Saturday, May. 02, 2009

Southridge softball splits with Kennewick

By Rene Ferran, Herald staff writer

KENNEWICK -- The way the tiebreakers shaped up for Game 2 of Friday's Columbia Basin Big Nine's Columbia Division softball doubleheader between crosstown rivals Kennewick and Southridge, the Suns had more to lose.

After the Lions took the opener 1-0 on Southridge's field, the Suns knew a win in the nightcap put them in the driver's seat for the division's No. 1 district seed. Another loss, and they would fall to third.

"We knew that we needed to come back, to let that first game go," said junior center fielder Mo Smith.

The Suns did just that, beating Kennewick 7-0 to move into a tie for first place with Moses Lake with one day left in the regular season.

The Suns and Chiefs split their regular-season meetings, but Southridge owns the number-draw tiebreaker, meaning if it can sweep Pasco in Tuesday's finale, the Suns will be the top seed to districts.

Instead, it's Kennewick looking like it'll finish as the No. 3 seed and going on the road for a first-round district game. The Lions would need to sweep Wenatchee and have ML lose at least once to Sunnyside to have a shot at the No. 2 seed.

"We're glad to get one. We would have liked to get two," said Lions coach Dave Giancola. "But we're just looking to make the playoffs, no matter how we get there. We're not picky."

Smith played a large part in Southridge getting the split, going 2-for-3 in the nightcap and driving in three runs.

After Taylor Bakos shut out the Suns in the opener by scattering six hits and stranding six on base, Smith got Southridge's offense going in the nightcap. She sliced a bases-loaded single to right in the second to drive in the game's first two runs.

Then in the sixth, Smith's RBI single set off a four-run explosion that put the win away.

"We knew we could hit her," Smith said. "We'd gone up against her before. We had her timed, and we just had to get that push to keep going."

The seven-run cushion was more than enough for Suns sophomore Caitlin Klepper, who tossed a five-hitter and worked her way out of jams in both the first and fourth innings.

"Caitlin's pretty solid," said Suns coach Wade Spence. "Nothing really fazes her. She has a lot of confidence in her defense."

That confidence was a bit mislaid in the opener. Southridge committed five errors, including one to lead off the fourth that led to the Lions' only run on a bases-loaded walk by Ryley Dennis.

"I just think we were a little overpumped in that game," Spence said. "The girls wanted it so bad, they played a little tight."

Kennewick 1-0, Southridge 0-7

Kennewick 000 100 0 -- 1 3 1

Southridge 000 000 0 -- 0 6 5

Taylor Bakos and Eryn Nelson; Caitlin Klepper and Heather Worley. Highlights--T.Bakos (K) 4K; Klepper (S) 5K.

Kennewick 000 000 0 -- 0 5 2

Southridge 020 104 x -- 7 7 0

T.Bakos and Nelson; Klepper and Worley. Highlights--Amanda Hall (K) 2x3, 2B; Klepper (S) 4K, 1BB; Mo Smith (S) 2x3, 3 RBI; Kristin Ingalls (S) 2x2, 2R; Lauren Dickey (S) 2B.