Valhalla takes win; Cougars rally late
- Updated: May 8, 2023
2023 EAST COUNTY PREP SOFTBALL
By Adam Paul
SAN DIEGO – Early runs were all the Valhalla Norsemen needed, as they would go on to beat the University Centurions 5-1 on Monday (May 8) in non-league play.
Valhalla would strike first, courtesy of Devyn Mack, who drove in a run in the top of the first inning.
Mack would also pick up the victory in the circle. She would allow one run on four hits over four and one-third innings of work, and would strike out three. Naomi Villalva came in, and tossed two and two-thirds innings in relief, in which she struck out two.
Bryn Marsh for University City was saddled with the loss. Marsh went six innings, allowing five runs on six hits and striking out seven.
Valhalla would also show their prowess on the bases, which included a double steal that led to a run when Avery Voth stole second, and Liliana Moscoso successfully stole home on the same play.
Cady Ruffer would add her seventh long ball of the season with a solo home run in the top of the fourth inning, which was also her second hit of the day.
University City with the loss falls to 4-20 overall and sees their losing streak continue to seven games in a row.
Valhalla, on the other hand, has now won three games in a row and improves to 15-10-1 overall, and barring any upsets in the last two games, both they and West Hills will share the Grossmont Valley League Crown.
Steele Canyon 6, El Camino 5
OCEANSIDE – Five runs scored in the fifth inning propelled the Steele Canyon Cougars to rally for the 6-5 victory over El Camino on Monday (May 8) in a non-league contest.
Jazmin Williams had the big day at the plate for Steele Canyon as she drove in four runs in her 3-for-4 day at the plate. Williams drove in runs in the third and fifth innings, with a double in the third and a single in the fifth.
El Camino would start the scoring when Makayla Boone grounded, resulting in a run.
After Steele Canyon tied the score on a double by Williams, the Wildcats would push across a run in their half of the third inning to take a 2-1 lead.
Freshman Kaylani Feliciano-Taele would extend the lead further with a two-run blast in the fourth inning to give the Wildcats a 4-1 lead.
Trailing by three runs, the Cougars were running out of time, but in the fifth inning, their bats came alive as Kayala Hopkins, Danika Lakin, and Illy Barclay led off with three consecutive hits to load the bases. The next batter, Williams, would tie the score with one swing of the bat as she laced a base hit, eventually ending up at third base. Williams would come into score on a ground ball out by Marina Gonzalez which gave them a 5-4 lead.
Later in the inning, Emma Shellstrom would score on a wild pitch to make it 6-4.
El Camino would push across one more run in the fifth inning to pull within a run, but that would be as close as they would get.
Gonzalez, who also got the starting nod, would pick up the victory, as she went five innings in which she allowed five runs on six hits while striking out two. Shellstrom would come in and finish things off by striking out two over her two innings of relief.
Steele Canyon improves to 15-10 overall while El Camino loses their fifth in a row and falls to 7-17 on the season.
Grossmont 7, Helix 3
LA MESA – Five runs scored in the fourth inning propelled the Grossmont Foothillers to a come-from-behind 7-3 non-league victory over the Helix Highlanders on Monday (May 8).
Helix would score early, thanks to an RBI single by Tatiana Hernandez, a lead-off solo home run by Katelyn Woodland, and a ground ball out by Hernandez, scoring Lauren Farace.
The Highlanders were looking good, but the Foothillers’ bats would come alive in the top of the fifth inning.
Grossmont would pounce, thanks to Carleigh Wenck, who tripled in a pair of runs to make it 3-2. They would take their first lead of the game when Eliana Vasquez lifted an 0-2 count offering over the left field fence to give them a 4-3 lead.
A couple of batters later, Heidi Villa would drive in the last run, which made it 5-3 in favor of the Foothillers.
Grossmont would add two more runs on an RBI single by Wenck, who would line out in the seventh inning, allowing Katelynne Parent to tag up and score.
Woodland would take the loss for the Highlanders. She lasted four innings, allowing six hits and five runs while striking out two.
Vasquez picked up the victory for the Foothillers, as she allowed five hits and three runs while striking out two over seven innings.
With the win, the Foothillers have won two in a row and move to 9-15 overall while the Highlanders have now lost six in a row and fall to 10-14-2.
