Smokey helps 'Jacks split twin bill
Redwoods drops two to West Valley
Jack's softball splits mid-week games
At 20 games into the 2024 Cal Poly Humboldt softball season, the `Jacks are sitting at 12-8 under first-year head coach Megan Corriea after splitting a doubleheader on Wednesday against Dominican University.
Humboldt dropped game one 9-2, after taking a 1-0 lead in the top of the first on an RBI single by sophomore first baseman Katlyn Gifford, the Penguins scored six runs in the bottom of the inning and added another two runs in the second to take a 8-1 lead.
Humboldt starting pitcher, junior Gaige Garcia went just 0.2 innings before getting relieved by senior Ava Hand who pitched the last 5.1 innings giving up just two earned runs. Sophomore shortstop Shelby Shanks hit a solo home run in the 4th inning but after the Penguins scored in the 5th inning the scoring came to an end with Dominican grabbing the 9-2 win.
The `Jacks had a short memory on Wednesday, bouncing right back in game two with a 6-2 win. After senior Vanessa Richie started for the `Jacks, allowing just one run over 3.2 innings of work, junior Alyssa Smokey went 3.1 innings of her own, also allowing just one run to get the win. The win brings Smokey's record to 6-1 in 2024, already surpassing her 2023 total (five) in half of the appearances.
Smokey's earned run average is at a tidy 1.76 this season, but the junior also does work with the bat, giving Humboldt the lead in the first with an RBI single. In the second, the `Jacks scored again when former Eureka Logger Sadie Hampton drove in a run with a oneout single. Then in the third, Smokey made her way back to the plate to lead off the inning
and hit a solo home run to give Humboldt the 3-0 lead.
Two batters later, senior third baseman Izzy Starr homered as well. In the 7th inning Starr returned to the plate and hit a tworun homer this time pushing the lead to 6-2, which is where it'd stay as the `Jacks closed things out in the bottom of the inning.
Cal Poly Humboldt continues CCAA play this weekend on the road against San Francisco State for four games Friday and Saturday.
CR softball struggles against West Valley
Things didn't go as well for College of the Redwoods' softball team on Thursday as the team was beaten in both halves of a doubleheader against West Valley on the road.
Freshman, and younger sister of Humboldt's Sadie, Maeghan Hampton doubled in the first inning and then stole third before eventually being driven home on an RBI single by sophomore outfielder Catlin Caughie, but following that the Corsairs would be outscored 13-0 the remainder of the game. CR held West Valley scoreless in three of the five innings that were played before the mercy rule but after scoring two runs in the second inning, West Valley would score 11 runs in the 4th inning to blow things open.
Hampton's double and three hits from Caughie were the highlights for the Corsairs who committed four errors in the loss.
There was no fast start for the Corsairs in game two as they were shutout 9-0 in five innings while being no-hit by West Valley's sophomore Miranda Torres, who got eight of her 15 outs via the strikeout.
West Valley committed two errors and the Corsairs' sophomore Allie Egbert drew a walk to prevent Torres from a perfect game. West Valley scored a run in the first before adding three runs in both the second and third innings, then adding a run in the fourth and not taking the plate in the 5th inning due to the mercy rule.
With the two losses Thursday, CR is at six in a row and has gotten off to a slow 1-12 start to the season. CR returns home Saturday for a doubleheader against Chabot College with the first pitch of game one set for noon. After Saturday's games, the Corsairs will head to Golden Valley Conference play next Friday on the road against College of the Siskiyous.