When the COVID-19 pandemic ended Cydney Curran’s senior season after 14 games, the 2016 Campbell High alumna said she didn’t know what to expect next.
She most certainly didn’t.
Twenty-three months since Cal State Bakersfield last played a regular season softball game, Curran will continue her streak of 150 consecutive games played at the Rebel Kickoff on Friday in Las Vegas.
The real surprise though? She’ll do it while wearing the same uniform as her younger sister.
Cieana Curran, who spent four seasons at Hawaii Pacific University, never imagined she would play with her sister again after high school. She was planning to stay home for the extra year of eligibility she received due to the pandemic.
Then one day while hitting inside the batting cage, Cydney Curran decided to ask her coach if she was interested in Cieana transferring in from HPU.
“She said, ‘sure,’ ” Cydney Curran said. “She was following (Cieana) along during the 2021 season and seeing how she was doing and they touched base over the summer.”
While Cal State Bakersfield canceled its entire 2021 season, HPU was able to schedule 12 games each against Chaminade and Hawaii Hilo, which at least gave her an opportunity to play.
Once the opportunity to play with her older sister presented itself, Cieana was all in.
“It was really exciting for me,” said Cieana, who graduated from Campbell a year after Cydney. “The whole reason why I transferred over was to play with Cyd. Of course, it was sad leaving HPU because I was supposed to play my extra year at HPU and I didn’t want to leave home. It’s why I played at HPU, but I was really excited to play with Cyd.”
As an added bonus, both mom and dad, along with grandparents and an aunt, will be in Las Vegas to see the sisters play as teammates for the first time since high school.
Cydney Curran hasn’t played a game since March 8, 2020, while all 24 HPU games last season were played without fans allowed in attendance.
“I’m really excited just to get back on the field and play softball,” Cydney said. “I’ve been waiting for this moment.”
“It’s more exciting that our family is going to be there to watch us play,” added Cieana.
The pandemic came at a tough time for Cydney Curran, who was a few weeks into her senior season.
She had her future, which included pursuing a career in teaching, all set up, but she still wanted to get as much as she could out of her softball career.
There were times when she thought about giving up on it and not waiting around for her extra year, but talks with family members and her boyfriend helped her decide to stick it out for one final season.
“I know for sure when the pandemic hit I was like, there’s no way I’m going to play again,” Cydney said. “When we didn’t have a season last year, I was like, should I really give up on softball and start my (regular life)?”
She decided to return before the opportunity came for Cieana to join her.
Now the two are excited to have these next few months together for one final run, as both will be out of eligibility when the season ends.
“It’s been nice (here),” Cieana said. “It’s nice to sort of feel independent. I don’t have my parents to cook me dinner every day. The whole structure up here is way different with morning weights and practices that I never had, so it’s nice to experience a real college experience.”
Cieana, who was a three-time All-PacWest selection while at HPU, hit .337 for her career and will compete for playing time in the outfield.
Cydney Curran, who earned All-Western Athletic Conference second team honors as a junior, was leading the Roadrunners with a .342 batting average during her senior season when it was canceled.
This will be Cal State Bakersfield’s first year playing in the Big West Conference. They are scheduled to play Hawaii once on Sunday in the tournament in Las Vegas before playing a three-game series at Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium on April 22 and 23.
“I think (the first game) will be a little nerve-wracking because it’s been two years since we’ve had an official game,” Cydney said. “I think we have a really good bunch of girls who are excited to play softball and are all here working for the same goal, which is obviously to make a regional.”
The sisters are two of 26 Division I softball players who graduated from high school in Hawaii playing on the mainland.
CYDNEY CURRAN
>> School: Cal State Bakersfield
>> Class: Senior
>> Height: 5 feet 4
>> Position: Infield
>> High school: Campbell (2016)
CIEANA CURRAN
>> School: Cal State Bakersfield
>> Class: Senior
>> Height: 5 feet 7
>> Position: Outfield
>> High school: Campbell (2017)
DIVISION I SOFTBALL PLAYERS
There are 26 players who graduated from Hawaii high schools playing on Division I mainland teams
NAME SCHOOL HT.POS. GR. HIGH SCHOOL
Aleia Agbayani Cal 5-4 INF/OF So. ‘Iolani
Jessica A’i Dixie St. 5-8 INF Fr. Baldwin
Shaylee Alani Abilene Christian 5-6 INF Jr. Kamehameha
Lauren Almeida Dixie St. 5-8 INF Fr. KS-Maui
Jocelyn Alo Oklahoma 5-8 UTIL Sr. Campbell
Gigi Araki UC Riverside 5-5 C/UTIL So. Leilehua
Kai Barrett Cal Poly 5-5 C So. ‘Iolani
Alana Cobb-Adams Fresno St. 5-7 OF/IF Sr. Kamehameha
Cieana Curran Cal St. Bakersfield 5-7 OF Sr. Campbell
Cydney Curran Cal St. Bakersfield 5-4 INF Sr. Campbell
Logan Gaspar Abilene Christian 5-5 SS Fr. Maryknoll
Jadey Hagiwara Brown 5-4 1B/C Jr. Punahou
Aliya Harmon Weber St. 5-6 INF So. Baldwin
Keena Higa Norfolk St. 5-7 1B/3B Fr. Roosevelt
Keila Kamoku Ole Miss 5-4 INF Fr. Kamehameha
Sydney Kamakaiwi Wagner 5-3 INF Fr. Maryknoll
Saree-Ann Kekahuna Weber St. 5-3 UTIL Jr. Baldwin
Maya Matsubara Colorado St. 5-5 INF So. Punahou
Maiah Motta UC Riverside 5-4 C/UTIL So. Kamehameha
Marissa Nishihara Saint Mary’s 5-3 OF So. Mid-Pacific
Alyssa Okada Long Island 5-3 OF Jr. Pearl City
Alesia Ranches Iowa St. 5-4 UTIL Jr. Campbell
D’Asha Saiki Cal 5-4 INF So. Punahou
Taylor Sullivan UCLA 5-8 C Jr. KS-Hawaii
Liliana Thomas Arizona St. 5-8 C Fr. Maryknoll
Cassidy Worzalla George Mason 5-6 UTIL So. Mililani
