Trojans, Cougars drop five-inning road contests in North Central League I action
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KELSEYVILLE >> Winning pitcher Ashlyn Wurm slugged a two-run home in the second inning as Kelseyville jumped out to an 8-1 lead against Fort Bragg, and the Knights held off the Timberwolves down the stretch to post a 10-8 victory in a North Central League I softball game that huge significance for the home team Tuesday in Kelseyville.
The Knights (7-7 league, 7-11 overall) needed a win to make themselves playoff eligible and will await Sunday’s at-large and seeding meeting to learn if they have qualified for the North Coast Section playoffs that begin either Tuesday or Wednesday.
Kelseyville jumped out to a 6-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning, adding to that advantage when Wurm drilled a shot over the left-field fence in the second.
“Attitude and effort-wise, I’m proud of the team for turning it around during the latter part of the season,” Kelseyville head coach Brittany Rumfelt said.
“We hit the ball well,” Rumfelt said of the eight runs scored in the first two innings by the Knights. “Ashlyn Wurm pitched the best game I have watched her throw; she helped her own cause by blasting a no-doubt, two-run home run.”
While the game appeared to be in hand as far as the Knights were concerned, the Timberwolves (4-10, 6-12) had other ideas. Fort Bragg closed to 8-6 with a four-run third inning and another run in the top of the fourth. Kelseyville added a run in the bottom of the fourth to make it 9-6, but the Timberwolves narrowed that lead to 9-8 with a two-run sixth. Kelseyville’s final run came in the bottom half.
Both pitchers played prominent roles in their team’s offensive output. Wurm went 3-for-4 with her home run and three RBIs overall while losing pitcher Andrea Escobedo went 2-for-4 with a home run and four RBIs.
The two teams combined for 30 hits.
Besides Wurm, other Kelseyville leaders were Kylee Denham (3-for-4, RBI), Morgan Rogers (2-for-4, RBI) and Gemma Lewis (2-for-4, two RBIs). Jordan Wurm (1-for-4, two RBI), Josie Keithly, Mati Mateer and Cali Schnabl also had hits.
Schnabl, the team’s lone senior, was honored during pregame activities.
Sierra Thompson went 3-for-4 with a RBI for Fort Bragg. Escobedo, Hazel McNulty, Autumn Baxman and Hailey Ross added two hits apiece.
Escobedo and Wurm both pitched complete games. Escobedo struck out three and walked none while Wurm struck out eight and walked five.
In other softball action Tuesday:
Clear Lake 7, Middletown 6
At Lakeport, Karsyn Greer scored from third base on Atiana Patino’s grounder, beating a high throw to the plate, to lift the Clear Lake Cardinals to a walk-off win over the Middletown Mustangs.
It was the season finale for Middletown (3-11, 6-13) while Clear Lake (5-7, 10-8) still has two more league games remaining – home Thursday against Upper Lake and home Friday against Lower Lake.
In a back-and-forth contest, Clear Lake snapped a 6-6 tie in the seventh. Greer (2-for-4, RBI) led off with a double, her second double of the game, and moved over to third base on a passed ball. Patino, the winning pitcher, rolled a grounder to shortstop as Greer broke for the plate. She slid home with the winning run.
“It would have had to be a totally perfect throw to get her, but it was high,” Clear Lake head coach Scott Schaefers said.
After three scoreless innings, the two teams went to work. Middletown grabbed a 2-0 lead in the top of the fourth only to see that erased on one swing of the bat in the bottom half as Faith McIntire blasted a three-run homer to put the Cardinals in front.
Clear Lake had the tying runs in scoring position when McIntire, the Clear Lake catcher, came to the plate.
“She was swinging for the fences,” Schaefers said. “I told her, ‘We just need a base hit.’ She hit the next pitch for a home run. OK, that works.”
But Middletown kept fighting back. The Mustangs tied the score at 3 with a run in the top of the fifth before Clear Lake moved ahead 6-3 in the bottom half. Again, the Mustangs clawed their way back in it, scoring twice in the sixth and once in the seventh to pull even at 6-6.
While the Mustangs helped themselves at times, they also received help from Clear Lake’s defense.
“We had some issues, just too many errors,” Schaefers said.
McIntire ended up 2-for-3 on the day with four RBIs while Patino also had two hits and a RBI. Emily Gersalia, Ashlynn Cruz, Hailey Perez and Lindee Bingham also had hits.
Patino allowed seven hits and three earned runs while striking out 10 and walking four.
Middletown statistics were not reported.
Cloverdale 18, Lower Lake 0 (5 inn.)
At Cloverdale, the Lower Lake Trojans continued their nosedive since star pitcher Mariah Bal quit the team last week, falling in five innings to the Cloverdale Eagles, a team they beat twice last season with Bal on the mound, including in the playoffs.
It was the Trojans’ fourth straight league loss. They are 0-3 without Bal and have lost all three games by 10 runs.
Lower Lake (6-7, 8-12-1) managed just one hit against Cloverdale freshman pitcher Camryn Bird, a single by Jamiya Lee-Ayers. That was the only runner Bird allowed while striking out nine.
The Trojans finish their season Friday in Lakeport against Clear Lake.
St. Helena 13, Upper Lake 0 (5 inn.)
At St. Helena, winning pitcher Tahlia Smith tuned up for another Saints postseason run by no-hitting the Upper Lake Cougars.
St. Helena, the three-time league champion, went 14-0 in NCL I play and is 20-4 overall. The Saints are also two-time defending section champions.
Smith struck out 13 of the 18 batters she faced. She walked two and hit one.
Smith also went 3-for-3 with a RBI to help fuel a 14-hit Saints attack. Ellie Carmichael (2-for-2) led the team with four RBIs. Ada Blanton, Emily Glakeler and Alexis Lund all went 2-for-3 with two RBIs apiece.
Upper Lake (3-9, 6-10) travels to Lakeport on Thursday to play Clear Lake before finishing up the season Friday in Cloverdale.
