STOCKTON, Calif- Facing elimination twice from the 2010 California Collegiate Athletic Association Softball Championship Tournament, Sonoma State took huge strides in ending their offensive slump with 10-1 and 3-1 victories over top-seeded Cal State Monterey Bay and fourth-seeded Chico State, respectively, on Saturday at Arnaiz Stadium. Improving to 40-16 on the season, the Seawolves match their best record ever, mirroring the 1996 season. Sonoma State will face Cal State Dominguez Hills in the CCAA championship game on Sunday, starting at Noon.

Sonoma State 10, Cal State Monterey Bay 1 (6 innings)

Needing a win to stay alive in the double-elimination CCAA Championship Tournament, Sonoma State jumped all over Cal State Monterey Bay in the early going and didn't look back. After a Rochelle Vanyi triple in the top of the first, teammate Ashley Britton  brought her home on a  groundout to short stop with one out.

Then, senior Simone Brandalise, who gave the Seawolves a walkoff victory against the Otters earlier in the season, put another cringe on the faces of CSUMB players, coaches and fans with a grand slam in the top of the second for the 5-0 lead.

The Otters got a run back in the fifth off of Seawolf starting pitcher Julianne Martinez, but it was the result of a throwing error by Vanyi. Therefore, the run was unearned. It would be all the offense that the Otters could muster.

In the top half of the sixth, the Seawolves added five more insurance runs on just three hits, but with two Otter fielding errors. Martinez shut the Cal State Monterey Bay offense down in the bottom of the sixth, despite a one-out infield single by Nicole Garcia. With the eight-run mercy rule in effect, the Seawolves eliminated the CCAA regular season champions with a 10-1 victory in six innings.

Martinez (18-8) pitched a gem, scattering six hits and giving up the one unearned run. She walked just one and struck out two. Brandalise powered the Seawolves offense with two hits, two runs scored and five RBI, including the grand slam in the second inning that flew way beyond the center field fence. Britton and Janelle Arnold had two RBI as well.

It was the 12th time this season that Sonoma State has put up 10 or more runs in a ballgame -- the Seawolves are now 12-0 when doing so.

Sonoma State 3, Chico State 1

One hour after the 10-1 victory over Cal State Monterey Bay, Sonoma State was forced to take on Chico State in another loser-out game to determine who would advance to the championship game against Cal State Dominguez Hills. Chico State, who had lost earlier in the day to the Toros, came into the tournament as the No. 4 seed.

The Wildcats drew first blood, though, on a RBI single by Sam Quadt, scoring Christine Johnson, who reached on a throwing error by Britton.

Despite giving up the unearned run to Chico State in the third, Samantha Lipperd rebounded nicely after giving up nine runs to Cal State Dominguez Hills a day earlier. She tossed a beauty, allowing just three Wildcat hits while walking five and striking out seven.

Sonoma State tied the game up at one in the fourth inning when Nikki Jaime reached on a fielding error by the third baseman. It allowed Vanessa Currie to score from third.

Britton then gave the Seawolves the 2-1 lead with a RBI single up the middle, scoring Brandalise, who led off the inning by reaching base on a fielding error by the pitcher Kacie McCarthy.

In the seventh, Britton padded the lead to two runs when she blasted a monster home run deep to center field.

With the 3-1 cushion and just three outs away from advancing to the championship game, Lipperd ran into a bit of trouble in the bottom of the seventh, putting runners on first and second with no outs. After falling behind on a 2-0 count to Chico State's Jessie Minch, head coach Jennifer Bridges elected to relieve Lipperd with Julianne Martinez. Martinez, retired three straight batters on a series of force outs on the base paths to get the Seawolves out of the jam and the eventual 3-1 victory. Martinez earned her sixth save of the season. She and Lipperd combined to allow just three Chico State hits.

Offensively, the Seawolves were led by the three hits of Britton and her two RBI while LeeAnn Stroud went 2 for 4.

Sonoma State will rematch with Cal State Dominguez Hills in the CCAA championship game on Sunday. The Toros defeated the Seawolves on Friday, 9-1. In the double-elimination format, Sonoma State will need to beat CSUDH twice in order to be crowned as the tournament champion while earning an automatic berth into the 2010 NCAA Division II West Regional Tournament. The Toros will need to beat Sonoma just once, as SSU has already lost a game this weekend. First pitch on Sunday is set for Noon at Arnaiz Stadium in Stockton. The second game, if necessary, will follow 30 minutes after the completion of game one.