SAN FRANCISCO – Historical in so many ways, Academy of Art University softball's 2018 season was truly special. Driven to significantly surpass the program wins record by a unifying theme known as "On The 30," ART U's highlights included two double-digit win streaks, victories over three ranked opponents, the Urban Knights' first NCAA Tournament appearance, six All-Pacific West Conference Team honorees, and their first All-American.

"This has not only been a record-breaking year, but also an emotional and memorable one," said Sonja Garnett, who was named PacWest Coach of the Year in her fourth season at the program's helm. "As a program, we faced some adversity in fall and grew stronger and more united for it. Our student-athletes displayed passion, grit, talent, and as a program, we really trusted the process through the highs and lows of season."

Energized by a successful Alumni Game in late January, Academy of Art opened its 2018 campaign in Las Vegas for the Montana State Billings Desert Stinger Tournament on Feb. 2. An indicator of the resilience the Knights would show during the season, the first contest saw junior infielder Brenna Youngquist crush a grand slam in ART U's comeback attempt against the host Yellowjackets before freshman pitcher Brooke Larsen (22-5) limited eventual NCAA Tournament West Region Champion Chico State (then ranked No. 21) to a single unearned run. After picking up its first win of the year behind back-to-back home runs from freshman catcher Lauryn Henderson and senior infielder Samantha Klune versus SF State, Academy of Art collected its biggest victory of the trip with a 7-0 shutout of Central Washington who had averaged nearly 10 runs per game to that point.

"Our team set the bar against Central Washington in Las Vegas," said Garnett. "We had lost a few games going into that game while Central was crushing the ball and the scoreboard. We expected it to be a battle, but our team played relaxed, trusted our plan, and didn't get rattled. We won that game with a fierce trust in each other. Regardless of the hits we took throughout season, we were always able to find that trust again and kept fighting. Our student-athletes demonstrated their talent this year, but their dedication to a common goal determined our success."

En route to an eventual 20-4 home record, ART U finished two Feb. 7 wins over Cal State East Bay on a game-winning suicide bunt single from sophomore utility Dominique Seva'aetasi then used a pair of strong starts from Larsen and freshman left-hander Cecilia Lopez (10-7) versus Saint Martin's to sweep its first two series at Mission Blue Field. In one of the season's early milestones, Academy of Art took down Cal State Monterey Bay (then ranked No. 15) behind a complete team effort that featured a four-run rally in the first inning of the second game on Feb. 18.

That momentum continued into a split with Dominican followed by successive sweeps of SF State and Holy Names in which ART U's two freshman pitchers dominated while senior utility Brenna Mitchell's scorching bat led the offense. In a Mar. 9 matchup with Notre Dame de Namur, Larsen registered a career-high 13 strikeouts then tossed her third shutout of the year versus Pace on Mar. 11, giving the Knights a 14-8 record as they traveled to Southern California for the first time in 2018.

"We knew as a staff we were giving ourselves a chance this year by adding good depth and competition to our pitching staff, but I knew this year was going to be special when I saw our team come together in November," said Garnett. "Some of our younger players were struggling and our returners rallied around them to both push them and lift them up. That was when I knew we had something special and that our team was bought in."

Accepting the tough challenge of facing Azusa Pacific, Biola, and Concordia (then ranked No. 17) over four days, Academy of Art managed to pull off splits with each of its PacWest opponents. Larsen shut out the Cougars, Lopez blanked Biola, and in the trip's finale, a homer by freshman infielder Jayda Alaan plus run-scoring singles from sophomore infielder Gracie Sotomayor and Henderson propelled ART U to a 3-1 upset of CUI. That last victory initiated what became a 10-game win streak as the Knights rolled past NCAA Division II title contender Humboldt State on Mar. 19 and into a memorable Tournament of Champions.

In Turlock for a six-game slate at the annual event, Academy of Art quickly established itself with shutouts of both Sonoma State (then ranked No. 13) and Cal State San Bernardino on the first day. After rain forced the cancellation of its game against Northwest Nazarene, ART U dramatically kept its win streak intact with a come-from-behind triumph over Cal State Dominguez Hills that saw four Knights touch home plate in the seventh inning. The offense flowed into a 12-2 run-rule win over Cal State San Marcos early the final day before Larsen worked a 4-0 shutout of Western Washington, earning Tournament of Champions Most Valuable Player, "Top Pitcher," and All-Tournament Team along with Sotomayor.

"At that point in season, we were firing on all cylinders," said Garnett. "Our pitching, hitting, and defense were strong, and when a part of the lineup was not performing, another part caught fire. Tournament of Champions is a grind and historically has not been the highlight of our season. Our leaders and team did a nice job during that stretch of games playing one pitch at a time, especially in the later innings when it is easier to lose focus. Winning all five at the Tournament of Champions was a great moment to share with our seniors, who have been there through our tougher previous tournaments and continued to trust our growth and vision as a program."

