A Championship Week in Sports for UCSD

The UC San Diego softball team was obviously ready for its close-up.
 
In a nationally-televised game, senior third baseman Sarah Woofter went 3-for-3 with three runs scored and junior All-American Camille Gaito, the tournament MVP, earned the victory as the 16th-ranked Tritons scored 10 runs in the first three innings to rout No. 1 Alabama-Huntsville 10-3 in the NCAA Division II Softball Championship game Monday afternoon in Salem, VA.

The victory marks the program's first national title and the 30th overall for UC San Diego as an institution. The Tritons are the first squad to win an NCAA Championship for UC San Diego since the women's soccer team claimed the title in 2001.

On Friday Kris Lesovsky hit a two-run double in the fourth inning and  Gaito earned another victory in the circle as the Tritons rallied to defeat No. 14 Minnesota State-Mankato, 4-2, on day two.

The Mavericks took a 2-0 lead in the third inning, but the Tritons answered with four runs in the fourth and Gaito held MSU without a run the rest of the way.

And in the opening game of the tournament on Thursday, Jennifer De Fazio went 3-for-3 with two runs scored and Gaito tossed a complete game two-hitter as the Tritons defeated No. 25 C.W. Post of Long Island, 7-0.

In addition to earning the win in the first College World Series game in UC San Diego softball history against C.W. Post, Gaito also became the program’s all-time leader in pitching victories with her 62nd career win. And if that wasn't enough, she set the single season record with her 44th appearance of the year as well, totals she would add to in the next two games.

TRACK & FIELD

UC San Diego junior Nick Howe won his second consecutive national title in the men’s javelin Saturday on the final day of the NCAA Divison II Track and Field Championships at the Al Brenda Track Complex in Turlock.

Howe won the event with a mark of 231'3" on his first throw of the day. His toss, which was nearly six feet further than the second place competitor, set a new school record in the event, easily eclipsing his winning mark of 225' from a year ago.

“His performance was really quite impressive,” men's head coach Tony Salerno said. “Nick completely dominated the competition. The rest of the field was competing for second place after Nick's first throw.”

 Saturday's performance adds to an impressive resume for Howe, an athlete who had already etched his name cleanly in the UCSD record books. The Aptos, Calif. native became the first Triton to win a NCAA Championship at the D-II level on the men's side with his victory in Charlotte in 2010 and with his second crown, he becomes the first person to win back-to-back titles for UCSD since James Nielsen accomplished the feat in the 5,000 meters in 1999 and 2000.
 
“I knew the competition was tight and I needed to come out and take control with my first throw and I did that,” Howe said. “I want to thank the ones I love that made this possible: God, my coach Tony and my family. They are the best support network in the world.”

While Howe was definitely the headliner on Saturday, there were a hand full of other great results for UCSD on the day, as Kelly Fogarty and Jessica Miklaski both earned All-American accolades with their performances as well.
 
Fogarty, who became the Tritons' first All-American sprinter with strong showings in both the 100 and 200-meter dashes last season, accomplished the feat again on Saturday.

She finished fourth in the 100 with a time of 11.58 and came back to post a third place time of 23.55 in the 200 an hour later. Fogarty's effort in the latter event tied her school record time from Friday's prelims.

Miklaski, a sophomore, had a big day as well, placing sixth overall in the women's javelin to claim All-American honors in her first nationals appearance. Seeded 17th in the event, Miklaski uncorked a throw of 143'2", which was considerably further than her previous best of 136'11".
 
Teammate Theresa Richards was also part of the javelin field and finished 13th overall with a mark of 130'4".
 
When it was all said and done, the Tritons finished fifth overall in the women's competition after amassing a total of 35 points over the three-day event. Grand Valley State ran away with the team title with 82.50 points, followed by Lincoln (Mo.) with 68, Adams State with 51 and Johnson C. Smith University with 36.
 
Howe's title was worth 10 points, a figure that put UCSD in 28th place on the men's side.

On Friday UC San Diego seniors Stephanie LeFever and Fogarty both recorded school records.

LeFever's record came in the heptathlon, while Fogarty established a new program standard in the 200-meter dash.
 
After placing second in the women's long jump final on Thursday, LeFever earned the second spot on the podium once again on Friday with a total of 5,385 points in the heptathlon. She was in third place after the first four events, but finished first in the long jump (19'6.25") and fifth in both the javelin (116'1") and 800 (2:21.85) to move up one spot in the final scoring.
 
LeFever's total was just 129 points shy of Central Missouri's Lindsay Lettow, who racked up 5,514 points to win the national title in the event. Her score surpassed the program's previous record of 5,333 points, which former standout Linda Rainwater set last season.
 
LeFever's third and final event of the championships was the triple jump, which also took place on Friday. With fatigue appearing to finally set in, the Aptos, Calif. native finished 13th overall with a mark of 38'8.75".
 
Following a strong showing in the preliminaries of the 100 on Thursday, Fogarty came back with an even better performance in 200 prelims on Friday, posting the top qualifying time of the day at 23.55. Her time not only broke her school record of 23.56 by the slimmest of margins, but also eclipsed her own stadium record of 23.92 from the CCAA Championships earlier this season.
 
The preliminaries of the women's 4x400 relay was the final event for UCSD on the day Friday, with Lauren Irish, Jacqueline Rose, Caitlin Meagher and Deyna Roberson just missing out on qualifying for Saturday's final. The unit finished ninth overall with a time of 3:48.08.

