SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Junior shortstop Francesca Guerrera slammed a solo home run in the bottom of the eighth inning, lifting St. Francis to a 6-5 win over Delta League front-runner Franklin in the varsity end of a softball doubleheader at Schuster Field Monday. The Troubadours had trailed by a 5-0 deficit after two innings, and did not get on the board until the fifth.
St. Francis improves to 8-7 overall and 4-1 in Delta League play, pulling into a tie for second place with Pleasant Grove in the standings. The Wildcats, which began the season with a 15-game winning streak, suffers their first league loss to fall to 5-1.
The shot was Guerrera's second on the year, tying her for the team lead with junior Hailey Strange. It also marked the third of her SF career, and capped a 3-for-4 day at the plate.
Third baseman Alex Garcia and first baseman Jazzy Basquez also went 3-for-4, with Garcia driving in three runs. Kylee Garrett provided two more hits, with Kiley Shea had the 12th Troubadour hit along with her complete-game win in the pitching circle.
Franklin, which entered the game with a team batting average better than .400, pushed across three runs in the first inning and another two in the second. Senior center fielder Kealani Nitta homered to lead off the game, then sophomore second baseman Micayla Arlotto delivered a two-run home in the first frame alone. Nitta also ignited the two-out rally in the second, roping a single to center, then coming home on Nailyn Marshall's two-base smash to left center.
The Troubie bats provided some chances in the early innings: Garcia doubled in the first, while Basquez and Shea had back-to-back singles in the second. In the third, Guerrera reached on a bunt single, was sacrificed to second on a Claire Krotine bunt, then moved up another 60 feet on a ground out. With two in scoring position, Isabella Vela roped a hard line drive to center, but Nitta corralled the drive to prevent a likely extra-base hit and keep SF off the board.
The Troubies finally spoiled the shutout bid in the fifth. Guerrera doubled on the first pitch, then went to second on a grounder to the right side. Garcia drove in her friend and teammate on a hard grounder just out of reach from a diving Arlotto. Garcia scored the second run on an error as pinch runner Alexis McFarland stole second during Garrett's at-bat. Garrett then plated McFarland to cut the lead to 5-3 before Franklin pitcher Scarlett Riddle could escape the inning.
Then in the sixth, with Wildcat senior Emma Nelson taking over the pitching circle, Garcia came up with a two-run single to equalize. Isabella Barge and Guerrera each walked, then moved into scoring position thanks to another Krotine sacrifice bunt. Garcia laced the first pitch over the leap of Wildcat third baseman Ashley Fields, bringing in both runners.
Shea retired Franklin 1-2-3 in the seventh, but St. Francis could not end the game in the bottom half despite hits from Garrett and Basquez. This set the stage for Guerrera's game-winner in the eighth. An 0-1 offering from Nelson resulted in a hard blast over the porch in left for the winner.
For her part, Shea settled down after surrendering six hits and four earned runs in the first two innings. She allowed just four hits and struck out five of her seven total after the initial Franklin lead.
Meanwhile, on the junior varsity field, the younger Troubies also enjoyed a late-inning comeback to salvage a 6-6 tie. Gianna Palermo hit 3-for-3, while Jaeya Leavitt, Emma Fox and Layla Werner each finished 2-for-4 at the plate. However, one of the more unlikely heroics belonged to ninth grader Lilian Desmond in the sixth. Doubles by Fox and Werner had reduced the Franklin lead from 6-2 to a single run at 6-5. Desmond entered as a pinch hitter for Rylee Coauette. A late addition to the team who had only one official at-bat entering Monday's contest, Desmond came through with an RBI double to score Palermo, tying the contest at 6-6.
Neither team managed a run in the seventh, with relief pitcher Werner fanning two to start the frame. She finished the game for starter Marissa Jensen, who struck out seven in her five innings of work.
St. Francis returns to action on Wednesday with a visit to defending league champions Sheldon, which blasted Davis by a 10-0 final on Monday. Both games begin at 4 p.m.
