A red-hot offense, superb pitching and solid defense have propelled Hollister softball back to the mountaintop. After two league titles in a row, graduations hit Hollister softball last year and they slipped back to third place in the Gabilan.
The Pacific Coast Athletic League’s Gabilan Division, the top level of a 32-team league, is always a battle among the most talented teams.
This season, a Baler squad with many new faces has gelled extremely quickly. As the regular season reaches the latter stages, Hollister leads the pack with an 8-2 mark, fueled by a streak of seven wins in their last eight league contests.
Palma is a step back at 7-3, Salinas is 6-3 and Monterey is at 6-4. Included in the Balers’ recent charge are a 9-3 rout of the Cowboys on the road, and 6-0 and 3-2 wins over Monterey.
In the showdown in Salinas on April 16, the Balers took control early, jumping ahead 7-1 by the middle of the third. The purple half of the crowd was quiet, but the traveling-well Baler Nation faithful were roaring. De’zeyer Fa’agai belted two home runs in that early explosion and Ashley Io also parked one over the fence.
“We came out with hot bats,” senior shortstop Io said. “We were really good on defense and offense. If we keep it going, it’s going to look good.”
The 9-3 score illustrated that. The day started fast for the Balers, with leadoff batter Avery Chavez. She lined a single to left and stole two bases. Esparza singled over third to plate her, then after a steal by pinch-runner Emma Aguilera, Sophia Galindo ripped a line shot to the right-center gap to make it 2-0.
Fa’agai cemented the opening message by crushing a Bella Machuca pitch off the scoreboard beyond the center-field fence.
“We were aggressive to the ball,” Io said. “Today, it definitely showed. We’re seeing the ball well.”
In the third, Io homered, and after a Galindo walk, Fa’agai launched her second bomb. This moon shot cleared the fence in left so quickly and easily that the Salinas fielder did not even move, simply watching the rocket in the sky.
“It had a lot to do with practice prep,” Fa’agai said. “Our approach at bat and working the count. To not swing out of the zone. I was seeing the ball better and it felt amazing.”
On the mound, Esparza was in control. The pressure-filled setting was of no concern to the confident freshman.
“I was ready; I was feeling good,” Esparza said. “First the hard stuff. Then I threw my change up.”
Esparza shut down a first-inning threat with a strikeout and enjoyed great defense all day, highlighted by catcher Chavez. The agile senior made a full-out dive to snare a foul pop and jumped fast onto bunts three different times to record outs. Esparza ended the night fittingly, shutting down the Cowboys in order in the seventh with two closing strikeouts.
Baler coach Andrew Barragan referred to the scouting report on the Cowboys and how Esparza pitched it to perfection. There was a strategy laid out for the batters and the 9-run, 13-hit performance showed it worked.
“She battled today,” said Barragan, referring to Esparza in the circle. “She wanted it bad. She adjusted her pitches and got them with her off-speed.”
Not every game is so one-sided. Another important clash came on April 23 at home against Monterey. Esparza clobbered two homers for a 3-0 lead, though Hollister had to hold off a seventh-inning rally to prevail 3-2.
“We knew this game would be tough,” Barragan said. “When teams come to Hollister this late in the season, we know we’ll get their best. It will be a playoff atmosphere and that’s what it was.”
The victory provided crucial delineation in the standings, keeping Hollister on top and dropping Monterey back.
“We came out with more energy,” Chavez said. “We pressed a little bit at the end but a win’s a win. Our pitcher keeps us in games and what stood out was that everyone, even in different positions, worked hard.”
Esparza homered to center in the first inning. Chavez doubled in the third and came around on an Io single. In the sixth, Esparza belted one over the right center fence for a 3-0 lead.
Monterey fought back in their last ups. They parlayed a trio of walks with an error and a fielder’s choice to get within 3-2. ‘Dores leadoff hitter Anaiyah Brown came to the plate with the bags loaded but Esparza induced a foul fly to right and Isabel Gonzalez sped over to make the catch for the final out.
“It was a pretty good game until the last inning,” Esparza said. “It got close, but I trust my defense 100% and know they will make the play behind me.”
On the season, the Balers are averaging 6.4 runs per game in Gabilan games, while allowing just 2.0. Palma scores 6.1 and allows 3.1. There is less offense in Salinas, at 3.7 runs per contest, and Monterey at 4.0.
On the other side, Hollister is equally impressive. Esparza has a 3.04 ERA in 78.1 innings pitched and the defense is sharp, right in line with Baler tradition.
The offense comes with both power and batting average. Io is hitting .491 with 16 runs scored and 14 RBIs. Fa’agai is at .412, Esparza is batting .404 with five homers and 15 RBIs and Chavez is at .404 with 21 runs scored and four round-trippers.
The Balers are led by solid seniors in Io, Chavez, Fa’agai and Madalyne Rodriguez. Beyond that quartet is a young crew. Abbigayle Butler and Kaliyah Ceja are juniors, Galindo, Aleah Ruiz and Gonzalez are sophomores. Esparza, Bella Casas and Nevaeh Charles are freshmen. There is depth beyond that list and most of them are underclassmen.
Chavez, Galindo, Rodriguez, Charles and Butler fill out the infield. Fa’agai, Ruiz and Gonzalez cover the outfield. Ceja and Casas also take turns in the circle, supporting Esparza.
“We have two losses and the others have three,” Barragan said. “The next few games are big. Palma, Monterey, Salinas. And a non-league game against Willow Glen. It is a very good test for the CCS playoffs.”
