Paraclete Rallies in Sixth to Take Tournament Title

Barbara Alaniz singled to score the tying and go-ahead runs and cap the Paraclete High softball team’s rally from a four-run, sixth-inning deficit to defeat La Reina, 5-4, in the championship game of the Desert Diamond Classic on Saturday at Lancaster City Park.

Latisha Hernandez, the tournament’s most valuable player, had three hits for the Spirits (15-8), including a single that drove in Paraclete’s first run.

“We were very undisciplined at the beginning,” Paraclete Coach Margaret Neill said. “We were swinging at bad pitches. But hitting is contagious, and once we started waiting for the right pitches, the hits kept coming.”

Sophomore Amanda Wachsmuth, who allowed seven hits and two earned runs with five strikeouts, tripled to open the sixth inning, and Hernandez followed with her scoring single. Jackie Kolesar and Lauren McDonald each doubled to set the stage for Alaniz’s two-run single.

The Regents (15-7), ranked second in the Southern Section Division V, took a 4-0 lead in the fourth inning on a two-run triple by Mackenzie Vandergeest.