Patriots beat Knights, shake bit of early rust
Pioneer rallies to top Rio Linda, open GEL schedule with victory
The Pioneer High School varsity softball team was challenged in its Golden Empire League opener this week in Woodland but the Patriots rallied and showed why they are the reigning GEL co-champions.
Pioneer (3-2, 1-0 GEL) defeated Rio Linda (7-3, 1-1) by a final score of 5-3 on Wednesday afternoon. The Patriots were originally scheduled to host Dixon (3-0, 1-0) on Monday in a clash of co-champs but the game was postponed to a later date due to field conditions.
“It was not one of our best games. Not having a lot of gameplay, you can see that we're making mental and physical errors. Our baserunning wasn't very good today,” explained coach Linda Merrida. “We had some timely hits but they were caught. The center fielder caught everything. We didn't adjust to the pitcher and were way in front instead of letting the ball travel more.”
In the bottom of the first inning, Pioneer scored twice on respective RBI singles by senior second baseman Briana Parker and junior right-handed pitcher Jia Beebe to score sophomore shortstop Marisa Bryson and Parker. Then the GEL foes traded blows back and forth over two frames. The Knights tied the score in the top of the third inning with RBI singles from freshman catcher Lilly Rouse and junior first baseman Nakayla Williams to plate sophomore outfielder Liviah Johnson and Rouse.
Parker bunted for an infield single to leadoff the bottom of the third. During junior third baseman Sofia Hernandez's at bat, Parker stole second base. Then Hernandez grounded out to advance Parker to third. Sophomore 1B Caitlin Mayfield singled to left field to score Parker and reclaim the advantage.
“We just have to fight and scratch for every single hit and run that we get. We lost a run at home that could've been critical,” Merrida said. “We teach the kids that if you hit a ball into the outfield, you're going to run hard past first no matter what, it doesn't matter. Gracie hit a little blooper and she made it to second because she ran hard. It doesn't matter who hits the ball, they should be halfway down the line.”
Rio Linda sophomore 2B Kaylani Vanderhoof reached base with a single to right. Freshman OF Hailey Glenn attempted a sacrifice bunt to advance Vanderhoof but the Patriots committed an infield error, allowing Vanderhoof to score and Glenn reached third base, where she was stranded.
Junior OF Abril Parker hit a leadoff single to start the bottom half of the fourth. Sophomore OF Gracie McGinty laid down a sac bunt and Abril advanced to second. Sophomore OF Sofia Castro doubled to right center field and Abril scored. In the sixth, Bryson hit an RBI single to score McGinty and Pioneer prevailed 5-3.
“We fought hard and didn't give up. We did struggle a little bit there but came back to come out on top,” Beebe recalled. “I take one batter at a time, focus on what's happening and move on.”
Mayfield led the way at the plate Wednesday, going 2-for-3 with 1 RBI. Briana and Bryson each went 2-for-4. Briana tallied 2 runs and 1 stolen base while Bryson recorded 1 run and 2 swiped bags.
“Jia and Ashley (Gruben) did a good job behind the dish. We're trying to work on inside pitches a little bit more. They got some bloop hits and I think they can still work on the outside pitches better,” Merrida explained. “We had some really good bunts, Abril had one, then hit another, so that was good that we got her going again.”
Beebe (3-2) tossed 7.0 frames and allowed 7 hits, 3 runs (2 earned) and 1 walk with 10 strikeouts on an even 100 pitches.
“I think I did pretty good. It was hard to adjust to their pitcher but we adjusted well,” Beebe said. “My catcher Ashley always helps me out calling the pitches for the game, we really work well together. Bri and Abril had some nice hits today. I know Abril had some singles that really helped the team and Bri was hitting hard, as always.”
On Friday in West Sacramento, the Patriots will play in a tournament from a few weeks ago that was rescheduled due to rain. Pioneer will battle the hosts, River City, and Bella Vista of Fair Oaks at 2 and 4 p.m., respectively.
“It feels good (to get the first league win). We still have a lot ahead of us,” Beebe said. “We're going to keep battling and fighting through.”
The Patriots will travel across town to the west side on Monday for a GEL matchup at Woodland (2-4, 1-1). First pitch is scheduled for 4:30 p.m.
“It doesn't matter what your record is. We're traveling there so they'll have their fans on their side and plus they'll have their field as an advantage. Every game is different. Anytime we think we're going to do well, it's a tight game,” Merrida foreshadowed.
“We get to bat first so we'll know how we do. We have to score at the very beginning.
“We want to see them compete but we want to cut down on the miscues. Read better, run the bases better. On defense, make the right plays.”