A little over a week into the Big 5 softball schedule we are beginning to see a logjam atop the standings.
Four conference games were played on Monday, with the Fortuna girls traveling to Crescent City and sweeping a doubleheader to get their title ambitions back on track, while a resurgent Eureka team traveled to McKinleyville and split a doubleheader.
Fortuna won 4-1 and 4-0, improving to 3-2 in conference play and dropping the Warriors to 2-2, while Eureka won 12-7 and McKinleyville won 19-14, putting the Panthers first in the standings with a record of 2-1 and the Loggers tied with Fortuna for second with identical records of 3-2.
The Huskies started fast, scoring two runs in the top of the first inning in the opener and they never trailed in either game.
Junior Evalynn Little continued her outstanding season for the visitors, finishing 3-for-4 with three doubles, an RBI and a run to lead an eight-hit team performance.
Pitchers Addie Collenberg and Isabel Sanchez split time in the circle in the win.
Collenberg threw 3.1 innings, allowing one earned run on four hits and two walks and striking out four, while Sanchez threw 3.2 hitless innings and struck out eight.
Hailee Thompson added a double for the visitors, finishing 1-for-4 with two runs, while Collenberg (1-for-4 with a run), Keeley Ryles-Baker (1-for-3 with two RBIs), Sophia Castillo (1-for-3) and Sanchez (1-for-1) each also had a base hit in the win.
Game two was scoreless until the top of the fifth, when the Huskies broke open a tight game with four runs.
The dominating Sanchez got the victory in the circle, pitching a complete game and giving up just two hits and two walks while striking out 13.
The Huskies enjoyed a good game at the plate with seven players combining for 10 team hits.
Thompson finished 2-for-4 with a double, two RBIs and a run, while the always dangerous Little fished 2-for-3 with an RBI and Olivia Hayes was 2-for-4.
Sanchez, Collenberg, Sephora Machado and Kaylee Castillo each also had a base hit in the win.
Fortuna is now 14-2 overall, while Del Norte is 9-5.
At McKinleyville, meanwhile, the Panthers and Loggers served up an entertaining doubleheader.
Game one was tied 7-7 going into the seventh inning, but the visitors would finish strong, scoring five runs in the top of the inning and holding the home team scoreless in the bottom half of the inning.
Bailey Brown and Viola Kingsang led the way for Eureka at the plate.
Brown finished 3-for-3 with two walks, two RBIs and two runs, while Kingsang was 3-for-6 with two runs, an RBI and a stolen base.
Tiffany Harris also impressed for the visitors, finishing 2-for-5 with a double and an RBI, as did Kylee Secor, who was 2-for-4 with two RBIs and a run.
Mackenzie Wolff pitched a complete game for the win in the circle, giving up eight hits and two walks and striking out three.
Freshman Ella Moxon also had a base hit and two walks for the Eureka girls, who are now 6-8 overall, while Megan Secor finished 1-for-4 with a double, an RBI and a run.
The McKinleyville girls had nine base hits in the loss, led by Avery Bartoo, who finished 2-for-3 with two runs.
Liana Stumpf (2-for-4 with a double, three RBIs and a run) and Leili Guerrero (2-for-4 with an RBI) each also had multiple hits in the loss, while Cabella Carper (1-for-3 with an RBI, a walk and two runs), Josie Provolt-Dowd (1-for-3 with a run) and Jacey Parker (1-for-3 with an RBI and a run) each also had a base hit.
The Loggers were able to take advantage of 11 walks.
McKennah Sargent got the start in the circle and threw five innings, allowing four earned runs on 10 hits and six walks while striking out seven, before Parker threw the final two innings, allowing two hits and five walks.
Game two was a back-and-forth showdown, with the two teams combining to score in 11 of the 13 half-innings they went to bat.
Eureka led 9-6 going into the bottom of the third, but the Panthers would tie things up with three runs in the inning, before opening up a seven-run advantage with six runs in the fifth.
The Loggers would respond with five more runs over the final two innings, but the home team held on for the victory after adding three more runs to its tally in the bottom of the sixth.
McKinleyville overcame seven errors on the way to the victory.
Guerrero, Sargent, Carper and Addison White all had a double in the win.
The bottom of the lineup came through for the home team.
Parker led the way in the No. 9 spot and finished 3-for-5 with five RBIs and a run, while White finished 2-for-2 with two walks, two RBIs and two runs in the No. 8 spot.
Guerrero (2-for-4 with a walk, an RBI and two runs) also had multiple hits in the win, while Sargent also had a base hit.
Sargent pitched all seven innings for the win, giving up 11 hits and six walks and striking out nine.
Brown continued to play a key role for the Loggers in game two, finishing 3-for-5 with three doubles, two RBIs and four runs, while Macy Secor also made plenty of noise at the plate, finishing 4-for-5 with a double, three RBIs and three runs.
Eureka’s Jaycee Childress also impressed in a 13-hit team performance, finishing 3-for-5 with three RBIs and a run, while Kingsang (1-for-3 with two walks, two stolen bases, an RBI and two runs), Harris (1-for-4 with an RBI) and Megan Secor (1-for-5 with a run) each also hit successfully.
Wolff got the start in the circle for the Loggers and threw 4.1 innings, with Kylee Secor and Dayton Brown pitching in relief.
But walks were a problem for the Eureka pitchers, who combined to issue 15 free passes.
Next up, the Panthers will play at Del Norte on Wednesday, while Eureka will host Del Norte in a doubleheader on Saturday.
