Games will be played Friday, May 2-Saturday, May 3 with both UC Santa Barbara/CSUN and UC Riverside/UC Davis beginning their doubleheaders at 1 p.m. with game two beginning at 3 p.m.  

The second DH of the day takes place with Cal Poly heading down south for three dates with Long Beach State. Game three on Saturday will be nationally broadcast on ESPNU at 2 p.m. This is the first nationally televised Big West conference game this season.  

Friday’s action concludes with a pair of single games between Cal State Bakersfield/Cal State Fullerton and UC San Diego/Hawai’i at 6 and 9 p.m., respectively. The twin bill takes place on Saturday at 5/7 p.m. for the final pair of contests in the 2025 season. 

A total of 13 contests will air live on ESPN + this week. Check our Big West website online for dates and times.    

2025 Big West Softball Schedule 

Where Do We Stand?!
The top five teams in the standings have all claimed berths into the inaugural Big West Softball Championship next week. Seedings are still to be determined following the final week of play. 

Cal State Fullerton leads the league with a Big West best 19 wins with just three games remaining. With a win or a Guacho loss, CSF will outright claim consecutive regular season titles after reaching 20 conference wins. UC Santa Barbara stands tall at 16-8 in league play while both Hawai’i and CSUN are knotted at 15-9. UCSB is the only team in The Big West this season to have swept the Titans in a conference series. The Matadors bested UH 2-1 in their trio of games and took home rubber match home in convincing fashion, 10-5 last week. Long Beach State sits in fifth place with a record of 14-10 to wrap up the teams that are postseason bound in The Big West thus far. UC San Diego currently sits at 12-12 occupying the sixth and final spot in the Championship while UC Riverside sits right behind at a 10-14 mark.  

Inaugural Championship at Bat in 2025 
- The Big West's top six teams will compete for the conference title in the inaugural 2025 Big West Softball Championship, with the champion earning an automatic berth in the NCAA Championship. The four-day double-elimination format sees the top two teams with a first round bye will be the first of its kind in The Big West.  
 
Three games highlight the first day of competition on Wednesday, May 7 with No. 4 and No. 5 seeds leading off at 1:00 p.m., followed by the No. 3 and No 6 seeds going head-to-head at 4 p.m., with the first elimination game of the championship rounding out Day 1. Action resumes on Thursday, May 8, when the top two teams take to the diamond for their first taste of championship action with an elimination matchup to close out Day 2 and bring the field to four. Friday, May 9 features a winner's bracket showdown, with the victor in that contest advancing to the championship. Two elimination games round out the action as one team will battle back to earn a spot in the championship.  
 
The championship game will take place at 1 p.m. on Saturday, May 10. If the undefeated team loses, a decisive second game will be played approximately 45 minutes after the conclusion of the first to crown the 2025 Big West softball champions. 


Championship Ticket Information
- Tickets for the Big West Softball Championship are on sale now. The Big West's first-ever conference championship in softball is scheduled for May 7-10 at Anderson Family Field on the campus of Cal State Fullerton.  
 
All-session tickets, priced at $77, provide access to all four days of the double-elimination event. senior and youth all-session tickets are $65. Senior is defined as 65 and older and youth are 12 and under.  
 
Single-session general admission tickets are also available for $16 for adults, $14 for Senior/Youth and $12 for groups of 20 or more. For additional details or to purchase tickets, visit BigWest.org/SBtix.  
 
The Big West's top six teams will compete for the conference title, with the champion earning an automatic berth in the NCAA Championship. 

Ticket link: BigWest.org/SBtix. 


Around the Dugouts
Cal Poly (9-35, 4-20 BW) — CP picked up a 6-2 win at home over UH while Kate Judy struck out four Rainbow Wahine batters in complete game fashion. Offensively, Julia Barnett highlighted the Mustangs with a pair of RBIs in the win. Maddy Bermudez also hit safely during the series. CP caps off the regular season campaign with a series versus LBSU where game three will be nationally televised on ESPNU.  

Cal State Bakersfield (16-31, 7-17 BW) — The Roadrunners will rejoice in the team’s series finale at CSF. CSUB sports three batters hitting over the .300 mark on the team with Hannah Garcia (.300), Maalia Cherry (.339) and Maya Molina-Villarreal (.343) entering the last three games of the season with a trio of hot bats. 

