Submitted photo – The Fortuna players and coaches celebrate their tournament win at Cloverdale over the weekend.
It was a case of deja vu over the weekend, as the Fortuna Huskies faced off against the host school in the championship game at the Cloverdale softball tournament.
According to Fortuna head coach Eric Helms, this was at least the fifth time the two schools have met for the tournament championship.
And it was a good day for the Huskies, who avenged an 8-5 loss to the Eagles in last year’s decider with a 7-0 win.
The victory capped a good couple of days for the Fortuna girls in tournament play that also included a 12-4 win over Clear Lake and a 6-2 win over Piner.
With the three victories, the Huskies improved to 8-0 on the season.
Fortuna started strong in Saturday’s final, scoring three runs in the first inning, and with senior pitcher Isabel Sanchez dominating in the circle that was all they would need.
Sanchez pitched a complete seven-inning shutout, allowing only three hits and five walks while striking out 11.
Sanchez also helped key the fast start at the plate, leading off with an infield single and scoring moments later on an Olivia Hayes triple to the fence in right field.
Hayes led the team at the plate with three hits and two RBIs, while Mia Tiedeman added two hits and two RBIs, Sanchez had two hits, Evalynn Little had a double, Sophia Castillo had a double with two RBIs, and Sephora Machado and Addie Collenberg each had a hit, including a double by the latter.
Earlier in tournament play, the Huskies had to rally from an early 0-4 deficit against Clear Lake, closing out the game on a 12-0 run with Hayes and Sanchez leading the way.
Hayes finished 3-for-5 with a double and five RBIs, while Sanchez was 3-for-5 with a double and two RBIs.
Hayes also made the highlight defensive play of the game, throwing out a runner at the plate from right field in the fifth inning to stop a Clear Lake rally.
Sanchez got the win in the circle in relief, pitching 3.1 innings of shutout ball and allowing just four hits and four walks and striking out seven.
She got plenty of offensive support with the hard-hitting Huskies racking up 18 hits.
Collenberg also had three hits, while Thompson and Tiedeman each had two hits and an RBI, Little had two hits and Castillo added a two-run double.
The Huskies also had to rally against Piner, overcoming an early two-run deficit with six unanswered runs, including four runs in the fifth.
Once again Sanchez got the win in the circle, holding the Piner bats to three hits and one walk and striking out 10.
The red-hot Sanchez and Hayes also continued to impress at the plate in that win.
Both seniors finished with a pair of base, including a double and two RBIs each, while Little had a two-run triple and Collenberg also had a base hit.
Next up, the Huskies will close out their pre-conference schedule with a doubleheader at Fort Bragg on Tuesday afternoon.
