Saturday, May 1
Davis, CA
12:00 PM
UC Riverside
at
UC Davis
Photo by: Bobby R. Hester, (c) 2010
Softball Heads North To UC Davis As Conference Play Hits Midway Point
4/27/2010 12:52:35 PM | Softball
The UC Riverside softball team enters the second half of Big West play in a tightly contested race for first place in the standings. Cal Poly is the current league leader with a record of 9-3, while Cal State Northridge and UC Davis are second at 8-4, and the Highlanders are fourth at 7-5.
UCR will face off against a top team this weekend as they travel to UC Davis for a three-game series at La Rue Field beginning with a doubleheader at noon on Saturday, May. 1. The series concludes with a single game on Sunday, May 2 at 12:00 pm. Live stats for all three games may be found at UCD's site.
GAME NOTES
CONFERENCE STARTS
The Highlanders' 7-5 start in Big West Conference play is their best-ever start in the Division I history of the program.
RECORD SETTERS
Last season UC Riverside won its sixth conference game of the year on April 19, 2009 against UC Davis, and with that win, the Highlanders set a new school mark for most conference victories. The Highlanders finished the 2009 season with seven Big West wins. With nine games remaining in the 2010 season, UCR has already tied the Division I mark for most league wins with seven.
UCR Top 3 DI Big West Winning Percentages
MOST TEAM WINS
The Highlanders tied the Division I mark for most wins in a season with 22, originally set during the 2006 season.
UCR Top 3 DI Overall Team Wins
UCR Top 3 DI Overall Winning Percentages
WINNING ON THE MOUND
Alvidrez has 15 wins to her credit in the circle for the Highlanders in the 2010 season, becoming the UCR Division I leader in single-season wins.
Most Wins, UCR D1 Single-Season
MOST CONFERENCE SERIES WINS IN A SEASON
To open conference play in 2010, the Highlanders won series against Cal Poly, Cal State Fullerton, and UC Santa Barbara by winning two of three games in each set. The team's three series wins are the most in one season in the Division I era of the program.
UCR's series wins against the Titans and Gauchos are also the first-ever series wins against those teams in DI history, while the series victory over the Mustangs was the first since the 2003 season.
CATCH ME IF YOU CAN
Freshman Ariel Shore currently paces the Big West Conference with 21 stolen bases and 22 attempts. Her 21 stolen bases are first in UCR Division I history for most single-season stolen bases, and places her fourth all-time in single-season stolen bases. She already ranks fifth all-time on the career charts and third in the Division I career record books.
SHUTOUT AND SHUT DOWN
UC Riverside shutout Cal Poly 10-0 on Apr. 9 to open Big West play—the largest shutout in conference play recorded in the Highlanders Division I history.
POUNDING OUT THE HITS
UC Riverside pounded out 16 hits against Cal Poly on Apr. 9, tying the school record for most hits in a game in its DI history.
PITCHER OF THE WEEK
UC Riverside softball player Marissa Alvidrez earned Big West Pitcher of the Week honors on Apr. 5 after going 2-0 with a 0.0 ERA. The senior from Bakersfield, CA pitched two consecutive shutouts for the Highlanders in their conference-opening series at 2009 defending league champion Cal Poly.
Alvidrez pitched all seven innings and allowed just two hits in UCR's 10-0 win in game one, and followed that up by scattering four hits in seven innings for a 5-0 victory to conclude the series. She also pitched three innings of relief in UCR's 3-2 loss to the Mustangs in the second game of the set.
CONFERENCE LEADERS
As a team, the Highlanders are leading the Big West Conference in doubles, at bats, and stolen bases. Individually, Alexis Pickett, Brittany Keeney, and Taylor Thomas are all tied with 11 doubles to lead the league, Shore is tops with 21 stolen bases and 22 steal attempts, Kameryn Hebenton leads in total plate appearances, and Alvidrez leads in innings pitched and wins.
GONE STREAKING
UCR won five straight games from Mar. 14-23—the longest such streak of the season, and the longest in the Highlanders Division I history.
BLEEDING CRIMSON
The Highlanders defeated the Harvard Crimson 11-1 in five innings on Mar. 14 for their first win in five since a 14-6 defeat of Longwood on Mar. 13, 2009. The 11 runs scored is the most runs UCR has scored all season and the most since they scored 14 against Longwood in 2009.
DID U C L A LOSE?
The Highlanders upset the No. 5 team in the nation on March 3 with their 3-2 victory over UCLA. That win marked the first victory over a ranked opponent in the program's Division I history.
