The Bear Cubs improved to 28-11 and 13-8 in conference after an 8-0 shutout win against Diablo Valley College April 22.
The Bear Cubs clinched a playoff berth with the victory and are in position to host a playoff game or play away.
SRJC sent out starting pitcher Dana Thomsen and she responded with three shutout innings, allowing only one hit. The Bear Cubs’ pitching staff combined to throw a one- hitter.
“Dana is now healthy. She has been on fire lately; our 1-2 punch is now back with her and Megan Winters,” said coach Phil Wright about Thomsen’s return from injury.
The bleachers were packed and loud all game long under sunny skies for the Bear Cubs.
Krissy Pardoski, Samantha Bartee, and Winters combined to go 7-9 with one home run, two doubles and six RBIs.
Pardoski, the leadoff hitter, has a .462 batting average since the turn of conference play. She kept it up against DVC, going 2-3 with a RBI and a walk.
“She has been great for us. She is going to be a first team all-conference,” Wright said.
SRJC picked up ten more hits than DVC (11-1) and played clean defense, not recording a single error.
Winters had a good day at the plate, going 3-3 with two deep doubles.
“I have been working on my pitch selection and I think that has helped me get a more hittable pitch,” Winters said. “I prefer hitting cleanup. It puts added pressure to get on base and drive in runs.”
SRJC finished the season on a high note, winning four straight games to close out the regular season.
“The big thing with us, is that we are finally healthy. We went through a stretch there where we didn’t have a lot of our key players and we are finally showing our best team,” Wright said.
The Bear Cubs had to mix and match the lineup all season long to find the best possible combination to win games.
“We found some really good players through that process like Courtie Morton and a true diamond from the sky when we got Allie Coirds two days before the season started from Colorado,” Wright said. “You can never predict what is going to happen; you have to play it out and figure out what works and what doesn’t.”
The playoffs start May 2-3 for the Bear Cubs.
