Vanguard drops NAIA Tournament opener in 10 innings

The Vanguard University softball program had waited 10 years since it last competed in the NAIA Tournament. In the opener of the four-team Opening-Round Tournament on Monday at Vanguard, the Lions took 10 innings to be pushed to the verge of elimination.

No. 3-seeded Oregon Tech, the designated home team, scored an unearned run in the bottom of the 10^th inning to win 2-1 and remain in the winner’s bracket of the double-elimination format.

No. 15-ranked and No. 2-seeded Vanguard (46-14) opened the scoring when Kaitlin Estes singled to open the second inning and scored on a two-out triple by her sister, Kim Estes.

Oregon Tech (35-15), which has played in the national tournament seven of the last eight seasons, rallied for a run in the fourth on three singles.

Vanguard freshman pitcher Vanessa Dwyer had retired 19 in a row before Katie Virtue singled with two outs in the 10th. After Virtue stole second, Rachael Delamare followed with a slow roller between first and second base that Vanguard second baseman Summer Penner got a glove on, but failed to scoop cleanly. Penner was charged with an error.

With an open base (second), Vanguard chose to pitch to two-time All-American Tara Moates, a junior right fielder who came in leading the Owls in hitting (.463), home runs (12), RBIs (51) and slugging (.831).

Moates rocketed a one-one pitch past the first baseman for a walk-off, game-winner, giving her 170 career RBIs.

“She has been our best hitter all year long,” Owls coach Greg Stewart said. “She’s a two-time All-American, so you kind of hope that a kid like that can step up and get a big two-out hit.”

Vanguard’s best chance to score after the second inning came in the ninth. Samantha Shaffer singled to open the inning and a pinch-runner reached second on a subsequent groundout. Kim Estes grounded to shortstop, who appeared to tag the runner heading to third. But Ariana Huffman was ruled safe, putting runners at the corners.

Britany Heinle followed with a bunt on an attempted delayed squeeze. The bunt toward first base, however, hung in the air momentarily, forcing Huffman to delay her break. First baseman Sadie Birch fielded the ball and shoveled to the catcher, who applied the tag while blocking the plate. A fielder’s choice grounder followed to end the threat.

Dwyer allowed eight hits and one earned run, but absorbed the loss to fall to 18-7.

Dwyer was assisted by dazzling defense that included a pair of highlight-reel catches by senior left fielder Taylor Wilson.

Wilson made a sliding catch of a foul ball with two on in the fourth. She also ran down a foul ball that had cleared the waist-high fence along the left-field line, only to snag the ball while bending over the fence.

Shaffer made a bare-handed catch on a foul bunt, third baseman Morgan Pilbin and first baseman Heinle snared line drives, and Penner made two sparkling plays at second. Penner retreated and leapt to get a line drive on the grass beyond the infield, and later ranged to her right to field a grounder, and throw across her body to first to get the bang-bang out.

“I couldn’t be more proud of our defense, and Vanessa pitched very, very well,” said Beth Renkoski, the Golden State Athletic Conference Coach of the Year after leading the Lions to their first GSAC title since 1999.

Renkoski said she elected to pitch to Moates, rather than put her on to load the bases and bring sophomore cleanup hitter Rashaun Sells (.383 with five homers and 33 RBIs in her first season at Oregon Tech) to the plate.

“Vanessa had gotten Moates out all game (zero for three with a walk to that point), and they have a lot of good hitters,” Renkoski said.

Sells had singled in four at-bats.

Owls pitcher Kelly Scott, who gave up nine hits, improved to 14-5.

Payton Ross and Kaitlin Estes were both two for five to lead the Lions’ offense.

Vanguard will need to win two games Tuesday to reach the championship round against the winner’s bracket winner on Wednesday.

NAIA Opening-Round Tournament

Oregon Tech 2, Vanguard 1

SCORE BY INNINGS

VU 010 000 000 0 – 1 9 1

OT 000 100 000 1 – 2 8 1

K. Scott and S. Scott; Dwyer and Shaffer. W – K. Scott, 14-5. L – Dwyer, 18-7. 2B – Ballswick (VU). 3B – Ki. Estes (VU).

barry.faulkner@latimes.com

Twitter: @BarryFaulkner5