The562’s high school softball coverage is sponsored by Playmakers. Visit LetsBePlaymakers.org for more information on their adaptive sports programs.
The562’s coverage of Lakewood Athletics is sponsored by J.P. Crawford, Class of 2013.
The562’s coverage of Long Beach Wilson Athletics is sponsored by Joel Bitonio, Class of 2009.
Lakewood weathered the storm in their Moore League matchup at Wilson on Thursday, using an early lead via balanced attack en route to a 4-2 win. Four different Lancers scored runs while four different Lancers drove them in and a three-run first inning proved to be the difference.
“We have a good hitting team to be honest with you,” said Lakewood coach Andy Miramontes. “We just have to put everything together and execute. So we have a good hitting team but we just have to hit well in the clutch and have timely hitting and we had that today.”
After reaching on an error, Isabella Rueda found the game’s first score thanks to an RBI single from senior Catherine Calzada. Katelynn Lewis stepped to the plate on the next at bat before nailing an RBI single to plate Calzada. Lewis would find her way home after a Jamie Ramirez sac-ground out to give the Lancers a early 3-0 lead.
“It was a huge statement about how much work we put in,” said the captain Calzada of the Lancer’s big first frame. “We’ve been putting in the extra hours because it means a lot to us how well we perform on the field. It’s just how we perform in practice because it translates to how we perform [in the game].”
Wilson pitcher Emily Castano would eventually rebound after the first inning, relying on her infield to prevent any hits in the top of the second and third innings. The Bruins offense would then settle down in the bottom of the third, as a Charlotte White single and stolen base set them up in scoring position with one down. Freshman Sacha Zalamea would immediately capitalize in the next at bat swinging an RBI single to put Wilson on the board. Kaijah Alexander also found an RBI single shortly after to cut the Lancer lead to 3-2 heading into the fourth.
Castano continued to settle down in the top of the fourth, conducting a 1-2-3 inning of pop-outs including an athletic catch behind home plate from catcher Tallulah Watts. However on offense, the Lancer’s totalled just five hits through the game as they were unable to add on to their fourth inning scoring.
Lakewood would find one more run in the top of the sixth after a Star Tapia single. Two at bats later Madylyn Wynia whacked an RBI single to score courtesy runner Natalia Cobarrubias and give the Lancer’s a 4-2 lead.
Aside from her single in the sixth, Tapia also pitched a complete game while allowing just five hits with one strikeout.
“She pitched a gem to be honest with you,” said Miranontes. “She hit her spots, she only missed two or three and they got a couple of hits but she just did a great job all day. She had some grit and made some huge defensive plays and hit her spots most of the time.”
“I made some mistakes. It’s not always going to be perfect so when people got on I just had to move on,” said Tapia. “There’s always gonna be people who get on base or can hit off of you but I just had to stay focused and that’s a big thing at Lakewood. And it’s not just me, it’s my whole team behind me and I’m working for everybody.”
After a 1-5 preseason start the Lancers are now 2-0 in the early Moore League season as they look to continue their success when they resume league play against Cabrillo next Thursday.
“We’ve had a tough preseason to be honest. We lost a couple of games that we shouldn’t have lost but we’re finding ourselves and we’ve had to move a couple girls due to injuries. So we’re finding ourselves and we’re starting to click but like I said we need to have timing, defense, and [Tapia] has to continue to be on point.”
The Bruins will also continue league play next Thursday with a big matchup at Millikan at 4:00 pm.
