Morse’s Zinsli Makes All-Star Game-Saving Grab

Because of a bout with stomach flu, Dina Zinsli of Morse High thought about skipping Wednesday’s inaugural 3-A vs. 2-A county all-star softball game at Grossmont High School.

Fortunately for the team of 3-A seniors, Zinsli felt well enough before the game and decided to play.

Her leaping grab of a line drive in deep left field in the bottom of the seventh inning not only enabled the 3-A to win, 4-3, it also made her the winning pitcher.

“I thought it was going,” said Zinsli of the one-out hit by the 2-A’s Kelly O’Neill (USDHS).

Asked when she felt she had a chance to catch the ball, Zinsli, who is 5-feet-9 and listed as a pitcher/infielder, said, “I didn’t. I jumped and hoped.”

Though Julie Woodley of Santana, who tripled to lead off the inning, scored on the play to make it 4-3, Zinsli’s catch saved what might have been a game-tying inside-the-park home run.

Even had O’Neill only made it to third, a sharp single up the middle by Escondido’s Jill Combe, the 2-A’s next batter, would have tied the game.

As it was, pitcher Tracey Andrews of El Capitan got Desiree Weiman of Santana to bounce to second, and the game was over.

“We came out here to have fun, and it was fun,” said Zinsli, who was the 3-A’s most effective of three pitchers, yielding one hit and one unearned run in two innings.

Jackie Hill of Hilltop, the 3-A player of the year, allowed two hits in the first three innings, but one was a home run to Escondido’s Jami Gabbard, which gave the 2-A a 1-0 lead.

Gabbard, who fouled off five two-strike pitches before lining the ball over the left fielder’s head, had only one other home run this season for the 2-A champion Cougars. Hill had not allowed any in 169 innings for the 3-A champion Lancers.

“I thought she was going to throw a rise, and I don’t like rises,” Gabbard said. “Luckily, it was right down the middle.”

Sent down in order in the first two innings by Escondido’s Ruth Henry, the 2-A co-player of the year, the 3-A got an unearned run off USDHS’ Viki Vechinksi, the other player of year, in the fourth.

With Becky Gomez (Hilltop) on third, shortstop Weiman came up with a ball that bounced off the top of third baseman O’Neill’s glove, but Weiman’s throw to catcher Nadine Yacapin (West Hills) was high, and Gomez slid in safely.

In the fourth, with O’Neill pitching, the 3-A scored three runs on four hits to take a 4-1 lead. Hill had the big hit, a two-out, two-run single to left that drove in Christina Murguia (Castle Park) and Sandra Meza (Chula Vista).

Renee Williams of San Pasqual led off the bottom of the fourth with a single to center and later scored on a passed ball to make it 4-2.

Passed balls figured to haunt the 3-A, but that was the only one allowed by fill-in catchers Gomez (a left-hander) and Meza, who normally play outfield.

Gena Mullinex of Granite Hills was supposed to catch, but she came down with strep throat earlier this week.