ARCATA – A refreshed Humboldt State softball team will hit the road this weekend to battle the Chico State Wildcats in its second California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) series this season.
 
 Sitting atop the CCAA standings at 4-0 (8-5 overall), things are looking good early for a hard-hitting Lumberjack squad. HSU is currently on a five-game win streak after sweeping Cal State East Bay (6-2, 9-2, 5-4, 10-2) followed by a two-week break to prepare for its meeting with Chico (4-4 in CCAA action and 6-7 overall. The Wildcats will host the series at University Softball Field with Friday's doubleheader beginning at noon, followed by another doubleheader scheduled for Saturday at 11 a.m.
 
The series against the Wildcats will go a long ways to show if the Jacks are contenders or pretenders this year. Chico is in the middle of the pack of the CCAA standings.
 
The Wildcats are coming off a successful weekend at home after defeating the San Francisco State Gators in three of four contests. Chico opened the CCAA season losing three of four to powerful Cal State Dominguez Hills.
 
Head-to-Head
The Lumberjacks lead the all-time series 87-43-2. Chico has won six of the last eight. When the Wildcats came to Arcata in 2012, HSU defeated Chico in the first game, 16-9. The second game of the series proved to be a little more interesting, however. The two teams battled tirelessly until weather and lighting conditions postponed the game for two days tied at 12-12. Chico ultimately prevailed over the Jacks in the 10-inning game (24-15) and swept the next two (9-7 and 15-7).
 
Live Media
Live stat links can be found at:
http://sidearmstats.com/csuchico/softball/xlive.htm
 
Chico State Notes
Junior pitcher Alex Molina pitched her first career no-hitter last week against San Francisco State, winning 2-0. She also has a win over Cal State Dominguez Hills (4-3) and leads the Wildcats with a 2.38 ERA. She is 4-2 on the season. ... Collectively the pitching staff has a 3.87 ERA. ... Freshman first baseman Desiree Gonzalez has racked up 11 of Chico's 38 RBI and four of the team's nine home runs.
 
Humboldt State Notes
As a team, the Lumberjacks have already accumulated 88 RBI and 23 home runs, while allowing their opponents just 60 and 13, respectively. ... Three players are in double-digit RBI totals with Hannah Williams contributing 25, Chrissy Stalf 13, and Julie Pena adding 11. ... Stalf remains in third place on the Humboldt State all-time home run list with 35, putting her just two shy of Natalie Galletly's career 37 home runs. ... Lizzie Perez leads the Lumberjack pitching staff with 31 strikeouts, five wins and a 2.92 ERA in 36 innings pitched.