CdM handles Tars

Steve Virgen

For the past three years, the Battle of the Bay in softball has been

exciting, even dramatic.

This season, it appeared that would be the case again as the teams

for Corona del Mar and Newport Harbor high schools are very similar

-- both field young players and a first-year coach. However, Corona

del Mar gained the upper hand in the 2004 edition by capitalizing on

the Sailors’ mistakes to score a 5-1 victory Thursday on the Sea

Kings’ field.

Four of the winners’ runs came unearned.

The result paled in comparison to the thrilling games that took

place in years past. Last season, Newport Harbor edged Corona del

Mar, 2-1, in eight innings. The game was tied, 0-0, after seven

innings. In 2002, the Sailors eked out a 3-2 win and in 2001, the Sea

Kings outlasted Newport Harbor, 6-5, in nine innings in the

semifinals of the Costa Mesa tournament.

But then came Thursday, when fundamentals ruled the game and the

Sailors appeared out of sync. Newport Harbor committed five errors,

including three in the first inning when the Sea Kings scored two

unearned runs.

Corona del Mar (5-3) played well defensively, led by freshman

pitcher Michelle Tolfa, who recorded six strikeouts and allowed five

hits, one run and two walks. Gleason, who has a 0.44 ERA, had eight

strikeouts for the Sailors.

Tolfa said she and the rest of the Sea Kings were excited to play

against their rivals. Tolfa had played recreation softball with or

against Newport’s Jessica Knight, Ashley Gleason and Darci

Pennington.

Corona del Mar catcher Sarah Stern, a co-captain, said the Sea

Kings were pumped up, not so much because they were playing the

Sailors (6-5). But also because they had played so poorly in an 8-0

loss to Camarillo Tuesday.

“We came off a very difficult game and we have been working very

hard to get our hitting under control,” Stern said. “This is a game

we really wanted to win. We were really focused on getting it

together.”

Stern scored the first of three runs in the third inning. With two

outs, she reached on an error. Then Ann Klunder, Tolfa, Jackie

Manning and Lauren Gega followed, each hitting a base hit.

Tolfa’s single to right field brought in Stern, who motored from

second base and slid to beat the tag at the plate. Mandi Hinton, a

pinch runner, and Tolfa also scored to give the Sea Kings a

commanding 5-0 lead.

“We were aggressive at the plate,” said Corona del Mar Coach

Nichole Thompson, who did not notice any special type of excitement

from her players entering the game. “They were even toned. They

wanted to win, but they didn’t stress too hard.”

Newport Harbor scored its run in the top of fifth. Senior Jennifer

Gummerman led off the inning with a single that caused an error in

the outfield, allowing her to take an extra base. She advanced to

third on a wild pitch and came home on freshman Clea O’Kieffe’s

infield single.

The Sailors could have cut into the lead further in the sixth when

they had the bases loaded with two outs. But Tolfa induced a

groundout to the next batter and Manning, the Corona del Mar

shortstop, gloved it and calmly threw for the force at third, where

Gega ended the inning.

“We have a young team and we are going to make some mistakes,”

Newport Coach Mike Davis said. “We’ll have one game where we are

sharp as a tack and we are playing excellent ball and we have a game

like [Thursday] and we make mental mistakes, letting that other team

jump on us.”

*--*

Nonleague

Corona del Mar 5, Newport Harbor 1

Score by Innings

Newport 000 010 0 -- 1 5 5

CdM 203 000 x -- 5 5 2

Gleason and Bass; Tolfa and Stern. W --

Tolfa, 3-1. L -- Gleason, 4-3.

*--*