Southern Section 3-A Softball : Crescenta Valley Drops Woodbridge in the Eighth, 5-4

The Crescenta Valley High School softball team likes to bunt, or at least try. In Friday night’s Southern Section 3-A final, bunting put the Falcons into scoring position, and a half-hearted single by Leilani Artis sent them home with a 5-4 victory over Irvine Woodbridge at Mayfair Park in Lakewood.

With runners on first and third and two out in the top of the eighth inning, designated hitter Artis came up with a check-swing grounder that seemed routine, but she beat the throw from third, scoring Kris Janitor, and that was all the Falcons needed. Woodbridge could muster only a bloop single in the bottom of the eighth.

Deneil Dover, Crescenta Valley’s junior first baseman, was 2 for 4 with 3 runs batted in.

Before the Falcons’ winning rally, Woodbridge had just completed an improbable comeback, scoring two runs on three Crescenta Valley errors in the bottom of the seventh and tying the score at 4-4.

Warrior pitcher Patti Russell reached first on an error, then Lisa Wehren singled, and both runners advanced on a throwing error. Susan Spring then grounded to third, but Lisa Erickson overthrew first, and both runners scored.

Woodbridge hit Falcon sophomore pitcher Heather Lindstrom (22-4) hard in the first inning. Spring ripped the first pitch into left and advanced to third on an error by left fielder Kelly Ingram.

Sandra Schoonover then flied deep to left, sending Spring home. The next two outs were both fly balls to deep right field. Woodbridge also scored in the sixth inning on Shannon Patton’s RBI single to center.

The bunting threat of Crescenta Valley finally got to Woodbridge pitcher Patti Russell in the fifth inning. After she overthrew first base on Ingram’s inning-opening bunt, she walked the next two Falcon batters. Dover then delivered a two-run single to center and was later sent home on Landa Temple’s sacrifice bunt.

Woodbridge finished 21-4. Crescenta Valley, which also scored in the top of the seventh on Dover’s RBI double, closed at 24-4.