Herrera finds target, pitches Durango to victory
Coaches and players often make midgame adjustments to counteract what the opponent is trying to accomplish.
Sometimes adjustments made by officials can be just as important to a game’s outcome.
Nicole Herrera walked three batters and yielded two runs in the first inning but allowed only two hits the rest of the way to lead Durango’s softball team to a 6-2 win over Mar Vista (Calif.) in the Fred Davison Memorial Tournament at West Flamingo Park on Monday.
“I think the umpire widened his strike zone a bit (after the first inning) and that really helped, to be honest,” Trailblazers coach Sandy Morgan said. “I noticed it when we were at bat as well, and that’s really what changed.”
Herrera agreed but said she found a way to adjust, too.
“The umpire wasn’t really giving me the outside corner early on,” the freshman pitcher said. “But I noticed they had slow bats, so I just started throwing fastballs and keeping them in the middle of the plate and on the inside corner. “
D.J. Richardson and Allie Voge each had two hits for Durango. Herrera and Jaexie Balilea each added two RBIs.
• Durango 8, Faith Lutheran 3 — Balilea had a homer, double and three RBIs as the Trailblazers beat the Crusaders.
Richardson added two hits for Durango, and Ashley Hall pitched a three-hitter.
• Silverado 3, Sylmar (Calif.) 2 — The Skyhawks scored a run in the bottom of the eighth to defeat the Spartans. Amanda Edmonson was 2-for-3 with an RBI to lead Silverado.
• Foothill 5, Pahrump Valley 1 — Amber Stater homered as the Falcons beat the Trojans.
Winner Amanda Keven pitched a two-hitter and struck out seven for the Falcons.
• Foothill 7, Valhalla (Calif.) 6 — The Falcons scored two runs in the top of the seventh, then held off the Norsemen.
Chelsea Richards had an RBI single to make it 6-5, and she scored on Stater’s second triple of the game.
• Cimarron-Memorial 4, Carson (Calif.) 3 — Evelyn Terrazas singled home Megan Van Horn with two outs in the seventh to give the Spartans the victory.
Carson scored twice in the top of the inning, but Van Horn ignited the rally with a two-out single. She advanced on a double by Chelsea Williams and scored on Terrazas’ hit.
Winning pitcher Jennifer Liddell was 2-for-3.
• Cimarron-Memorial 6, Monte Vista (Calif.) 0 — Liddell threw a six-hitter with five strikeouts to lead the Spartans.
Felicia Valdez was 3-for-3 with a double and two RBIs.
• West Hills (Calif.) 8, Faith Lutheran 2 — The Wolf Pack limited the Crusaders to two hits in the victory.
• Granada Hills (Calif.) 10, Basic 0 — Rebecca Patton threw a four-inning no-hitter and also homered as the Highlanders defeated the Wolves.
• Santana (Calif.) 12, Basic 11 — The Sultans scored the winning run on an error in the bottom of the sixth. Aaren Fisher was 3-for-3 with two homers and five RBIs for the Wolves, and Megan Feher was 3-for-4.
• North (Calif.) 12, Clark 2 — The Stars took advantage of 12 errors and limited the Chargers to two hits to get the five-inning win.
• Clark 8, Big Bear 1 — Jordyn McDonald had a two-run homer to lead the Chargers over the Bears in five innings.
McDonald pitched a four-hitter with eight strikeouts.
• Sierra Vista 9, Banning (Calif.) 5 — Aurora Pangallo was 2-for-2 with a grand slam to lead the Lions over the Pilots.
Kristin Delahoussaye was 3-for-4 with three runs for Sierra Vista.
• Sierra Vista 8, Point Loma (Calif.) 0 — Kelsey McCoy went 3-for-3 with a homer, double and four RBIs for the Lions.
Delahoussaye and Rachel Johnson each added two hits, and Amelia McIntosh threw a three-hitter for the Lions.
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