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Sports

SOFTBALL: Leigh Holds Off Los Gatos in CCS Opener

Longhorns jump out to early lead off big fly from catcher Saunders; play Saturday against No. 1 seed San Benito.

The Score: Leigh 6, Los Gatos 5

The Stars: A towering two-run home run in the first inning off the bat of sophomore Lauryn Saunders helped the Leigh High softball team defeat Los Gatos High 6-5 in a 2011 Central Coast Section Division I Softball first round playoff game Wednesday afternoon in Los Gatos.

Fellow sophomore Jenn Amaral ignited the early Longhorns rally with a double that bounced to the wall in left field. Saunders, who also handled the catching duties nicely during the tightly contested first round playoff bout, waited patiently for her pitch and didn’t miss it. The high fastball came in fast and left the yard even faster, flying high over the right field fence to give Leigh an early 2-0 advantage.

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Junior starting pitcher Lizzie Hogan didn’t allow a run until the fourth inning and also singled, walked and reached on an error in the ball game.

The Turning Point: Leigh built up a 5-0 lead going into the bottom half of the fourth inning using a patient approach at the plate to wear down the Los Gatos starting pitcher. Back-to-back Los Gatos errors extended the fourth inning for Leigh, allowing one run to score off a Hogan grounder and a second runner to cross on a bloop RBI single to left field by Elyse Eitel.

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However, the host ‘Cats would not go away quietly. Long removed from its slow start at the plate, Los Gatos pushed three runs across in the sixth inning to slice the Leigh lead to 6-4. Another score in the bottom half of the seventh closed the gap to only one run with a pair of Los Gatos runners still on base.

On the final out of the game, a high chopper was hit to Leigh shortstop Allie Bost. The infielder charged the tricky bouncer, scooped the ball up in stride and threw a dart to first to end the game.

The Quotes: “It was a very nerve wracking game,” Leigh catcher Lauryn Saunders said after the win. “I was nervous, but getting the win made it that much sweeter. We know that we have to work on closing games better than we did today.”

Saunders was pleased to give her team a boost in the first inning of play.

“It’s great to come out in the first inning on top,” Saunders said. “A good start always helps us.”

Leigh head coach Clovis Mirassou knew getting past Los Gatos wasn’t going to be easy.

“I really think the game turned when the umpire ran into my pitcher (Hogan),” Mirassou said about a bizarre collision during the sixth inning that resulted in a missed pick-off try for the Longhorns and eventually led to a pair of runs for the hosts.

“You can never count Los Gatos out, they have too good of a team,” Mirassou said. “Things go against you sometimes, but this team will never quit. I’m just happy to get the win. That was a tough play for us to end the game on. She (Allie Bost) kept her head down and made a great play. I didn’t want to see the ball get by her. Two runs may have scored and we would have lost the game.”

What's Next? Leigh, the No. 8 seed in the Division I bracket will play No. 1 seed and nationally ranked San Benito High on Saturday. Los Gatos finishes the year with a 20-7-1 record overall and graduates 10 seniors.

Bottom Line: Leigh put just enough runs on the board to eek past a very game Los Gatos group on Wednesday. The Longhorns also left seven runners aboard through the first five innings of play. Coach Mirassou stated after the game that his team isn’t afraid of their next opponent. San Benito defeated Leigh 8-2 in a meeting held at Mission College earlier this year. The venue for the quarterfinal playoff game has not yet been determined.

—————————

Leigh 6, Los Gatos 5

L- 2 0 1 2 0 1 0- 6 9 1

LG-0 0 0 1 0 3 1 – 5 11 5

WP: Hogan. LP: Shain

Records: L 18-9-1, 9-5 Mt. Hamilton. LG 20-7-1, 10-2 SCVAL De Anza.

 

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