Things were looking good for the SBCC softball team after the Vaqueros scored five runs in the second to take a 5-0 lead over Long Beach on Saturday in a nonconference game at Pershing Park.
But the Vikings (11-10) turned the tables with a 10-spot in the fourth and went on to beat Santa Barbara 17-6 in six innings. Long Beach sent 15 batters to the plate in the fourth, collecting 10 runs on eight hits with a walk, a hit batter and three errors.
The Vaqueros (9-8) committed seven errors in the game, leading to eight unearned runs. Shortstop Alice Cen went 3-4 with two RBIs and Brianna Gill was 2-2 with an RBI but they also had two errors apiece.
“It was a very frustrating day,” said coach Paula Congleton. “Physically our kids were prepared to play and mentally, they were so unprepared. Our kids should have been so up and so excited to be able to play another great team and yet, I don’t know what we thought.
“We didn’t think because we had a lot of mental errors and seven physical errors. After that second inning, we just shut down.”
SBCC took a 5-0 lead in the second as three Viking errors led to five unearned runs. Gill and Emma Nordin had run-scoring hits and Cen delivered a two-run single to right field.
The Vaqueros were coming off a big 2-0 win over Hancock, the No. 8 team in Southern Cal, two days earlier when Celeste Acosta pitched a one-hitter. On Saturday, she allowed one hit in the first three innings before the floodgates opened.
Acosta gave up 10 runs on nine hits but only four were earned. Alexandra Abbott pitched the last two innings, allowing seven runs on nine hits.
Amanda Sandoval went 2-5 with four RBIs for the Vikings while Rayleen Pallan, Melissa Yepez and Mary Gonzales were all 3-5. The top four hitters in the Long Beach batting order went 11-20 with eight RBIs and 10 runs.
“Mentally, our kids just didn’t show up today,” said Congleton. “We have to regroup and get our mental focus back.”
The Vaqueros return to WSC Gold action on Thursday when they host Ventura at 2:30 p.m.
