Posted: May 12, 2013
The Tigers Blast Seven Homeruns on the Day, including Six in the Final Game
RIVERSIDE – The Riverside City College (RCC) Tigers women's fastpitch softball team, ranked No. 1 in Southern California (No. 2 in the state), posted a pair of wins Sunday (May 12) to win the Southern California Regional Playoffs Super Regional (site A) tournament at Brown Field (Evans Sports Complex).
Riverside (club-record 42 wins, 42-4 overall) throttled the No. 4-seeded College of the Canyons (COC) Cougars (34-11-2), 11-1, and, 10-0, in a pair of mercy-rule invoked, five-inning victories to advance as one of four teams to next weekend's California Community College Athletic Association (CCCAA) Women's Softball State Championships to be played at the Dean and Adah Gay Sports Complex on the campus of Bakersfield College, Friday through Sunday, May 17-19.
Riverside will be making its third appearance in the state tournament, where two teams each from the Northern California and Southern California regions face off in a four-team, double-elimination tournament. The Tigers previously advanced to the state tournament in 2009 (finishing tied for seventh in an eight-team tournament at Salinas Sports Complex) and 2012 (finishing third in a four-team tournament at Bakersfield).
Needing to defeat Canyons twice on Sunday after the Cougars had posted an eight-inning, 6-5 win over the Tigers Saturday afternoon (May 11), RCC scored early and often in Sunday's first game.
In a "must win" game, Riverside posted four runs in each of the first two innings for an 8-0 lead. Freshman catcher Christina Mohl (San Bernardino / Cajon HS) had the big blow in the first inning with a two-run single. Sophomore 3B Courtney Brown (Yucaipa / Yucaipa HS) had a two-run double in the second inning. Mohl eventually had three hits to lead the Tigers in Sunday's first game.
RCC upped its advantage to 11-0 in the fourth when sophomore SS Natalie Barrios (Corona / Centennial HS) socked a three-run homerun (her state-leading 24th round tripper of the season).
RCC sophomore RHP Chelsea Ponce (Norwalk / San Bernardino – Cajon HS) went the distance for RCC in both victories and improved to 25-3 on the year. She had a no-hitter for 4-2/3 innings in the first game before Canyons pieced together a walk and a pair of singles for their only run of the day.
COC starting sophomore RHP Kimmie Lockhart (Saugus HS) went the distance for Canyons in the first game, but arguably deserved a better fate. She allowed 11 runs (five earned) on ten hits and five walks as her record fell to 25-6. In the second game, COC starting sophomore RHP (normally a centerfielder) Savannah Gutierrez (Paraclete HS) went the first 3-2/3 innings and allowed all ten runs (all earned) on 12 hits and one walk as her record fell to 6-3.
In the nightcap, Brown broke a scoreless tie with a solo homerun (her tenth of the season) to centerfield in the top of the third inning. It was a harbinger of things to come. Up stepped RCC sophomore 1B Katherine Macias (Riverside – Arlington HS /Yavapai CC – Prescott, AZ) who crushed the first pitch she saw for her 17th circuit clout of the campaign and a 2-0 RCC lead. Two Tigers later, Mohl homered (her 2nd) to centerfield on the first pitch she saw for a 3-0 RCC lead.
In the top of the fourth, the Tigers put the game out of reach with a seven-run explosion. Macias (a two-run blast), sophomore 2B Gina Grijalva (Fontana – Summit HS), and sophomore DP Olivia Fimbres (Fontana / Summit HS / Colorado State U. – Pueblo) – a three-run shot – all homered in the inning, giving the Tigers an insurmountable 10-0 lead.
All told, the Tigers socked seven homeruns on the day, six in the championship game seven. Brown had three hits in the second game and Macias (two homeruns) had three RBI.
Canyons hit singles in the third and fourth innings to avoid being no-hitted.