Cal State Fullerton (34-15, 19-5 BW) —  CSF’s 14-game winning streak was snapped on Wednesday after a hard-fought mid-week matchup against No. 6 UCLA, 2-4. Despite the recent setback in nonconference play, the Titans have a chance to secure back-to-back regular season titles with one win or one UCSB loss. This would be the 20th Big West regular season championship for the Orange and Blue. During league action, CSF boasts the best mark in team batting (.352) and pitching (2.68) so far with three games left to spare.  

CSUN (22-23, 15-9 BW) — The Matadors took home the series win over the Tritons last weekend with a pair of wins in games one and two. Tiara Westbrook places second in conference play with a slugging percentage of .679 and is also tied for second with seven home runs. CSUN welcomes UCSB to town this weekend in a series that can shake up the seedings in the upcoming Championship.  

Hawai’i (29-17, 15-9 BW) — UH had five games on its slate due to makeup’s and went 3-2 on the week to earn its 15th Big West win of the season. Ellyanna Cinzori led the Rainbow Wahine with a .455 batting average going 5-for-11 at the plate with two doubles and a home run plus four RBI.  The sophomore hit safely in three-straight games, collecting a career-high three hits in UH's makeup game at CSUN. Hawai’i welcomes UCSD to the islands for the final three games this season. 

Long Beach State (24-20, 14-10 BW) — The Beach brought home a trio of Big West wins after sweeping CSUB on the road. After tying a program record with four runs scored in the series finale, Jacquelyn Bickar now places second in the conference with 25 runs scored in league play. The infielder reached base at a .714 rate while also hitting .500 on the series. LBSU hosts CP in the last conference clash or the regular season with game three being nationally televised on ESPNU.  

UC Davis (14-34, 8-16 BW) — UCD downed UCSB, 3-2 during game one the double header on Sunday. Alyssa Dethlefson .333/.500/.333 on the weekend while also stealing two bases to help make a difference for the Aggies. UCD will defend La Rue Field for the final three games of 2025 against UCR who is looking to make a late year postseason push.  

UC Riverside (19-28, 10-14 BW) — The Highlanders head up to UCD after a series at home against league leading CSF. Despite the setback, Maddie Heinlin has been stellar in the circle sitting atop The Big West in ERA at a whopping 1.86. The pitcher and company will look to get back in the win column and await some scenarios for a postseason fate.  

UC San Diego (14-28, 12-12 BW) — UCSD secured a much needed 3-2 (8 inn.) win over CSUN in the final game of the series. India Caldwell pitched a complete game in the circle while Morgan Eng led the team at the plate with a .375 batting average and scored two runs and steal two bases. The Tritons travel across the Pacific Ocean for three contests with UH that can determine a spot in the postseason for UCSD.  

UC Santa Barbara (27-21, 16-8 BW) — The Gauchos garnered another series win claiming games one and three at home against UCD. Tehya Banks shined bright by slashing .538/.571/.692 and came up clutch to send the game winning run home and clinch the series over the Aggies in the rubber match, 3-1. UCSB visits CSUN in an important Big West series between a pair of teams who have 16 and 15 conference wins this season and determine the No. 2 seed. 


Big West Weekly Recognition
- Ellyanna Cinzori highlighted Hawai’i in the squad’s five games going 5-for-11 at bat alongside a .455 batting average to claim the Big West Field Player of the Week award for the first time of the junior’s career. Starting the week off against CSUN, Cinzori batted 3-for-4 alongside two doubles and a pair of RBIs to pace the Rainbow Wahine in the setback. From there, the junior blasted a two-run bomb past right centerfield that proved to be a difference maker in UH’s 5-4 over UCSB

Cal State Fullerton capped off another perfect week after sweeping UC Riverside with Trisha McCleskey leading the way for the Titans in game one to claim the pitcher’s second weekly award of the season (April 7). McCleskey clocked the 20th start of the season and tossed a flawless ERA line of 0.00 in the series-opening 2-0 triumph over the Highlanders. The Merced, Calif. native managed to sit down four batters while only allowing a lone hit and walk, respectively in a full 7.1. This was the eighth complete game and fourth shutout of the season for McCleskey. In conference play, the pitcher has posted 53 punchouts and currently holds the league's second-best ERA at mark a of 2.04.

