Stone Ridge Christian softball will face Le Grand in all-Merced County section title game
Stone Ridge Christian High senior Mackenzie Silva has earned the nickname “Clutch” from her softball coaches and teammates for her knack of coming through in big moments.
Silva found herself in a similar spot on Thursday afternoon in the Knights’ Sac-Joaquin Section Division VI semifinal against No. 4 seed Argonaut.
The two teams were battling in a scoreless tie when Silva came up to bat in the bottom of the fifth inning with two outs and two teammates in scoring position.
Despite her success in those spots, Silva still has to overcome nerves in those spots.
“I was really nervous,” Silva said. “My last at-bat was in a similar situation with two runners on and two outs and I let the (third strike) go by. This time I was thinking I have to get a hit.”
Silva came through, pushing a single just past Argonaut pitcher Hailey Dewald up the middle to score two runs as the top-seeded Knights held on to defeat the Mustangs 2-0 to earn a third consecutive trip to the Sac-Joaquin Section championship game.
“After the ball got past the pitcher, I knew we would score at least one run,” Silva said. “That was awesome. They call me clutch. I don’t know about all that, but it feels good to come through in those situations.”
“She’s that girl we want when we need a big hit or a big play on defense,” said SRC coach Cathy Cole, whose team improved to 16-5-1.
It will be an all-Merced County matchup in the section championship at Cosumnes River College on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. with No. 2 Le Grand defeating No. 3 Bear River 4-0 on Friday.
Stone Ridge Christian ace Cali Cole went the distance in the circle, pitching a three-hit shutout. The CSU Pueblo-bound right-hander struck out 12 and walked four to improve to 11-3 this season.
“I put a lot of pressure on myself,” Cole said. “I tell myself, ‘It’s on me. It’s on me.’ I also know my infielders, outfielders and catcher have my back.”
Cole says it was a bit of relief when the offense finally broke through in the fifth inning.
Cole pitched out of a tight jam, stranding two runners in scoring position in the fourth inning.
The Mustangs again had two runners in scoring position in the seventh inning after Dewald doubled off the left-field fence with two outs in the final frame.
Cole thought for a brief moment Dewald had tied the game with a two-run homer.
“My heart dropped,” Cole said. “I looked and the ball kept going and going and when I saw my left fielder stop running, I thought, ‘Oh my gosh.’ When it stayed in, it was like I get to challenge myself again.”
Cole then struck out the final batter to preserve the victory.
The Knights will now try to win a second consecutive section title. They’ll do it against a familiar opponent in Le Grand, which SRC defeated 8-3 on March 15.
The matchup against Le Grand is special because the players from both teams know each other well. Stone Ridge Christian coach Cathy Cole graduated from Le Grand in 1995.
“It’s a rivalry,” Cali Cole said.
It wasn’t a coincidence that Stone Ridge Christian hosted Le Grand when they dedicated their softball diamond Bradford Ballpark in honor of Glen Bradford, who was a former Bulldogs coach.
“They’re a really good team,” Cathy Cole said. “We’re going to try our best.”
Le Grand 4, Bear River 0 — The No. 2-seeded Bulldogs pulled through with two runs in the fifth and another two runs in the sixth inning to secure their trip to the section finals.
Junior Haiden Priddell threw six scoreless innings, surrendering just three hits to pick up the win. She also went 2 for 2 at the plate with a run scored.
Ava Avila went 1 for 3 with a run and an RBI and Audrey Sandoval added a hit and an RBI for Le Grand (22-2-2).