BASEBALL HONORS

The sixth-ranked UC San Diego baseball team was well represented on 2011 American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA)/Rawlings All-West Region teams with senior Tim Shibuya being named the West's Pitcher of the Year and several others picking up Gold Gloves.

In addition to Pitcher of the Year honors, Shibuya was named to the ABCA All-West Region First Team. He was joined on the first team by teammates Evan Kehoe (infield), Danny Susdorf (outfield) and Blake Tagmyer (utility).
 
Garnering second team recognition were Guido Knudson (relief pitcher), Nick La Face (designated hitter) and Elias Tuma (relief pitcher).
 
Second baseman Matt Hubbard and catcher Kellen Lee each won ABCA Gold Gloves for their stellar defensive play throughout the season.
 
Shibuya, also the NCBWA and Daktronics West Region Pitcher of the Year as well as the CCAA Co-Pitcher of the Year, broke UCSD records for career wins, strikeouts and innings pitched in 2011. He shined with an 11-4 record and a 2.12 ERA to go with 104 strikeouts. On three occasions he struck out a career-high 11 batters. He led all CCAA hurlers in wins, innings pitched and strikeouts. Nationally his win total tied for eighth best, while his strikeouts also tied to rank tenth overall.

The right-hander has won a host of other awards and honors already this season including NCBWA and Daktronics All-West Region First Team, All-CCAA First Team, All-CCAA Tournament and College Baseball Lineup All-Star.
 
Kehoe, a senior, hit .323 with 37 RBI. He broke the school record for career doubles while playing third base, first base and outfield throughout the season. Already this year, Kehoe has been named Daktronics All-West Region Second Team, NCBWA All-West Region Honorable Mention, All-CCAA First Team and All-West Regional Tournament.
 
In addition to his ABCA honor, Susdorf was also voted to the NCBWA and Daktronics All-West Region First Teams and was named All-CCAA First Team. The sophomore was also honored as an All-CCAA Tournament selection. Susdorf led the league with his .385 batting average, 87 hits and 27 steal attempts. His total in hits tied for eighth most in the nation. He was second in the CCAA in steals and third in runs scored and total bases. Susdorf was the only Triton to play in and start all 57 of the team's games, all in center field.
 
Tagmyer was also chosen to the NCBWA and Daktronics All-West Region First Teams, as well as being named All-CCAA First Team. In addition, the senior was selected as the Most Outstanding Player at the CCAA Tournament as he hit .556 and slugged .889 with four runs scored, 12 RBI, three doubles, a home run and a .619 on-base percentage over four games.

He hit .357 for the season, second-best on the team, and led the Tritons with his .578 slugging and .477 on-base percentages. Tagmyer led the CCAA in hit by pitches and was second in both slugging and on-base percentages, behind only Cal Poly Pomona's Travis Taijeron, the CCAA Player of the Year.
 
Knudson was a Daktronics All-West Region Second Team and All-CCAA Second Team selection this season as well. The senior held a 9-3 record to go along with a 2.80 ERA. Throwing over 100 innings, he recorded 77 strikeouts, second-most on the team. He was third in the CCAA in innings pitched.
 
La Face, a redshirt freshman, displayed a .328 batting average and a .471 slugging percentage after knocking in 25 runs. He was also named to the Daktronics All-West Region Second Team and the All-CCAA First Team. He played in 44 games with 32 starts, primarily as UCSD's designated hitter.
 
Tuma, UCSD's junior closer, has also won NCBWA and Daktronics All-West Region Second Team nods this season. An All-CCAA Second Team performer, he locked in a 6-0 record with a 1.23 ERA over 29 appearances. His 44 innings pitched provided 31 strikeouts and seven saves. At one point, he recorded four consecutive saves.

 Tuma was recently named a Capital One Academic All-America First Team pick for his efforts in the classroom. He was one of just two pitchers in the nation to garner first team honors.
 
To be eligible, a student-athlete must be at least a sophomore and have been named an Academic All-District selection with at least a 3.20 GPA and legitimate athletic credentials.
 
Tuma, a junior right-hander, holds a stellar 3.93 GPA while majoring in Cognitive Science in UCSD's Muir College. He's minoring in Music.
 
He is the lone player from the CCAA to be named an Academic All-American.
 
Last season, Tuma won the NCAA's Elite 88 Award for having the highest GPA of any player at the Division II Championship Finals in Cary, N.C.
 
Along with Tuma, senior infielder Blake Tagmyer was also named Academic All-District VIII last week. The Centennial, Colo., native has a 3.34 GPA while majoring in Communication in Muir College. Tagmyer was an NCBWA and Daktronics All-West Region First Team performer while also picking up All-CCAA First Team honors.

For Lee it was his second straight regional Gold Glove. He won the national award in 2010. He was a brick wall for the Tritons behind the plate, posting a .992 fielding percentage and recording 221 putouts with just two errors in 252 chances. He finished his Triton career with a .996 fielding percentage.
 
Hubbard, also a senior, impressed with a .966 clip of his own with 60 putouts and 113 assists, primarily at second base. He made several highlight-reel plays in the infield, including a diving stop with a flip straight from his glove to second base for an out during the CCAA Tournament.
 
Those named to all-West Region first teams are now eligible for all-America recognition. By virtue of being named the ABCA Pitcher of the Year, Shibuya has an automatic spot on one of the three ABCA All-America squads.
 
UCSD finished its season at 42-15 overall and 29-11 in the CCAA, winning its third straight league regular season and tournament titles. The Tritons advanced to their fifth consecutive NCAA West Regional, hosted by UCSD for the first time in school history.

--Compiled from press releases issued by the UCSD sports information office