Riverside—The UC Riverside Softball Team gears up to host Long Beach State in its Big West home opener beginning with a single game Friday, April 3 at 3 pm PT. The three-game series will wrap up Saturday, April 4 with a double-header slated for a 12 pm start.
The Highlanders head into the weekend 29-9, after opening conference play with a 2-1 series loss to Hawai'i. UC Riverside took the first game of the series, 2-1 for its first win in a Big West opener since 2010 and snapped a 13-game losing streak to the Rainbow Wahine (
box score/
recap).
Chelsea Ponce started on the mound over all three games for the Highlanders, moving her record to 21-5 on the season and a 1.11 ERA. She continues to lead the nation and the Big West in victories.
Leading the way in the batter's box for the blue and gold is sophomore Haley Harris batting .387 with 46 hits and a .431 on base percentage. Her 10 stolen bases place her in a three-way tie for third in the conference. Bringing in the most runs for the Highlanders is Rebecca Faulkner with 29 RBI, ranking fifth in the Big West. Faulkner also leads the squad in home runs, blasting five so far this season.
The 49ers' offense is spearheaded by Shayna Kimbrough and sisters, Lauren and Julia Lombardi. Kimbrough boasts and .390 batting average with 39 hits and the Lombardi sisters combine for a total 69 hits, 31 runs scored, 11 home runs, and 57 RBI.
| Projected Highlanders Lineup |
| (By Position) |
| Pos | # | Name | Yr | B/T | Avg | OBP | SLG | H | RBI |
| C | 4 | Chelsey Holley | Fr. | R/R | .206 | .257 | .333 | 13 | 11 |
| 1B | 27 | Rebecca Faulkner | Fr. | R/L | .333 | .407 | .559 | 34 | 29 |
| 2B | 15 | Haley Harris | So. | R/R | .387 | .431 | .513 | 46 | 16 |
| 3B | 8 | Taylor Wright | Sr. | R/R | .305 | .385 | .347 | 29 | 8 |
| SS | 10 | Kris DeAnda | Sr. | R/R | .316 | .385 | .367 | 31 | 15 |
| RF | 2 | Karina Romero | So. | R/R | .333 | .377 | .396 | 37 | 13 |
| CF | 19 | Jenna Curtan | Fr. | L/L | .336 | .444 | .420 | 40 | 11 |
| LF | 6 | Stephanie Tickemyer | So. | R/R | .250 | .337 | .278 | 18 | 8 |
| DP | 25 | Erika Campbell | Jr. | L/L | .250 | .326 | .286 | 21 | 10 |
GAME NOTESAND THEY'RE OFFAt 29-9 overall the Highlanders are off to their best start in the program's Division I-era, topping the previous single-season win record of 25 set by the 2012 squad.
FOR IT'S 1, 2, 3 STRIKES YOU'RE OUTFive games into the 2015 season and Chelsea Ponce was already etching her name in the UCR softball record books, recording the most strike outs in a single game in the program's Division I-era. In the Highlanders 3-1 victory over Seattle on Feb. 8, 2015, Ponce threw all seven frames, recording 13 strike outs and passing the previous single-game record of 11 held by Stephanie Marshall.
| Single-Game Strikouts |
| Strikouts | Player | Game | Date |
| 13 | Chelsea Ponce | Seattle | February 8, 2015 |
| 11 | Chelsea Ponce | Fairleigh Dickinson | March 20, 2015 |
| 11 | Stephanie Marshall | @ UC Davis | April 9, 2006 |
| 10 | Christin Songer | Pacific | April 12, 2008 |
| 10 | Jordyn McDonald | CSU Bakersfield | March 28, 2012 |
| 9 | Marissa Alvidrez | Southern Illinois | February, 7, 2009 |
| 9 | Stephanie Marshall | San Jose State | February 10, 2007 |
| 9 | Alyssa Razo | vs. Southern Utah | February 16, 2014 |
| 9 | Chelsea Ponce | Pacific | February 6, 2015 |
CLIMBING THE CHARTSPitching in 30 games so far this season, Chelsea Ponce has already recorded 21 wins with 18 games remaining. Her 21 victories lead the nation for most wins for games through March 29.
