Buckeyes Will Meet Cal State Fullerton Sunday for Right to Go to Super Regionals – Ohio State Buckeyes
5/19/2007 12:00:00 AM | Softball
May 19, 2007
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Senior Candace Baker tossed a four-hit shutout and hit a solo home run for the game’s only score to send Cal State Fullerton past No. 13 Virginia Tech, 1-0, Saturday and to a date with Ohio State at 1 p.m. Sunday at Buckeye Field with a trip to the NCAA Softball Super Regionals on the line. Fullerton has to beat the Buckeyes twice Sunday to win the regional, while one win for Ohio State, which is 21-0 at home this season, would give the Buckeyes a spot in its first NCAA Super Regional in program history.
If fourth-ranked Arizona, which is the championship’s top seed, wins its regional, the winner of the Ohio State regional will travel to Tucson next weekend for a three-game series with the defending national champions. The host Wildcats defeated Howard 9-0 Friday and Mississippi State 8-0 Saturday to advance to Sunday.
Friday night, Baker pitched a one-hitter against Ohio State, but the Buckeyes scored two unearned runs and OSU senior Jamee Juarez (La Puente, Calif./Wilson) held the Titans to only two hits as Ohio State won, 2-1. In the loser’s bracket Saturday, Fullerton thumped Canisius 8-0 in five innings then eliminated the Hokies to advance to face Ohio State Sunday. After beating Canisius 5-0 Friday, Virginia Tech lost twice Saturday (lost 2-1 to Ohio State in the first game) to see its season come to an end.
Cal State Fullerton leads the all-time series with Ohio State, 15-5, but Friday night’s game marked the Titans’ first game at Buckeye Field after eight of the last nine meetings had come at Fullerton, which is a customary stop on Ohio State’s spring break trip in March. That included this season when the Buckeyes dropped a 5-4 contest in extra innings. Fullerton has made six trips to the Women’s College World Series and owns one national championship (1986).
### Go Bucks! ###
