Theresa Flores did everything she could in Tuesday’s South Coast Conference softball game against Cerritos College.
Flores hit a two-run homerun in the top of the third inning, but the Warriors were unable to muster any more runs against a Cerritos trio of pitchers, as the Falcons pummeled EC 21-2.
“(Flores) does what she does best,” freshman catcher Melissa Linares said. “It makes me want to go up and do the same thing she just did.”
Flores finished the game going 1-1 with a walk and the two run homerun, but the rest of the Warriors were unable to get anything going. Not one Falcon pitcher worked more than two innings on the mound while only allowing three hits.
The Warriors will play host to conference rival Mt. San Antonio College today at Freeman Park in Gardena at 3 p.m.
“We need to focus on what the pitcher is throwing,” Flores, a freshman from St. Bernard’s High School in Westchester, said. “It is just common sense softball.”
Cerritos broke the game open in the first inning off Warrior freshman pitcher Diana Cortez. Cortez started the game off by throwing three straight balls before walking Falcon leadoff hitter Lauren Castrellon. After stealing second base and advancing to third on a sacrifice fly, Samantha Vaaulu took a Cortez offering deep over left fielder Kaycee Wilke’s head, putting Cerritos up 2-0.
“(Cerritos) has a really good lineup from top to bottom,” Linares said. “They are really good hitters. We tried our best and obviously it wasn’t enough.”
Cortez’ problems would not end there. She would give up two consecutive doubles and allow another run to score before settling down to record the final two outs of the first inning.
“We don’t really have a pitching rotation,” Flores said. “We have a few players who have pitched, and that is where they are playing.”
While the Warriors bats remained relatively silent against Falcon pitchers Hillary Perez-Ashley, Joanna Avila, and Cereena Marquez, the Falcon lineup made sure the Warriors were ready to play. Cerritos recorded 16 hits, eight walks, two sacrifice fly balls, two stolen bases and two home runs, one by Vaaulu and the other by Castrellon.
“(Cerritos) is a good hitting team, they always have been,” coach Susie Calderon said. “But nobody can handle losing game after game, especially the way we have been.”
Including Tuesday’s game against Cerritos, the Warriors have gone 3-10 this season, with five of those games decided by double-digits.
Last Thursday, EC lost 5-3 to Pasadena City College, but not without help from Wilke, who limited Pasadena to just three hits.
“Our pitchers are doing their best, but we cannot mentally take ourselves out of the game,” Calderon said. “It is tough to stay motivated when you are getting beaten every game. We just need to stop the mental mistakes.”
This past weekend, the Warriors traveled south to the Golden West Tournament. (Find the teams in their pool, and see what other pool teams they played.) The women would go 1-3, winning a rematch with College of the Desert 9-7, losing to Harbor 14-12, getting shutout at the hands of Eastern Arizona 12-0 and slugged it out with San Bernardino Valley 14-12.
“I don’t care if a team beats you because they are better,” Calderon said. “At least walk off the fields with your head high.”
