Lively bats carry 12-year-olds deeper into NorCal
tournament.
MARTINEZ – Figuratively speaking, the Gilroy Little League softball Major All-Stars pushed and shoved its way through the district tournament. But, manager Ed Castro and coach Scot Hathaway knew their team would encounter stiffer competition at the Northern California Division II Tournament.
Already having a District 59 championship under their belts, a tournament in which they peppered the diamond with 55 hits in three games, the girls continued to swing a hot bat in a convincing 16-0 opening-round win over Feather River Little League on Saturday in Martinez.
The scoring started early and continued often. Karli Martinez put the girls on the board with a first-inning RBI-single, scoring Michaela Decker to make it 1-0. Brook Loesch capped the first with a two-RBI base knock that brought home Alli Hathaway and Anna Gamboa.
The 3-0 advantage increased to 5-0 in the second inning as Decker ripped a triple to plate Pati Soria, who reached with her second hit of the contest. Decker then scored on Lauren Castro’s RBI-single.
Gilroy pushed across four more runs in the third inning via an RBI from Nikki Villanueva and Castro’s two-RBI hit. The girls put the finishing touches on the 10-run-rule shortened affair with seven runs in the fourth inning.
Keeping things calm on the defensive side, Castro and Gamboa paired up once again in the circle, combining for six strikeouts.
For the first time this postseason, the girls were kept under 10 runs in their second-round game against Consumnes River on Sunday.
Castro anchored the effort in the circle, keeping the team in the game until the bats came around. Castro one-hit Consumnes, striking out 11 in the process.
Sure enough, the bats did come alive and it was Castro and Gamboa breaking a fourth-inning scoreless tie, with Gamboa driving in Castro to make it 1-0.
Castro made it 2-0 with an RBI-single to score Soria, and Decker provided an insurance run, scoring on a wild pitch.
“The girls handled the pressure of a close game very well and Lauren pitched a great game,” Ed Castro said.
Gilroy returns to action Thursday against the Cottonwood Little League All-Stars at 6 p.m. in Martinez.
