Coronado rally preserves title hopes
Had Coronado lost Friday’s softball game, Basic would have won the Sunrise League title.
Not only did the Cougars win to keep their league title hopes alive, they did it in style.
Coronado tied the game in the fifth inning, then loaded the bases in the seventh before Madison Stephens drove home the winning run to give the Cougars a 5-4 walk-off victory against visiting Basic.
“It was amazing, and I feel very proud,” Stephens said. “Now that we have a chance to win the league, we’re very excited.”
Coronado (21-8, 16-2 Sunrise League) fell to Basic (19-8, 16-2) early in the season, and with Friday’s win, tied the Wolves atop the league standings. The Cougars were well aware of the stakes and jumped to a 2-0 lead after the first inning.
But Coronado ace Tatum Spangler wasn’t on her game. Basic took the lead in the fourth, and Spangler allowed four runs on six hits and five walks.
The thing about Spangler is that when she isn’t pitching, she’s hitting. She went 3-for-3 with a double, was intentionally walked to lead off the seventh and scored three runs, including the game winner.
“I didn’t have my best stuff, but I knew that I had defense behind me that would pick me up,” Spangler said. “I know that if I’m not the best on the mound, I have other positions that I can work out and help my team with.”
Spangler doubled in the fifth and scored on Ashley Ward’s single to tie the game. The teams traded zeros in the sixth, and Spangler worked around a walk in the seventh and struck out the side.
Coronado loaded the bases with nobody out in the seventh to set up Stephens.
“They believe every single time they’re going to get the job done, and you can’t ask for anything more than that,” Coronado coach Melissa Krueger said. “All year we’ve told the girls, ‘Who’s going to be the next one to step up?’ And every game it seems like it’s a different kid.”
Aleah Baldonado had a triple and two RBIS for the Cougars and Isabel Rodriguez tripled.
Shelby Basso pitched the distance with 10 strikeouts for the Wolves, who got triples from Sanoe Helenihi, Mikayla Berg and Alyssa Ferguson.
Contact Justin Emerson at jemerson@reviewjournal.com or (702) 387-2944. Follow @J15emerson on Twitter.