Glendora, CA (Softball) -- Citrus College sophomore Kelly Martin picked up her 12th win of the season, struck out three batters, and gave up just one earned run and five hits in the Lady Owls’ 4-1 win over LA Valley on Tuesday afternoon. Martin also chipped in on the offensive side, going 1 for 3 with one RBI.
Despite her solid effort all around, Martin got off on the wrong foot surrendering a lead-off single to left field to the very first batter she faced. Two batters later, Valley got on the board when Candace Williams drove in Shasta Lione to give the Monarchs a 1-0 lead.
After that Martin settled down striking out Yvonne Padilla to end the inning. From there on out, Martin allowed a base runner past second base once, thanks in large part to a Citrus error in left field.
With Martin trailing 1-0, the Citrus offense took a while to get things going. The Fighting Owls were set down in order over the first three innings, and didn’t get their first hit of the game until Amanda Herrera’s lead-off double in the bottom of the fourth inning. A few batters later, Martin cashed in the run with her RBI single to right field.
The Lady Owls would continue the hit fest in the fifth inning. With runners on first and third, sophomore Courtney Mihm stepped to the plate and slammed a triple to right field, driving in two runs and giving Citrus a 3-1 lead. Freshman Maura Aguilar would follow that up with a double to left, scoring Mihm and giving Citrus their 4-1 advantage.
With a lead finally at her back, Martin made quick work of her foes in the sixth and seventh innings, facing just seven batters through her final two innings of work.
With the win, Citrus improves to 15-11 overall and 8-5 in WSC Blue Division play, while LA Valley falls to 10-11 overall and 5-9 in conference play. Citrus will hit the road on Thursday for a double-header with LA Mission College. First pitch is set for 1:00 PM.
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