Cats rebound in game three

The Saddleback softball team recorded its first win in conference play on Friday with a 6-2 victory over Riverside City College at Bobcats Field.  The Cats never trailed in picking up win No. 15 of the season.

Saddleback was looking to bounce back from a pair of losses, as the week started by dropping a two-game set in Riverside on Tuesday.  The Bobcats responded nicely, outplaying the Tigers from start to finish.

Saddleback opened the scoring in the bottom half of the first inning when McKenzie Lombard walked and came around to score when Cristen Areopagita singled to third base and the Tigers threw the ball into right field, allowing Lombard to come all the way around to score the opening run of the game.  Ka'ui Garcia then successfully pulled off a squeeze sacrifice bunt to bring home Areopagita with the second run of the inning. 

Saddleback led 2-1 heading into the bottom of the third inning when they scored two more times for a 4-1 advantage.  The Bobcats managed a two-out rally when Ka'ui Garcia started with a single and Macy Smith followed with a walk.  Tasneem Kerdiya made the Tigers pay when she doubled to right-center field to give the Cats a three-run lead. 

Saddleback put the game away in the bottom half of the fourth inning when they scored two runs to take a 6-2 lead.  The big blow was a two-run double from Areopagita to score both Sabrina Truesdell and Jenna Juarez.

Areopagita led Saddleback on offense, finishing 2-for-4 with one run scored and three RBI.  Juarez also finished with two hits in the game, finishing 2-for-3 with a run scored.

Alexa Pfutzenreuter started on the mound and pitched a complete game in improving to 5-2 on the season.  Pfitzenreuter (pictured below) had four strikeouts and no walks while spreading around five hits.

Saddleback is now 15-5 overall and 1-2 in Orange Empire Conference play.  The Bobcats play a three-game series with Cypress College next week.  Saddleback is scheduled to host games on Tuesday (2:00 PM) and Friday (2:00 PM) while traveling to Cypress on Thursday (2:00 PM), weather permitting.