GETTING IT DONE FROM THE CIRCLE AND THE BOX
Marissa Alvidrez pitched a complete game and picked up the win for the Highlanders in their 3-2 upset of #5 UCLA on Mar. 3. She also drove in the go-ahead run in the bottom of the third inning to lift UCR to victory.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
UC Riverside utility player Brittany Keeney earned her first-ever Big West Conference Softball Player of the Week award as announced on Monday, Feb. 15 by the Big West office. Keeney helped the Highlanders to a 2-2 opening weekend with wins against Boise State and San Diego.
For the week she batted .500 and posted a .857 slugging percentage and a .500 on base percentage. She totaled one run, seven hits, 11 RBI, one walk, two doubles, and one home run for the week, while committing zero errors in the field.
STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE
The Highlanders play 17 games in 2010 against teams that reached the 2009 NCAA Tournament, with six of those teams currently ranked or receiving votes in the latest national polls.
UCR will face off against a top team this weekend as they travel to UC Davis for a three-game series at La Rue Field beginning with a doubleheader at noon on Saturday, May. 1. The series concludes with a single game on Sunday, May 2 at 12:00 pm. Live stats for all three games may be found at UCD's site.
| Highlanders at UC Davis Game Capsule | |||||||||
| UC Riverside |
UC Davis |
||||||||
| 2009 Record & stats |
18-32 |
22-32 |
|||||||
| 2010 Record & stats |
22-23, 7-5 |
19-25, 8-4 | |||||||
| 2010 Schedule |
2010 Schedule |
||||||||
| 2010 Roster |
2010 Roster |
||||||||
| Conference | Big West | ||||||||
| Current Streak | L 1 |
W 1 |
|||||||
| Last Box Score |
L, 6-4 vs Pacific |
W, 3-1 vs Pacific |
|||||||
| Next Opponent | 5/8 vs CSUN |
5/8 at Cal Poly | |||||||
| Top Hitter |  Alvidrez Senior .321 avg. |
 Fan Sophomore .329 avg. |
|||||||
| Top Pitcher | Alvidrez Senior 3.28 ERA |
 Holmes Junior 3.14 |
|||||||
| D1 Record Against | 5-11 | ||||||||
| D1 Current Streak Against | W 2 | ||||||||
| Projected Highlanders Lineup | |||||||||
| (By Position) | |||||||||
| Pos | # | Name | Yr | B/T | Avg | OBP | SLG | H | RBI |
| C | 6 |
Alexis Pickett |
Fr |
L/R |
.315 |
.418 | .467 |
29 | 16 |
| 1B | 9 |
Brittany Keeney |
So |
R/R | .292 | .359 | .508 | 38 |
29 |
| 2B | 8 |
Taylor Thomas |
Jr |
R/R |
.288 |
.371 |
.394 |
38 | 25 |
| SS | 1 |
Kameryn Hebenton |
Jr |
R/R |
.252 |
.346 |
.324 |
35 |
11 |
| 3B | 11 |
Brooke Hebenton |
Jr |
R/R |
.198 |
.278 |
.297 |
20 |
12 |
| LF | 5 |
Alexis Villamor |
Fr |
R/R |
.256 | .273 | .302 | 22 | 11 |
| CF | 4 |
Kayla White |
Fr |
R/R |
.185 | .255 | .250 | 17 | 4 |
| RF | 7 |
Ariel Shore | Fr |
R/R |
.275 |
.336 |
.283 |
33 |
2 |
| DP | 12 | Marissa Alvidrez | Sr | R/R | .321 |
.426 |
.459 |
35 |
21 |
GAME NOTES
CONFERENCE STARTS
The Highlanders' 7-5 start in Big West Conference play is their best-ever start in the Division I history of the program.
RECORD SETTERS
Last season UC Riverside won its sixth conference game of the year on April 19, 2009 against UC Davis, and with that win, the Highlanders set a new school mark for most conference victories. The Highlanders finished the 2009 season with seven Big West wins. With nine games remaining in the 2010 season, UCR has already tied the Division I mark for most league wins with seven.
UCR Top 3 DI Big West Winning Percentages
| W | L | Pct | |
| 2010 | 7 | 5 |
.583 |
| 2009 | 7 | 14 | .333 |
| 2008 | 5 | 16 | .238 |
MOST TEAM WINS
The Highlanders tied the Division I mark for most wins in a season with 22, originally set during the 2006 season.
