Cats advance to consolation finals

The Saddleback softball team advanced to the consolation finals of the Orange Empire Conference (OEC) Tournament with a 5-2 over Golden West College on Monday at the Saddleback softball diamond.  The Bobcats will play at Orange Coast College on Wednesday.

Saddleback rode the bats of Emma Estep and Isabel Siqueiros in beating the Rustlers on Monday.  Estep (pictured) had a 4-for-4 performance while Siqueiros was 3-for-4 with three RBI. 

Saddleback fell behind in the first inning, 1-0, and quickly answered in the bottom half of the inning thanks to a couple of hits and some help from the Golden West defense.  The Bobcats tied the game at 1-1 when Siqueiros singled home Ehva Cifuentes-Zombulovic.  They took the lead with the next batter when Katie Schmidt reached base on an error from the Rustler shortstop, allowing Estep to score from third base.

Saddleback took the lead for good in the bottom half of the fourth inning when they had three straight hits to take a 4-2 lead.  The big hit was a double from Siqueiros to again score Cifuentes-Zombulovi for two-run advantage.

Saddleback added an insurance run in the bottom half of the sixth inning when Estep entered the batter's box with two runners on base and needing a hit for her fourth hit of the game.  She delivered a single through the left side of the infield, scoring Kianna Gutierrez with the final run of the game.

Katie Schmidt started on the mound and after a slow start got into a rhythm.  She surrendered just seven hits on the day while striking out four and improving to 11-21 on the season.

Saddleback is scheduled to play in the OEC Consolation Finals at Orange Coast College on Wednesday.  The Pirates were 5-4 winners over Riverside City College on Monday in eight innings.  The first pitch on Wednesday is scheduled for 3:00 PM in Costa Mesa.