Softball: Bad day gets worse, but the long run might be OK

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Hoping to take care of business and clinch the Pacific Coast League title, Laguna Hills found itself victim of a long roll and an unfortunate flip -- in that order.

The Hawks failed in their bid to beat their chief rival for the Pacific Coast League title. They were beaten by Beckman, 3-1, as Kendra Bennett hit a run-scoring triple in the third inning, and Trista Thomas hit a two-run home run in the sixth. It was the latter ball that was the killer for Laguna Hills (19-6-1, 6-1), which won their earlier meeting, 9-3. Now, it shares first place with Beckman (20-6, 6-1) with a game left Thursday.

Thomas’ hit kept rolling in the spacious outfield at Laguna Hills. Had the game been played at Beckman, lamented Laguna Hills Coach Cary Crouch, both triple and homer probably would have been doubles and the outcome probably different.

But the news got worse for Laguna Hills, which went into the game as the fourth-ranked team in Southern Section Division III. It lost the post-game coin flip to determine who would be the league’s first-place entrant going into the playoffs that begin next week. When Beckman won the flip, it guaranteed itself the seeding benefits of the first-place team. Beckman was ranked fifth in the division.

From a practical standpoint, that probably means Beckman will be seeded No. 4, and Laguna Hills will drop to the other side of the bracket when pairings are released. That means that Beckman, the defending champion in Division III, will probably have to face undefeated Crescenta Valley -- the likely top-seeded team -- in the semifinals.

So, just maybe, Laguna Hills didn’t fare too badly after all.

-- Martin Henderson