Central Valley’s first-place softball team kept its perfect record intact against Western Athletic Conference competition last week after beating Beyer twice and Pacheco once.
Second-place Ceres High remained in the hunt for the WAC title thanks to victories versus Lathrop and Johansen.
“We’ve put ourselves in a pretty good position,” Hawks’ head coach Jimmy Bates said. “Now, it’s up to us to finish the job.”
“I’m proud of the girls for sticking to the plan,” Bulldogs’ leader Marcos Duran said. “They’re going out there and getting the job done.”
Central Valley improved to 12-8 overall and 10-0 in conference play with a 12-9 win over Beyer on April 24 in Ceres.
The Hawks won just two of 10 games during the preseason.
“Once we got into league, we figured out where the pieces fit best,” Bates said. “The biggest difference this year has been our defense. We’ve been playing a lot better. Offensively, we’ve got a lot of extra-base hits. Pitching-wise, we’ve limited walks and hit by pitches. Bella (Isabela Delatorre) and B.B (Brooklynn Steeley) have really taken a huge leap. They’re both there to support each other.”
Steely starred at pitcher and was a major contributor on offense as Central Valley edged Beyer by three runs during their second matchup of the season.
She had six strikeouts in 41/3 innings of relief.
Steeley also batted 3-for-4 from the plate with one home run, one double, four RBIs and one run.
Central Valley collected 12 hits against Beyer.
Delatorre batted 1-for-3 with one RBI and three runs.
Madelyn Morales batted 1-for-2 with three runs.
Abigail Krauss batted 1-for-3 with three RBIs.
The Hawk battled back from 3-0, 7-2, 8-7 and 9-7 deficits versus the Patriots.
Central Valley shut out Pacheco 17-0 in five innings on April 22 in Los Banos.
The Hawks had nine hits.
Reylena Herrera batted 1-for-2 with one double, five RBIs and two runs.
Selah Chesney batted 1-for-2 with one double, two RBIs and three runs.
Delatorre and Steeley both batted 1-for-3 with one double, two RBIs and one run.
Delatorre picked up the win at pitcher.
She allowed no runs and two hits with seven strikeouts and two walks.
Central Valley scored 11 times in the top of the second inning.
Central Valley defeated Beyer 17-8 on April 20 in Modesto.
The Hawks piled up 15 hits.
Herrera batted 3-for-5 with one triple, two doubles, four RBIs and four runs.
Krauss batted 1-for-3 with one triple, two RBIs and three runs.
Steeley batted 2-for-4 with one triple, three RBIs and one run.
Steeley yielded three earned runs and 12 hits with two strikeouts and two walks while starting at pitcher.
Ceres High improved to 13-6-1 and 9-1-0 in the WAC with a 5-4 victory over host Lathrop on April 24.
The Bulldogs have won three games in a row since losing 3-2 to the crosstown-rival Hawks.
Sami Alcarez pitched her second straight no-hitter.
She had 13 strikeouts in seven innings.
All four of the Spartans’ runs were unearned due to six Bulldog errors.
Seven players accounted for Ceres High’s nine hits.
Gabby Ortiz batted 1-for-3 with one double, one RBI and one run.
Gabby Cole batted 1-for-1 with two runs.
Amaia Pritchett batted 2-for-3 with one double and one run.
Ceres High routed visiting Johansen 18-1 in five innings on April 22.
Alcarez gave up one run and no hits with 13 strikeouts and five walks in five innings.
The Bulldogs piled up nine hits.
Sami Alcarez batted 1-for-3 with one double and three runs.
Lizzie Figueroa batted 1-for-3 with two RBIs and two runs.
Ortiz batted 1-for-1 with four runs.
Presley Vierra batted 2-for-2 with two RBIs and two runs.
The Bulldogs stormed out to a 9-0 lead in the first inning.
