Cal Softball: Bears Sweep to Finish the 2025 Regular Season
Back to back shutouts and a thrilling overtime game three capped off the final ACC series for the Golden Bears
After two weeks of games at home or in their backyard, Cal softball (35-18, 11-13 ACC) hopped on a plane for the final ride of the regular season, this time headed to Syracuse, NY. After a string of single game theatrics against ranked opponents in the previous series, Cal looked to make up some lost ground in the ACC standings facing off in a three game stretch against the Syracuse Orange (27-22, 6-18 ACC). Due to inclement weather over the weekend the schedule was rearranged, resulting in games two and three being played as a double header on Saturday.
In New York, the Bears ended conference play the way they began it: with a series sweep. Cal outscored Syracuse 20-2 over three games, putting up two consecutive shutouts before Syracuse’s first and only two runs arrived in game three. Kicking things off with a 7-0 victory, Cal’s offense played loud in game one and followed up with a 9-0 win in game two. The final game featured an extra helping of softball as the Bears and Orange played into the eleventh, ending Cal’s regular season in a thrilling 4-2 win.
Seven Run Shut Out, May 2nd:
Anna Reimers (W, 7-3) took to the circle in the first game against Syracuse, pitching a strong 4 innings and giving up only 4 hits, 1 walk, and 1 strikeout on her day. The only hits against Reimers came in the first three innings, with a pair of singles in the first, a double in the second, and a single in the third. Annabel Teperson relieved Reimers in the fifth inning, taking over and maintaining a commanding hold against the Orange, posting three straight hitless innings, allowing no runs and just 1 walk. Together the two seniors kept Syracuse from even smelling a run through game one.
Behind and around Reimers and Teperson, the Cal defense made some truly sensational plays to keep the Bears the only team on the board. In the first inning, Mika Lee picked up a fast ground ball and sent it to home on a laser, impressively throwing out the runner heading for home. After a fly ball headed for foul territory in left field, Kaylee Pond made a jumping reach over the fence to snag the second out of the second inning.
In the third inning, California opened up a lead they would not relinquish. With a pair of runners on second and third, catcher Lagi Quiroga placed a grounder up the middle that rolled into the outfield, scoring two off a 2-RBI single. Adding to it, Kaylee Pond hit a double into left center, scoring another two runs to put Cal up 4-0. The California home runs were quick to follow, first basewoman Tianna Bell absolutely crushing a pitch over the fence in left center in the fifth inning to score one, and Mika Lee picking up her fourth home run of the season on the first at bat of the sixth inning. The Bears final run was picked up in the same inning, with shortstop Acacia Anders taking a hit from a pitch with the bases loaded to advance the lead to 7-0.
Bears Breeze Through Orange in Six, May 3rd:
Game two featured even more offense than the previous one, with almost every Cal batter getting on base at least once through six innings. The Bears picked up right where they left off almost immediately, with Bell slamming a massive three run homer into center field to put Cal up 3-0 in the first inning. In the fifth inning, pinch hitter Kayli Counts batted an RBI single with runners on second and third. The following at bat, third basewoman Nailyn Marshall singled to third, scoring two after a timely fielding error to give the Bears a 6-0 lead. A pair of RBI singles from Lee and second basewoman Mia Phillips, and an RBI sacrifice fly from pinch hitter D’auna Johnson added three to Cal’s lead in the sixth, cementing Cal’s third consecutive shutout with a 9-0 run-rule victory.
Miranda De Nava (W, 12-5) picked up the win, her first complete game shutout of the season. In six innings, De Nava gave up only 6 hits, 3 walks, and 2 strikeouts. All six hits against the freshman pitcher came in the form of singles. Defensively, Cal the Bears again came to play in big moments, including a diving snag to catch a drag bunt by Quiroga, and a 4-3 double play by Phillips and Bell.
Electrifying Extra Innings, May 3rd:
The final game of the regular season was not picked up easily by the Golden Bears. Half of Cal’s runs arrived in the first and third innings, with Acacia Anders hitting a solo home run over the right field fence and Tianna Bell knocking an RBI double close to the same spot. On the opposite side of the field, California’s defense came up with a huge play to put away the first inning. With runners on first and second, a ground ball hit straight to Nailyn Marshall on third turned into a stunning 5-4-3 triple play that brought the entire team onto the field in celebration.
By the end of the game however Syracuse would score their only runs of the series, tying up the score 2-2 with an RBI sacrifice fly by catcher Laila Morales-Alves in the sixth, and an RBI fielder’s choice in the seventh. The game was sent into extras, with three complete innings passing before Cal finally put it away. In the top of the eleventh with a runner on second, Lagi Quiroga sent a go-ahead 2-RBI blast into right, putting the Bears up 4-2. Syracuse was not able to respond, and the sweep was sealed with a groundout to first base.
Annabel Teperson (W, 5-4) stepped up to the circle and picked up a win in her final regular season game as a Golden Bear, pitching an astounding career high eleven full innings in the win against the Orange. Teperson gave up 10 hits, 1 ER, 1 walk, and 3 strikeouts, facing 47 batters in her impressive day.
Post-Season Preparations:
I will refrain from going into an in depth review of the regular season. There will be a full post about that once the post-season is over.
With their win against Syracuse in game one of the series, Cal softball clinched a spot in the ACC championship in their inaugural season in the conference. Taking the #9 seed, the Bears are set to face the #8 seed Georgia Tech in the first round of the tournament on Wednesday. The winner of that game will move on to the quarter finals against #1 seed Florida State Thursday.
