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STANFORD – Eighth-ranked Cal (35-11, 2-1 Pac-10) was shut out, 6-0, by No. 3 Stanford (28-5, 1-2 Pac-10) in the first game of a double header, but came back to defeat the cross-bay rivals, 7-6, in the rubber match of the weekend series, Saturday afternoon in front of a Stanford softball record crowd of 962 at the Smith Family Stadium.  

In the opener, Stanford scored four runs in the second inning and never looked back. After retiring the first batter in the home half of the second inning, freshman pitcher Kelly Anderson was pulled in favor of Jen Deering. The junior didn’t last long as she hit the first batter she faced followed by a wild pitch that scored Maureen LeCocq from third. Jessica Mendoza and Sarah Beeson followed with walks bringing in another run.  

Freshman Cassie Bobrow came on in relief of Deering, pitching the rest of the way. The Cardinal added two more runs in the fourth inning for the final margin.  

Stanford pitcher LeCocq went the distance scattering four hits and recording her first shutout of the season to improve to 10-2. Anderson took the loss for Cal, dropping to 5-3 on the year.  

The offense woke up just in time for the second game of the afternoon. Freshman Kaleo Eldredge led off the game with an infield single. Kristen Morley bunted Eldredge over to second and then scored on senior Candace Harper’s deep double to the gap in left center. Junior Veronica Nelson followed with a single to left field and Courtney Scott slapped a RBI single to bring in Harper.  

Cal went at it again in the second inning, bringing in three runs. With two outs in the inning, Eldredge reached on a fielder’s choice. Morley walked and Harper was hit by a pitch to set up the table for Nelson, who singled again to left field for a RBI. Scott tallied her second and third RBI of the afternoon and her team-leading 31st and 32nd RBIs of the season when she placed a base hit into left center.  

The Cardinal made a late surge to keep the game close as they used three hits to bring in two runs in the sixth inning and a two run homer by Jessica Mendoza, her 10th of the year, in the seventh. Sarah Beeson struck out and Kira Ching grounded to Chelsea Spencer at short to end the game.  

The win for the Bears was its first at Stanford and the first series win over their rival since the 1999 season. Forest struck out three batters in her 19th complete game and her 90th career win, which is two shy of the No. 2 spot all-time at Cal held by Leslie Partch (1979-82).