1989_04 The Daily Collegian April 1989

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Sports
California State MwvERsrry, Fresno
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 5, 1989
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Bulldogs travel to Cal Bear's
country, face grizzley rivalry
By Jennifer L. Konze
Sports Editor
The rivalry between Fresno Slate and
Cal continues today as the No. 2-ranked
Bulldog softball team travels to Berkeley
for a 2 p.m. non-conference doubleheader
with the No. 11-ranked Bears.
Cal started off the season with a
preseason ranking of fourth.
At last year's NCAA Rcgionals, Cal
look the first game or a iwo-out-of-thrce
senes wilh Fresno State. The Bulldogs
came back to take ihe doubleheader the
following day and make the trip to the
NCAA Championships.
The series between the two is close
with FSU leading 35-30.
"Its a good rivalry," said Margie
Wright, head softball coach. "It's one that
[Cal and FSU] both try to exploit one
another's weaknesses."
The Bear's had recruited the three-time
USA Player of the Year and Pan
American gold medalist left-handed
pitcher Michele Granger.
However, Granger is out for the season
wilh tenosynovitis (inflamation of the
tendon and tendon sheath) in her pitching
hand.
What they lost in Granger has been
picked up by freshman Robyn Burgess
(14-5, 0.65) and senior Erin Cassidy (10-
Burgess has racked up 11 shuious and
tcorded a no-hitter and a perfect game
She has allowed 66 hits and seven
doubles has given up one home run and
21 runs.
Cassidy   leads   Burgess   by   one   in
strikeouts, 97, and has recorded seven
shutouts. She has given up 86 hits six
doubles, one triple and 19 runs.
The veteran is no stranger to ihe
Bulldogs. It was Cassidy who went
against Carie Dever in the first game of
ihe rcgionals.
In fact, of their three meetings last year
De^er is ahead 2-3.
Dever and pitching counterpart Terry
Carpenter have been fairly even in ability
and accomplishment despite Dever's
injury earlier in the season.
On the season, Dever has compiled a 13-
1 record, 10* shutouts, 107 innings 90
strikeouts and has a 0.33 ERA.
The freshman Carpenter is 16-2, has 11
shutouts, pitched 127 2/3 innings. 70
strikeouts and an ERA of 0.66.
Offensively, the Bulldog pair are up
againsi comparable batters on the Cal
team.
Leading the top three batting brigade for
the Bears is senior catcher-first baseman
Angie Jacobs.
Jacobs a batting average of .360, six
doubles, one triple, one home run and 17
RBIs.
Following Jacobs in hilling percentage
is outfielder Marielle Vaughn. Vaughn
(.317) is dangerous once she gets on base
having gone 9-11 in stolen bases. She
also is second in doubles with five and
first in triples with three.
"The key is to keep [Vaughn] off base "
said Wright, "You can't loose sight of the
batter that's up and we can't loose sight of
what we do so well and that is execute
defense.
"If it means throwing her out at second
then it means throwing her .out at second
We have to be the ones to make the
plays. If she gets on base than we keep
her from scoring."
Rounding out the top three is third
baseman Christy Calderon. A
sophomore. Calderon is hitting .294.
"We know that Angie Jacobs and
Calderon are both real strong hitlers and
that we have to throw our best stuff
against them," said WrighL
Fresno State has nine players hitting
.248 and above.
Leading ihe Bulldogs in offense are
shortstop Martha Noffsinger and
outfielder RaeAnn Pifferini with
respective 363 and .339 averages.
Noffsinger and Pifferini share the same
number of hits (41), doubles (2), triples
(1) and are 3-for-5 and 5-for-6 in stolen
bases, respectively.
They are one-two in runs wiih
Noffsinger at 24 and Pifferini at 23.
FSU second baseman Kathy Mayer and
third baseman-designated player Gina
LoPiccolo are threats three and four for
the Bears,
LoPiccolo. and Mayer are one-two in
RBIs, 17 and 16, as well as accounting
for 10 and nine doubles each
respectively.
They are three and four on the team for
hits with Mayer at 34 and LoPiccolo at
29. LoPiccolo has a home ran to her
crediL
NOTE—Oever shares a shutout (6-0
over New Mexico State) with Carol
Taniguchi. She also bettered the
consecutive innings without an earned
run mark (73) by aM inning margin.
Bennett
sights
corner
Visiting 'Stangs
take 14-4 loss
By Mark Garcia  i
Sports Writer
After impressive victories over Long
Beach State last weekend, Fresno Slate
Head Coach Bob Bennett mentioned that
the team was ready to" "turn the comer for
the rest of the season."
However, inconsistency and sloppy
play reared its ugly head Tuesday night
despite a 14^ rout over the Cal-Poly San
Luis Obispo Mustangs.
"Wc moved back to the comer," said
Bennett. "On the surface it was a big win
because we scored a lot of runs, but you
still have to look at things internally
lhat goes on in a ball game and we were
much too sloppy."
"Tonight we had a number of people
get two or three hits. What you hate to '
see is in between those two or three hits
is two or three times at bat that are bad.
That's what breeds inconsistency."
"Tonight we didn't take enough steps
to turn the comer," said right fielder Steve
Hosey, "you couldn't tell by the score but
there are things we need to concentrate on
so we can carry it over to the next game
and league."
Thingslikc poor at-bats, and erraBluT
played a pie in Tuesday nighi's'garne
But the Bulldogs did have their
highlights. One of those highlights was a
fifth-inning single by Tom Goodwin to
extend his hitting streak to 24 games one
shy of the school record.
Another was the pitching of Ranbir
Grcwal who, in his first career start as a
Bulldog, gave up only two runs, one of
them earned, and five hits in 4 2/3
innings. Combine that with an
impressive relief performance Saturday
against Long Beach State and suddenly
Grcwal is in the running for the third
starting spot in the rotation.
This definitely helps him," said
BennetL "All he needs is innings because
he is a good pitcher. •
"I wanted him to pitch nine innings
and I wanted him lo be really strong
because, in doing that, he would-
challenge somebody for that third spot I
want somebody lo step-up and challenge
somebody else for that starting position "
The biggest highlight of the night was
fcieve Lozano's first career triple with the
bases loaded in the fifth off losing pitcher
Greg Paxion (4-2). The triple opened the
lloodgates to four more runs in the innine
to give FSU a comfortable 10-2 lead.
The Bulldogs, 23-12, added two more
nms m the sixth, on RBI singles by
Chris Falco and Terance Frazier, and two
more in the seventh, on a home run by
Mike Burton, to finish the scoring.
Steve Hosey, who went 4-for-10 in the
sencs against Long Beacht exttnded his
tatting streak to 11 games as he went 4-
tor-5 with two runs scored. *
Burton went 2-for-4 with three RBI's
and Sieve Vondran, the team leader in
bating   at   .443,   continued   his   torrid
hitting streak going 2-foM.
Ken Baker, 3-1. came in relief in^jh*
Sec SIGHTS, page 7