THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. – With just five returning players from a year ago, the Cal Lutheran softball program welcomes 11 new faces to the diamond in 2012. The Regals will look to improve in the SCIAC standings and bring a winning tradition back to CLU.

A new look Cal Lutheran team has just one senior with five juniors, four sophomores and a half a dozen freshmen for the 2012 campaign. CLU nabbed five transfers while six women will get her first taste of collegiate softball.

There are high expectations for a team that has been completely revamped.

Head Coach Debby Day shared, “We have quality returners in four sophomores and one senior who have really embraced the more rigorous practice structure and a group of transfers who have smoothly transitioned and are already providing leadership.”  Leading the group of returning players are sophomores Danika Green and Kayla Sakamoto and senior Sarah Lichtsinn.

Green earned Second Team All-SCIAC honors following her freshman campaign in which she batted .331 with 39 hits and 17 RBIs, both team highs. Mainly filling the role of designated player, Green connected for nine doubles and a homerun.

Sakamoto was next in line with a .294 batting average that included 32 hits. She scored 23 times and was a threat on the bases swiping 10-for-11 chances. In centerfield she recorded 74 putouts with nine assists.

The lone senior on the squad, Lichtsinn, started in all 39 games last season. She was a staple at first base where she was responsible for 205 outs with 199 putouts and six assists. Lichtsinn collected 31 hits, nine of which were doubles, while driving in 12 and scoring 10 runs. She was 3-for-3 in stolen base attempts for CLU a year ago. A versatile player, Lichtsinn will move from first to the hot corner at third base.

Also returning to the diamond with a year of college experience is the sophomore duo of Katelyn Dowling and Jennifer Shipley who each look to play bigger roles this spring. Dowling will split time between pitching and the outfield while Shipley will step into the circle for the Regals.

Five newcomers to CLU are by no means amateurs to college softball as each has playing experience.

The veteran leadership of Shannon Tinsley will make an immediate impact for the softball program. Tinsley was a two-year member of the University of Arizona Wildcats where she was a member of the NCAA National Runner-up team and a team that advanced to the NCAA Super Regional. She will guide the young pitching staff from behind the plate and will also use her bat to spark the CLU offense.

Following a two-year stint at William Penn University where she was an All Conference player, Brittany Labbe joins the Regals. She will likely fill the designated player role but will also see time in the infield.

A trio of transfers will compete for playing time in the outfield. Kathleen Watson-Otani comes from Chandler-Gilbert Community College where she improved her game for two seasons. Nicolby Atallah played two seasons at Glendale Community College where she was an Honorable Mention pitcher. Rounding out the group, Debben Hoffer brings a solid glove from Foothill College where she earned a Golden Glove award in 2010.

Among the freshman class, look for a number of players to make contributions straight away. Shonna Christianson teams up with Atallah,  Downing and Shipley in the pitching rotation, but will also see opportunities in the outfield, as will Kendra Varney. Liz Mertel, Ryanna Morua and Bethany Peterson will compete for playing time in the infield while Alex Templin will get some work catching.

Already a close knit team, the Regals hope to rebound from a down year last spring. Day believes this is the group to do just that as she described the group as a, “fun, high energy group doing everything asked of them.”

The Regals begin Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference action on Feb. 11 against Redlands. To begin the season, CLU meets a pair of NAIA opponents. The season got underway on the road Saturday, Jan. 28 against Vanguard University.

Cal Lutheran will play 26 of their 40 games at home on Hutton Field. The season home opener is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 4 at 12:00 p.m. against Concordia University of Irvine with the second game of the double header to follow.

CMS 6, Cal Lutheran 3 - F (Game One)
Allowing the Athenas to take an early 1-0 lead after their set of at-bats in the second inning, the Regals fought back to score two runs of their own in the very same inning, much to the delight of the boisterous crowd at Hutton Field.

Starting the action in the second with a lead-off single Geri Jensen would advance to second base on a sacrifice bunt successfully laid down by Courtney Minton. Eventually reaching third on Sara Lichtsinn's hard-hit single to the shortstop, the two would place themselves in scoring position once Lichtsinn successfully stole her second base of the season.

With two outs recorded by CMS, and still two Regals on base, one swing of the bat by April Rosas allowed the right fielder to not only reach first base, but drive in the first runs of the afternoon for Cal Lutheran to take a 2-1 lead.