Sarah Coccillos captures The Big West Freshman of the Week for the first time following a sweep against UC Riverside. The infielder recorded a hit and sent a Titan home in each contest to help contribute to the Big West’s longest winning streak at 14 games. Coccillos has collected 50 hits this season, third most amongst all Titans so far in 2025.  

New Faces Around the Dugouts
- 2024 Big West Champion Cal State Fullerton enters a new era under leadership of former Titan Gina Oaks Garcia. The skipper was promoted after serving as the pitching coach last year for a team that claimed the conference title and was one game away from advancing past the NCAA Regional final. 

Head coach Nikki Palmer returns to UC San Diego as its skipper after graduating from the program in 2007. During eight seasons at the helm of UC Riverside, Palmer became the winningest head coach in program history and notched the eclipsed 200th career victories a year ago. Brittney Matta now takes the reigns at UCR after being named the 2023 ACCAC Coach of the Year last season at UTEP. When these two teams matched up in the regular season, UCSD got the better of UCR in a 3-0 sweep down in La Jolla, Calif.


2025 Preseason Prognostics
- Long Beach State has been picked as the top team in The Big West heading into the 2025 season, as voted by the league's 10 head coaches.   

The Beach (25-29, 22-5 BW) earned 81 points in the poll and claimed the top spot in the poll after being tabbed in second place back-to-back years. LBSU earned nine first-place first votes, the most of any team this year. 

Coaches in the conference also voted on an 11-person Preseason All-Big West team. Long Beach State saw two of its student-athletes make the list with senior infielder Jacquelyn Bickar and senior pitcher Shannon Haddad cracking the preseason team for consecutive seasons. Bickar brought in 13 runs across the infielder's 42 hits a year ago (third on team) earning approval on this year's preseason team. LBSU teammate Haddad sat down twelve batters during the pitcher's five games last season.  

Defending Big West champion Cal State Fullerton was selected as the second-best team heading into the year with 63 points and a first-place vote. The Titans put a pair on the preseason team too with sophomore infielder Sarah Perez and sophomore outfielder Kate Verhoef dotting the list. Perez and Verhoef both capped 2024 off with All-Big West Freshman Team honors. The duo also received Freshman of the Week accolades with Verhoef winning once and Perez hoisting the hardware twice.  

UC Santa Barbara sees itself at the No. 3 spot with a total of 59 points. The Blue and Yellow boast sophomore pitcher/utility Ainsley Waddell as the Co-Freshman of the Year in 2024 after the San Marcos, Calif. native led UCSB in slugging percentage (.523) and RBI (35).  

Hawai'i harnessed the No. 4 position with 52 points, the last team in the league to earn over 50 tallies. Catcher/Infielder Izabella Martinez managed to secure a spot on the list after the senior finished second on UH with 39 hits and earned All-Big West Second Team honors last season.  

Narrow margins sperate the middle of the pack around the conference with Cal Poly at fifth (45 points), UC San Diego at sixth (43) and CSUN (41) residing at seven.  

Pitcher India Caldwell steps back into the circle for as the ace for the Tritons this year. The Fallbrook, Cailf. native spun a 2.63 ERA last season (6th in The Big West) across 178.1 innings of work (1st in The Big West) last year.  

The Matador combination of senior outfielder Mikayla Carman and junior pitcher Lauryn Carranco made way on the team following stud seasons from the two. Carman collected All-Big West First Team accolades after leading CSUN with 56 hits, good enough for sixth best in the conference. Carranco's 103 strikeouts were also sixth best in the conference for the preseason honoree.  

UC Davis, UC Riverside and Cal State Bakersfield round out the 2025 edition of the preseason poll with 38, 17 and 11 points, respectively. 

Reigning Big West Freshman Pitcher of the Year Ashley Sawai represents the Aggies alongside a 2.75 ERA a year ago, ranked seventh amongst all student-athletes in The Big West.  

The 2025 Big West conference schedule consists of a 27-game slate, with each side facing all nine opponents in three-game sets starting Friday, March 7. Check listings to see which contests air on ESPN+. Regular season play starts Thursday, Feb. 6 with conference action officially beginning on Friday, March 7.  

The 2025 Big West champion will earn the league's automatic berth again this year into the 64-team NCAA Division I Softball Championship. The 2025 WCWS remains at the USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City, Okla., May 29-June 5/6.