Among the many unique aspects of a COVID-affected season, the timing of all sports has been significantly changed.
For Española softball, where their season would normally end in early or mid-May, this year at the end of May the season still has a long ways to go. And so, though they are wrapping up the school year this week, the Española Valley Sundevils still have three more weeks to play, and have to multitask games this week with their finals.
The Sundevils struggled at times in their Monday doubleheader against West Las Vegas on a sunny day that turned windy in the afternoon, losing 13-3 in game one, but came away with a 7-5 win in the second game.
Defensive miscues haunted the Sundevils in the first game. They let up three runs in the top of the first, which started with a bad throw on a stolen base attempt.
Española scored in the bottom of the third on a solo home run by sophomore shortstop Ashley Osegueda to left field, to make the score 5-1.
But the game got away from them in the top of the fifth, when the first six Lady Dons all reached base and ultimately scored, and the inning was continually extended with misplayed ground balls before big hits scored runners. In total, 13 players batted in the inning and eight runs scored until it finally ended with a pair of popouts to the shortstop.
Española coach Robbie Garcia said the spiraling winds and completely clear skies made fly balls especially difficult throughout the day.
“Any time there’s no clouds it’s tough to catch a fly ball,” he said. “We’re watching the flag, it’s been rotating all day. The ball will go up and all of a sudden it’ll just change.”
The Sundevils needed to score three runs to keep the game alive in the bottom of the inning. And they found some life, with an RBI single by junior catcher Marissa Abeyta, and they scored two runs in the inning before making the final out on the basepaths, ending the game 13-3.
Game two started similarly, with misplays on ground balls and a pop fly that dropped after a miscommunication between the pitcher and catcher leading to three West Las Vegas runs in the top of the first.
But senior Hailey Guinn, who pitched all of both games on the day, started to find her pitches, which Garcia said led to weaker contact and easier plays for the defense.
“I just focused on throwing enough pitches to get my defense to play,” she said.
The Española offense struggled the first three innings, making quick outs and then losing a bases-loaded opportunity in the third with an infield fly and a double play ball.
“I think we were over-anxious to hit,” Guinn said. “Instead of waiting for the pitch that was ours, we would just go for the first pitch that was there. We started waiting more.”
But in the bottom of the fourth, down 5-0, the Sundevils finally showed life. Junior centerfielder Jordan Torres scored the first run after a walk and then scoring on a bad throw from the catcher. Then with the bases loaded, Abeyta plated two with a double to center field, and Osegueda did the same to the tie game. Osegueda scored soon after, giving the Sundevils their first lead of the day.
They added another run in the sixth when Torres scored on a single by Guinn, who then had a chance to pitch with a lead. And she converted, stranding a leadoff double in the sixth, and then tossing a 1-2-3 inning in the seventh to come away with the win.
Guinn said during the long season, they keep themselves motivated through practice.
“We use our momentum from practice, and we take it into every game,” she said. “However we play, we take it back to practice. And we just go back and forth, so there’s always room for improvement.”
The Lady Dons came into the day at a strong 8-2, and were averaging more than 14 runs per game while allowing barely four. Their only losses before the one against the Sundevils came against undefeated Robertson.
The Sundevils dropped a pair of games at Taos May 21, 6-4 then 9-3, and needed the momentum boost as they continue through district play.
“Coming from Taos, we were in a little rut,” Garcia said. “That first game against West, it carried over. We finally made some adjustments, that pushed us over finally.”
The losses had put the Sundevils at 2-3 in the district, and now they are 7-6 overall for the season. They next face Moriarty at home on Wednesday (5/26) before having a week off during Memorial Day.