San Benito pitcher Danielle Hernandez was one inning away from
throwing a perfect game against Gilroy in the 2-0 victory Thursday
afternoon.
San Benito pitcher Danielle Hernandez was one inning away from throwing a perfect game against Gilroy in the 2-0 victory Thursday afternoon.
The junior gave up just two hits, and both were in the infield.
In the fifth inning, Rushelle Presshl led off with a hard hit ball to the left side. Shortstop Jenny Maheu got a good jump on the ball, ranging to her left. But she couldn’t come up with it cleanly, and Gilroy had its first base runner of the game.
Kendall Costa, who had subbed into the game, almost found a hole. But Maheu ranged deep to her right to get the ball.
She was able to fire a strong throw to first baseman JT Temperino. But Temperino pulled her foot off the base and both runners were safe.
Hernandez got a ground-out and a fly-out and then struck out the final batter looking to end the inning, stranding the two runners at second and third.
“She could have had the perfect game,” Smith said. “The first batter was off the plate a little bit, and we had her set up for the outside strikeout. But I had her (Hernandez) throw her a screw ball inside when we should have stayed outside. Dani is throwing good enough where we feel we should be able to shut most teams out.”
San Benito (16-4, 5-2 TCAL) also had two hits in the game but was able to do the little things. Both runs were set up by sacrifices.
“They’re very aggressive, and they always do the right things,” said Gilroy coach Julie Berggren. “They’re well coached, and you can see it in their solid defense. They should go far in Division 1.”
In the first inning, Maheu led off with a walk and was moved to second base on a bunt by Julie Broyer. Kristen Archuleta knocked her in with a base hit.
The Balers scored their second run in the third inning. Broyer used her speed to lay down a bunt for a hit, and Archuleta reached on an error.
Hillary Williams laid down a sacrifice on a ball that just bounced in front of the plate. And Amy Baxter brought in the run with a fielder’s choice.
Gilroy sophomore pitcher Sarah Villar got into a little bit of trouble in the second inning after a couple leadoff walks by Rachelle Barientos and Megan C. Smith.
Megan N. Smith sacrificed them over. But San Benito couldn’t score. Both Hernandez, who had seven strikeouts, and Villar, who had three, benefited from a larger strike zone.
Gilroy (8-10, 1-6 TCAL) has had trouble all year scoring runs but has usually played a good game defensively. San Benito has lost its four games by one run each time.
“We’re not quite where we want to be yet,” Smith said. “We’re playing better all around than we have played all year, but we still haven’t peaked yet.”
Last time the two teams met, San Benito won 4-0 but waited until the final inning to get all the runs.
“Their field is a better hitting field,” Smith said. “We had good at-bats here, we just hit the ball right at them. We went through a little valley for a while, but the girls have really got their confidence up right now.”
Both teams will be competing in the Mission City Invitational. San Benito will play Friday against Wilcox at 7 p.m., while the Mustangs will play Valley Christian at 9 a.m Saturday. If the Balers win, they will face either Leigh or Oak Grove at 11 a.m. Saturday.
“We’ve been hitting really good and playing solid defense,” Broyer said. “We have been growing more as a team. We are starting to get to know each other more and play more like a family.”
