PREPS: Carson gets swept at home

Carson High's softball team showed up to its home field tied for first place with Damonte Ranch, but left in third place.

Simply put, Showdown Saturday never materialized.

The Senators didn't put up much of a fight in dropping a doubleheader to the Mustangs, 9-3 and 7-4.

Carson, 11-5 in league play, will now face Reed at noon on Thursday at Bishop Manogue in the first round of the NIAA 4A regional playoffs.

'We gave them too many chances today, and you can't do that against a good team," Carson coach Scott Vickrey said before hastily departing for the all-league meeting. "Their pitcher (Kaylyn Paque) did a pretty good job against Moriah (Lane) and Christa (McGahuey). She kept them off balance, and they have been our big hitters."

Paque, who won both games in the circle, held Lane and McGahuey to a combined 1-for-11 in the sweep. Lane hit a solo homer in the second game.

It was clear that the Senators didn't come to play. Oh sure Carson had its moments, but they were few and far between. The Senators made six errors in the second game, four of them coming in the final two innings.

Lisa Yamamoto, the hitting star of the second-game with two homers, was clearly disappointed with being swept and the way the team performed.

"We made some physical errors and we had some mental errors that turned into physical errors," she said. "She (Paque) is a pretty good pitcher, but definitely hittable. We needed to make more adjustments at the plate, and we didn't make enough adjustments."

The tone was set in the first inning of the first game.

Christina Gallegos walked Meghan Hospodka, hit Chanel Bates and walked Brittnee Dolley to load the bases. Hospodka scored on Kerrigan Travens' infield out, and Lexi McKinnon followed with a two-run single to give the Mustangs a quick 3-0 lead.

"Christina didn't have her best stuff," Vickrey said. "She'll be back out there."

Carson came back with one in the first when freshman Jen Purcell hammered a homer over the right-centerfield fence.

The score stayed that way until the fifth when Damonte scored on reliever Lou Ashbaugh. McKinnon doubled, advanced to third on an infield out and scored on a wild pitch to make it 4-1.

A sacrifice fly in the top of the sixth made it 5-1, but Carson cut it to 5-3 in the bottom of the inning thanks to a single by K.C. Withrow, a double by Purcell, who went 3-for-3, and two Damonte errors.

The Mustangs scored four times in the seventh, three coming on doubles by the Hospodka sisters, Makenzie and Meghan. Makenzie's double drove in two and Meghan drove in one.

Gallegos started the second game, yielding three runs in three innings to put Carson in an early 3-1 hole. Gallegos gave up a solo homer to McKinnon and walked three hitters, two of whom scored.

Purcell came on in the fourth and gave up one run to make it 4-1, setting the stage for Carson's best inning of the day.

After she retired Purcell and McGahuey, Paque gave up solo, opposite-field homers to Lane and Yamamoto, to make it 4-3.

The Senators were unable to sustain the momentum, however.

Purcell gave up a single and double, and Vickrey brought in Ashbaugh, who got out of the inning with just one run being scored which made it 5-3. Damonte added two more in the sixth on a homer by Makenzie Hospodka, two Carson errors and a single by Morgan McCall.

Carson got one back in the bottom of the inning on Yamamoto's second solo shot of the game, but the Senators were blanked in the seventh.

"It was good," Yamamoto said. "The first game I didn't do anything at the plate. The second game I just relax and have fun with it."

Yamamoto finished 3-for-3 and Withrow went 2-for-4.