File photo – Isabel Sanchez
An all-local North Coast Section championship showdown in Division-4 softball remains on the cards after the Fortuna Huskies took care of business in their tournament quarterfinal on Saturday.
One night after the Del Norte Warriors rolled to an 18-0 win over Hoopa in Crescent City, the Huskies got the better of Piedmont 7-1 at Fortuna High.
The win for the Fortuna girls, who are seeded No. 4, sets up a semifinal at No. 1 St. Helena on Tuesday evening, while No. 2 Del Norte will host No. 3 Salesian 24 hours later.
Several young players continued to impress for the Huskies, who showed no ill-effects from an eight-day break since their last game after receiving an opening-round bye in the playoffs.
Sophomore pitcher Isabel Sanchez threw a one-hitter for the win in the circle, while fellow sophomore Olivia Hayes and freshman Olivia Scillacci each also turned in big performances.
That talented trio, along with freshman Evelyn Little and sophomore Hailey Thompson, gives the Huskies and head coach Eric Helms a solid foundation for the next couple of years.
Sanchez did allow five walks but also struck out 13.
“It was a nice win,” Helms said. “The kids put the ball in play and we played solid defense behind our pitcher, who had another solid performance.”
Kadence Mace, one of just two seniors on the team, also was instrumental in the win and finished 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI hits.
“She put the ball in play with runners in scoring position,” Helms said of the team leader.
Hayes and Mariah Bravo each also had two hits, while Little added a single and an RBI and Scilacci finished 1-for-2.
The Highlanders traveled north with just nine players and had to scramble to rearrange their lineup.
Without their leading hitter and starting shortstop, they committed eight errors.
File photo – Kadence Mace
Piedmont’s pitcher Miya Fujimoto caused the home team some problems early on, but the Fortuna bats settled into the game and it began to show the second time through the lineup.
The Huskies scored three runs in the third inning and added three more in the fourth to take control of the game.
Helms added, however, that they will need to execute and put the ball in play better than they have been with runners on base if they are to challenge the better teams they will face at this stage of the postseason.
Tuesday’s game against St. Helena will be the second meeting between the two schools this spring, with the Saints winning 2-0 in the first meeting on March 21.
The top seeds edged No. 8 Saint Mary’s 2-1 in their quarterfinal on Saturday and are now 19-4 on the season.
The Huskies improved to 17-7 and have now won nine of their last 11 games.
Tuesday’s game is set for 5 p.m.
File photo
