Softball Drops First Game of the Season

TORRANCE, Calif. --- No. 1 El Camino College had its nine-game winning streak snapped with a 2-1 non-conference loss to Orange Coast on Tuesday at the ECC Softball Field.

The Warriors, who came into the game averaging just under nine runs and a shade over 10 hits per game, were held to one run on five hits by the No. 15 Pirates.

Emma Garcia, Savanna Kastigar and Lilly Lewis accounted for all five of the team's hits with the rest of the lineup going 0-for-15 against Pirates pitchers Daniella Sanchez and Kelsey McNair. Sanchez drew the start and went five scoreless innings as she struck out two and allowed three hits. McNair picked up the save, tossing the final two innings and striking out four despite giving up a run.

Lexi Ramirez suffered her first loss in the circle for ECC as she tossed a complete game. She allowed just four hits and struck out seven but a two-run second inning for the Pirates proved to be enough to pull out the win on this day for the Pirates.

In the second, the Pirates scored on an RBI triple and a sacrifice fly to take an early 2-0 lead.

It stayed that way until the sixth inning when Garcia led off the frame with a single to center field. Kastigar then doubled down the left-field line to bring in Garcia to cut the deficit in half. After Lewis walked, the pair of baserunners advanced on a wild pitch, putting the game-tying and go-ahead runs in scoring position with no outs.

But the big play of the inning came on the next pitch as McNair again threw it to the back stop. Kastigar broke for home plate but the Pirates were able to pounce on the loose ball and get it to the plate to beat Kastigar and record the out.

Lewis would advance to third on the play but McNair struck out Ramirez and Emily Gamboa to end the frame and keep the Warriors down by a run.

The Warriors had one final chance in the seventh as Jackie Ordonez was hit by a pitch to open the inning. She would make it to second on a sacrifice bunt and then stole third with two outs, but McNair kept the baserunner there with two strikeouts to end the game.

The Warriors will return to conference action on Thursday with a big road test against No. 3 Cerritos. First pitch is set for 3 p.m.