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The news site of Santa Barbara City College.

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The news site of Santa Barbara City College.

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Lady vaqs blow out Barstow 9-0 in five innings

The Vaquero softball team enjoyed a strong opening at home Saturday, blowing out the visiting Barstow team 9-0.

The Vaqs showed offensive dominance and superior pitching, with shaky but effective infield work.

“We are looking good, looking promising,” stated sophomore third baseman Kristen Geffken, who scored a run in the second inning. “We still have some work to do, but I think we will get better as the season goes on.”

The lady Vaqs took command early thru steady bats and the authorative pitching of freshman, Katie McCormack, who went two for three with a home run, two RBIs and pitched four strikeouts in the shutout.

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“It was a good game to open at home,” said McCormack. “I am very optimistic about the season, we seem really strong.”

The Vaqs took advantage of the less than solid pitching on the part of Barstow. The opposing pitcher was wild, throwing many balls and giving up runs early. She was visibly struggling the entire game.

The City College team came out firing in the first inning, tallying three hits and two runs scored.

The second inning was even more explosive with five hits and four runs scored, including the two-run homer by McCormack. In third inning, the game was blown wide open as a result of a two RBI double by sophomore catcher/outfielder, Dani Betancourt and a run scoring single to pull the Vaqs even further ahead by freshman left fielder Stephanie Garcia.

Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing” blared thru the loudspeaker in between innings, as Barstow got ready for the fourth; unfortunately the inspirational song proved to no avail.

Due to the lopsided scoring, the game was called after the fifth inning.

There was a second game scheduled on Saturday that was not played because of forfeit due to injury on behalf of Barstow.

The lady Vaqs, now 4-3, are hopeful for the outcome of this season, but recognize the long journey ahead of them.

“We’ve got 44 games left to go, we are just starting,” said six year head coach Paula Congleton. “The girls are starting to gel together. We really have great potential.”

When asked about star pitcher McCormack, Coach Congleton said, “She has done a phenomenal job for us…she is great freshman leader and leads our team in hitting.”

The lady Vaqs face College of the Canyons on Thursday.

All in all, this looks to be a promising season for the Lady Vaqs, a close-knit team dedicated to achievement; sentiment echoed by the players.

“I really like this team,” said freshman infielder, Ashleigh Behravesh, who scored a run in the third. “I think it will be a great season.”

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