P(Irvine, CA) The Park Gilbert softball team split a pair of games on the road against the Warriors of Westcliff University, dropping the first 11-0, followed by a 4-0 victory.
Game one saw the Warriors take over offensively, bringing the Bucs defense and pitching to its knees. Mariah Martinez, who is in the top 10 in nearly every Cal Pac pitching category, was tagged in her worst conference outing of the year. She allowed six runs and five hits over just two innings pitched, including two wild pitches that both allowed runs to score.
Iyari Ramirez opened up the scoring in the second for the Warriors with a two-run double in the second inning. The Warriors added four more in the inning as well, two of which scored on the aforementioned wild pitches.
The Warriors added three in the third inning, largely thanks to errors by Danielle Farinas and Carolina Olivas. The pair were substituted defensively entering the fourth inning, but the change made by head coach Brandon Telesco couldn’t stop the bleeding as Westcliff tacked on two more in the fourth, cruising their way to the mercy rule victory.
Game two was an entirely different story, however, and thankfully so for the Park Gilbert squad. This success can largely be attested to Abril Nerey, who continued her fantastic stretch of pitching with a dominant one-hit complete game shutout of the Warriors.
Carolina Olivas got the Bucs on the board for the first time on the day in inning number two with an RBI single that scored Natalie Castro. The Bucs had their opportunities throughout, including leaving a runner stranded on second base in the fourth inning.
The Bucs got themselves out of a potential game-tying situation in the fifth, throwing out a runner at the plate for out number two following a fielder’s choice. Scoring went quiet up until the sixth inning, when Anissa Corrales led off with a triple, immediately to be cashed in by Farinas for the Buccaneers second run of the game.
The Buccaneers added insurance runs in the seventh, highlighted by an RBI double from Farinas that extended the lead to four. Nerey didn’t need any of it, however, completing the shutout with an emphatically induced double play, sending the Buccaneers bench flying out to the field to congratulate their starter on another masterful performance.
The Bucs continue their roadtrip in Irvine, Calif. with another round of doubleheaders against Westcliff on March 14 at 9 a.m. and 11 a.m.
Press Release courtesy of Park University Athletics – Lainie Hallows
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