Azusa, CA (Softball) -- The Citrus College softball team, who split with Bakersfield College earlier in the year, struggled to get past the Renegades again on Thursday afternoon as they picked up just their third WSC divisional loss. Bakersfield scored nine runs in the third inning alone, on their way to a 11-9 win over Citrus.
Bakersfield would get the first run on the board in Thursday’s game, as Bakersfield third baseman Celina Cruz sent a single back up the middle scoring catcher Katie Sawyer with two outs on the board.
Citrus wasted little time in responding however, as freshman Ashley Rollice led off the bottom of the first with a triple to deep left-center field. Rollice was driven in one batter later, when Desiree Perez’s sacrifice tied the game up at 1-1.
The Lady Owls would add another run in the very next inning, when sophomore Denise Hernandez led off the bottom of the second with another extra base hit, this time a double up the left field line. Four batters and an error later, Rollice picked up her first RBI of the game as her single to left field drove in Hernandez giving Citrus an early 2-1 advantage.
The lead wouldn’t last long however, as Bakersfield’s bats came out blazing in the top of the third inning. Bakersfield’s Sawyer would lead off the third with a seemingly harmless single up the left-field line.
That seemingly harmless single would be one of seven seemingly harmless singles, and a very harmful triple that led to nine runs (eight earned) in an offensive out-pouring that the Lady Owls hadn’t seen all year. When all was said and done, Bakersfield would hold a commanding 10-2 lead, all while racking up 13 hits through just three short innings.
With Citrus starting pitcher Brittany Patterson and relief pitcher Amanda Mays getting hit all over the field, sophomore Alex Arguelles came and retired the final batter of the rough third. Arguelles would end up pitching the final 4 2/3 innings of the game giving up just three hits and one run over that span.
With their backs against the wall, the Lady Owls responded. In the bottom of the third, Citrus recorded four unearned runs, two coming off the bat of Rollice. With two outs on the score board, Rollice sent a single back up the middle driving in sophomores Denise Hernandez and Jennifer Anaya. With a four spot in the third, Citrus cut the Bakersfield lead to four at 6-10.
Citrus would have a shot at cutting into Bakersfield’s lead again in the fourth inning, but after getting two lead off singles and a sacrifice bunt, that would put runners on second and third, the Lady Owls went down in order, failing to get a run across the plate.
With Citrus unable to cut into the Bakersfield lead, the Renegades just began to add on to it. In the top of the fifth, BC got back to back singles and stolen bases from Heather Spoon and Nathalie Martinez to start of the inning, placing the runners at second and third base.
With the runners in scoring position, Sawyer, who was a thorn in Citrus’ side all afternoon, sent a deep fly ball to left field that scored Spoon on third, and pushed the Renegade lead back to five runs at 11-6.
Citrus would get back that run in the bottom of the fifth, but with bases loaded and one out, it could have been more. The run would come thanks to a single to center field by sophomore Melanie Hansen with the bases loaded.
The hit would score Jennifer Anaya, but on the play Rollice, who was at second base, would be thrown out at third base effectively ending the Citrus rally with the score at 11-7.
The Lady Owls would add two more runs in the next inning when Citrus’ Amanda Mays’ double to left field and Rollice’s single to left-center field brought the Owls to within in two runs of the Renegade lead.
After Arguelles set down Bakersfield in order in the top of the seventh, the Lady Owls found themselves with a chance to tie the game up in the final inning. Citrus’ Melanie Hansen would lead off the inning with a single to right center field.
With Hansen on first, Citrus’ Lauren Pulley, the conference home-run leader, would come to the plate with a chance to tie the game. Pulley battled, and hit a fly ball to center field, but the Bakersfield center fielder had plenty of time to settle under it, ending Pulley’s chance to tie the game, as the Lady Owls’ ended their run two batters later.
With the loss, Citrus’s record falls to 23-12 overall and 15-3 in WSC Blue Division play. The Lady Owls will take a break from WSC action next week, but will play two non-conference contests next Saturday April 12th, with Cerritos and Chaffey Colleges. The first game is set for 1:00 PM.
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