Española softball coach Robbie Garcia has said his team’s Achilles heel is its hitting.
That couldn’t have been better illustrated by his team’s 1-0 loss to Hope Christian in the battle for third place at the St. Michaels Invitational March 28 in Santa Fe.
Behind a strong pitching performance by Renee Roybal and a tight infield defense led by third baseman Robyn Valdez, the Sundevils held Hope in check most of the game. The Huskies’ only run came in the bottom of the second inning, when Amberlyne Malecki led off with a triple and scored when the next batter singled.
“Our pitching and defense keep us in the game,” Garcia said. “(But) if you don’t hit, you can’t win.”
Española’s best chance to score came in the first inning, after hits by Maria Serna and Evelyn Caballero. Hope starter Breaana Gray shut the Sundevils down, not allowing another hit and walking just one batter in the next four innings.
The bright spot for the Sundevils was the play of freshman Valdez, who flawlessly fielded grounder after grounder at third base. Valdez was named to the all-tournament team.
The Sundevils started the tournament with a confidence-building 9-1 win over District 2AAAA rival Capital. Roybal, pitching sleeveless despite a cold wind and temperatures in the 40s, threw a seven-inning complete game at the Jaguars, limiting them to five hits and striking out three batters.
Española would have played tournament host and eventual champion St. Michaels March 27 in the semifinals, but the game was postponed until the following day when six inches of snow fell on Santa Fe. The game went forward at 12:30 p.m. March 28, after a monumental effort by St. Michaels to clear the field.
The cold weather did nothing to cool down the Lady Horsemen, who hammered Roybal over five innings for an 11-2 victory. Española took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first, but St, Michaels erupted for five runs in the bottom of the third inning. In their next turn at bat, Horsemen catcher Kayla Herrera pounded a home run over the centerfield fence to give St. Michaels an 11-1 lead.
The Sundevils’ final run crossed the plate in the top of the fifth inning just before the game was called under a strict 75-minute time limit, the result of the previous day’s postponement. The third-place game aginst Hope started at 3:30 that afternoon.
The two losses to St. Michaels and Hope dropped Española’s record to 4-5 overall. The Sundevils begin District 2AAAA competition Wednesday (4/1) when they host Capital. They’ll travel to Taos Saturday.