Colleges roundup: Fresno State women's rugby club falls in regional quarterfinals

Fresno State’s historic women's rugby club season came to a close Sunday with a 44-24 loss to USC in the quarterfinals of the USA Rugby West Regional.

The Bulldogs (6-3) took a 24-10 halftime lead on tries from Moriah Halteman, Jenna Balestra and two from Stephanie Rovetti, but couldn’t stop the Trojans as they scored 34 unanswered points to advance to the Final Four Championships on April 30 at UC Davis.

In Saturday’s round of 16, Fresno State earned a 31-27 come-from-behind victory against UC Riverside.

The Bulldogs finish the season among the top eight teams in Division II, less than two weeks after capturing the university’s first club conference title in Vallejo.

Softball – Former El Diamante High standout Sierra Hyland returned to the Cal Poly lineup Saturday after missing a stretch of games due to injury.

The sophomore pitcher fractured a bone in her throwing hand covering home plate during a 7-2 loss against Ohio State on March 20, according to the San Luis Obisbo Tribune.

The Mustangs (16-17, 0-6 Big West) hope her return will help snap a 10-game skid since the injury. Hyland played Saturday for the first time in seven games and hit a combined 3-for-7 at the designated player position.

It is unknown when Hyland will return to the circle for Cal Poly.

“It’s a long-term thing,” Mustangs coach Jenny Condon told the Tribune. “Coming back too soon and reinjuring it is the last thing that any of us want.”

Despite not pitching in three weeks, Hyland still leads the Big West Conference in strikeouts in 154 — 26 more than the next-closest pitcher.

Earlier this season, Hyland was named a USA Softball national pitcher of the week for Feb. 22-28. She has also won the conference’s pitcher of the week award three times this season.

Bulldogs still ranked – Fresno State maintained its rankings in the national polls, remaining at No. 23 in the USA Today/National Fastpitch Coaches Association poll and No. 25 by ESPN.com/USA Softball.

The Bulldogs (27-9-1, 9-0 Mountain West) host Utah State (19-15, 5-4) for a three-game series at Margie Wright Diamond starting at 6 p.m. Friday.

Equestrian – Fresno State will face No. 5-seed Texas A&M in the first round of the National Collegiate Equestrian Association Championships on Thursday.

The 12th-seeded Bulldogs, who are seeking their first national title, will take on the two-time national champion Aggies (2002, 2012) at 6:30 a.m. at the Extraco Events Center in Waco, Texas.

The winner will advance to the quarterfinals against No. 4-seed Oklahoma State the following day, as the top-four seeds each receive first-round byes in the 12-team NCEA Championships.

This story was originally published April 12, 2016 at 9:07 PM with the headline "Colleges roundup: Fresno State women's rugby club falls in regional quarterfinals."