Evans Settles for Another in a Season of One-Hitters : Prep softball: Hoover junior allows only one hit for 9th time, but the effort is enough to lead Tornadoes to 1-0 victory over Glendale.

There are some things that Hoover High’s Nancy Evans just does not need to know.

Evans, a junior right-hander, was content in the knowledge that she had pitched a one-hitter to lead the Tornadoes to an eight-inning, 1-0 victory over cross-town rival Glendale in a Pacific League game Thursday at Hoover.

What she did not realize, however, was that she retired 24 of the 25 batters she faced and lost a perfect-game bid with two out in the seventh.

“Did I?,” Evans asked. “No way. You’ve got to be kidding me.”

After a quick review of the score book, Evans let out a scream and slammed her hands on the grass in exasperation.

“Sorry,” Evans said. “That’s just frustration.”

Although Evans has posted a 10-2 record this season, she has many reasons to be frustrated--nine to be exact.

That is how many one-hitters she has pitched. No-hitters? None.

And in her past two outings, perfect-game bids have been foiled in the seventh inning. Furthermore, Evans has allowed just one runner in each of the past three games. She has not allowed a walk in 34 innings and the Tornadoes have not committed an error in 21 innings.

“Now I’m really bummed,” Evans said after reflecting on how close she came to a perfect game. “That’s just not fair.”

This time the no-hitter was thwarted with two out in the seventh, when Veronica Acosta lined the first pitch into left field for a base hit. Evans, who finished with 10 strikeouts, struck out Darleen Anderson three pitches later to retire the side.

Hoover, which had not played in 13 days, managed just three hits off Anderson (3-3), a sophomore right-hander. The Tornadoes (10-2, 1-0 in league play) used two of those hits in the eighth to win.

Brenda Lyon led off with a single and advanced to second on a groundout. After Sara Porras walked, Lyon and Porras both advanced on a passed ball. A ground single up the middle by Claudia Hernandez drove in the winning run.

“I just didn’t want to strike out,” said Hernandez, the No. 8 hitter. “That was my biggest fear.”

It was the second consecutive loss for Glendale (6-5, 0-2), which finished second in the league last season. The Dynamiters lost to Crescenta Valley, the defending league champion, on Tuesday.

“It’s been a tough week,” Glendale’s Jenny Dalton said. “We’re off to a slow start, but we’re picking up a bit.”