Nicole Camarena drove in six runs with a home run, double and single Wednesday as Cal State San Bernardino shocked top-seeded Humboldt State, 10-1, in the first round of the NCAA Division II West Region Softball Tournament.
The Coyotes, 35-30-1, advance to the second round in the winner's bracket of the double elimination tournament to face Cal State Dominguez Hills, a 6-4 winner over UC San Diego. The game will be played at 4:30 p.m. today
The Coyotes jumped on Humboldt State ace pitcher Lizzie Prescott (38-11) for seven of their 10 runs in a game that ended in the sixth inning via the eight-run mercy rule.
Debbie Shisler, who pitched three innings of one-hit ball to start the game, earned her sixth win of the season for CSUSB against six losses.
The Lumberjacks (47-18) will face UC San Diego in an elimination game at 11:30 a.m. today.
Ironically, it was the Coyotes who eliminated the host Lumberjacks from the CCAA conference tournament last weekend on this same field.
"This is No. 1," said a jubilant Camarena after the game, comparing the win and her performance with other softball highlights in her career. "I was really nervous before the game. Inside my heart I was so excited to play them because they are a tough team."
Camarena admitted she has been pressing in recent weeks, particularly the plate.
"It all came together today. I just left it all out there today." Her homerun in the fourth broke open a scoreless game and put CSUSB up 2-0, scoring Jordan Dahl ahead of her. It also tied her with Krista Hernandez for first place on the Coyotes all-time single-season home run list with 14.
She came up in the fifth and delivered a two-run single as CSUSB scored three times to lead 5-1.
The Coyotes broke it open in the sixth on a leadoff home run by pinch-hitter Sara Bird and a solo blast by Tori Beaudette that forced HSU to bring in Hannah Jones in relief of Prescott.
Jamie Lowe drove in a run and Camarena brought in two more with a double to right center. Five of the team's 10 runs were unearned thanks to two costly Humboldt errors.
Prescott was dominant early, striking out 10 and walking only two before the Coyotes starting putting the ball in play, finishing with 11 hits.
Beaudette and Tayler Wilson each had two hits for CSUSB. The Coyotes also made some defensive plays behind the combined pitching of Shisler, Cassidy Lee, Jackie Jacob and Tawni Baker. Baker allowed just two hits in working the fifth and sixth innings.
This was the first regional tournament win the history of the Coyotes softball program in their first appearance ever in the tournament.

Roussin, the Golden State Athletic Conference player of the year, joins Terrance Johnson as the only Lancers to earn All-American honors in the 52-year history of the program. Johnson was named to the third team in 2005.

"This is a great honor for Mark, and I am so proud of him,'' CBU coach Tim Collins said in a release from the school. "He is well deserving of this and has made great strides this year not just as a player but as a person. He is one of the most well-rounded and most fundamentally-sound players I have ever coached."

Roussin averaged 17.5 points, 8.1 rebounds, 2.21 steals and shot .542 from the field and .788 from the free throw line. He was the only player in the GSAC to be ranked among the top 15 in scoring, rebounding, field goal percentage, free throw percentage, steals, three-point percentage and blocked shots.

He scored in double figures in 32 of 33 games, including each of the final 28 games, and had 11 double-doubles in leading CBU to perhaps the best season in school history. The Lancers equalled their most wins in a season (24), reached the GSAC tournament championship game for the first time, and advanced to the NAIA tournament Sweet 16 for only the third time in school history.

There's a difference, a huge difference, between NCAA Tournament teams that are accustomed to the process and those who don't take it for granted.

You can tell in the interview room. The players (uh, "student-athletes," as is the NCAA's preferred designation) and coaches from the big schools in power conferences treat it as a chore. A mildly pleasant chore, maybe, but still a chore.

And the players and coaches from the non-powers, the overlooked mid-majors, the teams that haven't been here for a while and might not get back for a while? It's all new and interesting and wonderful, and if they're smart they'll have some fun with it.

Cal State Fullerton's Titans seem to be having fun with it. Players Scott Cutley, Frank Robinson and Josh Akognon showed up in the interview room Thursday and were funny, honest and personable. And head coach Bob Burton, when he showed up, was even better. They're confident in their ability and think they can spring a surprise, but they don't take themselves seriously.

Some samples:

Some highlights:

Arizona coach Kevin O'Neill got on the microphone and yelled "Hey! Get that guy!" referring to the offender. Several in the student section pointed to the culprit. "We're not doing that here under any circumstances!" O'Neill continued. "Tim, I apologize to you and your team."

The water bottle may have been a result of Davon Jefferson slamming home a dunk with 55 seconds left and pointing to the crowd.

Regardless, USC won 70-58 and are now 9-6 in conference, just about guaranteeing a spot in the NCAA Tournament.

They led very early, jumping out to a 13-4 lead and were up 32-16 before UA went on a quick run and cut the lead to 32-26.

But, a dunk from Taj Gibson (10 first half points) and Angelo Johnson's layup made it 36-26.

OJ Mayo had nine points and Davon Jefferson added seven points and four rebounds. But the star was Dwight Lewis who draped himself all over Chase Budinger, constantly knocking passes away and generally being a pest as Budinger's shadow, holding the Wildcat star to six points. Jerryd Bayless, UA's star point guard, picked up his third foul with 5:39 left in the first half and didn't play the remainder of the first stanza.

-- At 8-6 in Pac-10 play, USC is looking to lock up a NCAA tourney berth. No team has ever gotten in from the Pac-10 with a 9-9 record. So, this is an important almost must-win game for the Trojans.

-- Arizona is 7-7 and equally in need of a win to keep their streak of 23 consecutive tournament berths alive.

-- After snapping a 23-game losing streak in Tucson, USC will look to win back-to-back games at the McKale Center for the first time since the 1981-82 and 1982-83 seasons.

-- The Trojans have won eight of their past 11 games.

-- The Wildcats have lost four of their past six games.

-- Arizona's best player looks an awful lot like P-E sports writer Matt Calkins. Separated at birth?