Gleason strikes out 17 in Sailors’ win

Chris Yemma

The Newport Harbor High softball team had reason to be gleeful

Thursday, as senior pitcher Ashley Gleason went strikeout happy.

Gleason pitched the full seven innings and struck out 17 batters,

a career high, to lead the Sailors past district-rival Costa Mesa,

5-3, in a nonleague game at Newport Harbor.

The Dartmouth-bound pitching phenom was also 2 of 4 from the plate

with one RBI, while also connecting on a single that, with a couple

of Mesa errors, turned into two go ahead runs in the bottom of the

sixth inning.

It was questionable, though, whether Gleason would even play

against the Mustangs (2-2).

“I actually was pitching with a hurt back,” Gleason said. “But I

just went out there and pitched my game. It was all I could do.”

After starting last season 1-4, the Sailors have won their first

three games under second-year coach Mike Davis.

Davis likes to take it one game at a time.

“Every win is a big win for us,” Davis said. “But crosstown

rivalry always means something also. They beat us last year in their

tournament, and we didn’t feel they should have beat us. So it’s

always nice to get a little revenge, so to speak.”

Near the end of Wednesday’s game, the outcome could have tilted in

either direction.

Newport found itself in a pickle, literally, in the top of the

sixth inning due to Mustangs’ senior Venesi Enesi. Down, 3-0, Enesi

hit a two-run double to pull Mesa within one run. She then stole

third and was itching to score the tying run. On a wild pitch, Enesi

took off for home, stopped short, but prevailed in a game of pickle.

Gleason, however, struck out the side to finish off the Mustangs

in the seventh.

After a Betsy Martin double in the bottom of the sixth, Gleason

drove what would have been a single into a bases-clearing, two-error

play that gave Newport a 5-3 lead.

Gleason then came out in the seventh and ended the game, topping

her previous career-high 13 strikeouts.

“She battled,” Davis said. “But I almost had to pull her out

because she had a back problem early in the game. That’s why she was

struggling like she was. We were ready to have someone else in there

because obviously we need Ashley for the whole season.

“But luckily she was able to get it stretched out and she did

pretty good.”

Gleason was working on a complete-game shutout, but the sixth

inning got away from her as Mesa brought home three runs on two hits.

Even so, she only allowed three hits and three walks.

Freshman Robin Gautschi went 2 for 3 with an RBI for Newport,

while Martin was 2 for 2 after subbing in for freshman Lauren

Talbott. Bass was 1 for 3 with an RBI.

The Mustangs were led by Enesi, who was 1 for 3 with two RBIs, one

run scored and two steals.

“She’s one of those clutch hitters who comes through with the big

hit,” Costa Mesa Coach Sharon Uhl said about Enesi. “Just like

Brittany McAleer -- they’ll get big hits when you need them.”

Both McAleer, a senior, and sophomore Christy Gregory were 1 for

3, both hitting doubles.

But those were the only hits Mesa managed at the hands of Gleason.

The errors were also what was a partial downfall of the Mustangs.

“It’s kind of been consistent with what we’ve been doing so far

this season,” Uhl said. “We do really well toward the end, but then

the errors kill us.”

Nonleague

Newport Harbor 5,

Costa Mesa 3

Score by Innings

*--*

Costa Mesa 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 - 3 3 3

Newport 1 1 0 1 0 2 x - 5 9 0

*--*

Butler and Pulaski; Gleason and Bass. W -- Gleason. L -- Butler.

2B -- McAleer (CM), Enesi (CM), Gregory (CM), Bass (NH), Pennington

(NH), Lucas (NH), Martin (NH).