LJ softball: Game story 2/21

By Ed Piper

Earlier in the day Wed., Feb. 21, coach Anthony Sarain did not know if his Vikings would get to take the field at El Cajon Valley after their scheduled season opener at home against Lincoln got rained out Tuesday--not due to the field conditions (all-weather turf), but because rain still threatened.

The Vikings and Braves eventually got the okay to go ahead with the second chance for the Vikes to open the season, though it was to the opposite end of the valley in East County and with parking challenges to boot.

La Jolla, another young edition after the Emmy Cardenas era, couldn't solve El Cajon hurler Saleen Quirino in the top of the first. Then the Braves sent a lot of people up to the plate (20, to be exact) in the bottom half, scoring 15 runs.

Four batters got hit by pitches, several balls went flying to the backstop with runs scoring. But finally, Aviv Laska, a freshman put behind the plate, grabbed one errant pitch and dived to tag out the runner coming into home. The out was called...

But then the home plate umpire ruled that she had dropped the ball following the tag, and the inning resumed.

Finally, showing compassion, Brave head coach Jimmy Ross, coaching third base, commanded his runner to step off the bag--softball players are not allowed to lead off. She was called out, and the inning ended.

A new rule is in effect this season, and that is that the batter must keep one foot in the batter's box between pitches during her at-bat. The idea is somewhat similar to MLB's speed-up rules instituted last season, when batters there were limited to one timeout per at-bat (while the pitcher was only allowed one throw to first and one disengagement). The idea is to keep the pace of game going.

Senior Kaitlin Murphy, in her fourth year on the Viking varsity, was back at her familiar spot at the hot corner, third base. Meanwhile, she was slotted into the third position in the lineup by Sarain and his co-coach, Stephanie Alvarez, a Class of 2015 alumna who began coaching the Vikings with him last year.

Roxy Metcalf, the junior, was at short, while sophomore lefty JC Taylor held down first before taking over pitching duties midway through the second inning. Taylor batted cleanup.

Savannah Putnam, a returning sophomore, started in centerfield. Maddie Ehlert, another returning soph, was at second base, freed up from last year's catching by Aviv.