Vikings overcome 3-1 deficit, walk off with 4-3 victory over Mountain Vista
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MIDDLETOWN >> Trailing 3-1 entering the fifth inning, the No. 1-seeded Terrace Vikings answered the challenge, rallying for a walk-off 4-3 win over No. 3 Mountain Vista in the championship game of the Lake County Junior High Athletic League softball playoffs Saturday at Middletown High School.
After scoring twice in the bottom of the fifth to pull even at 3 and holding Mountain Vista scoreless in the top of the sixth, the Vikings rallied in the bottom half to capture the league pennant, capping a 19-2 season.
“What a game!” Terrace assistant coach Shady Cerezo said. “Can you expect anything less when it comes to a Lakeport vs. Kelseyville game?”
Mariah Pruitt singled, stole second and third and scored on a grounder hit to the right side by Alessandra Zavala, who had two strikes on her when she put the ball into play.
“I couldn’t be prouder of these girls,” Cerezo said. “When they faced adversity, they rose to the challenge and faced it head on.”
“It was a great battle between pitchers,” Clear Lake head coach Lynn Cruz said. “A literal duel. Sophia Gonzales pitched her best game ever. She faced 22 batters and struck out 14 while walking only one.”
“Madi Byrne pitched great, going the distance and striking out five,” Mountain Vista head coach Patrick Mick said. “She pitched and played her heart out today. I’m very proud of her.”
Added Mick of Gonzales, “The Terrace pitcher was strong today, we had trouble hitter her. We only managed four hits.”
Byrne, Bella Espinoza, Taylor Wood and Dezzy Anderson had those hits for the Lancers while Pruitt and Amelie Davis both went 2-for-3 for the Vikings.
“Hats off to Terrace,” Mick said. “They earned it and were tough this year.”
Mountain Vista’s Byrne and Brooke Poff received All-League honors.
Third place
Upper Lake 11, Middletown 3
After falling 10-8 to Mountain Vista in the semifinals, the Upper Lake Wildcats bounced back to beat the Middletown Broncos in the third-place game.
“Our girls played a great season, and I couldn’t be prouder of them,” Upper Lake coach Wayne Hensley said. “We started (the playoffs) as the No. 2 seed and finished third.”
Upper Lake’s Bella Stillman and Kyra Santos were named to the All-League team.
Semifinals
Terrace 6, Middletown 2
Winning pitcher Gonzales struck out nine and walked three while Pruitt (2-for-3) and Davis (1-for-2) led the offense.
“We played great,” Cerezo said. “Everyone contributed to the win with timely hitting and great baserunning.”
Mountain Vista 10, Upper Lake 8
Mountain Vista built a 10-4 lead before Upper Lake rallied with four runs in the bottom of the sixth to make it interesting. The Wildcats had the potential tying run at the plate, but Byrne struck out the final batter she faced to end it, one of her eight strikeouts in the game.
Carly Gleason went 3-for-4 with two RBIs, Kiera Mick went 2-for-4 with two RBIs, and Espinoza and Anderson each went 1-for-3 with a RBI.
“Byrne kept us in the game,” Mick said. “We made a few errors and got sloppy in the end, but we gritted it out and got the win.”
“Mountain Vista had consistency with scoring in every inning that we just couldn’t come back from,” Hensley said. “No need to keep our heads down; everyone is looking forward to next season.”
