Carlmont’s varsity softball team ended a hard-fought game with a walk-off RBI single, leading to a 6-5 home victory over the Aragon Dons.
The Scots entered Tuesday’s game with a 6-2 league record in the Bay Division of the Peninsula Athletic League and a two-game win streak. Having already beaten the Dons 6-4 in their last encounter, they were optimistic they could get their third consecutive win and improve their spot in the standings.
“We expected a hard game. They’re a tough team, their pitcher is good and keeps our girls in check, and they’re also a good hitting team,” said Guy Shinsato, the assistant coach for the Scots.
Straight away, the first inning of the game was filled with lots of action. Both teams had lively at-bats and were able to hit multiple singles, but only Carlmont could secure a run.
Contact with the ball continued for both teams as they progressed through the second inning, but they struggled to get on base, with groundouts and flyouts defining many of the at-bats.
The Scots continued to show off their defense with three consecutive outs in the third inning. On the offensive side of the ball, Carlmont embarked on a hitting spree. Through a series of singles, doubles, triples, and errors, the Scots were able to add four more runs to their total, bringing the game to a score of 5-0.
“Overall we played good defensively, and also played well offensively and made some good hits when we needed them when we had runners in scoring position,” Shinsato said.
After holding off the Dons for three more innings, the Scots were pretty confident in their ability to win the game. The dynamic shifted, however, in the seventh inning, when the Dons scored two runs off of an error by Carlmont. Their momentum led to them scoring three more runs to tie the game at 5-5.
“We work on the same things every day. If we do the things that we do, we will be okay, win or lose,” said Wes Chong, Aragon’s assistant coach.
The Dons’ preparation was enough to keep the game close, but the Scots quickly bounced back. At the bottom of the seventh inning, the Scots were high in their lineup, ready to respond.
Senior center fielder and slap hitter Maddie Wiessinger immediately hyped up the dugout with her hit to the fence, giving her an easy run to third base. This energy was immediately matched by junior second baseman, Izzy Won, who walked the game off with an RBI single.
“Wiessinger’s triple was a big clutch for us,” said junior first baseman Kylie Rouspil.
Though Wiessinger’s triple was a large contributing factor to Carlmont’s win, Rouspil also credits the Scots’ proficient hitting to their prior experience with the Dons.
“We were able to get on her pitching a lot more this game because we had already seen her pitch,” Rouspil said.
Understanding the pitcher’s weaknesses was important to this win, but the Scots will not have that kind of advantage in their upcoming games against the San Mateo Bearcats, so they will need to improve their overall hitting during practices.
“We gotta get everybody hot on the bat. We have a couple of tough games that we should win, but will be a challenge due to their impressive offense and defense,” Shinsato said.
The Scots will face the Bearcats, who are currently in seventh place in the league standings, on Thursday, in hopes to surpass Capuchino High School for first place in the Bay Division.