UCR Top 3 DI Overall Team Wins
| Year | W |
| 2006 | 22 |
| 2010 | 22 |
| 2008 | 19 |
UCR Top 3 DI Overall Winning Percentages
| W | L | Pct. | |
| 2010 | 22 | 23 | .489 |
| 2006 | 22 | 27 | .449 |
| 2008 | 19 | 37 | .339 |
WINNING ON THE MOUND
Alvidrez has 15 wins to her credit in the circle for the Highlanders in the 2010 season, becoming the UCR Division I leader in single-season wins.
Most Wins, UCR D1 Single-Season
| Player | Year | W | |
| 1. | Marissa Alvidrez | 2010 | 15 |
| 2. | Stephanie Marshall | 2006 | 13 |
| 3. | Christin Songer | 2008 | 10 |
MOST CONFERENCE SERIES WINS IN A SEASON
To open conference play in 2010, the Highlanders won series against Cal Poly, Cal State Fullerton, and UC Santa Barbara by winning two of three games in each set. The team's three series wins are the most in one season in the Division I era of the program.
UCR's series wins against the Titans and Gauchos are also the first-ever series wins against those teams in DI history, while the series victory over the Mustangs was the first since the 2003 season.
CATCH ME IF YOU CAN
Freshman Ariel Shore currently paces the Big West Conference with 21 stolen bases and 22 attempts. Her 21 stolen bases are first in UCR Division I history for most single-season stolen bases, and places her fourth all-time in single-season stolen bases. She already ranks fifth all-time on the career charts and third in the Division I career record books.
SHUTOUT AND SHUT DOWN
UC Riverside shutout Cal Poly 10-0 on Apr. 9 to open Big West play—the largest shutout in conference play recorded in the Highlanders Division I history.
POUNDING OUT THE HITS
UC Riverside pounded out 16 hits against Cal Poly on Apr. 9, tying the school record for most hits in a game in its DI history.
PITCHER OF THE WEEK
UC Riverside softball player Marissa Alvidrez earned Big West Pitcher of the Week honors on Apr. 5 after going 2-0 with a 0.0 ERA. The senior from Bakersfield, CA pitched two consecutive shutouts for the Highlanders in their conference-opening series at 2009 defending league champion Cal Poly.
Alvidrez pitched all seven innings and allowed just two hits in UCR's 10-0 win in game one, and followed that up by scattering four hits in seven innings for a 5-0 victory to conclude the series. She also pitched three innings of relief in UCR's 3-2 loss to the Mustangs in the second game of the set.
CONFERENCE LEADERS
As a team, the Highlanders are leading the Big West Conference in doubles, at bats, and stolen bases. Individually, Alexis Pickett, Brittany Keeney, and Taylor Thomas are all tied with 11 doubles to lead the league, Shore is tops with 21 stolen bases and 22 steal attempts, Kameryn Hebenton leads in total plate appearances, and Alvidrez leads in innings pitched and wins.
GONE STREAKING
UCR won five straight games from Mar. 14-23—the longest such streak of the season, and the longest in the Highlanders Division I history.
BLEEDING CRIMSON
The Highlanders defeated the Harvard Crimson 11-1 in five innings on Mar. 14 for their first win in five since a 14-6 defeat of Longwood on Mar. 13, 2009. The 11 runs scored is the most runs UCR has scored all season and the most since they scored 14 against Longwood in 2009.
DID U C L A LOSE?
The Highlanders upset the No. 5 team in the nation on March 3 with their 3-2 victory over UCLA. That win marked the first victory over a ranked opponent in the program's Division I history.
GETTING IT DONE FROM THE CIRCLE AND THE BOX
Marissa Alvidrez pitched a complete game and picked up the win for the Highlanders in their 3-2 upset of #5 UCLA on Mar. 3. She also drove in the go-ahead run in the bottom of the third inning to lift UCR to victory.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
UC Riverside utility player Brittany Keeney earned her first-ever Big West Conference Softball Player of the Week award as announced on Monday, Feb. 15 by the Big West office. Keeney helped the Highlanders to a 2-2 opening weekend with wins against Boise State and San Diego.
For the week she batted .500 and posted a .857 slugging percentage and a .500 on base percentage. She totaled one run, seven hits, 11 RBI, one walk, two doubles, and one home run for the week, while committing zero errors in the field.
STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE
The Highlanders play 17 games in 2010 against teams that reached the 2009 NCAA Tournament, with six of those teams currently ranked or receiving votes in the latest national polls.
Thursday, May 21
Monday, May 04
Friday, May 01
Tuesday, March 24
