First-year East Union coach Dylan DeBrouwer challenged his team with a busy non-league that included three tournaments and many road games.
There was a reason for that, and those experiences aided the Lancers on Friday when they upset third-seeded Yuba City on the road 9-8 in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV quarterfinal.
Sixth-seeded East Union (17-13) jumped ahead for good with two runs in the seventh, and relief pitcher Lily Pickering struck out the final batter of the game with the tying and go-ahead runs on base.
“Our girls have had to overcome a lot this year,” DeBrouwer said. “But they’re at the point where they’ve gone through the fire and came out of it pretty unified. It paid off playing a hard schedule and a lot of road games. We have not always played well, but we’re finding ways to win.”
In the playoffs for the first time since 2019, the Lancers are now rolling having won eight of their last nine. They avenged one of their early-season losses, with Yuba City (18-9-1) beating them 5-4 in eight innings in the St. Mary’s Tournament championship game.
Leah Altstadt got what ended up being the deciding hit in the seventh, knocking in Mikayla Simpson with a single. Izabella Avalos started the inning with a single and scored on a passed ball.
The Honkers threatened to extend the game in the bottom half after getting one of those runs back. With one runner already on base, East Union opted to intentionally walk Chloe Gonzales (3-for-4, two runs, three RBIs, two doubles, homer), who was swinging the hottest bat in the game.
Then Pickering clutched up with the win-clinching strikeout.
“Their leadoff hitter is a very good player, and she had been killing us all day,” DeBrouwer said. “So, we walked her to put the tying run at the second base. You just have to roll the dice sometimes.”
The gamble has the Lancers in the semifinal round for the first time since 2017.
East Union set the tone early, with Fallon Norman drilling a two-run single to the fence in the first inning. The Lancers led 5-1 in the middle of the fourth inning and never trailed, but Yuba City battled back to tie it twice.
Altstadt may have single-handily kept EU ahead with a big defensively play in the third. With runners on the corners and no outs, Altstadt dove to her right to catch Maddison Stead’s sharp line drive for an out, and she flung it to first base to complete the double play. The Lancers came out of the inning still up, 4-1.
Savanna Lopez (two runs, two steals), Elli Flores (run, RBI), Simpson (run, two RBIs) and Norman each had two hits for East Union. Pickering added a double and walked four times.
“We played this team in the championship game of the St. Mary’s Tournament, and that was a point in the season we weren’t playing our best softball but had to find was to win,” DeBrouwer said. “We knew going into the game it was going to be back-and-forth. I have a lot of respect for their coaches. They do a great job.”
East Union is back on the road next Tuesday to square off with No. 2 Pioneer (22-5) in Woodland. Pioneer took care of No. 7 Beyer in the quarterfinals, 4-0.
Division V
Livingston 2, Ripon 1
A two-run single from Elizabeth Avila in the bottom of the sixth inning was the difference for No. 3-seeded Livingston (20-8).
Ava Hernandez drove in Mikayla Dietrich in the fourth for No. 6 Ripon’s lone run. Angelina Martinez did all she could to keep her team ahead from the pitcher’s circle, striking out two and walking none in a two-hitter.
The Indians (19-8) had other chances to score but left seven runners stranded. Abigail Stewart (double) and Addison Naranjo (triple) both went 2-for-4.
Livingston next hosts No. 7 Calaveras, which stunned No. 2 Linden, 13-0.
