Cloverdale finishes up championship season with 17-6 record
Playoff softball can be a bittersweet experience, with the harsh reality being that only one team can finish the season with a victory.
That was the sentiment on Saturday when the NCL-1 champion Lady Eagles walked off the field after suffering a disappointing 6-4 loss to visiting Moreau Catholic in the quarterfinals of the North Coast Section Division-4 tournament.
Cloverdale finished the season with an overall record of 17-6.
Despite the obvious disappointment of a season-ending loss, the Eagles have much to be proud of as they look back on the 2014 campaign.
“Winning our league was a big accomplishment and something our team can cherish forever,” CHS veteran coach Margaret Fitzgerald said. “We came together and our seniors (Jazmin Orozco, Amy Mora, Kelsi Sibert and Rignee DenBeste) came through for the team and will be missed.”
The fourth-seeded Eagles advanced in the NCS tourney with a 10-1 romp over number 13 McKinleyville in the playoff opener on May 21, as sophomore ace Teanne Edens commanded the show in a complete-game, three-hitter.
Cloverdale had its hitting shoes securely fastened, pounding out 14 hits on the day, highlighted by a five-run uprising in the fourth inning to bust it wide open. Edens (5 Ks, 0 ERs) was on cruise control most of the way en route to a 10-1 win.
Pacing the hitting corps were Jazmin Orozco (3 for 3, 4 runs, RBI), Jordyn Turner (2 for 3, run, 4 RBIs), Kelsi Sibert (2 for 4, run), Monica Lemley (2 for 3, run, RBI), Amy Mora (2 for 4, 2 RBIs), Edens (1 for 4, HR, run, RBI), and Hailey Donahoo (1 for 3, run).
The win propelled the Eagles into an NCS quarterfinal clash with visiting fifth-seeded Moreau Catholic, on May 24, a team that had eliminated Cloverdale from the playoffs a year earlier.
Edens was in control through the first four frames, allowing just a pair of solo runs while the Eagles used a three-run third to take a 4-2 lead into the seventh inning.
The Mariners would not be denied, mounting a two-out rally that began with an infield single and hit batsman, followed by another knock that cut the deficit to 4-3. Leading hitter Veronica Mora delivered a two-run single to give her team a 5-4 lead, and the Mariners added an insurance run with another pair of hits to take a two-run advantage. The Eagles went quietly in their last at-bat to fall 6-4.
“The loss was a little disappointing because we had the game won and did not come through and finish it out,” Fitzgerald noted. “We’re young and I hope we learn from the loss.”
Leading hitters against Moreau Catholic were Monica Lemley (2 for 4, run, RBI), Amy Mora (2 for 4, 2B, 2 RBIs), and Kelsi Sibert (2 for 3, run).
Lady Eagles land
league honors
Edens was named by coaches as the NCL-1 Co-Most Valuable Player, sharing the honor with Clear Lake pitcher Rachel Wingler. The talented sophomore finished up a terrific 2014 campaign with an overall record of 17-6 (13-1 in league), including an 0.87 ERA with 127 strikeouts. She also hit .308 with three homers and 13 runs batted in.
Also garnering first-team All-League honors were seniors Jazmin Orozco (.366 BA,14 runs scored), and Amy Mora (.324 BA, 15 runs scored, .909 fielding percentage), and sophomore catcher Jordyn Turner (.378 BA, 3 HRs, 12 RBIs, .556 on base percentage).
Earning Honorable Mention recognition was junior Monica Lemley (.310 BA, 9 RBIs), and sophomore Hailey Donahoo (.306 BA, 7 RBIs).
