On Mar. 12, The Mustangs’ Softball team began Big 8 Conference play with a doubleheader against the Sierra College Wolverines at Bucky Layland Softball Field.
Entering Saturday’s contests, Sierra stood at 3rd place with a 14-3 record with Delta three slots beneath them in sixth place but not far behind with an 11-5 record.
Sophomore pitching sensation Kristin Borst took the mound for Delta in the first game and struggled early by giving up five solo home runs with four of them coming in the first three innings.
Instead of taking Borst out, head coach Jim Fisher decided to let his ace fight through the struggle.
“Up to this point in time, she’s been getting stronger every time she goes out there, you’ve earned the chance to get yourself out of the mess,” said Fisher.
The decision paid off in Fisher’s favor as Borst was able to settle down and give her offense a chance to make a comeback.
Trailing 4-2 going into the sixth inning, Delta’s offense erupts for six runs to take the lead for good and won the game 8-5.
Sophomore second baseman Victoria Mata and freshman shortstop Hayley Nunez made big impacts on offense combining for six hits and four RBI (Runs Batted In).
“We made quality AB’s (At-Bats) in the first inning they just weren’t falling, in the fifth and sixth inning they started to fall,” said Fisher.
In game two, Coach Fisher went with sophomore pitcher Baylea Meredith versus Sierra freshman Megan Lockhart.
Delta made quick work of Lockhart and ended her day early when Delta’s Victoria Mata hit a two-run double to break a one-one tie in the third.
Sophomore catcher Katelynn Mogelerg extended the lead with a fielder’s choice that drove in Mata from second base to make the score 4-1.
Meredith breezed through Sierra’s lineup, with her only hiccup coming in the first inning giving up a one-run single off the bat of Sierra freshman Rylie Carlier that drove in sophomore Lexi Wagoner.
Just when Delta seemed ready to get their brooms ready for a weekend sweep, the Wolverines made a game changing double play.
The Mustangs got runners on first and second with one out in the bottom half of the fourth, however the runners proceeded to get caught in rundowns at the same time resulting in outs to kill the rally.
Sierra freshman Mikea Lewis began the top of the fifth inning with a leadoff single.
Wagoner then launched a two-run home run narrowing Delta’s lead.
“Just comes down to little things like base running, we could’ve been had more runs but it just came down to base running,mental part of it,” said Mogelerg.
After Wagoner cleared the bases, Fisher handed the ball to the person who’s earned his trust and that was Borst coming in relief to stop the bleeding.
Fast-forward an inning to the top of the sixth, the aforementioned Carlier steps up to the plate for Sierra and with one swing of the bat, ties the game with a home run that jolted the Wolverines bench.
In the bottom half of the sixth, Delta freshman Briana Lopez added to the base running mistakes by getting caught in another rundown between second and third, spoiling the Mustangs’ chances to take the lead.
In the top of the seventh, Wolverines Lexi Wagoner drove in the eventual winning run.
The lady Mustangs left the field with split emotions, as they take one win but let the other slip from under their feet.
“Squandered opportunities, we had multiple times where we had chances to score some runs, we ran ourselves out of innings,” said coach Fisher.