Prep softball: San Rafael snags first league title in 20 years
There was a championship vibe at the San Rafael High softball diamond on Monday and the host Bulldogs responded accordingly.
With a chance to earn at least a share of their first MCAL championship since 2004, the Bulldogs defeated defending champ Redwood for the second time this season with a determined 3-0 effort.
The Bulldogs (17-2, 11-2 MCAL) play at Tam on Wednesday while the Giants (15-6, 10-3) will be home against San Marin. A win gives San Rafael the league title outright. San Rafael has clinched the top seed in the MCAL playoffs, which start next Wednesday.
“I think we’ve got a team that can do some damage,” said first-year San Rafael coach Thomas Drummer. “We’re playing together, they’re having fun. You can see the crowds are coming out — they’re supporting us and you know what — we’re rolling.”
On a very windy afternoon with both sideline fences lined with the San Rafael boys soccer team on one side and the baseball team on the other, the conditions could not have been worse for the visiting Giants starting with the bottom of the first inning.
The Bulldogs, who have won 13 straight games, scored three runs in the first inning. Sophia Everett led off with a triple that blew over the left fielder’s head.
“I think that’s a catchable ball,” said Redwood coach Emily Atkinson. “She ran in a little bit and the wind kind of got it. That definitely sets the tone differently for the game.”
Everett then broke home on a routine grounder by pitcher Thomara Drummer to second that was mishandled allowing the run to score and the runner to reach first safely. Angel Amesa followed with a single down the right-field line, moving Drummer to third and then stole second.
Drummer scored when Cassidy Kaplan bounced a short infield ball that the Giants used for their first out. Gabby Rodriguez popped the ball over second base to score Amesa for all the scoring of the game.
After the Bulldogs gave Drummer a three-run lead, the junior right-hander never let up finishing with eight strikeouts and scattering four hits.
Redwood’s biggest threat came in the top of the sixth with two outs after a rare two-out error by Everett. Hailey Carlton had singled to left and ended up on third when Ava Brown’s infield hit to short was overthrown. With runners at second and third, Drummer struck out Gia Meyers to keep the Giants scoreless.
“No mercy,” said Drummer, the pitcher. “Holding down the lead is a huge thing. Even if it’s a couple of runs, it still means a lot, especially against this team because they’re so competitive.”
As her San Rafael teammates continued to celebrate something the program has not experienced since 2004, Drummer was touched by the moment.
“I am so honored,” she said. “I love my teammates. And they appreciate my work a lot. We work hard.”
The Giants, who had won six straight, got a solid effort from pitcher Stella Belluomini. She did not give up a run after the first inning, striking out eight and allowing four hits. She had one-two-three innings in the third, fourth and fifth.