Vaqueros erupt for 12-run inning in a 16-3 rout

SBCC batted for about 35 minutes in the second inning on Friday, scoring 12 runs on 9 hits in a 16-3, five-inning softball win over Cuesta at Pershing Park.

The Vaqueros boosted their records to 8-19 overall and 4-7 in the WSC North.

Sixteen batters went to the plate in the bottom of the second and shortstop Emily LoneTree had a single, a two-run double and three RBIs in the second-inning explosion. LoneTree went 4-for-4 in the game and leadoff hitter Samantha Yanes was 3-4.

"Shelby [Featherston] and Carson [Dunckley] started that inning with singles and we fed off that momentum," said LoneTree, who upped her average to .338. "We were really pumped up, everyone was hitting in that inning."

Paige Powell had a two-run double, Featherston dropped a two-run double just inside the right-field foul line in her second at-bat of the second inning and LoneTree drove in the 11th and 12th runs with a double to left-center that gave the Vaqueros a 12-2 lead.

Cuesta (7-23, 2-9) committed seven errors, leading to nine unearned runs. The Vaqueros rapped out 16 hits, including four doubles and a triple.

"It's been a long time since I've seen 12 runs in an inning and it was great to see," said Vaquero coach Justine Bosio. "That's kind of what we've waiting for this season, a really big inning. We were disciplined at the plate and we were putting an inside swing on inside pitches and an outside swing on the outside pitches.

"We had a lot of balls go to right field, which was awesome to see. Even when we did hit it to people, we were hitting it hard. That's what I always preach – to be a hard out, whether you're fouling off a lot of pitches or hitting it hard and trying to get a hit or an error."

It marked the second time the Vaqueros have scored a dozen runs in an inning this year. They put up a 12-spot in the fourth inning of a 22-11 win at Cerro Coso on Feb. 7.

The Vaqueros added four runs in the fourth. Mia Carranza, Yanes and LoneTree singled with one out. Carranza scored on a passed ball and two more runs came in when the shortstop threw wild to first trying to get Hannah Weaver. Janet Salas brought home the 16th run with a double down the left-field line.

The Vaqueros will host L.A. Valley in a non-conference doubleheader on Saturday at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.

Shelby Featherston 2-run triple just inside RF line during 12-run 2nd inning. Vaqueros lead Cuesta 12-2. pic.twitter.com/zKd1oUzvkq

— SBCCVaqueros (@SBCCVaqueros) April 5, 2019