Bakersfield or Bust
Saddleback to face San Mateo in the opening round of the state tournament on Thursday
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 10 | 0 |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
The Saddleback softball team advanced to the 3C2A State Tournament with an 11-2 win over College of the Canyons on Saturday at Bobcats Field. The Bobcats will open the tournament against College of San Mateo on Thursday.
Saddleback hadn't qualified for a state tournament since 1999, so the anticipation was palpable inside Bobcats Field from the moment the front gates opened. The Bobcats quickly calmed any nerves by scoring 10 runs in the opening inning in a runaway win.
Saddleback sent 15 batters to the plate in the opening inning and scored all 10 runs with two outs in the inning. Ehva Cifuentes-Zombulovic doubled home Millie Maher with the first run of the game, which was the first of 10 straight runners to reach base. The Cougars helped out with four walks and a defensive error in the inning as the Bobcats took advantage with six hits in the inning. Cifuentes-Zombulovic had a second double in the inning to drive in Mikayla Mendoza and Ka'ui Garcia with the ninth and 10th runs of the inning.
Saddleback had it on cruise control for the rest of the game. The Bobcats tacked on one more run to start the fifth inning when Lola Winningham doubled to start the inning and later come home to score on a groundout from Katelyn Peters. Winningham's double was one of five doubles and six extra-base hits on the day. Maher, Cifuentes-Zombulovic, Garcia and Winningham all had two hits apiece for the day as the Bobcats outhit the Cougars 10-4 in a five-inning game.
Kylee Cammarato started on the mound and pitched a complete game in improving to 11-4 on the season. Cammarato struck out six while walking one for the afternoon. It was Cammarato's first win since beating Cypress on April 2.
Saddleback is now 32-13 on the season following the win. It is the most wins for the program since winning 35 games in 2010 and ties the 1996 team for the sixth most wins in a season.
Saddleback will now head to Bakersfield College, home of the 3C2A State Tournament. The Bobcats will be the No. 4 seed from Southern California and face the No. 1 seed from the north, College of San Mateo, in the opening round of the tournament. A game time has yet to be determined.