a walk, which led to the first run of the game.
Down 1-0, Cal State Fullerton did not take long to counter as Ybarra belted a solo home run to left center field to tie the game at 1-1. After the homer, Donisthorpe was pulled and Makayla McAdams (4-2) came on in relief.
The Titans added three more runs in the top of the sixth as Sarah Moore drew a one-out walk. Ariana Williams came in as a pinch runner and promptly stole second before coming around to score on a ground rule double by Ybarra.
With a 2-1 lead, Cal State Fullerton took advantage of a New Mexico State fielding error and plated two more runs to go up by three (4-1).
New Mexico State, however, was not ready to quit as the Aggies came up with three runs of their own in the bottom half of the inning to even the score once more.
In their half of the frame, NMSU's Tatum Reedy laced a two-run triple down the right field line, then came around to score on a sacrifice fly that tied the game at 4-all.
After the Titans were unable to get a run across in the top of the seventh, the Aggies loaded the bases on back-to-back singles followed by a fielding error.
With the game on the line, Shianne Brannan fired home on a ground ball to short to nail the runner going home and keep the Aggies from scoring the winning run. However, on the next play, Reedy sent a base hit through the left side that scored the game-winning run in walk-off fashion to give New Mexico State the 5-4 victory.
Ybarra finished the game with a career-high nine strikeouts in the circle and was 2-for-3 at the plate with two RBIs and a run scored.
The Judi Garman Classic is littered with ranked teams and tough opponents. However, Cal State Fullerton will only face one ranked opponent in No. 19/17 Arizona State this weekend.
On the year, the Titans will face several ranked opponents in No. 4 Alabama, No. 9 Georgia, No. 12 Florida State, No. 13 UCLA, No. 14 Oklahoma, No. 19 Arizona State and No. 22 Fresno State during a very competitive schedule.
The Titans will also go up against Mississippi State and Long Beach State which are receiving votes.
Head coach Kelly Ford recorded her 100th win at the helm of the Cal State Fullerton softball program against Santa Clara on Feb. 19. Ford now owns 104 victories and looks to finish off the Judi Garman Classic with 109.
One of the premier mid-season collegiate softball tournaments, hosted by Cal State Fullerton, is named for the Titans' first-ever head coach, Judi Garman.
Coach Garman built the Titan softball program from the ground up and was the nation's winningest collegiate coach when she retired after the 1999 season with a 913-376-4 (.708) record in 20 seasons. She was inducted into the Cal State Fullerton Hall of Fame in 2007 and was inducted into the National Softball Coaches Hall of Fame in 1993.
Under her guidance, the Titans advanced to postseason play in each of their first 17 seasons and made eight appearances in the national finals, winning the Women's College World Series in 1986.
Freshman right-hander Sydney Golden continues to work her magic in the circle as she is 5-1 on the year and has pitched two complete games and one shutout. Her five winsare good for fourth the Big West Conference. The Riverside, Calif., native owns a 2.72 ERA, which is good for sixth in the conference.
Senior centerfielder Courtney Rodriguez has been swift on the base paths this season as she has stolen nine bases in 10 attempts thus far. Rodriguez is tied for third in the Big West Conference with nine stolen bases on the year.
Junior catcher Alexis Gonzalez belted two home runs on the final day of the Santa Clara Bronco Classic. The Convina, Calif., native blasted a two-run shot over the leftfield fence in the first inning of Fullerton's game against Seattle. She came back in the nightcap and crushed a three-run homer to left in the seventh inning in the Titans' game versus the Broncos.
In 15 games thus far, the Titans' defense has turned six double plays. Three of those came in Fullerton's 10-0 win over Santa Clara. Their six DP's rank second in the Big West Conference.
Cal State Fullerton has made the most of scoring early in games. When the Titans score first, they are 9-0 on the year. Additionally, Fullerton is 7-0 when it scores in the first inning. Fullerton has scored the majority of its runs in the first this season. The Titans have scored 30 percent of their runs in the first frame and are out-scoring opponents 27-8 in the first.
After 15 games played, Cal State Fullerton is undefeated when leading after the fifth inning. The Titans have won five of their nine victories holding onto a lead after the fifth inning.
The Titans were one of the most prolific offenses in the league a year ago as they ranked second in the Big West in runs (278), hits (465), doubles (71), triples (12), total bases (638), walks (170) and stolen bases (49).
Cal State Fullerton did not waste any time showing off its hot bats as the Titans are out-scoring their opponents 90-58 while batting .322 with a slugging percentage of .433.
Three-time All-American Missy Taukeiaho was selected as one of 50 student-athletes on the "Watch List" for the 2016 USA Collegiate Softball Player of the Year award. The is the second straight year she has been selected to the "Watch List."
This season the senior third baseman is boasts a .367 batting average and a .592 slugging percentage. She has scored 12 runs, drove in five, roped eight double and belted one homer, while drawing nine walks on the season.
Cal State Fullerton has gone through a pair of catchers in just 15 games this season. Junior catcher Kylie Padilla was injured during the season-opening weekend on a bang-bang play at the plate.
In her absence, junior catcher Alexis Gonzalez had been suiting up behind the plate. However, in the game against BYU, Gonzalez left early due to an injury.
As a team, Cal State Fullerton is hitting almost .500 with the bases loaded. The Titans are 7-for-15 this season with bases full. Brooke Clemetson, Alexis Gonzalez and Melissa Sechrest are all 1-for-1 in that situation, while Delynn Rippy is 2-for-3 and Sarah Moore and Samantha Vandiver are 1-for-2 with bases full of Titans.
The Titans have a pair of Ybarra's on the team in senior left-handed pitcher Desiree Ybarra and sophomore infielder Bryanna Ybarra. Desiree sports jersey No. 15, while Bryanna wears No. 16. With the same last name and consecutive jersey numbers, you'd think the duo are sisters - they're not.
Following the Judi Garman Classic, Cal State Fullerton hosts No. 12 Florida State on Tuesday, March 8 at 6 p.m.
After their battle with the nationally ranked Seminoles, the Titans continue tournament action at the Long Beach State Tournament.
The tourney runs from Friday, March 11 through Sunday, March 13. The Titans will take on Utah Valley (March 11), Mississippi State (March 12 and 13), Princeton (March 12) and Iowa State (March 13).