Glendale Community College softball hits a cold streak
GLENDALE — After a hot start to the season, the Glendale Community College softball team has hit a cold streak.
That early season chill continued at the Glendale Sports Complex on Saturday.
College of the Desert, ranked seventh in the California Community College Athletic Assn. Southern California preseason poll, defeated the Vaqueros, 8-0, 12-2 in a nonconference doubleheader.
“I just think that the last three games have been eye openers because we started so strong and it’s a young team,” said Glendale Coach Sal Pizzo, whose team has lost four in a row. “Sometimes when you start strong it’s almost a double-edged sword. I think this just kind of opened their eyes.”
The Vaqueros opened the season last week with three wins, but also lost a pair of games, including 10-0 to Santiago Canyon. However, Glendale has had to forfeit its victory against Cerritos for playing an ineligible player. After Saturday, the Vaqueros now stand at 2-5.
Big innings from College of the Desert did in Glendale. The Roadrunners scored five runs in the second inning of the first game en route to victory and repeated that with five runs in the second inning of the second game. In the top of the sixth of the second game, College of the Desert tacked on four more runs.
Nine of the 12 runs scored by the Roadrunners in the second game came with two outs.
“It’s so true,” Pizzo said. “The three bad innings we had today all started out with an error.”
After getting shutout in the first game, the Vaqueros finally got on the board in the bottom of the second frame in the second contest. Cassandra Soto walked and teammate Kelsie Ange drove her in with a double.
Glendale scored again in the fourth and again it was Soto getting things started. She hit a triple to deep right-center field and came around to score off a Jessica Morena (Crescenta Valley) single.
“Once we get people on base, it kind of picks up and it keeps going,” Soto said. “Trying to start it is the hardest part.”
Myrna Gonzalez went the distance for Glendale in the second game, allowing 14 hits while walking two and striking out three in six innings. The team committed three errors.
Glendale managed four hits in five innings in the first game. Ange had a single and teammate Rebecca Hernandez hit a single and walked.
Both games were called early because of the eight-run mercy rule.
The Vaqueros were without left fielder Ari Rea, who was out with a sprained knee. Rea typically bats second and both her glove and bat were missed.
“I think it was huge, both defensively and offensively,” Pizzo said. “It throws the whole lineup out of whack.”
Glendale plays its first road games of the season when it heads to Oxnard for a double-header on Tuesday.