Ibarra strikes out seven, Lady ‘Balers beat Panthers 5-0 in
season opener
Hollister
It may have been the season opener for the San Benito softball team, but pitcher Marisa Ibarra was in mid-season form Tuesday, as she pitched a no-hitter and led the Lady ‘Balers past visiting Burlingame 5-0.
Ibarra was one batter away from pitching a perfect game as well. The San Benito hurler walked the very first batter she saw, and then retired the next 21 Panthers in a row.
“I think she’s throwing a little bit harder than she was last year,” manager Scott Smith said. “She’s stronger now than she was at this point last season.”
For a pitcher who is now 57-4 on the hill, a record that includes the previous two seasons, that is perhaps a scary thought for San Benito’s opponents.
Ibarra struck out seven Tuesday, including the side in the fifth inning, while her teammates supplied enough offensive pop in the bottom of the first for her to cruise through Burlingame’s lineup.
After JC Clayton and Elena Fata opened with a pair of infield singles, Lizzy Gatto connected on an RBI single to right field that scored Clayton from third.
Later that same inning, Jessica Vest ripped an RBI single that scored both Fata and Gatto.
Next time up, in the bottom of the second, Brittany Huff led off with a triple to the left-center gap, and Bri Romero grounded out to first to score Huff from third.
“It’s just a matter of making contact and putting the ball in play,” Smith said. “The key for us is running the bases … That’s what is key for us – not striking out and putting the ball in play.”
Those keys came into play in the bottom of the third as well. After Rachel Maheu got on base due to a throwing error, she advanced to second on a groundout by Fata, then stole third base with one out. Gatto then hit a sacrifice fly to center field, scoring Maheu from third.
San Benito connected for six hits, with Gatto and Vest each contributing two-RBI games.
Defensively, Burlingame hit 12 balls into play, but each one was fielded with ease by the Lady ‘Balers.
“We played really good defense. We had a freshman in right field (Huff) and we had a freshman at second base (Vest) and they both saw some good action,” Smith said. “We got Elena (Fata) back and Bri (Romero) back and they’ll really make us tougher on defense.”
The Lady ‘Balers, ranked No. 23 in the nation by Rivals.com, will head south to compete in the elite NIKE Faster to First Classic in Huntington Beach, which will take place Thursday through Saturday.
San Benito (1-0 overall) will open Thursday against Corona Norco, ranked No. 16 in the country by Rivals.com, at 1 p.m.
BUR 000 000 0 – 0 0 2
SB 311 000 X – 5 6 0
