HAYWARD, Calif., -- The Cal State East Bay softball team will play their their final California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) series of the 2019 season with a four-game Bay Bridge Series against San Francisco State April 26 and 27 at SFSU Softball Field.
 
East Bay is 12-32 overall on the season with an 8-24 mark in league action. The Pioneers and the Gators are 19-19 in their last 38 meetings with CUSEB going 9-7 in games played at SFSU Softball Field.
 
WEEK IN REVIEW
The Cal State East Bay softball team dropped both ends of its doubleheader Friday afternoon to No. 25 ranked Chico State in the first two games of the season at Pioneer Field.
 
There was beautiful weather and a great crowd as the Pioneers made their season debut in Hayward, and they nearly pulled off a comeback in game one.
 
Junior Abby Greer gave the Pioneers a solid start in the circle, but they nonetheless found themselves trailing 3-0 midway through the fifth. Then the CSUEB bats finally started to warm up against Chico's Brooke Larsen. Hailey Davis sliced a double into the right field corner, setting up East Bay's first run to score on an infield error.
 
The Wildcats got that run back with a solo home run in the sixth, but the Pioneers answered back again. Jennifer Palmares and Maddie Ramirez both singled in the bottom of the inning, then Meghan Araneta brought them both home with a double in the left-center gap.
 
Unfortunately, the Pioneers stranded Araneta on second and were retired in order in the seventh to fall just short of the upset by a score of 4-3.
 
Game two got off to a great start as the home team struck immediately in the first inning. Singles by Emilie Portesi and Araneta and a sac fly by Ramirez were sandwiched around an error, which resulted in two CSUEB runs.
 
Chico evened the score in the third, but the Pioneers quickly re-took the lead on a pair of doubles by Palmares and Ramirez.
 
Once again, East Bay's starting pitcher gave them a solid effort as senior Taylor Lara worked into the sixth inning. Unfortunately, some defensive miscues helped the Wildcats grab control of the game as they plated five unearned runs against Lara at the end of her outing. Chico ultimately scored two in the fifth, four in the sixth, and two more in the seventh to pull away for a 10-3 win.
 
The final home game of the 2019 season was a memorable one for the Cal State East Bay softball team as they forced extra innings against No. 25 Chico State with a rally in the seventh inning before earning a walk-off win in the 10th to finish off the series against the Wildcats.
 
Chico broke out offensively in the first game of the doubleheader for a 10-5 victory, and they appeared to be headed for a four-game sweep before the Pioneers pulled off their dramatic comeback to capture the series finale.
 
The twinbill was preceded by the annual "Senior Day" ceremony to honor seniors Meghan Araneta, Kassie Kochan, Taylor Lara, Courtney Leyba, Belle Placencia, and Rachel Tadlock prior to their final collegiate home games.
 
All six seniors were in the lineup for game one, and despite the loss, the Pioneer offense had several highlights. Araneta went 2-for-3 with an RBI double, Kochan hit an opposite-field double, Placencia knocked in a run with a two-bagger, and Leyba had a hit and a run scored.
 
The star of the first game was a junior, however. Shortstop Jennifer Palmares had a great afternoon with the glove, and she was the catalyst for the CSUEB lineup as well. She ripped her first home run of the season to left in the third inning, and finished the game 3-for-4 with three runs batted in and seven total bases.
 
It was a completely difference story in game two, which ended up being much more of a pitchers' dual. Aside from a rally in the third inning when they got three runs on five hits, Chico State had very little success against CSUEB ace Abby Greer.
 
It appeared as though that three-run inning would be enough to win, however. Araneta knocked in Maddie Ramirez with East Bay's first run in the bottom of the fifth, but the home team still trailed 3-1 heading into the last inning. But instead of accepting defeat and moving on to the postgame "Senior Day" festivities, they decided to treat the crowd to a thrilling finish.
 
Leyba and Sarah Fukushima led off the seventh with singles, and then an infield error brought home CSUEB's second run. Then with one out and runners on second and third, Madi Greco shot a hard grounder that kicked off the third baseman's glove, allowing the tying run to score. The Pioneers ended up stranding a pair, unable to plate the winning run to cap off that rally.
 
Greer preceded to mow down Chico for three more innings, and the Pioneer bats finally got back to work in the 10th. A leadoff single by Emilie Portesi and another infield error by the Wildcats put two runners on, then Fukushima was hit by a pitch to load the bases. That brought up Ramirez, who lined a single right back up the middle to bring home the winning run.
 
Greer earned the complete game victory with one of the most impressive efforts of her career. She pitched all 10 innings, scattered just nine total hits, and finished the game with seven consecutive scoreless frames.
 
PIONEER POINTS
No Pioneer hitter has been hotter than Sarah Fukushima, however. Through 44 games, the junior is third in the CCAA with a .509 on-base percentage. She's also seventh in the league with a .379 batting average. Fukushima leads the Pioneers with 26 runs, 47 hits and 70 total bases with five home runs.
 
Senior Meghan Araneta and sophomore Maddie Ramirez have provided a boost this season, both hitting a team-best .329 in conference play. Araneta has 32 total hits and 22 RBI with a .536 slugging percentage and .393 on-base percentage on the season. Ramirez has 33 hits on the season with 25 RBI and 20 runs scored to go along with a .545 slugging percentage and five home runs.
 
In the circle, veteran pitcher Abby Greer leads East Bay with 66 strikeouts through 115.2 innings tossed in 23 appearences. She is tops on the Pioneers with seven wins, nine complete games and 4.60 ERA.
 
SCOUTING SAN FRANCISCO STATE
The San Francisco State Gators enter the match up with East Bay carrying a 33-16 mark on the season with a 22-13 after sweeping their doubleheader over Dominican on Monday afternoon. Brylynn Vallejos leads the league with .459 battling average, with 82 hits, 49 runs and 32 stolen bases. Karla Soto leads SF State in the circle with 16-4 record in the season with 10 complete games and 40 strikeouts. Emily Mitchell is pacing the Gators pitching staff with 100 strikeouts to go along with a 13-10 record, 13 complete games and three shutouts.