Cal Poly Softball dropped two of its three matchups with CSU Northridge to begin Big West play on Saturday, March 18 and Sunday, March 19 at Bob Janssen Field.
The Mustangs (8-10, 1-2 Big West) and the Matadors (10-13, 2-1 Big West) were each playing in their first games of the conference season.
Saturday Game One
Cal Poly dropped the opening game of the weekend by a score of 5-0.
After a scoreless first inning, CSUN struck in the top of the second with an RBI double to take a 1-0 lead.
Neither team could muster up a run for the next inning and a half, but the Matadors extended their lead in the fourth with an RBI sacrifice fly, making it 2-0.
CSUN blew the game open in the top of the sixth with a three-run homer to bring the lead to 5-0.
The Mustangs managed just one hit in the contest, and freshman righthander Sophia Ramuno (5-5) was hit with the loss in the circle.
Saturday Game Two
The second game of Saturday’s doubleheader was headlined by pitching dominance from freshman righty Ally Robbins, who led Cal Poly to a 1-0 win.
The lone run of the game came in the first inning when junior infielder Juju Sargent drove home sophomore outfielder Jessica Clements on an RBI double.
From there it was all Robbins, battling through jams and leaving runners stranded in the fourth and sixth innings,
It was a complete-game shutout for Robbins (1-1), allowing four hits and striking out four in seven scoreless innings.
Sunday
In the final game of the series, Cal Poly fell 2-1 to the Matadors.
Ramuno was impressive in the circle despite the loss, matching a career-high of eight strikeouts while allowing just three hits through the game’s seven innings.
In fact, both Ramuno and the CSUN pitching staff held the game scoreless going into the final inning.
In the seventh, the Matadors broke the scoreless tie with a two-run home run to go up 2-0 heading into the Mustang half of the inning.
Cal Poly made an effort to rally back, but only managed one run on an RBI double from Clements.
The Mustangs continue Big West play with a three-game series against UC Riverside beginning on Saturday, March 25 at Amy S. Harrison Field.