Three peat for San Benito softball
With two Central Coast Section Division I titles in hand, the
San Benito Lady Balers made it a three-peat last Saturday when they
defeated the No. 6 Gilroy Mustangs 8-3 in the section championship
at PAL Stadium in San Jose.
Three peat for San Benito softball
With two Central Coast Section Division I titles in hand, the San Benito Lady Balers made it a three-peat last Saturday when they defeated the No. 6 Gilroy Mustangs 8-3 in the section championship at PAL Stadium in San Jose.
With the win, San Benito becomes the first team to win three straight D-I championships, while also taking three straight games from league rival Gilroy this season.
“I think this [championship] is probably one of the sweeter ones,” San Benito Manager Scott Smith said. “This one we were almost dealing with complacency, but I think I misconstrued that (earlier in the season) because it was a calmness.”
After hitting a batter and walking two, both on full counts, the pitching hand of Gilroy’s Melinda Ortiz was struck by a Lizzy Gatto line drive that resulted in a run in the opening inning. Another full-count walk and hit-batsman, followed by a fielder’s choice play at home that didn’t result in an out, put Gilroy in a 4-0 hole by the end of the first frame.
Pitcher Marisa Ibarra and the Lady ‘Balers defense forced Gilroy into going 1-2-3 in each of the first three innings while building a commanding lead.
After walking the first two batters of the second frame, Ortiz was forced to exit the game as the swelling on her pitching hand worsened. Tossing three straight complete-game shutouts entering the contest, it was an anti-climactic ending for Ortiz, one of 10 Gilroy seniors and the ace of Gilroy’s pitching staff.
Freshman Sarah Lira stepped in to pitch for the Mustangs, allowing the two runners already aboard in the second to score on a double by Gatto, as well as two more runs in the fifth. Those runs were set up by a triple by Lindsey Clay, an RBI by Bre Fata on a well-hit ball that resulted in an error and an RBI single by JC Clayton four batters later.
Phenomenal catches by Lady Baler outfielders Bre Fata, who made a diving snag on a Lira line drive to deny a run in the fourth, and Rachel Maheu, who robbed a home run shot from Emily Castro at the wall in the fifth, prevented the Mustangs from ever taking a hold of momentum. Castro’s at-bat scored Gilroy’s first run of the game, plating Brittany Balanesi who was tagging up after a triple, but the play was a moral victory for San Benito as the damage was limited.
Pulling off the first three-peat in CCS D-I history, San Benito marked the occasion with an exclamation point as Ibarra recorded her fourth strikeout to end the game. San Benito’s final record on the season is 28-4. Gilroy closes out the year 22-9.
