Big Sky Championship Central

OGDEN, Utah -- In one of the best offensive displays in school history, Sacramento State advanced in the Big Sky Conference Softball Championship on Friday with a 17-0 rout of Southern Utah at the Wildcat Softball Complex.

Sacramento State set the school and Big Sky record for most in a hit in a game (22) as 11 different Hornets had at least one hit and seven had multiple-hit games. In fact, the Hornets already had 17 runs by the end of the fourth inning, and the 22 hits easily surpassed the previous school record of 19, set on three different occasions.

Sacramento State (27-21) remains alive in the double-elimination, six-team postseason tournament while Southern Utah (11-38) is eliminated. The Hornets, who are the No. 2 seed at the tournament, lost their first game yesterday to Idaho State. Sacramento State will now take on Montana later today at 4 p.m. PDT in an elimination game. The winner of that game will play on Saturday at 10 a.m. PDT against tournament host Weber State or Idaho State while the losing team is eliminated.

Numerous records fell in Sacramento State's 17-run, 22-hit output, and making the game even more impressive, is that it came in a mercy rule shortened five-inning contest. Here are plenty of notables from today's game...

- 22 hits are the most in Sacramento State and Big Sky history. The previous Sacramento State record was 19, set on three occasions (most recently in 2014).
- 22 hits are tied for the eighth highest output in an NCAA Div. I game this season.
- 22 hits are the most recorded on Weber State's home field.
- 17 runs are the most scored in a Big Sky Championship game.
- The 17-run win ties for the largest margin of victory in school history, originally set in a 20-3 win at San Diego on May 4, 2008, and a 17-0 home win against Santa Clara on April 11, 2010.
- The 17 runs and 27 total bases were three shy of school records in both categories.
- Seven different Hornets had multiple-hit games, and 11 different Sacramento State players had hits.
- Eight different Hornets had RBIs in the game, including Jessica Ravetti (5), Sasha Margulies (3), Kortney Solis (2), Natalie Alas (2), Sydney Rasmussen (1), Kailey Olcott (1), Shelby Johnston (1) and Kayla Papez (1).
- Every Sacramento State starter had at least one hit and scored at least one run.
- The Hornets sent 12 batters to the plate in a fourth inning that saw the team score seven runs on eight hits. Olcott and Johnston both had two hits in the inning.
- Zamari Hinton, Johnston, Rasmussen and Ravetti all had three hits while Olcott, Alas and Kayla Papez each had two hits.
- Rasmussen (3), Hinton (2), Ravetti (2), Solis (2), Johnston (2), Papez (2) and Alas (2) each scored multiple runs.
- Ravetti had a career-high five RBIs, the most by a Hornet this season.
- Sasha Margulies had one official at-bat, finishing with three RBIs. She went 1-for-1 with a walk and two sacrifice flies to lift her season batting average to .403. She has now reached base safely in a career-best 25 straight games.
- Lost in the offensive display was the performance of sophomore right-hander Celina Matthias who threw four shutout innings to improve her record to 20-13. She becomes just the fourth Hornet pitcher in the Div. I era (1990-pres.) to notch 20 wins, and first since three-time All-American Susie Bugliarello had 21 wins in 1997.
- Matthias threw 25 straight scoreless innings against Southern Utah this year, which included three shutouts earlier this season at home.
- Sacramento State had pinch hit singles from Sydnee Strong and Alexxiss Diaz. The Hornets entered the game with two pinch hits the entire season.
- The Hornets put up crooked numbers in the first (4), third (5) and fourth (7) innings.
- Sacramento State hit .595 (22-for-37) in the game with five doubles, 16 RBIs, a .730 slugging percentage and 1.305 ops.