San Diego State Softball opened conference play against Utah State this past weekend.

The Aztecs won the series 2-1, winning the first two matchups before losing on a walk-off home run by the Aggies late Sunday afternoon.

The Aztecs won the first two games by offensive explosiveness. Led by the Mountain West Player of the Week Cali Decker.

Decker hit .455 with an OBP of .571, hitting two home runs in the first two games. Decker continues to show how dominant she is at the plate, a true star in the MW and the country.

.@CaliDecker was raking in our series win at Utah State this weekend!! #GoAztecs pic.twitter.com/dZHfXIdv2H

— San Diego State Softball (@AztecSoftball) March 17, 2025

Leadoff hitter Bella Espinoza and Decker led the Aztecs in the first game.

Espinoza got on base four times, scoring twice, mirroring her play last weekend in San Diego before her injury. Besides Olivia Gigante, every batter for the Aztecs got on base at least once. Angie Yellen and Quinn Waiki had quite the game in the batters box, each getting three hits for the Aztecs.

Grace Uribe struggled in the circle but got on base four times in the game. Cece Cellura started the game for the Aztecs, struggling at altitude, giving up nine hits and five earned runs. Uribe came in and did a little better but still gave up three runs, going the last four innings to help the Aztecs get the first win of the series.

In the second game, the Aztecs were again led by Espinoza, as she got on base three times in her four at-bats.

The Aztecs second game, the Aztecs got big time help from two key players. Shannon Cunningham got two hits for SDSU, driving in two runs. Julie Holcomb also added two hits for the Aztecs, driving in three runs. Dee Dee Hernandez went five innings for the Aztecs, giving up four runs. Hernandez did a great job keeping the Aggie hitters off balance with her terrific breaking balls.

Uribe relived her Sunday starting the game in the sixth, ending the game for the Aztecs, giving up only two runs in the game.

After winning the series officially, the Aztecs were trying to ride high into the last game of the three-game set.

The Aztecs were held to one run before the seventh by some great pitching and defense by the Aggies. The Aztecs opted to start Hernandez again, and she did well, going 4.2 innings. Uribe relieved Hernandez before quickly being taken out after the Aggies put up a crooked number on her.

The Aztecs stormed back, led by a two-run homer by Uribe in the top half of the seventh. SDSU’s potential comeback came up short as the Aggies hit a walk-off home run in the bottom half of the inning.

San Diego State returns home for a game against USD on Wednesday at 6 PM PT on the Mountain West Network.

After facing off against the Toreros, the Aztecs host New Mexico for a three-game set starting on Friday. The Toreros are 14-16 overall and have faced a tough schedule this year. They are coming off a series sweep of Montana, winning all three games.

USD is led by extreme power hitter Taylor Johnson, who has hit seven home runs and is one of the leaders on this team. The other leader is stud pitcher Kelsey Tadlock; she leads the Toreros pitching staff with an impressive 2.73 ERA and a WHIP of 1.43. The Aztecs will have their hands full with USD, and they should not be taken lightly by Coach Deniz and her squad.

Bryant Thursby

Assistant Coach at Heritage High School. A big time SDSU fanatic and Padres fan.