SAN MARCOS, Calif. – The Cal State San Marcos softball team dropped both ends of Friday's California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) twinbill in the program's first NCAA Division II home games. Final scores were 10-3 and 9-8. 
 
Senior Karla Bernal went 4-for-7 on the day with a RBI. Freshman Jaqlyn Newhouser went 3-for-6 with two doubles, accumulating three RBIs and two runs in the two games.
 
The Cougars are back in action on Saturday, Feb. 10 when they conclude their four-game series against SF State with a doubleheader beginning at 11 a.m.
 
GAME 1: SF State 10 – CSUSM 3
The Gators rattled off a pair of runs in both the second and third innings before CSUSM cut their lead in half with freshman Janaea Mason's 2 RBI double in the fourth.
 
SF State responded with three more runs in the fifth, including a two-run homer by Mallory Cleveland.
 
CSUSM's final run came in the bottom of the fifth on a fielder's choice by junior Kammy Fisher that scored Langdon to make it 8-3.
 
The Gators took advantage of a CSUSM error to extend their lead to 10-3 in seventh inning.
 
Junior Rae Camez tallied two hits in the game.
 
Junior Caitlin Vinyard took the loss after giving up six runs, five earned, on six hits in 4.1 innings. SF State's Lindsey Cassidy (1-2) collected her first win of 2018 after tossing a complete game.
 
GAME 2: SF State 9 – CSUSM 8
The nightcap was a different story completely as the Cougars jumped out to a 3-0 lead on Newhouser's bases-clearing double following a run scored on a SF State error in the first inning.
 
SF State put up a run in the next two frames before CSUSM extended its lead to 6-2 in the bottom of the third. Calderon led off with a single up the middle and scored on freshman Raven LeClair's triple off the right field wall. Fisher brought LeClair home on a shot through the middle with Newhouser's following the same path. Freshman Aliya Machrone laid down a bunt single to load the bases and Bernal pushed a run across with a hard knock to second base.
 
The Gators evened the game at 6-6 in the top of the fourth on two hits and a bases-loaded walk.
 
CSUSM got back on top with three consecutive doubles by Fisher, Newhouser and Machrone to make it 8-6 Cougars in the bottom of the fourth.
 
A two-run homer by Cleveland evened the game at 8-8 in the top of the fifth. The Gators capitalized on a CSUSM error to score the game-winning run in the top of the sixth inning.
 
Freshman Carly Slack picked up the loss after 2.2 innings in the circle, giving up one unearned run on three hits. SF State's Karla Soto improved to 1-1 after going five innings and relinquishing two runs on nine hits.