Taft High’s spring break softball tournament proved to be no break at all as the Lady Tigers took on five bigger out-of-state schools in preparation for Class 3A West Valley League play that begins Friday, April 6, at home against Amity.
“Today, we came out a little more confident,” Taft Coach Sandy Stuart said. “We played much better defense overall and had better communication.”
The Lady Tigers lost 5-0 and 3-0 Saturday to California representatives Bishop O’Doud and Franklin, respectively, to conclude the five-game Napa Softball Tournament without a victory after winning their first six games of the season.
“We still struggled a little at the plate and were unable to score,” Stuart said. “We did leave runners in scoring position a few times, which was frustrating.”
Taft was outscored 42-4 and suffered three shutouts in 80-plus degree weather, but improved with each outing throughout the two-day tournament.
Sophomore starting pitcher Emma Coulter and freshman Kayla Lininger collected hits for the Lady Tigers in Saturday’s opener against Bishop O’Doud of Oakland, Calif.
Sophomore Hailee Dannecker and freshmen Kayla Lininger and Kyla Knott all singled for the Lady Tigers in Saturday’s 3-0 defeat to Franklin.
Coulter struck out six in six innings for Taft.
“Emma pitched two great games,” Stuart said. ”She was doing her job moving the ball around and pitching with spin to create more pop-ups and ground balls.”
Taft entered the tournament undefeated and ranked No. 1 in the state in the Class 3A ranks.
“We are still just young and working on getting our freshmen working hard on defense,” Stuart said. “It was nice to be in he sunshine together playing ball. We know what we need to focus on this week to prepare for league play on Friday.”
Bishop O’Doud 5, Taft 0
BISHOP O’DOUD AB R H BI
Nicole Hammonde 4 1 1 0
Bianca Pahler 1 1 0 0
Elizabeth Laber 1 0 0 0
Frankie Hammonde 4 0 0 0
Jayla Dailey 4 0 1 0
Lizzy Avery 3 1 2 1
Jacilie Bowman 3 1 0 0
Marissa Petty 2 1 0 0
Eleanor Cooley 3 0 1 3
Mia Moore 3 0 1 0
TOTALS 28 5 6 4
TAFT AB R H BI
Kyla Knott 3 0 0 0
Hailee Dannecker 2 0 0 0
Naomi Rini 3 0 0 0
Emma Coulter 3 0 1 0
Alyssa Tanksley 3 0 0 0
Claira Tolan 2 0 0 0
Caitlyn Rundstrom 2 0 0 0
McKenzie Evenson 1 0 0 0
Kayla Lininger 2 0 1 0
Madison Clanton 3 0 0 0
TOTALS 24 0 2 0
BISHOP O’DOUD 000 104 0 — 5
TAFT 000 000 0 — 0
LOB–BISHOP O’DOUD 5, TAFT 6. ERR–Jayla Dailey, Eleanor Cooley, Makena Cole, Hailee Dannecker. 2B—Lizzy Avery (2), Emma Coulter. HBP–Claira Tolan. SACB—Bianca Pahler. SB–Bianca Pahler, Nicole Hammonde.
BISHOP O’DOUD IP H R ER BB SO HR
Lizzy Avery 7.00 2 0 0 2 10 0
TAFT
Emma Coulter 7.00 6 5 1 2 6 0
PB–Frankie Hammonde (3), Hailee Dannecker (2). BB–Marissa Petty, Bianca Pahler, Kayla Lininger, Hailee Dannecker.
Franklin 3, Taft 0
FRANKLIN AB R H BI
C Moore 3 2 2 1
N Gonzalez 2 0 1 0
C Jack 1 0 0 1
T Keinath 3 0 2 0
H Morgan-Voyce 2 0 1 1
B Barbato 3 0 0 0
K Knapp 2 0 0 0
A Villalpanolo 3 0 0 0
H Pratt 3 1 1 0
McKenzie Evenson 1 0 0 0
Lilly Salsbery 1 0 0 0
TOTALS 22 3 7 3
TAFT AB R H BI
Kyla Knott 3 0 1 0
Hailee Dannecker 3 0 1 0
Naomi Rini 3 0 0 0
Emma Coulter 3 0 0 0
Alyssa Tanksley 2 0 0 0
Kayla Lininger 2 0 1 0
Makena Cole 2 0 0 0
Claira Tolan 1 0 0 0
Caitlyn Rundstrom 1 0 0 0
TOTALS 22 0 3 0
FRANKLIN 002 010 0 — 3
TAFT 000 000 x — 0
LOB–FRANKLIN 6, TAFT 5. ERR–H Caldwell, C Jack. 2B–T Keinath, C Moore (2), Kayla Lininger, Hailee Dannecker. SACF–H Morgan-Voyce, C Jack. SACB–N Gonzalez.
FRANKLIN IP H R ER BB SO HR
H Caldwell 6.00 3 0 0 0 3 0
TAFT
Emma Coulter 6.00 7 3 3 2 6 0
PB–Hailee Dannecker. BB–C Jack, K Knapp.
