SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – The UC Santa Barbara softball team returns to Campus Diamond this weekend to host Cal State Bakersfield on Saturday and Sunday. The Gauchos are coming off a seven-game road trip that saw them post a perfect 7-0 record while sweeping two conference foes in Cal Poly and UC Riverside.
 
ABOUT LAST WEEK
UC Santa Barbara swept UC Riverside last weekend, and in the process, head coach Jo Evans earned her 1,400^th career victory and 100^th at UC Santa Barbara. The Gauchos are now 9-0 in conference play and off to their best start in Big West competition in program history. After defeating the Highlanders, the Gauchos took down future Big West member Cal Baptist on Tuesday to finish the Gauchos seven game road stretch 7-0.
 
SCOUTING THE ROADRUNNERS
Cal State Bakersfield comes into the weekend with a 5-25 overall record and 3-6 in conference play. The Roadrunners are currently seventh in The Big West standings, one place out of making The Big West championships at the moment.
 
The Bakersfield three wins in Big West play came against Long Beach State and CSUN. As a team, Bakersfield is hitting 0.249, second-worst in The Big West, and ranks third-to-last in runs scored, averaging 2.37 runs per game. Three 'Runners are hitting over .300 on the season with Aariana Harrison leading the way, hitting .383 across 47 at bats. The junior has no extra-base hits to her ledger.
 
The Bakersfield pitching staff currently posts a 7.42 ERA with no pitchers holding a sub-5.75 earned run average. The staff has struck out just 47 batters all season and Cedes Saldana holds 32 of those strikeouts, 68 percent. Teams are hitting .375 against the Roadrunner pitchers, and the Gauchos are the top-hitting team in the conference, which does not stand well for Bakersfield.
 
FOLLOW ALONG
UC Santa Barbara and Cal State Bakersfield will begin their series with a doubleheader on Saturday, March 28, with game one starting at 12 p.m. The series will conclude on Sunday, March 29 with a single game starting at 1 p.m. All three games will be broadcast on ESPN+ with live stats available.