Gilroy softball barely received an invitation to the party that
is the Central Coast Section playoffs.
Needing to win its last game of the regular season to qualify
for CCS, the Mustangs found themselves in an even tenser situation
Thursday at PAL Stadium in San Jose.
An out away from seeing their season end against the North
Salinas Vikings in the sectional semifinals, the Mustangs scored
three runs to tie the game at 5-all in the top of the seventh
inning before extending the game for three more frames to
eventually pull out a 7-6 victory.
SAN JOSE – Gilroy softball barely received an invitation to the party that is the Central Coast Section playoffs.
Needing to win its last game of the regular season to qualify for CCS, the Mustangs found themselves in an even tenser situation Thursday at PAL Stadium in San Jose.
An out away from seeing their season end against the North Salinas Vikings in the sectional semifinals, the Mustangs scored three runs to tie the game at 5-all in the top of the seventh inning before extending the game for three more frames to eventually pull out a 7-6 victory.
“I think we showed a lot of heart today and didn’t give up for all 10 innings,” GHS sophomore Sarah Lira said.
Entering the game as a relief pitcher in the bottom of the sixth, with her team trailing 5-2, Lira retired the side before helping her club mount a rally for the Gilroy record books.
Following a Michelle Sosa ground-out to start the seventh, Gilroy shortstop Alissa Castro knocked a line drive to right field. Stephanie Rodriguez struck out on the next at-bat, leaving senior center fielder Jasmine Perez as the Mustangs’ last hope.
Perez was hit by a pitch by North Salinas’ Danielle Shipman, putting two runners aboard for Lira. Drawing a four-pitch walk, Lira loaded the bases with two outs for catcher Melanie Morelos.
Morelos looked to be hit by Shipman’s first pitch, but the umpire ruled strike. It worked out better that way for Morelos and the Mustangs, as the sophomore smacked a single to shallow right field to score two runners, cutting the Vikings’ lead to 5-4.
Freshman Casey Lester, who replaced Lira on the base paths as a pinch runner following the pitcher’s walk, completed the Gilroy comeback by trotting home when sophomore second baseman Dani Hemeon struck the first pitch she saw back up the middle for a game-tying RBI single.
“I think they play off the pressure,” Gilroy manager Catherine Hallada said of her team’s resiliency.
There would be more adversity to overcome before the Mustangs could claim a spot in the CCS championship game, where they will face rival Hollister for the second straight season. First pitch is scheduled for 10 a.m. at PAL Stadium in San Jose.
Neither Lira nor Shipman allowed a hit as the two teams remained tied entering the 10th inning. With Hollister waiting in the stands to face Wilcox in its semifinal contest, which the Lady Balers won 1-0, umpires enacted international tiebreaker rules. The rule places a runner on second to start the 10th inning with no outs.
Morelos’ bat struck true again in the top half of the frame, as she hit a deep single up the middle to put runners on first and third with no outs. Hemeon then recorded her second RBI of the game with a base hit to make it 6-5. Emily Castro followed by loading the bases with a single, setting up her sister, Alissa Castro, for a strong hit that was bobbled by North Salinas’ first baseman Bina Abbott. Alissa Castro beat the throw to first, giving Gilroy a 7-5 advantage as runners advanced.
North Salinas came within a hit of stealing back the lead and the game in the bottom of the 10th, scoring a run before putting runners on second and third for Abbott with just one out.
But the Mustangs were able to close out the game on a leaping catch by GHS first baseman Lindsay Holt, who snagged a ball tailing foul for the second out, and Dani Hemeon scooping up a soft grounder and tossing the ball to Holt for the final out.
Lira earned the win in four innings of work, taking over after starter Ashley Harrington (3.1 innings) and reliever Sam Parraz (1.2 innings).
“[Lira] did a really good job,” Hallada said. “To have to go through all three pitchers, that says a lot about what kind of team North Salinas is.”
Vikings manager Greg Sims addressed his players after the game, trying to comfort his somber club, which led 5-1 after five innings.
“I’m sorry someone had to lose,” Sims said. “A loss like this … it’s tough.”
Gilroy took a 1-0 lead in the second inning on a two-out RBI single by Holt, which scored Lester. North Salinas matched the run in the bottom of the second before posting two runs in the fourth and two in the fifth. Gilroy cut the deficit to three runs, 5-2, on a sacrifice fly by Emily Castro in the bottom of the sixth that plated Morelos.
While the loss clearly left the Vikings feeling like they had been kicked in the stomach, the Mustangs couldn’t have been merrier.
“It’s fun,” Lira said. “I haven’t played in a game like that for a long time.”
Alissa Castro said it wouldn’t matter which team Gilroy faces in the final, but one choice was more obvious than the other.
“I want to kill Hollister, but whichever one,” she said. “We’ll beat either one.”
With Wilcox eliminated hours later in the evening, Gilroy was left with one very familiar opponent. Last season, San Benito beat the Mustangs 8-3 in the CCS Championship, giving the Lady Balers their third straight section title. Gilroy, which won CCS just once in 1999, has not beaten its Tri-County Athletic League rivals since 2006, making some Mustangs say a victory on Saturday is long overdue.
“How could you not (want to play Hollister)?” Hallada said. “They’re our biggest rival.
“We can make history.”
