Yucaipa's softball season comes to end
J.P. Hoornstra, Staff Writer
Posted: 05/29/2009 12:17:25 AM PDT
YUCAIPA - The best season for softball that anyone seems to remember at Yucaipa High could have been over after one at-bat Thursday.
Vista Murrieta's leadoff batter, Alexis Villamor, wasted no time introducing herself to Thunderbirds pitcher Jessica English by sending a pitch over the right-field fence.
Unfazed, English settled down and kept her team in the game until the end - longer than expected, but not long enough - in an error-plagued 6-2 loss to the Broncos.
"I know my team can score runs," English said. "I thought we were going to come back and score five runs in the seventh inning."
But destiny, as well as good hitting and clutch pitching, seemed to be on the side of Vista Murrieta (26-4).
After Yucaipa (23-9) went up 2-1 in the bottom of the first inning thanks to three straight errors, the lead whittled away at the hands of a powerful Bronco lineup.
Back-to-back doubles by Nebraska-bound twins Tatum and Taylor Edwards made it 3-2 in the third inning, and Tatum added a solo home run in the fourth to make it 4-2. The visitors also showed they could play small ball, manufacturing runs out of a leadoff single and a leadoff walk in the sixth and seventh innings, respectively.
Meanwhile, Yucaipa stranded five runners on base after falling behind. The T-Birds failed to take advantage of two singles by Megan Allen, a double by Ali Reykdal, and a leadoff single by Alyssa Herron that presented a possible seventh-inning rally.
"Kids are going to press when you're down," Yucaipa coach David Kivett said. "If we were able to play mistake-free, it's a different game."
Each team committed four errors, including three by Vista Murrieta that allowed Yucaipa's Shelby Vanderwall, Reykdal and Courtney Brown to load the bases in the first inning. Allen's sacrifice fly brought Vanderwall home, and Katie Olinger singled home Reykdal.
After that, Broncos starter Aly Fascetti, a Cal State Fullerton recruit, seemed to settle down. She effectively mixed in a changeup to keep Yucaipa off-balance, and didn't walk a batter while striking out six.
Allen went 2-for-2 with an RBI, Reykdal went 1-for-3 with a run scored, and Olinger added a sacrifice bunt to go along with her RBI single. English finished with six strikeouts and no walks, but surrendered six earned runs on eight hits.
Despite the loss, Kivett finished with a sense of satisfaction about a season that included playoff wins over El Rancho and Upland.
"They are a group that, when we started in fall, these kids gave everything they had," he said. "I don't think we were as talented as some of the better teams we've beaten. These kids just wanted it more."
jp.hoornstra@inlandnewspapers.com
(909) 483-9372
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