RIPON — Visiting Lindhurst of Olivehurst managed just two hits against Ripon freshman Sydney Thomason in a Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV playoff opener Monday, one from their leadoff hitter to start the game and the other from the second-to-last batter.
With Thomason on her
game, the offense did plenty of damage of its own as the No. 7 Indians rolled
to a 13-0 five-inning victory.
“This team is fun to coach,” Indians coach Robert Vernon said. “We’re young and there’s times when it is frustrating, but you just have to learn how to deal with it. But they are a resilient group, motivated, in the game 100 percent all the time and never out of a game. They’re constantly in the game cheering.
“I’m proud of where we
are going.”
Thomason was masterful
inside the circle, striking out five and walking just one in addition to the
two hits. Just one runner made it into scoring position for the Blazers
(15-13).
“It’s really fun,”
Thomason said. “My mindset going in was just to hit my spots and let my defense
carry us, making their plays and we would be fine.”
The Indians (15-7) pieced together a seven-run fourth inning with some big hits, the biggest being a three-run home run by Mackenzie Hutchinson, scoring Sydney Vernon and Bianca Toledo.
“I saw the pitch right
in my zone where I like it,” Hutchinson said. “I hit right on the barrel on the
sweet spot and it went over.”
Lilly Mejia (2 for 3,
two RBI, triple) tripled in Makenna Daley earlier in the frame, and pinch hitter
Madison Rodrigues capped the scoring when she sat back on a 1-1 changeup and
drilled it to plate Myra Toledo (2 for 2, two runs) Sierra Silva (two runs).
“I saw it and I got
kind of scared,” Rodrigues said of the changeup. “But I kept my confidence
level up. I stayed back on it and let it go.”
Ripon scored five runs
on just two hits in the fifth inning behind four Lindhurst errors and started
the scoring in the first inning when Shay Furtado walked and was advanced to
third on a single by Mejia and a fielder’s choice by Bianca Toledo. Furtado
scooted home on a passed ball to make the score 1-0.
The Indians have to take to the road for the next round Wednesday but they will not have to go far as they travel to Sierra to face the second-seeded Timberwolves at 4 p.m.
