PANTHERS CLOSE SEASON AT CCCAA PLAYOFFS - TIVEY LOOKS TO 2023
| Final (10) | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 |
|
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 0 |
The Chaffey Panthers suffered a tough-fought CCCAA Southern Region Playoff defeat to the Moorpark Raiders yesterday, falling 1-0 in a 10-inning pitchers' duel. For the Panthers, Violet Salazar (6 innings) and Celeste Paniagua (3 innings), kept Chaffey in the game but the offense was unable to generate a run. Moorpark's Lindsey Cowans held the Panthers to 4 hits, aided by some outstanding defensive plays.
Coralyn Garcia (a double), Salazar, Ginger Duncan and Lexi Alaniz-Diaz tallied the hits for Chaffey.
Moorpark threatened in the first inning with a runner on second and a two-out single but Chaffey left fielder Adina Arrington threw a perfect strike to catcher Clarissa Banuelos to cut the runner down at the plate. In the 8th, Paniagua executed another perfect throw home to cut down the potential game-winning run.
The Panthers had a runner in scoring position in the 3rd, 5th and 6th innings but were unable to get the hit to put them ahead. All the while, Chaffey pitching and defense kept the Raiders off the board as well.
Chaffey threatened in the 9th when Salazar led off with a single and Garcia laid down a bunt to move her over. After an umpire discussion, Moorpark was awarded a catch and a double play, erasing both Panther runners from the base paths.
The game came to an abrupt end in the bottom of the 10th when the Raiders' Cowans smashed a walk-off home run to give Moorpark (30-9) the win and move them to the next round.
Panther Head Coach Jerry Tivey stated, "It was an extremely well-played game. Nearly flawless in every aspect. Today they just won the game. It's tough to fight so hard and come up short but we didn't beat ourselves. We made some great plays just to stay in the game."
Chaffey finishes with a number of accolades, including an IEAC Title, a 28-13 record (the third most wins in Chaffey softball history) and eight athletes being named to the All-Conference team. In addition, with a roster made up entirely of freshmen and a strong recruiting class, the Panthers expect to be right back in the hunt next season.
Tivey added, "I'm really excited for next year. We've got some amazing returners and a very strong crop of incoming freshmen that I think will challenge for starting positions. I believe that we'll have even more depth and be even stronger next year."