Kailey Snyder pitched a complete game and hit a three-run homer on Thursday at Pershing Park but it wasn’t enough for SBCC in a 6-4 softball loss to Ventura.
Snyder, a freshman from St. Joseph High, retired 13 straight batters from the first inning to the fifth in the WSC Gold Division opener. She gave the Vaqueros (6-2, 0-1) a 4-2 lead with her team’s first homer of the year — a three-run blast to right field in the fourth.
Santa Barbara cut the deficit to 2-1 in the third when Jasmyne Holmes led off with a single and came around to score on an error. Ventura (12-6, 1-0) rallied for two runs in the sixth and two more in the seventh to hand SBCC its first home loss in six games.
“Kailey threw a phenomenal game and defensively, we didn’t make a lot of the basic plays that we do day-in and day-out,” said coach Paula Congleton. “That gave them opportunities to score.
“In the sixth inning, Kailey gets to third (on a single and two-base error) with one out and we leave her there. We had a little lack of focus at the plate.”
Janelle Wong had a double and two singles while Snyder and Lauren Takayesu each had a pair of hits. Snyder allowed eight hits and struck out five.
“Kailey was throwing heat today, averaging between 59 and 64 mph,” noted Congleton. “Unfortunately our offense didn’t pick her up. We only had eight hits and left five runners in scoring position. You do that and you’re going to lose against a good team.”
SBCC plays Pasadena (9 a.m.) and San Bernardino Valley (1:30 p.m.) on Friday at the Golden West Tournament in Huntington Beach. Pasadena is the only team to shut out the Vaqueros this year, winning 2-0 on Feb. 15.
VENTURA 6, SBCC 4
Ventura …….. 200 002 2 — 6 8 2
SBCC ……….. 001 300 0 — 4 8 3
