Northridge Rallies to Win Softball Title

Come-from-behind victories were the rule of the day for the Cal State Northridge softball team Saturday.

First, the Matadors came back from a 6-2 deficit to beat Michigan State, 10-6, in the semifinals of the Cal State Northridge tournament, then they overcame a two-run deficit in the late innings to beat UC Santa Barbara, 5-2, in the championship game.

Facing such deficits might evoke fear in some teams. But Northridge Coach Gary Torgeson said the 20th-ranked Matadors (30-17-1) have too much confidence and talent to give up.

“I didn’t see any panic in them at all,” Torgeson said. “There wasn’t any worry. This team is so confident.”

With the Matadors trailing, 2-0, against Santa Barbara (10-10) in the fifth inning of the final, Missy Cress lined a two-out single to left field to score Jen Fleming and Denise Swank and tie the score, 2-2.

Cress, who is batting a team-high .400 with runners in scoring position, has prospered in pressure situations by focusing on making contact.

“I was just trying to relax and hit the ball hard,” Cress said. “You can’t think about hitting people in, or you’re going to screw up.”

In the sixth, Swank tripled down the right-field line to score Nicole Wiggins and pinch-runner Michelle McDonald and give the Matadors a 4-2 lead. Beth Calcante followed with a line-drive single to left field to drive in Swank.

Against Michigan State (1-6), Calcante hit two home runs, a feat that had never been done at Northridge. The homers were her eighth and ninth of the season. Calcante, just a sophomore, already holds the CSUN season and career (12) records for home runs.

“By the time she’s through, she’s going to rewrite a lot of records,” Torgeson said.

After 210-foot home runs in her first two at-bats, Calcante tripled in her final trip against Michigan State and finished with six runs batted in, equaling a school record for RBIs in a game set by Leslie Barrett in 1982.

It was a coming-out party of sorts for Calcante, who had only one hit in 15 at-bats in the tournament before the Michigan State game.

“That’s what I’m saying about this team,” Torgeson said. “They don’t go in the tank completely. Somebody always steps up and we come back. That’s the trait of a championship team.”

Against Santa Barbara, freshman right-hander Kathy Blake (17-3) gave up six hits and struck out four while picking up her eighth consecutive victory.

CSUN has won 10 of 11 games this week.