Toro pitcher, Alyssa Olague, sends the heat. Photo by Melanie Molina / gotoros.com
By Julia McIntyre Staff Reporter
California State University, Dominguez Hills women’s Softball rolled through the middle portion of the Concordia Kickoff Classic with three consecutive wins as the 2023 season got underway. The reigning champs fell short to Biola University, 2-4, in the first game but were heavily determined to return to old form.
CSUDH pitcher, Alyssa Olague, describes what it means to her to enter a season with a championship title.
“Starting the season as West Region Champs first feels absolutely amazing. We are so proud that we were able to represent CSUDH and make history by making it to the NCAA World Series. This definitely makes us stand out as one of the teams to beat and we are aware of that coming in,” said senior Olague.
After a 45-24 overall record last season and multiple winning streaks, CSUDH dipped their toes back into dominance with a three-game winning streak to begin this season.
The Toros had two shutout wins against Western Washington, 2-0, and Dominican, 3-0, and a hard-fought win against Hawaii, 4-2. The tournament concluded with another shutout, this time CSUDH fell to Central Washington, 0-3.
Starting a season with a title to defend can be challenging, but not for the Toros. “We have been working so hard this fall season with that in the back of our minds. We are ready to compete,” said Olague.
After a record-setting 2022 season, CSUDH continues to focus on and reach new goals. Olague is personally looking forward to leaving her mark.
“For this upcoming season, a personal goal of mine is, with this being my senior and final year here at CSUDH, I just want to make a lasting impression of myself that I was a great teammate who showed leadership and was always ready to compete. I want these types of qualities to be remembered amongst my teammates and so on, that way the DH traditions are always taught and lived through by the players,” says Olague.
In the second game of the Concordia Kickoff Classic against Western Washington, sophomore Haylee Garcia and senior Raquel Jaime had back-to-back lead-off walks and each stole a base. Senior Alani Nguyen gave CSUDH a 2-0 lead after an RBI single.
The Toros looked just as strong against Hawaii when pitcher Sarah Bhatt picked up her second win with CSUDH and junior Faith Hernandez and sophomore Sydney Diaz, both scored to cement the win against UHH.
During the game against Dominican, Olague shined once again. She pitched a complete-game one-hitter with 10 strikeouts during the shutout.
The West Region Champs start off the season strong after a much-needed break from their historic 2022 season. Olague explains how important it is for The Toros to enter the season healthy to maintain their success.
“In order to stay healthy for the off-season, it’s just really important to allow your body to go into recovery mode. During the season it almost feels like it’s nonstop so we definitely have to take advantage of the break we get during the off-season,” said Olague.
The goal for the trailblazing Toros besides health is to continue to knock down barriers.
“I believe our team goal is … to create an elite identity as a team. Something we preach is that we always want to do things better than they have ever been done before,” says Olague.
CSUDH softball continues to fight this season on Friday with a series against San Francisco State at Toro Diamond.
