After coming from behind twice, Fullerton was able to come out on top and win all three conference games against Cypress. The Hornets bounced back by scoring six runs in a single inning, and one swing of the bat to seal the victory. Fullerton defeated Cypress 9-8 on Friday.
The Hornets had high hopes coming into this game after winning 1-0 and 8-0 against the Chargers in their two previous games. However, Cypress was able to start the game strong on a double steal, as Peyton Clark stole second base. This allowed Lynsey Arostigue to steal and eventually score from third, giving the Chargers an early 1-0 lead.
In the fourth inning, Cypress added on to their lead. First baseman Madylyn Wynia started the two-out rally with a single to center. That was followed by a Jayda Maldonado walk, putting runners on first and second. Fullerton starting pitcher Grace Workman went back to the rubber, as her teammates along the infield tried to give her encouragement.
Chargers center fielder Laila Nunez smoked an RBI double into the right-center field gap. This gave Cypress a 2-0 lead. Workman was down on herself, as she knew that Co-Head Coach Speedy Mendoza was going to make a pitching change. They went to Emma Gamez, who got out of the jam from an Isabella Rodriguez groundout to second.
Fullerton was able to bounce back in the bottom half of the inning. Co-Head Coach Crystal Aguirre held a team meeting in right field before they had their at-bats. Aguirre knew the team wasn’t competing and playing for each other, so she tried to reset their mentality.
“[The meeting] was basically how we know what we can do, to just trust ourselves, and that we were better than the team we were presenting,” said Villanueva.
The team immediately responded when Alexandria Valdez stepped into the batter’s box. Valdez hit a hot shot past third and short into left field. Three batters later, Toafa Pua came up to the plate with two runners on. She ripped an RBI double into right-center field, as Valdez scored. Pua raised her hands at second base, wanting her team to make more noise from the dugout. The team started to chant as the inning went on. With Zoey Bautista in right field, Lisa Villanueva scored to even the game at 2-2.
“I think we tried to redial them back in. I wanted them to fight for each other, not against one another. When you’re pressing a lot and the game’s really tight, we tend to do that ‘cause we want to win so bad. We just told them to focus on one pitch at a time,” said Aguirre.
In the fifth inning, things took a turn as Cypress came back. After a meeting with the Hornets Head Coach Marian Mendoza, Charlize Callaghan singled up the middle to drive in Alina Argueta to give the Chargers a 3-2 lead. The bases were loaded when pinch-hitter Emily Olguin drove in two runs with an RBI single to right field. This made the score 5-2, Cypress.
Fullerton answered back in the bottom half of the inning. Faith Krueger came up to the plate with runners in scoring position. Chargers starting pitcher Haley Tucker fielded the bunt by Krueger and threw it over to Clark. Clark swiped a tag down on Juliana Ursino, who read the ball perfectly on the bunt and underneath the tag to score.
The fans were celebrating, while their teammates were high-fiving her in the dugout. After a walk to Villanueva to load the bases, Pua stepped into the batter’s box. Pua tied herself up on the foul ball, but on the next pitch, she roped a 2-run RBI double into right-center field, tying the game at 5-5.
“I was really just trying to go out there and have fun and to do it for my teammates and do it for the girl in front of me, the girl behind me, and for all my teammates,” said Pua.
The Chargers played the infield up, trying to get the runner out at home, but Madison Boehm ripped an RBI single into center field. Then, Bautista, on the first pitch, found a hole in the infield, as she smoked a 2-Run RBI single up the middle. The crowd celebrated in joy as the score was 8-5, Fullerton.
In the seventh inning, the Chargers were able to bounce back as they stunned the Hornets. A throwing error was made by third baseman Valdez, as she rushed her throw, and the ball went to the backstop. Rodriguez drove in two runs to make it a one-run game. This was followed by Argueta’s RBI single to right field, making the score 8-8. As the Chargers celebrated, the Hornets began getting nervous about the result.
The game went to the bottom half of the seventh. It only took one swing of the bat, as Villanueva tattooed the ball into left-center field. It was a no-doubter, as she got an inside fastball and did not miss. The Hornets fans yelled in celebration as they chanted and cheered.
“I came up to bat, just really confident in myself, knowing that I could get the ball down. I saw the inside pitch and just took it,” said Villanueva.
Fullerton players waited at home plate, as Villanueva rounded the bases before joining her team in celebration. The Hornets were in high spirits, as Aguirre was more than happy about her team’s performance.
“I’m ecstatic. I’m so proud of them. The last couple of weeks, we’ve been making huge strides or 1% better. I can’t be any more pleased with them, and I’m happy. I’m just excited to see where the season goes,” said Aguirre.
Fullerton will travel to East Los Angeles for a doubleheader to compete against Ventura College at 2 p.m. That will be followed by East Los Angeles at 4 p.m.
