Sacramento Stuns Cypress, 1-0
Playing in the community college state softball tournament at the Buchanan Softball Complex in Clovis is familiar ground for Cypress College, but the Chargers ventured into uncharted territory Friday.
Cypress lost, 1-0, to Sacramento in the opening round, marking the first time the three-time defending state champions have lost a state tournament game at Buchanan since the event was moved there three years ago.
It also ended a nine-game win streak for the Chargers in the state tournament and a string of 18 consecutive postseason victories.
If the Chargers are going to win a fourth consecutive title, they must win three games today and three Sunday without a loss. Cypress plays Sequoias today at noon in an elimination game.
“It definitely changes our perspective,” Cypress Coach Brad Pickler said. “We can’t let anything go now. We’ve gotta pick it up a notch.”
The odds are against Cypress. According to tournament spokesman Jack Shinar, no team has lost its first game and then gone on to win the title.
The Chargers (32-14-2) let an opportunity slip away in the sixth inning Friday.
Trailing, 1-0, Koral King led off with a single and went to second on Yvette Martinez’s sacrifice bunt. Sacramento’s Lisa Sherman then threw a pitch to the backstop, but King hesitated and did not advance.
Erica Harding grounded to Sherman, who threw wildly to third trying to get King. Again, King hesitated and did not score. Harding advanced to second on the error, giving Cypress runners at second and third with one out, but Heidi Lockwood and Erica Duncan both grounded out to Sherman to end the threat.
“Every game you get one inning to win the game,” Pickler said. “That was it for us. If we score there, even if we just tie it, I say we win the game.”
Sacramento struck early when Kelly Sutton drew a leadoff walk in the first and Nicole Valenzuela drove her in with a double to the fence in left-center field.
The Chargers’ defense kept them in the game. Martinez, playing first, caught a line drive and stepped on first for an inning-ending double play in the third and center fielder Sasha Campbell threw out Sacramento’s Morgan Lynch trying to score on a fly ball to end the fifth.
Cypress pitcher Lisa Monreal (18-8-2) allowed seven hits, struck out two and walked one in the complete-game loss. King had two of the four Cypress hits.