Gill helps Vaqueros split in Bash at the Beach

Brianna Gill went 2-3 with four RBIs on Sunday, guiding SBCC to a 10-6 win over Golden West in the Bash at the Beach fast-pitch softball tournament at Pershing Park. The Vaqueros were shut down in the second game as Alashanee Medina struck out 18 to lead East L.A. to a 7-2 victory.

Alice Cen was 2-3 with three stolen bases in the first game and Brianna Portese hit her first homer of the year with a two-run shot to left-center that capped a four-run first inning for the Vaqueros (15-14).

"It was the first pitch and it was right in the zone," said Portese, a redshirt sophomore from Las Vegas. "I've been expecting my first homer for a while now. In the second game, their pitcher had a lot of movement on the ball and I have to give it to her."

Cen went 3-6 on the day and took over the team lead in batting average at .359. The Vaqueros built a 6-0 lead after two innings and got revenge for a loss to Golden West at the Rustlers' tournament.

"We got our bats going (in the morning) but we couldn't get anything going against the East L.A. pitcher," said coach Paula Congleton. "We moved our kids up in the box but we just didn't go after good pitches. We'd swing at her pitches instead of picking the pitches that we really needed to drive."

Victoria Lucido and Dakotah Wilcox each had two hits agains Medina in the East L.A. game. Wilcox tied the game 1-1 with an RBI double in the second. Santa Barbara cut the deficit to 4-2 in the fifth when Lucido doubled and scored on a single by Alice Cen.

Medina (20-7) retired 17 of 21 batters by strikeout for the Huskies (22-7) with another strikeout victim reaching base on a passed ball. Entering the tournament, she was first in the state in wins, second in strikeouts (230 in 155 innings) and third in ERA (1.17). Valerie Aguilar hit a two-run homer in the sixth, stretching the Huskies lead to 7-2.

The Vaqueros managed to beat Golden West in spite of seven errors. All six of the Rustlers' runs were unearned. Taylor Stanek, making her second start of the year, got her first win in the circle. She gave up six hits and walked three.

Saddleback and Fullerton, who both play in the Orange Empire Conference, went 4-0 in the two-day, eight-team tournament. East L.A. was 3-1 and the Vaqueros were 2-2.

SBCC continues a seven-game homestand on Thursday when it hosts L.A. Pierce at 2:30 p.m.

SBCC Bash at the Beach
Day 2
 Saddleback 11, Chaffey 3  (5 innings)
 Fullerton 8, El Camino 0 (5 innings)
 SBCC 10, Golden West 6
 East L.A. 6, L.A. Valley 1
 Saddleback 13, El Camino 9
 Fullerton 9, L.A. Valley 0 (6 innings)
 East L.A. 7, SBCC 2
 Chaffey 10, Golden West 2
 
 Final Standings – Saddleback 4-0, Fullerton 4-0, East L.A. 3-1, SBCC 2-2, L.A. Valley 1-3, El Camino 1-3, Chaffey 1-3, Golden West 0-4.