CMS would tie the game at 2-2 after scoring one run in the top of the fourth, but the sixth inning became the eventual difference in the game as the Athenas would tack on another three runs to build a lead that Cal Lutheran could not overcome.

Trailing 5-2, the Regals would score one more run in the bottom of the sixth when Lizzie Novak's double to center field enabled Breanna Johnson to score, but that was the closest the home team would get to erasing CMS' advantage as the visitors would add another run in the seventh to narrowly defeat CLU.

CMS 6, Cal Lutheran 3 - F (Game Two)
Notwithstanding the succession of events during that two-out scoring opportunity, Regals starting pitcher Katelyn Downing turned in her finest performance of the season in the second-half of the day's doubleheader.

Singlehandedly ending a CMS scoring opportunity in the sixth inning, Downing ended the inning by striking out Athena infielder Emily Lopez looking with the bases loaded to preserve the Regals' 3-2 lead.

The Lopez strikeout was one of two earned in the sixth as the Regal right-handed finished the game with a season-high five strikeouts.

Geri Jensen's single to left field in the bottom of the first inning drove home Kayla Sakamoto for the first Regals run of game two to tie the game at one apiece.

The score remained tied until the bottom of the fourth, an inning that saw the first three Regals combine efforts to score an additional two runs, giving Cal Lutheran their first lead of the game at 3-2.

Another lead-off hit would fuel the CLU scoring rally in the fourth; reaching base on her single to left field, Katie Strang advanced to third when Jensen belted the first of back-to-back CLU doubles to place the pair in scoring position.

Fully seizing the opportunity that presented itself, Minton forced Athenas starting pitcher Emma Friedenberg to throw an uncomfortable amount of pitches throughout her at-bat, protecting herself in the process by hitting a number of borderline strikes into foul territory. Minton finally brought a swift end to the duel by hitting a double to left field, emptying the bases to give her team a one run lead.

That 3-2 score would remain untouched throughout the next two innings, even surviving the events of the CMS sixth, until the Athenas took full advantage of CLU's miscues in the seventh.

Disheartened by the way Friday afternoon ended, Cal Lutheran will have only a limited amount of time to move past what took place against CMS because the team will return to Hutton Field Saturday morning to face the Whittier Poets in their final home games of the season.

Seven CLU seniors will be honored prior to the start of game one as Breanna Johnson, Kaitlyn Luebben-Halvorson, Courtney Minton, Lizzie Novak, April Rosas, Allyson Salas, and Katie Strang will be recognized for their hard work, dedication, and success earned as members of the Regals softball program.

First pitch for Saturday's doubleheader is scheduled for 10 a.m.

Click here to watch the Cal Lutheran-Whittier Softball Doubleheader

Providing supporters of Cal Lutheran the ability to watch various athletics and campus events online, CLUTube.com will broadcast both games of the Regals' final home SCIAC doubleheader taking place on April 16th.

Lee Elder, the voice of Cal Lutheran athletics will provide play-by-play analysis throughout the afternoon, softball fans can watch all the action from the comforts of their home, smartphone, or tablet computer by clicking on the link provided above.

Once directed to CLUTube's homepage, all softball fans need to do is click on the "Live Broadcasts" icon to access the live stream with commentary.

Box Score (Game One): UR 10, CLU 2 - F/5
Box Score (Game Two): UR 12, CLU 3 - F/5

No. 19 Redlands 10, Cal Lutheran 2 - F/5
The defending SCIAC champions showed first-hand how tough it is to compete in Redlands, jumping out to an early 5-0 lead after the first inning.

With a majority of those runs earned off a grand slam, Redlands would add another five to the scoreboard before Cal Lutheran was able to successfully start trimming the Bulldogs' lead in the fifth inning.

Starting the action with her double to centerfield, Courtney Minton advanced to third on Kaitlyn Luebben-Halvorson's single to left center shortly after she entered the game as a pinch-hitter.

Responsible for two of Cal Lutheran's five hits in game one, the double was the third hit by the Regals catcher this season.

A single to right field by Lizzie Novak enabled Minton to end Redlands' shutout bid; scoring the first Cal Lutheran run of the day, the single also placed another Regal in scoring position.

That second Cal Lutheran run would score moments later on a fly ball that Alyssa Abayari hit towards the foul territory in left field. Even though the second out of the inning was recorded on the play, Abayari hit the ball deep enough for pinch-runner Sara Lichtsinn to score CLU's final run of the game.

