Lady Warriors Fight to the Finish

On Thursday, March 11, Girl’s Softball faced off against the Dublin Gaels in a hard- fought 11-5 loss. Heading into the game, the Lady Warriors were adjusting to the return of Senior Captain Emmeline Wang and the loss of Junior Adrianna Aboumrad to injury.

In the first inning, the Lady Warriors held  off a potential 2-0 deficit by playing tight defense. Junior Megan McLaughlin saved the play by recovering a tough line drive, holding the score to 1-0. Sophomore Rachna Desai was able to round the bases and score a run for the Lady Warriors, tying the game at 1-1.

The Gaels retaliated in the top of the second. Although Freshman Muntaha Samad pitched well, the in-field struggled, dropping the ball several times to allow two runs. Down 3-1 entering the third, the Warriors picked up their play. Desai shut out the Gaels through the fourth. First up to bat in the bottom of the inning, Wang had a huge hit to start off the inning, sliding home to lessen the deficit to 3-2.

The game was close up to the fifth inning, when the Lady Warriors struggled to contain the Gaels. With Mission playing loosely, Dublin chipped away at the score with several grounders and line drives, each taking home a runner. By the end of the inning, the Lady Warriors were down 8-2.

Dublin came out strong in the sixth with three runs; however, MSJ didn’t give up. McLaughlin had a line drive and Wang had a walk to fill up first and second. Senior Melody Tay served as a pinch runner for Wang because she was still struggling from her ankle injury. With consistent hitting, Tay, McLaughlin, and Senior Captain Allison Day were all able to score. The Warriors continued their aggressive play with Junior Taylor Jackson hitting deep into left field. Samad had a grounder down midfield to load the bases, but MSJ was unable to capitalize. The seventh inning had no runs.

Despite the loss, first-year coach Steve Thompson was pleased with how the girls played “We were able fight back and make a game out of it. We’re still learning to play as a team, and I’m satisfied with the heart we showed and how we came back after being down.” Check out this young team in their first league game on March 23rd against the Washington Huskies.