San Pedro’s Tam Shuts Out El Camino Real for City Title

Certain things just don’t happen very often at the City Section softball final.

Streakers rarely sprint across the outfield, championship games aren’t officiated by an all-female crew. . . .and El Camino Real High doesn’t lose with a title on the line.

But this wasn’t any City 4-A final, as San Pedro proved Wednesday by defeating two-time defending champion El Camino Real, 5-0, before about 800 at UCLA’s Easton Stadium.

A three-woman crew did indeed officiate a City softball final for the first time, and a male streaker did dash from the left-field corner before escaping over the right-center field fence in the seventh inning.

But by that time, San Pedro had run away and hid, as well.

The Pirates took advantage of six El Camino Real errors and scored five unearned runs to beat the 11-time City champion Conquistadores.

Second-seeded San Pedro (23-4) was no newcomer to the City final.

The Pirates won their fourth title of the ‘90s and seventh overall.

And they did it with an unlikely star.

Freshman right-hander Natalie Tam made the team only after returning All-Southern Pacific Conference pitcher Liza Prieta chose not to play at the start of the season.

Tam took advantage of the opportunity, first by earning a spot in the rotation, then taking over the full-time starting role at mid-season.

“[When I came to San Pedro], I just thought I’d come in here and next year I would do better,” said Tam (15-1), who pitched her 11th shutout and lowered her earned-run average to 0.05.

Tam allowed only one earned run in 121 innings and shut out all three playoff opponents.

Against the Conquistadores, she struck out six, walked none and allowed only four hits.

“She’s only a freshman?” El Camino Real Coach Neils Ludlow asked. “Oh my gosh. She was amazing for a freshman.”

El Camino Real (19-3), making its 11th championship-game appearance in 14 seasons under Ludlow, lost for only the second time.

“I don’t think we committed six errors all season,” Ludlow said. “It’s kind of a helpless feeling when we make those kinds of mistakes.”

San Pedro had six hits against right-handers Ashley Redlin (4-1) and Stephanie Frasco, who combined to strike out eight.

The Pirates broke a scoreless tie in the fourth, when Wynter Turner scored on a sacrifice fly by Danielle Paulsen. Tiffany Kucura also scored on the play, on a throwing error.

San Pedro added three runs in the top of the seventh, when the Conquistadores committed four errors and the game was briefly interrupted by the streaker.

Moments later, pinch-hitter Melissa Ross hit a two-run double to right for a 4-0 lead.

El Camino Real had not lost a City final since 1987.

“We’ve called [Easton Stadium] our second home,” said senior left-fielder Jessica Riddle, a member of Conquistadore championship teams in 1996 and ’97. “But there’s still nerves playing at a place like this. It’s like the boys’ game at Dodger Stadium. It can be scary.”

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Westchester claimed its first City Section 3-A Division softball title with a 6-0 victory over defending champion South Gate at UCLA’s Easton Stadium.

Qiana Parhm’s two-run double keyed a five-run first inning for the top-seeded Comets (23-0-1), who avenged a loss to South Gate in the 1997 final.

Junior right-hander Markean Neal (18-0) struck out nine and allowed three hits for Westchester.

Jennifer Hopkins and Cristina Avery each went two for three for the Comets.

Second-seeded South Gate finished 16-4.