Last year's heartbreak fueled Santa Clara softball's historic NCAA run this season

San Francisco Chronicle​

13-05-2025

There wasn't much suspense in the room when the Santa Clara softball team learned its NCAA Tournament fate. The Broncos had already secured their place in the field the day before, capturing the program's first-ever West Coast Conference title with a dominant 15-4 win over Oregon State.
But while Sunday's announcement might have lacked drama, the moment carried deep significance for sixth-year head coach Gina Carbonatto and her team. Last year, a loss on the final day of the regular season dashed Santa Clara's postseason hopes. Now the Broncos are tournament-bound for the first time in the program's 46-year history as a No. 4 seed.
'We had a bad taste in our mouths all offseason,' Carbonatto said. 'We were so close last year, and that season really propelled us to where we are now. We're just more prepared this time.'
big opportunity at the 𝑮𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝑺𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝒐𝒏 𝑫𝒊𝒓𝒕 #StampedeTogether pic.twitter.com/ANCx0B4DE6
— Santa Clara Softball (@SCUSoftball) May 12, 2025
The Broncos will open the Tucson Regional against host and No. 13 national seed Arizona (43-10) on Friday. It's a tall task — the Wildcats are 10th in the nation in hits and 19th in home runs — but Santa Clara enters with momentum and belief backed by Carbonatto's NCAA Tournament experience.
She was an assistant on Washington's 2009 national championship team and also reached the tourney with Pacific.
'We haven't talked much about what it's like being in the tournament, but more about how it didn't occur last year,' Carbonatto said. 'We had to find the why behind that, and I think we did. My philosophy is to play the game, not work the game, and that's what we've been about.'
Offensively, Santa Clara has found success playing small-ball. The Broncos led the WCC with 303 runs, despite hitting a league-low 16 home runs. Their scoring came from speed, plate discipline and timely hitting.
Sophomore second baseman Cairah Curran was the sparkplug. She led the conference with 26 stolen bases (in 32 attempts), broke the WCC single-season hits record with 78 and scored a league-best 49 runs. Many of her hits came via bunts and slap hits that set the table for the heart of the lineup.
'She's one of the fastest kids in the nation, but her real growth has been her offensive approach,' Carbonatto said. 'Speed never slumps and our offense is much more explosive (than last season). We have confidence in the hitters behind her.'
Among them is senior third baseman Hope Alley, who transferred from Cal and led the conference with 41 RBIs.
On the mound, freshman Cari Ferguson posted a WCC-best 1.92 ERA with 60 strikeouts in 98.2 innings. She complements fifth-year ace Hannah Edwards, the staff's emotional leader, and two-way standout Hazyl Gray.
'Hannah's still our bulldog, but Cari is such a different pitcher and that makes us dangerous,' Carbonatto said. 'We can take Hannah out and then (hitters) have to face (more offspeed pitches) from Cari. It's hard to make that adjustment.'
Gray, the 2024 WCC Player of the Year, had a slightly quieter season at the plate (.844 OPS this season, .925 last year), but elevated her game in the circle. She threw a career-high 73 innings with a 3.74 ERA and remains the rotation's only lefty.
'We've had so much more offense around her that she hasn't also had to hit at the same pace,' Carbonatto said. 'We still win games when she doesn't hit two home runs. But she's the best in the circle she's ever been, and that's a big reason we're here.'
When not pitching, Gray plays left and bats fifth behind sophomore catcher Taryn Clements, who matched Gray's .844 OPS and led the conference in caught-stealing percentage (.613).
Santa Clara finished the season leading the WCC in runs scored, ERA, most defensive putouts and assists. But the road ahead in Tucson won't be easy. After facing No. 13 Arizona, the Broncos will deal with another tough team. Ole Miss (35-16) enters with SEC-tested depth, while Grand Canyon (43-6) is making its fourth straight NCAA appearance after dominating the WAC.
'We're happy about our seed, the location and our opponents,' Carbonatto said. 'The big difference for us this year is us having almost been there and tasted it and then kind of creating new expectations for this year's team, and then we were able to accomplish that.'
Stanford, Cal also tournament-bound
After making consecutive WCWS appearances, Stanford will begin this postseason on the road in the Eugene Regional. The Cardinal (40-11) will first deal with America East winners Binghamton (36-12) on Friday in a bracket that includes Oregon (47-7) and Weber State (28-30).
The Cardinal posted a third-straight 40-win campaign behind a historic offensive attack with single-season records for runs (413) and home runs (94).
Cal (35-19) is in one of the toughest brackets, opening in the Norman Regional against Omaha (39-11) before a potential second game against No. 2 Oklahoma (45-7). In their opener, the Sooners play Patriot League champion Boston University (39-17).
This is the Bears' 36th NCAA Tournament appearance. They are looking to advance to their first Super Regional since 2012.