When Academy of Art returned home, it was to a four-game series with Chaminade and, though a sweep came the first day, the Knights' win streak ended at 10 games after the Silverswords took the first contest on Mar. 28. Though the result came just after Larsen had been named Louisville Slugger/NFCA D2 National Pitcher of the Week and had thrown 38.1 consecutive scoreless innings, ART U bounced back the very next game and won on a 1-0 shutout from Lopez.

That victory gave way to an 11-game win streak which saw Academy of Art sweep NDNU on the road to tie the program's single-season wins record then break it by defeating Dominican twice on Apr. 14 in San Rafael. After Larsen helped secure the 6-3 win in the opener, she returned to save the relief win for sophomore Hannah Rose Balke (4-2) by striking out the potential game-tying run for a 9-7 final. On a grander scale, that victory marked the 100th win for Garnett, assistant coach Alana Aweau, and ART U's two seniors Klune and Mitchell.

As the Knights approached their final week of games at Mission Blue Field, Academy of Art hosted its "Strikeout Cancer" promotion and "Dog Day" in a four-game series with Hawaii Pacific. Pitching dominated the first day as Larsen and Lopez each struck out five apiece across two one-run victories then Henderson's three runs batted in came in the third game and Mitchell turned in her first complete game in nearly two years, shutting out the Sharks in the finale.

ART U would rise to second in the PacWest Conference standings after sweeping UH Hilo on Apr. 24, increasing their momentum into a Apr. 29 Senior Day matchup with Holy Names. In front of their largest home crowd of the year, the Urban Knights held a heartfelt ceremony for Klune and Mitchell before fittingly scoring 30 total runs over two games (16 by the top four hitters – sophomore outfielder Gabi Hirsch, Alaan, Mitchell, and Klune) for the sweep.

"Making a numerical goal is always dangerous, but the concept of 'On The 30' really stemmed from the vision of trying to make history and went with our team theme which followed the rules of The Energy Bus," said Garnett. "When I look back and see the win streaks, I just remember our team being focused on the next pitch and the next opponent. The '30 concept' kept us focused and the fact that we scored 30 runs on Senior Day was incredible."

Into the final portion of its regular season, Academy of Art delivered two incredibly hard-fought contests against California Baptist (then ranked No. 15) on May 3, but late Lancer rallies in each ended ART U's win streak at 11 games. Then, in a regular season finale nationally televised on ESPN 3, the Knights once again left it all on the field versus Dixie State (then ranked No. 19) in Utah. Eyes across the country remained glued to their screens as both teams rallied in the seventh inning then again in each of the next two innings of an epic showdown which ultimately ended with DSU on top 8-7. Game two was also determined in the late innings with a four-run Trailblazer rally being answered by Academy of Art's three-run comeback attempt though Dixie State prevailed 8-5 in the end.

Having played well enough to make the NCAA for the first time in program history, but unsure if it would come to fruition, the Knights nervously awaited their fate on May 7 and were rewarded with a ticket to initially face Concordia (then ranked No. 12) in the start of the double-elimination West Regional Championship in Irvine. The highly-anticipated May 10 rematch saw NFCA and PacWest Freshman of the Year Callie Nunes (25-4) toss a 3-0 shutout, but ART U would come back the following day to earn its first postseason victory, a 6-1 win over Cal State San Bernardino. That result immediately led to the fourth meeting of Academy of Art and Concordia in which the Knights became one of just four teams to score multiple earned runs off Nunes before the Eagles managed to eliminate the Knights 4-2.

"Going postseason has always been the vision," said Garnett. "I think the young players now understand the hard work it takes to get there and are hungry to relive the experience. We have a lot of hard work to do in order to return to that stage and I think our returners are excited for that process."

Academy of Art finished its historic 2018 season with an overall record of 40-18 and collected a total of seven PacWest postseason honors with Garnett chosen as Coach of the Year plus selections to each of the All-PacWest Teams including Larsen (First), Alaan (Second), Klune (Second), Mitchell (Second), Sotomayor (Third), and Hirsch (Third). Among those honorees' notables was Alaan's 30 times hit by a pitch which broke the program's career record in a single season and Larsen's host of records broken (shutouts, strikeouts, earned run average, and doubles as a hitter). Larsen would go on to become the program's first All-American, being honored by both the D2CCA and NFCA.

"Our entire pitching staff worked as a team and continually gave us an opportunity to win this year," said Garnett. "Brooke is a competitive pitcher who strives to get better every day which makes her so dominant. The fact that she was able to be as dominant offensively and fill an important role in the outfield made her such a strong All-American candidate."

With the torch now officially passed from the seniors to a strong core of returners, Academy of Art will look to build off the best season in program history in 2019.

"Having six All-PacWest Team selections is a testament to the work of the entire team," said Garnett. "These six include our two seniors, whose contributions were not only statistically significant, but also timely to help us win games. We will return the other four which is a great core alongside a group of talented returners and incoming recruits. We cannot wait to get to work!"