Trial by fire: Marina’s new lineup succeeds in wake of missing players

HUNTINGTON BEACH — One look at the lineup card for the Vikings against Fountain Valley, and it became readily apparent that five players were missing from the starting lineup.

In the face of adversity, freshman Emily Rush saw her team through to a big win as the host Vikings defeated Fountain Valley, 11-1, in a Sunset League game on Thursday afternoon.

Rush (5-3) allowed one earned run on five hits in a five-inning, mercy-rule victory. She struck out four and walked none.

The freshman was efficient in getting her team back into the dugout. She needed just 26 pitches to get through the first three frames.

“It kept me fresh for pitching, and I think it kept the energy up for all the players,” Rush said. “It was good for people to make good plays and back me up.”

Without much of the middle of their order, the Vikings (10-9, 5-1) didn’t miss a beat. Rush had a pair of doubles and four RBI in the cleanup spot.

Ryan King had three hits and leadoff hitter Nicole Logrecco had two.

“It was a great thing to see how they just stayed with it,” Farish said. “We didn’t let our foot off the gas at all.

“This was a really tough week for them, losing five teammates. That’s hard on any team. They really showed what they were made of.”

Rarely-seen players were inserted into the lineup, and they made their presence felt immediately.

Right-fielder Malia Temple went 3 for 3 with two doubles and four runs scored.

“I was really excited to start in the second position (in the batting order),” Temple said. “I was just honestly looking for my pitch and trying to move the runners when I could.

“When a runner was on second, I’d try to hit it to the right side or hit it in the gap so that we could move the runners further and score more.”

Ashley Myers was 2 for 3 with two RBI, and Elizabeth Murphy made good on her opportunity with a pinch-hit double to drive in a run in the fifth.

“That’s what we told them at the beginning of the year,” coach Mandee Farish said of players being ready to fill the void. “The nine that are on the field for the first game will not be the same nine (throughout the season).”

The Vikings caught a big break with Edison (12-7, 3-4) defeating Huntington Beach, 13-11, on Thursday.

Even with back-to-back games coming up against Los Alamitos (20-3, 6-0), the worst case scenario for Marina would result in the Vikings being tied in the loss column with the Oilers (14-9, 4-3) when the teams square off next Thursday. That potential showdown for second in the Sunset League will be hosted by Marina.

Fountain Valley (13-14, 2-5) scored its lone run in the top of the fifth. Lauren Wilson reached on a bunt single. She stole second and third before Stephanie Tsai sent a liner up the middle with two outs to send her home.

Madeline Domingo, Delaney Sheppard, and JJ Sheppard added base hits for the Barons.

Sunset League

Marina 11, Fountain Valley 1

SCORE BY INNINGS

FV 000 01 — 1 5 2

Mar 410 24 — 11 14 0

Johansen, Doan (5) and Domingo; Rush and Henderson. WP — Rush, 5-3. LP — Johansen. 2B — Temple 2 (Mar), Rush 2 (Mar), Logrecco (Mar), Murphy (Mar).

Andrew.Turner@latimes.com

Twitter: @ProfessorTurner