Mt. SAC Softball visited the Rio Hondo Roadrunners on Thursday, March 29 and were able to shut them out with an impressive 7-0 win.
The Mounties were coming from a 2-0 home loss to East Los Angeles College, which had put them in a three-game losing streak.
“We just have to get back into the groove keeping it simple sometimes when you start losing. You start pointing the finger and you start finding excuses,” Mounties head coach Rubilena Rojas said. “Lets hold ourselves accountable and lets go and start fresh and start from scratch and that’s what we did. We turn the page and make a statement that you know those were learning lessons; yes they were losses but they are learning lessons for us to get back into gear.”
Mt. SAC certainly showed they had put the bad streak behind them, beginning with Candace Haliburton scoring the Mounties’ first run in the third inning when Vicky Gutierrez hit a fly ball out to center field that was caught for an out.
The sacrifice fly allowed Haliburton to tag the third base bag and head home to score the first run of the game.
“[Rojas] made us realize how hard and how much time we put into practice, that we should let that show during games,” freshman catcher Ronni Gallegos said. “All the hours that we put onto the field show up at the game and come with dedication and commitment to the whole team for everyone to succeed.”
At the top of the fourth, Nikki Soto walked to first base after getting hit by a pitch.
Tempers flared when she was hit again by a pitch later on in the game.
With Soto on first base, Ronni Gallegos (2 RBI) homered, increasing the lead to three.
Gutierrez (2 RBI) with a swing of the bat doubled, driving in both Caitlyn Felina and Haliburton home.
The next batter up, Adriana Ramirez hit a single that drove Gutierrez in for the sixth run of the game.
Soto capped off the game, scoring on a passed ball in the seventh inning, ensuring the 7-0 Mt. SAC win.
With this shut out the Mounties improved to 20-4 overall and 5-1 in their conference.
They will now focus on defending home field against their next opponent, Pasadena City College, on Tuesday, April 3 at 5 p.m.