Team falls to St. Vincent in NCS semifinals
The #3 seeded Cloverdale Lady Eagles reached the end of a successful three-month journey on May 31, dropping a 10-4 decision at #2 ranked St. Vincent of Petaluma in the semifinals of the North Coast Section Division 5 softball playoffs.
The loss gave the Eagles a final season record of 19-5.
By any measure the 2017 campaign was a raging success after starting the year with huge holes to fill. Cloverdale graduated a total of six starters last June, including several all leaguers and a couple of all time greats.
Veteran coaches Margaret and Pat Fitzgerald knew they’d need to overcome the growing pains of a relatively young line-up this year, and the team responded with a 5-2 preseason record that would have them battle tested and ready for a run at the NCL-1 title. The Eagles matched league wins with archrival Kelseyville until the final week of the season before settling for second place with a 12-2 record.
Postseason run
Cloverdale was awarded a favorable #3 seed in the NCS playoffs, drawing an opening round bye before slipping past Clear Lake in a wild, 11-10 come-from-behind win in the quarterfinals on May 27. The Eagles overcame a two run deficit in their final at-bat, rallying for three runs to pull out a miraculous walk-off victory.
“That game showed great character and a will to win,” Margaret Fitzgerald said later. “When they (Clear Lake) took the lead in the seventh I was a little concerned.”
The victory propelled the Eagles into the NCS semifinals against #2 St. Vincent in Petaluma on May 31, a game that began with promise but would end in disappointment.
Freshman pitcher Tehya Bird, who entered the game with a gaudy .700-plus batting average, launched a towering solo homer on the second pitch of the contest for the early lead. But the Mustangs answered with three runs in the bottom of the frame to reclaim the edge at 3-1.
Cloverdale came right back, as catcher Lane Hughes laced a two-out, two-run single in the second inning to knot the game at 3-3. Trailing 4-3, Angelina Cordova and Emma Adams ripped back-to-back doubles to tie it at 4-4, but it would serve as the last highlight of the day for the Eagles.
With Mustangs’ pitcher Sully Henry settling in, St. Vincent plated two runs in the fourth, one in the fifth and another three in the sixth to pull away for an eventual 10-4 victory.
“They were the better team that day,” a gracious Margaret Fitzgerald noted, before adding, “I’m really proud of our girls and the season they had.”
Bird (6 IP, 8 hits, 8 ERs, 7 Ks) took the loss to finish up a spectacular freshman campaign with a record of 18-5, while top hitters were Hughes (1 for 3, 2B, 2 RBIs), Bird (1 for 2, HR, 2 runs, RBI), Adams (1 for 3, 2B, RBI), Cordova (1 for 3, 2B, RBI), Nicky Martinez (1 for 3) and Josie Marrufo (1 for 4).
