Balers tag out Acorns

The Hollister High softball team played the first league night
game in school history Wednesday when the Balers met Live Oak at
the Hollister Heat Field at Veterans Memorial Park with a 6:30 p.m.
starting time instead of the usual 4 p.m.
The Hollister High softball team played the first league night game in school history Wednesday when the Balers met Live Oak at the Hollister Heat Field at Veterans Memorial Park with a 6:30 p.m. starting time instead of the usual 4 p.m.

It didn’t really matter if the game was night or day. When it comes to the Tri-County Athletic League, softball usually means a 1-0 finale.

Wednesday’s game was no different. The Balers survived 1-0 when they cut off a run at the plate with two outs in the top of the seventh and extra innings on the line.

The Acorns’ Katie Hillman gambled from third base after the Baler pitcher Dani Hernandez threw out Kasandra Souza at first following Souza’s comebacker. Hillman broke from third and Baler third baseman Liz Stewart pegged Hillman out at the plate. Baler catcher Amy Baxter blocked the plate adroitly to nail Hillman, who did her best to hook around Baxter’s tag.

“I tagged her out,” said Baxter, who is not one to tell a lie.

“Katie never made it to the plate,” echoed Live Oak head coach Barry McDonnell, who was coaching at third. “She was out. We had to go for it.”

Now that the jury has rendered its verdict on a close, game-ending play, the crux of this affair was that it was pitcher-dominated. Acorns freshman Kaitlyn Rauschnot (0-1), making her first start, pitched like a veteran, keeping the free-swinging Balers off-balance with a mixture of speeds. Hollister (10-4, 4-2) managed just two infield hits – one a high chopper/slow roller combo by Shelbi Dillon in the first inning, the other a sharp single off the glove of Acorns shortstop Cat Rawers by Jenny Maheu in the third inning.

Maheu’s effort tallied the game’s lone run, scoring Stewart. The run was unearned as Stewart led off the inning by striking out and reaching first on an Acorns error on the attempt to throw Stewart out at first. Megan Smith promptly sacrificed Stewart to second. Then, what proved to be a pivotal baserunning gamble by Stewart, she took third on a quick bounder back to Rauschnot by J.T. Temperino. If Stewart hadn’t, she wouldn’t have scored on Maheu’s single, which was kept in the infield by Rawers.

For the game, the Balers didn’t hit the ball into the outfield until the sixth when Maheu and pinch-hitter Julie Broyer flied out to right and left, respectively.

“I’m very concerned about our hitting,” said Baler head coach Scott Smith. “We talked all week about being patient, then we go out of the zone. We get ahead in the count 2-0 and swing at a ball outside. Teams know we go out of the zone and that’s they way they pitch us.”

Rauschnot, who struck out five and walked none, disagrees.

“It’s just movement,” said Rauschnot, who has four different pitches, including a very effective change-up. “I just throw different speeds.”

The Acorns (3-9, 0-5) didn’t exactly sting the cover off the ball against the Balers Alyssa Baker (7-2) and reliever Hernandez. Baker threw three hitless innings before Eileen Grove singled to the right of Maheu at short. Maheu did a great job of fielding the ball cleanly in the hole, but couldn’t throw out the speedy Grove. Andrea Thrappas singled to center in the top of the fifth for the second and final hit for the Acorns.

Hernandez pitched to the minimum six hitters in the sixth and seventh frames to earn a save.

The win for the Balers kept them a game behind first place Notre Dame (11-2, 5-1), which edged North Salinas Wednesday by a score of (what else?), 1-0. The Balers and Vikes (13-4, 4-2) share second, while Gilroy (7-6, 3-3) was upset by Salinas Wednesday causing a pinch of separation between the top three and the bottom three.

The Balers should have revenge on their minds this Friday when they travel to play a Mustangs team which delivered the Balers one of their two losses in league.

“We have to make a statement at Gilroy Friday,” said Smith. “This is when we find out if we’re going to move up to the higher tier or play at the lower one.”

“We’re not hitting right now,” said Baler co-captain Nashia Alvarez. “But, when we start hitting, we’re going to be tough to beat.”

Baler bits: Alvarez lined into a double play in the first, doubling off Dillon. – Baker and Hernandez combined to also fan five Acorns hitters. They walked two. – Kim Dabo, who has been starting at shortstop for the Balers and hitting clean-up, did not play due to illness. Smith is hopeful for Dabo’s return on Friday. – In the seventh, a rare situation occurred. Samantha Ferry was sent up to pinch-hit for Justine McDonald – presumably to bunt – with Hillman at first base. But when the Balers committed an error trying to throw behind Hillman, she took second. That prompted McConnell to take out Ferry, who had two strikes on her, and reenter McDonald. – Smith said he hopes to have half of the Balers’ home games next season played at Vets Park. – Hollister is at North Salinas next Tuesday.

JV score: Balers 3, Acorns 2. Two Nicoles paved the way for the Balers, now 10-4 overall, like their sistren.

Nicole Burns, who has blazing speed, tripled. Nicole Clay knocked the game-tying and game-winning runs with a double in the bottom of the sixth. Jessie Temperino was the winning pitcher.

The Balers JV’s are carrying three freshmen – Ari Romero, Felicia Freitas and Ashley Patton.

Live Oak 000 000 0 – 0 2 1

Hollister 001 000 0 – 1 2 1

Rauschnot and McDonald; Baker, Hernandez (6) and Baxter. WP-Baker (7-2). LP-Rauschnot (0-1).