Rough night for Mercy softball

Mercy sophomore pitcher Jazlyn Villavicencio took a 1-0 lead into the fifth inning, but Piedmont Hills (15-9-1) wrecked the shutout in the fifth to tie it before Michelle Torres delivered the go-ahead single in the sixth. Villavicencio went on to strike out 10 but surrendered two runs on 10 hits in the duel with Piedmont’s winning pitcher Miranda Torres.

“I’m pretty sure both of us loved the thrill of it,” Villavicencio said. “Just getting to see what the outcome is, I think that’s really exciting. And, you know, you can’t win ’em all. So, we’ll be back again next year.”

Villavicencio pitched her way out of a tough spot in the fourth. Miranda Torres led off the inning with a triple when her line drive to right field caught a divot, kicked away from Mercy right fielder Elena Gonzalez, and allowed Miranda Torres to motor all the way to third.

That’s when Mercy pitching coach Sidney Davis used a mound visit to talk strategy with her sophomore starter — a strategy that paid off.

“She does this thing where she wants to throw the ball hard,” Sidney Davis said. “And we all want to throw the ball hard. But I told her she just had to focus on that spin and keep it away from her, and that’s what she did.”

Villavicencio left Miranda Torres stranded at third, bouncing back with an infield pop-up and two strikeouts to keep the Crusaders’ 1-0 lead intact.

“She worked hard today,” Mercy head coach Mike Davis said.

But a fast start to the fifth came back to bite Villavicencio. After the first two Piedmont Hills batters were retired in order, Michaela Acosta reached on a two-out single. Then freshman Izzy Paskert delivered a bolt up the left-center field gap for an RBI double, with Acosta scoring from first base to tie it 1-1.

Then in the sixth, Piedmont Hills came through with the heartbreaker. After the Pirates put runners at the corners with no outs on back-to-back singles by Izzy Villanueva and Kimora Perez, Villavicencio looked poised to pitch out of another jam. She induced a pop-out to the catcher and got the second out via strikeout before Michelle Torres blooped a run-scoring single to right.

Miranda Torres did the rest, allowing one run on seven hits to earn the win. After Mercy’s second-inning rally, only three more Crusaders reached base the rest of the night.

“I think we all got a little bit more nervous as it went on,” Mercy junior Brenna Taverna said. “And as the game got tighter, there was more to risk when we went up to bat.”

Taverna recorded the only RBI for Mercy in the contest. Villavicencio sparked the rally with a one-out single. Then Riley Lask reached on an outfield error on a dropped fly ball, putting runners at first and third. Taverna, hitting in the No. 9 spot, then scorched an RBI single to left to give the Crusaders a 1-0 advantage.

“We put a run together in the second and kind of flattened out after that,” Mike Davis said. “But our defense kept them in the game.”

Mercy’s defense opened the night with a gem, when shortstop Giselle Ortega ranged over the middle to gather a sharp bounder and make a clean off-balance throw to first for the out.

There is a sense the Crusaders will pick up right where they left off next year. Mercy graduates just one player in Ariana Montiel.

“Coming back, we are going to try like 10 times harder for our true positions and the positions we want to be at,” Taverna said. “Since most of the girls are coming back, it’s basically going to be the same team, but stronger because we’re going to be older and will have had more practice.”

Piedmont Hills now advances to the CCS Division IV championship game Saturday at a time and place to be determined. The Cinderella No. 8-seed Pirates will face No. 3 Los Altos.

Livingston leads Cap to CCS finals

Speaking of splendid pitching duels, Capuchino junior right-hander Nohemi Livingston dominated in the CCS Division II semifinals to lead the Lady Mustangs to the big dance.

No. 2 Capuchino (19-9) took down No. 3 Hillsdale (14-9) in a 1-0 thrilled Wednesday night at PAL Stadium. Livingston fired a two-hit shutout, striking out seven.

“She was fantastic,” Cap head coach Tanya Borghello said. “All year she’s had a presence on the mound, but she had something calming on the mound tonight. She was in the zone tonight for sure.”

The Mustangs got on the board in the first inning. Jasmine Shapiro led off with a single and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt. Then freshman Avery Motroni delivered an RBI single to supply the game’s only run.

“That was all we needed,” Borghello said.

Alexis Centeno was 3 for 3 for the Mustangs, while Motroni was 2 for 3 with a double and an RBI.

The Mustangs now advance to the CCS championship stage for the first time since 2011. Cap will play Saturday against the winner of Thursday’s semifinal between No. 4 Valley Christian and No. 8 Monterey. Time and location of the Division II championship is yet to be determined.