By Moses Leos III
Timely offense in critical situations allowed the Hays Lady Rebel softball team to earn its second straight sweep of the postseason.
Hays rolled past the Vista Ridge Lady Rangers in two straight games at Lake Travis High School. It was guided by a come-from-behind 6-3 victory on Friday.
“It’s character building and an experience for our girls, especially moving on in the playoffs,” head coach Aaron Fuller said. “I can’t tell you how proud I am of the fight this team has; the never-give-up attitude.”
The Lady Rebels advance to play Dripping Springs in the regional quarterfinal round. Game one will be played on Thursday at 6 p.m. Games two, and if necessary, game three will be on Friday. All games will be at New Braunfels Canyon High School.
The Lady Rebels started the series with an 8-4 victory over Vista Ridge on Thursday. Coming through in the clutch proved to be the difference, as Hays scored all eight runs with no less than two outs.
Game two took a vastly different tone, courtesy of the pitching prowess of Vista Ridge’s Jorden Russell. She held the Lady Rebel bats early on, limiting Hays to two hits in the first three innings. Russell finished with five strikeouts in game two.
Vayas said adjusting to Russell’s pitches proved a challenge, as Lady Rebel bats couldn’t find solid contact.
On the opposite end, Leal dealt with the Lady Raiders’ opportunistic offense. Vista Ridge got the upper hand in the third inning.
Bit Svienty and Morgen Loredo led off with back-to-back singles. Two batters later, Nicole Ochotnicki delivered a three-run home-run, giving Vista Ridge a 3-0 lead.
Leal then took over, limiting Vista Ridge to four hits in the final three innings. It was compounded by Leal’s penchant to get out of jams. Vista Ridge had runners in scoring positing in the first, fifth and seventh innings; they were unable to bring runs across. Leal pitched 14 innings, accruing six strikeouts in game two.
“I just kept my nerves down, and kept calm,” she said. “I told myself my defense is going to back me up. They did a good job of that.”
The defense’s success proved beneficial for the offense. It started in the fourth, as senior Brooke Vasquez scored on an RBI single from Angelica Arroyo, cutting the Lady Raiders’ lead to 3-1.
Freshman Alyssa Martinez added a run on a passed ball in the fifth, closing the gap to 3-2.
Hays’ offense opened the flood gates in the sixth. Arroyo led off by forcing two infield errors from Vista Ridge, placing her on second. With one out, Vayas brought Arroyo home on a double to left field, tying the contest.
“I hadn’t been hitting much all night. I had to do something,” she said. “I changed my approach. When she was down in the count, I knew she had to throw me a good pitch.”
Vayas advanced to third on a bloop single to shallow left field by Martinez; Martinez moved to second on the ensuing throw.
Madden followed by reaching first on an infield error that brought Vayas and Martinez across, putting Hays ahead for good.
Stringing together hits fueled the rally, according to Vayas. Fuller praised the team’s ability to not let struggles get the better of them.
The focus now lies on Dripping Springs — a team Hays played not only in last year’s playoffs, but earlier this season.
“I know it will be tough game for us,” Vayas said. “I know we’ll pull through.”
