THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. - It was a fitting end for Cal Lutheran senior Sara Lichtsinn playing the final games of her collegiate career. She ended Saturday's opener against Pomona-Pitzer with the game-winning hit as the Regals finished 2012 with a split against the Sagehens.

Box Score (Game One): CLU 7, PP 6 - F
Box Score (Game Two): PP 5, CLU 2 - F

Lichtsinn appeared in games 156 and 157 of her career having missed only two games during her four years with the Regals. Those two games were the final contests of the 2009 and 2010 seasons to give way to seniors playing in the final game of their respective collegiate careers.

It was her turn this season to play in both games and she made the most of it. Lichstinn finished with a pair of base hits and a stellar final defensive play from her second base position to cap off the day and her career.



Cal Lutheran 7, Pomona-Pitzer 6 - F
Lichtsinn stepped to the plate in the bottom of the seventh inning in a tie game with the game-winning run in scoring position. She drove the first pitch through the left side for a base hit and watched Shannon Tinsley round third base attempting to score on the play. Tinsley raced home and slid around the tag giving the senior Lichtsinn a walk-off hit on her "Senior Day."



Pomona-Pitzer trailed 6-3 heading into the seventh inning but used a pair of hits and Cal Lutheran errors to pull even. CLU relief pitcher Katelyn Downing held the Sagehens rally to just three runs after forcing Jessica Liu into an inning ending ground out with the bases loaded.

It was a back-and-forth battle early on with Tinsley quickly erasing a third inning two-run deficit with a three-run blast. Danika Green then broke a 3-3 tie in the fifth with a two-out RBI-single and the Regals tacked on two more crucial runs in the sixth.

The first seven hitters in the Cal Lutheran lineup all collected at least one base hit in the game. Kathleen Watson-Otani and Debben Hoffer each went 2-for-3 and scored a run.

Cal Lutheran starting pitcher Shonna Christianson scattered 10 singles over 6.1 innings of work and held Pomona-Pitzer to six runs (four earned). Downing picked up her fifth victory of the season in relief.

Bri Marcantoni went 2-for-3 with RBI-singles in the third and fifth innings, to go along with a sacrifice fly in the top of the seventh. Teammates Ashley Morello and Leah Bleichner also collected two hits apiece in the loss.

Pomona-Pitzer 5, Cal Lutheran 2 - F
As a team Pomona-Pitzer went 9-for-16 (.563) at the plate with two outs during game two. The Sagehens ollected four of their five runs batted in when down to the final out.

The first two batters in the Sagehens half of the second and fourth innings were retired in order. In the second a pair of two-strike hits capped off by a Kathryn Rabak RBI-double gave Pomona-Pitzer an early 1-0 lead.

In the fourth, Rabak was the first of five straight two-out hitters to reach base safely. An RBI-single from Ashley Morello and two-run base hit by Ari Roach broke the game open.

Cal Lutheran had premium scoring chances over the final three innings and cashed in with two runs in the fifth. Pinch hitter Alex Templin brought home one run and a passed ball cut the Regals deficit to 5-2.

However CLU was unable to get the clutch hit leaving six runners on base over the final three innings and nine total for the game. Cal Lutheran went 3-for-16 (.188) with runners on base and 1-for-10 in RBI opportunities during game two.

Kayla Sakamoto tossed two innings of shutout relief and went 2-for-4 as the leadoff hitter in the Cal Lutheran lineup. She finished the season as the team's leading hitter for average (.366) and did not commit an error in 84 chances in 2012.

Pomona-Pitzer (22-17, 15-9 SCIAC) starting pitcher Jessica Liu allowed one run on six hits in four innings to run her record to 3-3 this season. Leah Bleichner tossed the final two innings to pick up her second save of the season.

Cal Lutheran (12-28, 5-19 SCIAC) took away the opportunity for Pomona-Pitzer to earn a tie for second place in the final conference standings with its game one victory. The Sagehens will be the No. 3 seed for the SCIAC Post-Season Tournament. The Regals finished sixth in final conference standings moving up one place from 2011.