No. 19 Redlands 12, Cal Lutheran 3 - F/5
Learning first-hand the dangers of falling behind early, Cal Lutheran was the first team to score in game two, taking a 1-0 lead into the bottom-half of the first inning.

Starting the game with her lead-off hit to right center, Kayla Sakamoto made full use of her speed and raced around the diamond, stopping only 60 feet away from home plate.

Even though Abayari reached base on a fielding error in the very next at-bat, that miscue was caused by Redlands third baseman Aleisha Martinez. Had almost any other Bulldog committed the error, Sakamoto would have taken full advantage of the opportunity to score. Since the ball was initially fielded at third, the Regals centerfielder had no choice but to remain on base.

Patiently, yet eagerly awaiting an opportunity to give her team the lead, Geri Jensen provided Sakamoto all the time she needed to cover that final 60 feet when her single darted through the right side of the diamond into shallow right field.

The lead would be short lived though, as Redlands sent eight batters to the plate in their initial set of at-bats, a group that was able to score five runs on a single, triple, double, and fielding error to take their first lead of the game.

Now trailing 5-1, CLU's deficit would grow by another six as 11 Redlands batters were able to take their swings, creating a sizable challenge for the Regals to overcome.

As was their case with the Bulldogs, Cal Lutheran also committed two errors in game two as well. Even though that second mistake took place in the inning, Redlands was just able to find the gaps around the diamond and find the empty patches of dirt and grass needed to reach base.

Reaching base as the lead-off batter for the second straight time, drawing one of the two walks the Regals would earn throughout the game, Sakamoto would complete her tour around the diamond once again. Advancing to second on a sacrifice bunt that was perfectly executed by Abayari, she would score CLU's second run thanks to a double to left centerfield hit by Danika Green.

Green's double was the team-high ninth hit this season by the designated player.

Advancing to third on Minton's single up the middle, Green would score the third Regals run when Lichtsinn successfully singled to the Bulldogs shortstop.

Cal Lutheran will return to Hutton Field to compete in back-to-back SCIAC doubleheaders beginning Friday against Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, first pitch will take place at 2:00 p.m.

Shortly after Minton touched home plate, Lizzie Novak was struck by a pitch; clearly rattled by the events that had quickly unfolded, Pacific Lutheran wanted nothing more than to secure that final out to end the inning and prevent any further damage from taking place.

Sensing the momentum shifting towards its dugout, Cal Lutheran became even more aggressive at the plate and was rewarded for its efforts when back-to-back singles hit by April Rosas and Sakamoto enabled Novak to score the final run of the frame.

Pitching with a four-run cushion, Regals starter Allyson Salas was able to successfully keep the Lutes offense at bay, striking out a season-high eight batters to earn her sixth victory of the season.

Were it not for a two out, two-run home run hit by the Lutes in the top of the seventh inning, Salas would have earned her fourth shutout of the season, tying Occidental's Brittany Vacura and Pomona-Pitzer's Carolyn Cross for the highest total in the conference.

Instead, the right-hander was more than excited to earn her SCIAC-high 12th complete game of the season in game one of two that were scheduled to take place throughout the day.

Pacific Lutheran 4, Cal Lutheran 2- F
Earning its only runs in the previous game via the long ball, Pacific Lutheran replicated its efforts in game two as three of the four Lutes runs scored were off home runs.

As was the case earlier in the afternoon, Cal Lutheran once again took an early 1-0 lead on Strang's sacrifice fly that enabled Alyssa Abayari to score easily from third. Abayari reached base on the Regals' very first at-bat of the game due to a fielding error committed by PLU.

Two pitches would ultimately become the difference between victory and defeat for Cal Lutheran; Pacific Lutheran tied the score at one apiece on a solo home run hit in the second inning and took the lead for good on a two-run shot to right field that gave the Lutes their first lead of the game.

In the fifth inning of game one, Cal Lutheran saw PLU take the lead, only to hand it right back to the Regals in their very next set of at-bats. In the fifth inning of game two, Regals softball fans watched the Lutes not only take the lead, but hold onto their advantage for the remaining innings.

The Regals were almost able to create some late-inning magic as the crowd at Hutton Field braced themselves for a play at the plate in the sixth that would ultimately decide the overall outcome of the game.

Pinch-running for Danika Green who reached base on a single to center field, Katelyn Downing raced her way around the diamond when teammate Geri Jensen was able to record her team-high seventh double of the season.

