After multiple chances at a big hit with runners on, the Lakewood Lancers used a seeing-eye ground ball to avoid the first-round upset against Chaparral, 1-0, in extra innings.  Because of stellar pitching and defense the game stayed scoreless, and Arielle Palafox walked it off with a two out single up the middle in the tenth.

Lakewood starter Justine Avalos got out of the top of the tenth, then came up in the bottom of the inning and doubled to right.  With two outs and two on, Palafox hit the ball hard on the ground back to the box.  It glanced off Chaparral pitcher Paige Lewis’ leg, got under Alanna Haskell’s glove and rolled into center field to bring in the game’s only run.

“That was too much excitement for the first round,” said Lakewood coach Andy Miramontes.  “A win is a win, and we know the next ones are going to be close… I just think some of the girls were trying to do too much.”

That fact was on display every time a Lancer popped one up with a runner in scoring position, which they did in the fourth, fifth, sixth and eighth innings.  In each of those innings the lead off batter got on, and every time Miramontes bunted that runner over, even if the hitter was his biggest bat.  For example, with the best hitter in the Moore League, Eliza Crawford, who bunted twice after singling in the first inning.

“I told the girls, I’m always going to play the percentage,” said Miramontes.  “You need one girl to do her job, and the girl behind her to step up… we just didn’t have a girl step up until the tenth inning.”

A bigger issue than the missed opportunities has to be the fact that Avalos was missing her spots in the circle (eight walks) and the defense picked her up again and again.  From the double play to get out of the third inning on, third baseman Diane Leider (above) shortstop Crawford and first baseman Palafox made nearly every play.  And they had to as Avalos induced 17 ground ball outs.

While Avalos used defense and changed location, Lewis used defense and changed speeds.  In the circle for the Pumas, Lewis was just as impressive.  The junior went the distance and kept the Lancers off balance with a deadly sinking fastball.  But the sinking fastballs turned into a change up, and then back to a fastball— all with relatively the same about of movement.  The sinker opened up the door for the rise ball, and when Lakewood wasn’t popping it up, they were rolling weak ground balls to second.

“The biggest thing is we need to keep the little hits, and the big hits will come,” said Miramontes.  “With runners on like that, it just takes one swing.  We need to stay within ourselves.”