Softball: Ocean View rallies past St. Joseph
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As far as measuring sticks go, Ocean View High’s softball team is getting an early look at where it stands.
Through its first four games, three of those have come against teams ranked inside of the top 10 of their respective division in the CIF Southern Section rankings.
The Seahawks had little answer for Hesperia Sultana in a doubleheader over the weekend, but they seemed to find themselves in getting back to the basics.
Po Russ scored the winning run on a wild pitch, as host Ocean View walked off on Lakewood St. Joseph, 7-6, in a nonleague game on Monday afternoon.
The Seahawks catcher, who has committed to Rutgers, started the inning with an infield single. She was sacrificed to second before advancing to third on a hit by Caitlyn Sideris.
Russ was a late arrival to the contest, as she fulfilled her ASB duties in running a school talent show before taking her first at-bat in the fourth inning.
“It feels really good to get it started,” Russ said of the decisive seventh inning. “I think what tops that is having really good teammates behind you that will get you to third in order to score that run.”
Ocean View Coach Liberty McCollum looked to simplify the game following the Sultana sweep. With runners on base, the Seahawks (2-2) were not going to take the risk of running themselves into outs.
“I was very cautionary because of how we played on Saturday,” McCollum said, expressing concern with the team’s offense and communication. “Today, we kind of just stayed to the basics. Station to station, picking up our signs, making sure we’re all on the same page.”
Chants could be heard from the dugout throughout the game, especially during a six-run fourth inning that dug Ocean View out of a 4-0 deficit.
Some teams might have tried to manufacture runs by taking the extra base, particularly with two outs. Ocean View, however, waited for the big one.
Sideris, Kylie McElligott, and Kim MacPherson all singled with two outs. On each occasion, the line moved up one base.
That left the bases loaded for Seahawks starter Breann Page (2-2), who gave her team a 6-4 lead with a bases-clearing double to left-center.
“It felt amazing,” Page said. “When you’re down in that situation, you really want to help out your team. You want to help out yourself being the only pitcher on the team.”
The two-out rally summoned a reassurance in the Seahawks. After being swept by Sultana (eighth in Division 5) on Saturday, Ocean View came back to beat St. Joseph, which is the fifth-ranked team in Division 4.
“Those runs, it just gets you so pumped and exhilarated to keep playing,” Page added. “Even when you’re down, you just get that extra drive to finish and hopefully come through with the win.”
Ocean View got the win, but it did not come easy. The Jesters (5-3) tied the game in the sixth on a two-run, two-run homer by shortstop Angelina Bebek.
Bebek was looking to pull the ball, fouling off several pitches on the left side before keeping the ninth pitch of the at-bat fair.
Page allowed six runs (five earned) on nine hits. She also allowed five walks, but strong defense, especially in the outfield, kept the Seahawks in the game.
McElligott and MacPherson got good jumps on fly balls while patrolling the left-center field gap. In all, 12 of the 21 outs produced by Page were recorded through the air.
“We work really hard on fly balls with the drop step and moving,” McCollum said. “We’ve got good speed in the outfield, and we’ve got pretty good teamwork.”
Sideris had three hits in the leadoff spot for the Seahawks. Cailey Collado, McElligott, and Russ also had two-hit games.
Bebek’s three hits and three RBIs paced the Jesters, who also got multi-hit games from Katie Brauckmann and Julia Magrini.
Nonleague
Ocean View 7, St. Joseph 6
SCORE BY INNINGS
St. J 101 202 0 – 6 9 2
OV 000 600 1 – 7 12 2
Vizcarra, Ramirez (5) and Gallegos; Page and Frydman, Russ (4). W – Page, 2-2. L – Ramirez, 0-1. 2B – Bebek (St. J), Magrini (St. J); Page (OV). HR – Bebek (St. J).
Twitter: @ProfessorTurner
