Cougars Down Vaqueros With Walk-Off

Cuesta Softball beat Western State Conference foe in heroic fashion with a walk-off, base-hit with two outs in the 7^th inning, 3-2.  First Baseman Irene Sias lined a single down the leftfield line to drive in Molly Mulvaney for the game-winning run as the Cougars continued to terrorize the WSC in their second swing through the circuit. 

 Cuesta took the first lead of the pitching duel between Cuesta's Emmilee Boles and the Vaqueros' Paige Powell in the 3^rd inning.  Cuesta Shortstop Katie Murphee doubled and stole third, before scoring on Kat Cline's two-out single for the contest's initial tally.  In their next at-bat, the Vaqueros tied the game after a pair of one-out singles and a groundball to 2^nd base and then took the lead on a two-out error in the next inning.  Boles held the Vaqueros scoreless after that and set down seven of the next eight Vaqueros she faced.  The Cougars squandered an opportunity to tie the game, when First Baseman Irene Sias smacked a one-out single in the 6th, but Powell coaxed the next two batters into a pop-up and a groundout to strand her.  In the final frame, Outfielder Megan Stoudenmire, who has been hitless since joining the team at the end of her basketball season, led-off and reached on an error.  Fellow Outfielder Celeste Reyes sacrificed her to 2^nd and she moved to 3^rd on Second Baseman Molly Mulvaney's two-out single.  Cline continued her clutch hitting and singled in Stoudenmire to tie the game.  Boles also helped herself with a single to load the bases, which brought the red-hot Sias back to the plate.  Sias took her first pitch for a ball outside, which initiated a mound visit from SBCC Coach Justine Bosio.  The next pitch after the meeting also went for a ball, so with a 2-0 count and the bases loaded Sias was coiled to unload on Paige's next offering, which she ripped down the leftfield line to plate Mulvaney and end the game.      
The Cougars were 1-7 in the first round of Western State Conference play, but, despite a pair of heartbreak one-run defeats, have closed the gap to 2-4 in the second round with just 1^st place Bakersfield and last place Pierce left on their schedule.  Today's victory over the Santa Barbara City also snapped Cuesta's five-game losing streak, which began with their first round (rain make-up), run-rule, loss to the Vaqueros, 16-3, in Santa Barbara on April 6.  Cuesta travels to Bakersfield on Tuesday (2:30) and end the season at home against Pierce on Tuesday, April 23 (2:30).