Bears Set For Duels In The Desert

BERKELEY -- California softball returns to the field for the second weekend of action, heading to the desert and Farrington Stadium for a five-game set at the Littlewood Classic in Tempe, Arizona.           

The Golden Bears start the week with an 8 a.m. PT first pitch on Friday, Feb. 18 against Illinois State, followed by a 1 p.m. PT matchup with Portland State to round out day one. Cal faces the Vikings for the second straight game at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 19, the only game of the day. The second weekend wraps up with two games on Sunday, Feb. 20, starting with a 9:30 a.m. PT game against 2021 NCAA Regional finalist Minnesota and a 12 noon PT first pitch with UTEP.

WEEKEND LINEUP

• Teams: Cal (4-1) vs. Illinois State (0-4), Portland State (4-1), Minnesota (3-2) and UTEP (4-2)
• Location: Farrington Stadium, Tempe, Ariz.
• First pitch: Friday: 8 a.m. PT • 1 p.m. PT | Saturday: 10:30 a.m. PT | Sunday: 9:30 a.m. PT • 12 p.m. PT

 HOW TO FOLLOW

• Illinois State: Live Stats | Live Stream: N/A
• Portland State (Game 1): Live Stats | Live Stream: N/A
• Portland State (Game 2): Live Stats | Live Stream: N/A
• Minnesota: Live Stats | Live Stream: N/A
• UTEP: Live Stats | Live Stream: N/A

 QUICK HITS

• Cal got off to a strong start last week at the Easton Classic in Fullerton, winning four of five games on the slate, including a 7-3 win over the host Titans.
• Offense came early and often for the Bears in Fullerton as they put up 22 combined runs in two victories on opening day.
• Leadoff hitter Tatum Anzaldo led the offensive onslaught over the weekend, tallying a .556 batting average (10-for-18) with six runs scored, four RBI and a home run.
• Catcher Makena Smith also had a strong start to the season, recording seven hits in 14 at-bats, along with four RBI, four runs scored, five walks and a home run. Alexis Bishop tagged two home runs, one of them a grand slam and she's tied for fourth in the Pac-12 with eight RBI after the opening weekend.
• Pitching got stronger as the weekend went on for California as the staff gave up just five combined runs over the last three games. Freshman Anna Reimers earned a tough loss in the 1-0 defeat to Ole Miss, going six innings while giving up just one earned run on five hits allowed. Sophomore Haylei Archer kept the momentum going in the circle later that day, holding a strong offense in Cal State Fullerton to three runs on five hits in a complete game effort. Finishing the weekend, freshman Annabel Teperson went eight full innings and gave up just one unearned run on three hits against Colorado State, giving way to sophomore Sona Halajian in the ninth as she got the win after throwing a clean inning with a strikeout.

STAY POSTED
For coverage of Cal softball, please follow the Bears on Twitter (@CalSB), Instagram (@calsb) and Facebook (/CalSoftball/).