Fresno State roundup: Bulldogs rout UNLV to increase nation-leading win streak to 22 in softball

Leadoff hitter Bria Kennedy went 4-for-4 and Alyssa Villalpando belted a three-run homer in a four-run fourth inning as Fresno State increased its nation-leading win streak to 22 games by defeating UNLV 4-1 in a Mountain West game Thursday at Margie Wright Diamond.

Jill Compton, one of eight Fresno State seniors honored during the regular season-ending three-game series that will close Saturday, pitched a seven-hitter while improving to 24-4 as the Bulldogs moved to 40-9-1 and 21-0 in MW play.

Ranked 17th and 19th in national polls, they’ve long clinched a second-straight Mountain West title and have become the nation’s first team to punch a ticket to the NCAA Tournament. Selections will be announced Sunday on ESPNU at 7 p.m.

Baseball – The Bulldogs (33-17, 19-8 MW) have won seven of eight games heading into their final conference series of the season at UNLV (22-26, 12-12).

Earlier this week, junior Jimmy Lambert was named to the National Pitcher of the Year Second Watch List. Slated to start Saturday’s game, Lambert (9-0, 2.30 ERA) ranks fifth in the nation and leads the MW in wins. Ricky Tyler Thomas (7-4, 2.13), who leads the conference with 88 strikeouts, will start the series opener at 6:05 p.m. Friday.

Fresno State is .004 percentage points behind first-place New Mexico (32-18, 17-7) and three wins ahead of third-place Nevada (27-20, 16-8) in the conference standings, with the Wolf Pack playing the Lobos in Albuquerque this weekend. They both have MW series next week still, with New Mexico at Air Force and Nevada hosting UNLV.

Football – Cornerback Malcolm Washington has been granted a release and intends to transfer to another program at the end of the semester.

Washington played in all 12 games as a sophomore last season and was in on eight tackles. He also had four pass breakups, all in a win at Hawaii.

This story was originally published May 12, 2016 at 8:56 PM with the headline "Fresno State roundup: Bulldogs rout UNLV to increase nation-leading win streak to 22 in softball."