Aztecs softball team returns to LA for NCAA Regionals

San Diego State will open NCAA Regional softball play on Friday afternoon with hopes of history repeating.

The Aztecs will take on Virginia Tech at 3 p.m. in a game that will be broadcast on ESPNU. The three-day, double-elimination tournament will pare the four-team Los Angeles Regional down to a champion that will advance to next week’s best-of-three Super Regionals.

To advance, San Diego State (31-18) — the Mountain West regular-season and tournament champions — must outlast the host Bruins, a powerhouse since college softball’s inception.

Just like they did last year.

The Aztecs bashed their way through the L.A. Regional in 2023, emerging from a group that included UCLA, Grand Canyon and Liberty. Sixth-ranked UCLA and GCU are back in the Aztecs’ bracket this year, joined by No. 15 Virginia Tech. The Hokies (39-12-1) have lost three of their last five games, falling to Georgia Tech in last week’s ACC Tournament.

SDSU is led by Mountain West Co-Player of the Year Mac Barbara, who has 14 home runs — no other Aztec has more than three — to go with 48 RBIs and an OPS of 1.277, all team-highs. Allie Light shines in the circle, posting a 12-7 record with a 2.63 ERA. Dee Dee Hernandez has 10 wins and a 2.53 ERA coming out of the bullpen.

Barbara, Light and Hernandez were all part of the 2023 team that advanced to the first Super Regional in program history. The Aztecs fell to Utah in three games.