Santiago Canyon Defeats Conference Rival to Live Another Game

by Andrew Wheeler, CCCSIA

Bakersfield, CA - The Santiago Canyon College Softball team, the #2 seed out of Southern California, beat SoCal #1 Cypress College for the first time in four tries late Saturday evening and did it under the biggest of circumstances. With their chance for a CCCAA State Softball title on the line, the Hawks defeated their conference rival to live at least one more game in the 2016 CCCAA State Championships.

Santiago Canyon's Emili Olague got things off on the right foot with a two-run shot to right-center that gave the Hawks an early 2-0 lead. The Hawks would add to that in the bottom of the second, when freshman Manoa Weijgertse laced a single down the right field line that brought in sophomore Krista Carranza and sophomore Brittany Howe. A few pitches later, the hot hitting sophomore Kaitlyn Lanksbury hit a single to center that scored Olague and made it 5-0.

Cypress would show their first signs of offensive life in the top of the third, when sophomore Jezz Portillo singled to left field driving in sophomore Alexis Carmona. Moments later, the Chargers added another run when sophomore Justice Walker scored from third on a wild pitch.

Lanksbury would add to the Hawk in the bottom of the fourth with a two-out triple down the right field line that brought home teammate and sophomore Jessica Daniel to make it 6-2. Lanksbury did it again in the bottom of the sixth, when she had yet another two-out RBI, hitting a single through the left side of the field, plating Daniel yet again to extend the Santiago Canyon lead to five runs.

The Chargers would make a last ditch effort in the top of the seventh. Walker led the inning off with a single to right, and stole second shortly thereafter. That brought freshman Melanie Okazaki to the plate. Okazaki would come through with a single to right field, but sophomore Ashley Clark-Johnson came up with a huge play throwing Walker out at home with a laser to the catcher Weijgertse to erase the potential run.

In the win, Lanksbury went 3 for 4 with 3 RBIs. Daniel was 2 for 3, scoring a trio of runs, and stealing three bases. Sophomore Riley Nahrwold (17-7) earned her first win of the season, pitching the distance, scattering nine total hits, giving up a pair of walks, and fanning two in the process.

The Hawks live to play at least one more game as they will take on North #1 College of San Mateo at approximately 10:15 PM for the right to take on North #3 Sacramento City College in tomorrow's Championship Game.