Skip to navigation Skip to content Skip to footer
Photo by Cara Heise.
Photo by Cara Heise.

Lutz, Comets tame Cougars with twinbill sweep

SAN MARCOS, CA (4/19/2025) – Breanna Lutz went a combined 6-for-7 at the plate in two games as Palomar College swept a non-conference softball doubleheader Saturday against College of the Canyons to help celebrate the 2025 Alumni Day.
 
Lutz hit a double and two singles, walked and scored three runs in a 9-1 victory for the Comets in Game 1, and the sophomore third baseman added another double, two more singles, a walk and drove in five runs to spark a 12-4 win for Palomar in Game 2.
 
The two wins lifted the Comets' record to 35-3 on the season and extended Palomar's current win streak to 10 games. The No. 2-ranked team in the state has won 31 of its last 32 games going into the regular-season finale against Grossmont.
 
With nearly 50 former Palomar players on hand for the first Alumni Day in the Comets' new softball stadium, Lutz singled to lead off the bottom of the first inning of Game 1 of the twinbill. Following a single by sophomore second baseman Josephine Hueberger, both baserunners came around to score ahead the seventh home run of the season by freshman designated hitter Lauren Doepping, who drove a laser over the fence in right-center field for a quick 3-0 lead for the hosts.
 
A two-run single by freshman first baseman Alexis Huey and an RBI single by freshman left fielder Taylor Armstrong produced three more runs in the bottom of the second inning. After a leadoff home run to start the fourth inning got College of the Canyons on the scoreboard, the Comets responded with two runs in the bottom of the fourth on two walks, a run-scoring double to right by Armstrong and a sacrifice fly to left by freshman center fielder Gisele Gonzalez.
 
With an 8-1 lead going to the bottom of the fifth, Palomar needed to score just one run to bring the mercy-run rule into effect, and the Comets quickly came through when Lutz hit a sharp leadoff single to right which was misplayed for a two-base error. With Lutz at third, Hueberger ended the game with a walk-off single to right.
 
Hueberger, Doepping and Armstrong all had two hits apiece in addition to the three hits by Lutz as Palomar supported winning pitcher Nevaeh Haywood with 11 hits. Haywood improved to 15-2 on the season as the home run was the only run she allowed while limiting the Cougars to five hits. The sophomore right-hander walked two and struck out two.
 
The Comets collected 15 hits in the nightcap and scored two runs in the bottom of the fifth inning after the visitors remained alive by scoring three runs in the top of the fifth. Lutz led the way with a two-run double to right in the third inning, a two-run single to left to highlight a five-run fourth inning, and the game-ending run-scoring single to right-center field in the fifth.
 
Freshman pitcher Kiara Flaviani held the Cougars to one run on five hits through four innings before Canyons bunched four hits and a walk together for three runs in the fifth. Haywood relieved Flaviani with two out in the fifth and retired the only batter she faced on a fly out to left to limit the damage.
 
With Palomar now requiring two runs to bring on the run rule, Doepping led off the bottom of the fifth with a single to left and yielded to sophomore pinch-runner Paige McLeod. A groundout and a single to center by freshman right fielder Dominique Garcia advanced McLeod to third, and Garcia and McLeod pulled off a double steal to score one run. Two walks loaded the bases with two out for Lutz, who ended the contest with her third hit while raising her state-leading batting average to .573.
 
Doepping and Armstrong had two hits each for the second time in the doubleheader, and Gonzalez, sophomore catcher Kayla Visser and freshman shortstop Nalia Nuanez also had two hits apiece.
 
Flaviani picked up the win to improve her record to 3-0. The right-hander walked one and struck out two in 4 2/3 innings of work.
 
The two losses dropped College of the Canyons to 20-19 on the season.
 
The Comets wrap up regular-season play April 22 with a Pacific Coast Athletic Conference game at home against Grossmont. At 14-0 in conference play, Palomar has already retained the PCAC crown.
 
The California Community College Athletic Association Southern California Regional playoffs begin May 2 with a best-of-three series for the first round.