| UCR Single-Season Wins |
| Wins | Player | Season |
| 21 | Chelsea Ponce | 2015 |
| 15 | Marissa Alvidrez | 2010 |
| 13 | Alyssa Razo | 2014 |
| 13 | Stephanie Marshall | 2006 |
| 10 | Christin Songer | 2008 |
| 10 | Jordyn McDonald | 2012 |
| 2015 NCAA Division I Victories |
| Wins | Player | School |
| 21 | Chelsea Ponce | UCR |
| 21 | Erica Romero | San Diego State |
| 20 | Lacey Waldrop | Florida State |
| 20 | Jordan Dixon | Marshall |
| 19 | Kylee Studioso | Central Arkansas |
| 19 | Mckenna Bull | BYU |
| 18 | Krista Menke | North Dakota State |
| 18 | Alicia Pille | Kansas |
| 18 | Sara Groenewegan | Minnesota |
| 18 | Alexis Silkwood | Mississippi State |
GOING, GOING GONEIn the Highlanders' 10-2 rout against Sand Diego on the final day of the Amy S. Harrison Classic, catcher Natalie Sanchez blasted back-to-back home runs, both sailing over the fence in left-center.
Sanchez is the first Highlander to hit two home runs in a single game since Kaylie Atkinson smashed two at Cal State Fullerton on April 22, 2012.
EXTRA FRAMESWhile competing in the Fresno State Kick-Off Feb. 13-15, the Highlanders were victorious, 7-6, in a four-hour, 13-inning battle against Sacramento State. That is a tie for the second-most innings pitched in a single game during the program's Division I-era. In 2010 UC Riverside topped Pacific 4-3 in the second game of the day's double-header.
The most innings pitched by a Highlander team was in 2002, when UC Riverside went back-and-forth with Cal Poly in a 14 inning dual that ended with the blue and gold on top, 1-0
.SAVED!Just 20 games into the season freshman Rebecca Faulkner recorded her fourth save in a 2-1 victory over UT-Arlington.
During the Amy S. Harrison Classic, Faulkner took over for Chelsea Ponce against Michigan State, recording her third save in a 9-2 win and breaking the Highlanders' single-season record for most saves.
| Single-Season Saves |
| Saves | Player | Season |
| 4 | Rebecca Faulkner | 2015 |
| 3 | Tayler Misfeldt | 2015 |
| 2 | Taylor Alvarez | 2013 |
| 2 | Christin Songer | 2005 |
| 2 | Marissa Alvidrez | 2008 |
CONNECTIONSIf the Highlanders maintain their current team batting average of .299 throughout the season, they will break the program's Division I-era record of .281 set by the 2012 squad.
CATCH ME IF YOU CANThe Highlanders stole 90 bases during the 2013 season, setting the program Division I record in the process. UCR ended the season ranked 28th in the nation in stolen bases per game, with graduated senior Ariel Shore ranking 58th individually in that category, and Dionne Anderson ranking 77th.
In 2014, Anderson set the program's Division I mark for most stolen bases in a single-season when she stole her 27th base in just the 27th game of the year on March 12 against Fairleigh Dickinson. She also topped Shore as the program's Division I leader in career stolen bases, and finishing her career with 86. The all-time program record for career stolen bases is 107, set by Deanna Dresman from 1988-91. The Highlanders recorded 77 stolen bases in 51 games, with Anderson's 47 leading the team. Anderson also ranked second in the nation in that category, while the team was 35th.
Anderson also broke the Big West Conference single-season record for stolen bases, and is second on the all-time league charts for career stolen bases.
Through 35 games this season the Highlanders are 31-for-40 in stolen base attempts.
BREAKING RECORDSUCR finished the 2012 season with a 25-28 overall record, setting a program Division I mark for most wins in a season and for best winning percentage. The Highlanders notched 23 wins in 2014, giving them the second-most wins in the program's Division I era. With 25 games left in the season, UCR has already matched 23 wins and has a large chance to at least tie the record at the LMU Invitational.
| Best Winning Pct. (DI) |
| .763 | 2015 |
| .472 | 2012 |
| .449 | 2006 |
| .426 | 2014 |
| Most Wins (DI) |
| 29 x | 2015 |
| 25 | 2012 |
| 23 | 2014 |
| 22 | 2006 |
| 22 | 2010 |
JUST KEEP SWINGING, JUST KEEP SWINGINGThrough 38 games this season the Highlanders have recorded 10 or more hits in 15 games, breaking the previous single-season record of most games with double-digit hits (13) previously held by the 2012 team.
This season, the team has 299 total hits with 18 games remaining. The 2012 squad currently holds the single-season record for most hits with 378. Should the Highlanders maintain their performance in the batter's box, they are projected to finished out the 56-game season with 440 hits.
TAKENThe Highlanders won their first Big West series of the 2014 season April 12-13 at Cal State Fullerton by taking two of three games—the first series win since April 27-28, 2013 against Cal Poly.
This season, the Highlanders kicked off conference play with a win over Hawai'i, 2-1. It is the first time the blue and gold has won a Big West opener since 2010.