Witnessing the actions unfold at home plate, Jensen was prepared to advance to third if the opportunity presented itself as fans from both teams rose to their feet to see who would win the race to home plate - Downing, or a cut-off throw from Lutes third baseman Ami Gran. Even though Downing strategically slid around the Lutes catcher in an attempt to reach home, she was tagged mere moments before she was able to touch home plate to bring an end to the inning.

Unable to create another scoring opportunity in its final at-bats of the day, Cal Lutheran would have to settle for another split of its games played against Pacific Lutheran for the fourth consecutive season as the Lutes were able to take game two by a final score of 4-2.

The Regals will conclude their season-high 12-game homestand this Friday against La Verne, first pitch for that SCIAC doubleheader at Hutton Field will take place at 2 p.m.

Appropriately two of Cal Lutheran's eight spring teams will hold true to the student-athlete moniker with women's water polo hosting Redlands at 5 p.m. and baseball heading out to Chapman on a day that recognizes the student-athlete.

Two batters later, shortstop Geri Jensen made the most of her only hit of the game, a double down the line in left field that enabled Green to score and tie the game at two apiece.

Occidental would break the tie with their one run scored in the second, but Cal Lutheran would valiantly battle back to not only tie the score during their half of that same inning, but also jump out to their first lead of the day at 5-3.

Initially reaching base on an error, Sara Lichtsinn advanced to scoring position at second base when Kayla Sakamoto took full advantage of her speed and beat the throw to first on her bunt single.

Earning her second base hit in as many at-bats, Abayari earned the first two of her three RBI on her single to centerfield, driving in her two teammates to help Cal Lutheran take a 4-3 lead.

Scoring the third, and final run of the CLU second on Green's single through the left side of the infield, Abayari capped off a four hit, three run effort once she touched home plate.

Keeping the other off the scoreboard throughout the next three innings, Regal starter Katelyn Downing successfully kept the Tigers' guessing at the plate, allowing only three hits to her opponent throughout the first six innings of action.

Leading-off the CLU sixth with her first triple of the season, Abayari earned her third RBI of the game when her single successfully split Occidental's first and second basemen before coming to a stop in a patch of open grass in right field.

Abayari's single was the last of her three hits earned against Occidental starter Amber Garland, and perhaps the most important one earned up to this point in the season as Occidental still had three outs at their disposal before Cal Lutheran could earn a split of the afternoon's games.

Trailing 6-3, Occidental would load the bases at one point of the sixth inning with only one out recorded by the Regals.

With everyone in attendance anxiously awaiting the results of those final moments, Downing would singlehandedly bring her team one step closer to victory when Tigers second baseman Tasha Serna-Gallegos hit a shallow pop fly back to the Regal right-hander for the second out of the inning.

Having already watched the Tigers score two runs in the inning, Downing would quickly bring an end to their scoring opportunity when she struckout Jerika Barron looking to record her third victory of the season and help her team earn another SCIAC split.

The Regals will compete in their final non-conference game of the season this Tuesday when they return to Hutton Field to compete in two games against Pacific Lutheran. First pitch for that doubleheader will take place at 1:00 p.m.

But a double to centerfield hit by Sagehen infielder Brianna Marcantoni during the very next at-bat killed all hopes of ending to the game in storybook fashion. Instead, Salas forced the next two batters to hit a line drive and pop-fly respectively to Novak in left field to earn her fifth victory of the year.

The complete game, one-hitter is the first one earned by a Regal since Talia Ferrari finished with a similar result nearly one year ago to the day in Cal Lutheran's March 31, 2010 meeting against Hamline (MN).

Pomona-Pitzer 1, Cal Lutheran 0 - F
Limited to only one hit in game one, Pomona-Pitzer did not fare much better against Regal starter Katelyn Downing in game two as the Sagehens were only able to muster five hits in the back-half of the day's doubleheader.

The only problem for Cal Lutheran is that two of those hits, a lead-off single and a double, led to the only run scored by either team as Pomona-Pitzer escaped with a narrow 1-0 victory to earn a split of Saturday's doubleheader.

Throwing all seven innings, Downing would not allow another Sagehen past second base throughout the last five innings of the game. But those two hits ended up being the literal difference between victory, and defeat for Cal Lutheran as they reached the midpoint of their 12-game homestand by splitting Saturday's twin-bill.

