After the Castaic Coyotes took a two-run lead following the top of the first inning, Saugus softball coach Kyle Mark said he wasn’t worried about his Centurions falling behind early.
The Centurions responded with a two-run inning to tie the game and powered through the Coyotes’ pitching staff for the rest of the game to win, 10-2, and secured their seventh Foothill League win of the season.
“[Castaic] came out swinging and came out ready to hit,” Mark said. “But we stuck to our approach, didn’t chase pitches, we swung at our pitches and that’s something I’mreally proud of for our girls.”
After the game, Mark said that the Centurions (12-6, 7-0) have been learning to adjust as the games continues. After the Coyotes (7-6, 2-5) took the early lead, he urged his Centurions to adjust to what they saw out of the Coyotes’ pitching staff and find their pitch.
“Definity has been something I’ve been talking about in practice,” he said. “Not waiting for the third at bat, fifth at bat, or seventh but making our adjustments early.”
The Centurions tallied 13 hits across the game with first baseman Tatum Kurowski leading Saugus batters at the plate as she went 1-for-3 with a two-run homer in the bottom of the fifth inning.
Kurowski said after the game she approached the at-bat with an aggressive mindset as the Castaic coaching staff sent a new Coyotes pitcher into the circle and she wanted to swing early.
“I took the first pitch because I wanted to see it with a new pitcher,” she said. “I heard my coach say, ‘Head against the ball,’ so next pitch I saw it and hit it over.”
The Coyotes were led by senior Emma French, who scored the lone runs of the day for her team in the first inning off a two-run double.
With the win, the Centurions are 7-0 in Foothill League play and begin the second half of the league season with a victory.
The Centurions resume Foothill League play on Thursday with a road matchup against the Cowboys at Canyon High School while the Coyotes will look to bounce back in a road matchup against the Wildcats at West Ranch High School.
Both games are scheduled to begin at 3:15 p.m.
After Tuesday’s games, here are scores from around the Foothill League:
Hart 14, Canyon 1: The Hart Hawks (9-10, 4-3) opened the second half of Foothill League play with a road win over the Canyon Cowboys (6-14, 1-6) for their fourth Foothill League win of the season.
The Hawks tallied 13 hits across five innings and were led by Noella Caldera, who went 2-for-2 at the plate with four runs driven in.
The Hawks play again on Thursday at home against the Valencia Vikings while the Cowboys will look to bounce back at home against the visiting Saugus Centurions.
Both games are scheduled to begin at 3:15 p.m.
West Ranch 28, Golden Valley 1: The West Ranch Wildcats (15-5, 6-1) secured their 15th win of the season following a double-digit victory over Golden Valley (3-13, 0-7).
For West Ranch, junior Sophia Sturm had a big day at the plate as she drove in five runs and went 4-for-4.
The Wildcats will look to keep up the momentum with a home contest against the Castaic Coyotes on Thursday while the Grizzlies return to league play on Tuesday with a road matchup against Castaic.
Both games are scheduled to begin at 3:15 p.m.
