SOFTBALL: St. Francis Gets Back on Track

The Score: St. Francis-Mountain View 7, Sacred Heart Cathedral 1

The Star: The first pitch St. Francis starting pitcher Alli Quinn threw got sent back through the middle of the infield for a base hit. After the early wakeup call, the junior starter settled in and only yielded four more hits the rest of the way, helping St. Francis defeat Sacred Heart Cathedral 7-1 on a sunny Friday afternoon at St. Francis High in Mountain View.

Quinn mixed pitches and speeds beautifully, striking out eight in seven strong innings of work. The win snapped a three-game skid for the Lancers, who dropped games to Presentation and first place Valley Christian last week.

Senior captain Kristine Kocjan and junior first baseman Gina Halenbeck each had two RBIs in the win. Kocjan unloaded an RBI single through the middle to drive in two teammates in the fifth inning, making the score 7-0 St. Francis.

The Turning Point: With their starter locked in on the mound, the onus fell on the Lancers’ offense to produce some runs. Quinn helped her own cause and bounced an RBI single deep into the hole to score Halenbeck in the bottom half of the second. One run came in, but the Lancers wouldn’t push anymore across as they left the bases loaded, missing a golden opportunity to open things up in the second inning.

Still aggressive at the plate and on the bases, St. Francis (9-7, 4-5 WCAL) continued to press forward in the following inning. Julia Quesada reached on the first of four SHC errors on the day to kick off the third. An RBI single to left from Halenbeck scored Quesada, then Kavita Prasad followed with a RBI knock of her own to give the Lancers a 3-0 lead after three.

Two more scores came in the fourth and the fifth from the host team, padding the lead for good.

The Quote: “It felt like we all were a lot more confident out there,” St. Francis first baseman Gina Halenbeck said about her teams approach at the plate during the big win. “Once one player gets a hit, everyone gets going and wants to go up and help the team. We played with good energy and had good teamwork today.”

St. Francis starting pitcher Alli Quinn’s strong showing wasn’t lost on her teammates.

“Our pitcher helped the whole team,” Halenbeck said. “She was great today.”

What's Next? The St. Francis squad has a busy Saturday lined up. Taking part in the Monte Vista Christian-Watsonville Mustangs Tournament, St. Francis will play three games on Saturday, including a 10 am matchup against Aptos High to start the tourney off.

Bottom Line: The emergence of the bats up-and-down the lineup was an encouraging sign for the Lancers faithful and head coach Samantha Aochi. After taking a 3-0 lead, St. Francis continued to string together good at-bats, leading to multiple score innings.

The top-heavy WCAL league isn’t one for the faint of heart, but St. Francis could give itself another big boost heading into the Spring Break with a good showing in the MVC tournament down south.

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St. Francis  7, Sacred Heart Cathedral 1

SF 3 0 0 0 1 0 0- 7 8 1

SHC 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 – 1 5 4

WP: Quinn. LP: Gisslow

Records: St. Francis 9-7, 4-5 WCAL. SHC 4-13, 0-7 WCAL.