Stallions bounce back to tie in tournament
Wendy Alexander/The Madera Tribune Madera South’s Jessie Maciel rips an RBI double to help the Stallions’ comeback against Coalinga at the Stallions Showdown.
After losing 7-0 earlier in the day to the Clovis North Broncos, the Madera South Stallions softball team battled back from a 3-0 deficit to earn a morale-boosting tie against the Coalinga Horned Toads at the Madera South Showdown..
Senior Jessie Maciel powered the Stallions comeback effort with two hits, two RBIs and a run scored. Sophomore Taylor Valerio scored two of Madera South’s four runs Wednesday.
“I thought they played really well with that fire we know they have,” Madera South head coach Peter Gallegos said. “I was very happy with the way they fought. Everyone contributed, everybody did something. The biggest thing is our fans. They’re great here at Madera South. They always encourage the girls. There is no selfishness. It’s always about the team. It’s about what we can do to make it better here and as you can tell, the team’s parents helped us put this (tournament) on.”
Before the Stallions’ afternoon match with Coalinga, they faced a strong team from Clovis North. Sophomore Destiny Perez had two of the Stallions five hits, but couldn’t get much elsegoing.
“I thought we did okay. We started off a little shaky, but we’re continuing to grow and mature every game,” Gallegos said.
Madera South opened their matchup with the Horned Toads in the worst way. After allowing seven runs in their previous game, the Broncos almost reached that number in the first inning against Madera South.
Junior Erica Valdez gave up two hits before allowing a three-run home run to Ava Wojewoda, who connected on the middle-of-the-plate fastball.
The action picked up in the top of the fourth inning after Valerio reached base with a single. Maciel drove in the Stallions’ first run of the game with a well-timed double to score Valerio.
In the top of the sixth inning, the Stallions broke free.
Savaanah Garcia led off the inning with a walk before Kaylee Nevarez pushed her over with a ground out.
With a runner in scoring position, Valerio hit a single past the diving Horned Toad, giving Madera South runners on second and third base after Valerio advanced to second on a throw.
Maciel hit a single to drive in Garcia and give the Stallions hope, trailing by a run. Thanks to the sloppy play of the Coalinga infield, Madera South got more.
Miranda Moles hit a slow roller to third where the infielder tossed the ball to first base. Fortunately for the Stallions, the ball sailed over the first baseman’s, allowing Valerio and Maciel to score. Madera South had its first lead of the game, 4-3.
Coalinga had one last chance and they didn’t disappoint.
In the bottom of the seventh, with the game on the line, the Horned Toads strung together a couple hits to tie the game at four.
The game continued to extra innings, but neither team could find the decisive hit. After a back-and-forth game, both teams left the game all even at four after nine innings.
Madera South now turn their attention to a matchup today with Sunnyside-Fresno and Firebaugh in the Madera South Showdown.