Mirroring the efforts earned by her four teammates in the previous game, designated player Danika Green also reached base safely in two of her three at-bats.

Cal Lutheran will return to Hutton Field next Saturday to compete in another SCIAC doubleheader against the visiting Occidental Tigers. First pitch will take place at 12 noon.

Box Score (Game One): CLU 9, UPS 1 - F/5
Box Score (Game Two): CLU 4, UPS 1 - F

Cal Lutheran 9, Puget Sound 1 - F/5
Giving up their lone run to the Loggers in the first inning, Cal Lutheran scored twice in the fourth, and added seven more to enact the run-rule and bring a premature end to the game.

Allowing one hit in Monday's game at Chapman, Regals pitcher Allyson Salas followed that effort by giving up only three hits throughout her five innings of work, striking out four Loggers en route to her fourth win of 2011.

Tuesday's win was her third in the last eight days, and the second run-ruled victory earned at Hutton Field this season.

In all three of those victories, Salas has allowed a combined zero earned runs.

First baseman Sara Lichtsinn hit her team-high fifth double of the season, and reached base safely in her other two at-bats to finish a perfect 3-for-3 at the plate in game one. The junior was also responsible for driving in four of Cal Lutheran's runs.

Pinch-hitter Jennifer Shipley also earned her first-ever RBI as a Regal when she singled to center field in her only at-bat of the game, driving in pinch-runner Arianna Drulias to extend the CLU lead to the eight runs needed to officially end the game after only five innings of action.

Even though game one ended with a barrage of Regal runs, it was Puget Sound that looked to take an early, and sizable lead as the Loggers were able to take advantage of two Regal errors and load the bases with only one out in the inning.

Dominant in Monday's one-hit effort at Chapman, Salas was able to induce Logger third baseman Brianna Huber to strike out swinging before forcing shortstop Joleen Monfietto to chase a pitch and hit a fly ball to Regal left fielder Lizzie Novak to end the inning.

Puget Sound would strand a total of six baserunners in game one, with one-half of that total taking place in the Logger's most dangerous scoring opportunity of the entire afternoon.

Held scoreless for the first three innings, Cal Lutheran was able to score their first two runs of the game when Lichtsinn hit a single to left field to drive in Katie Strang and Geri Jensen that enabled the Regals to earn their first lead of the game.

Strang started the action in the fourth with a single, and was joined on-base shortly thereafter by Jensen after she was hit by a pitch.

Entering the bottom of the fifth with a 2-0 lead, Cal Lutheran would send their entire line-up to the plate in what would become the final outs of game one.

Loading the bases with zero outs in the frame on a Puget Sound error, and a bunt single, and another Regal who was hit by a pitch, a base on balls drawn by Jensen would score the first of seven CLU runs.

Lichtsinn would then earn her last two RBI of the game on her double to right centerfield before scoring on Courtney Minton's double to left centerfield as the catcher successfully emptied the bases and pushed the Regal lead to 8-1 with one swing of the bat.

Entering the game as a pinch-runner, Arianna Drulias would advance from second to third on a wild pitch thrown by Logger starter Jennifer Davis, and would score easily just moments later when Shipley singled to centerfield to officially end the game.

Cal Lutheran 4, Puget Sound 1 - F
In game two, Cal Lutheran took full advantage of three Puget Sound errors to drive in the two runs in their half of the first and third innings to earn the sweep of the day's action with their 4-1 victory.

Even though she pitched with a four run cushion for a majority of the game, the two earned in the CLU first was all the support starting pitcher Katelyn Downing needed as she allowed only one Puget Sound run to earn the complete-game victory.

Reaching base in the first inning on a double and bunt single respectively, both Alyssa Abayari and Novak would score on separate errors committed by Puget Sound to give the Regals an early 2-0 lead.

Reaching base in the third inning on her single to right field, Danika Green would score CLU's third run of the game on a sacrifice fly hit by Lichtsinn.

Initially drawing a walk off Logger starter Auriel Sperberg, Strang would score the final Regal run of the game off a Logger fielding error to extend Cal Lutheran's lead to 4-0.

Puget Sound would score one run in the top of the seventh, but would come no closer to shortening the Regals' advantage as the home squad would quickly record the third out of the inning to complete the sweep.

CLU will return to Hutton Field to continue their homestand with a doubleheader against Linfield on March 22nd that will begin at 1:00 p.m.