MIDDLETOWN >> Despite allowing a two-run home run to St. Vincent’s Alexis Torres in the top of the first inning, Middletown High School pitcher Renee Edwards settled down to lead the Mustangs to a 4-2 non-league softball victory over the Petaluma team on Friday afternoon in Middletown.
“Someone told me that’s the first time we’ve beaten them in like 15 years,” Middletown coach Barry Glosser said.
Edwards gave up a leadoff single in the first and the home run to Torres two batters later, a shot down the left-field line. She blanked St. Vincent on one hit the rest of the way while striking out 13 and walking only two.
Middletown (4-2) closed to 2-1 in the bottom of the first inning and pushed ahead to stay with a two-run third. Hannah Flynn’s RBI double knotted the score at 2 and then Edwards knocked in Flynn with a RBI single. The Mustangs added an insurance run in the fifth.
The first two players in Middletown’s batting order, slap hitters Kendall Mildenberger and Aly Ferguson, each went 2-for-4. Edwards also finished with two hits.
“Our slap hitters are starting to get it,” Glosser said.
Middletown plays at Healdsburg on Wednesday.
In other softball action Friday:
Santa Rosa 6
Lower Lake 2
At Lower Lake, Lower Lake jumped out to a 2-0 before the Santa Rosa Panthers rallied to win the non-league game.
The Trojans (4-2) wasted no time taking the lead after losing pitcher Shelbie Harris blanked the Panthers in the top of the first. In the bottom half of the inning, Emma Diener led off with a single, moved to second on a groundout and scored on Ashlynn Mock’s double over the left-fielder’s head. After Alex DeGraw walked, Kristen Celli singled home Mock to make it 2-0.
“We had them on the ropes right there,” Lower Lake coach Chris Emberson said.
Santa Rosa bounced back with two runs in the top of the second to tie the game and pushed ahead to stay with a run in the third.
“With a team like that you can’t give up free bases and make mistakes,” Emberson said. “You won’t beat them if you do and that’s what we did in the top of the second.”
Two hit batters, a walk, a key infield error and a two-run single put Santa Rosa right back in the game.
Lower Lake managed just one hit after its two-run first, a single by Mock (2-for-3).
“We were putting the ball into play and making some solid contact but they (Panthers) made all the plays,” Emberson said.
One example of Santa Rosa’s solid defense came in the bottom of the sixth when the Panthers’ shortstop backhanded a ball deep in the hole and bounced a throw to first base that the first baseman scooped out of the dirt to rob Destiny Apodaca of a hit.
“It was one of the best plays I’ve ever seen,” Emberson said.
Harris, who recently rejoined the team after a leg injury, struggled with her control and walked five. She also struck out seven.
The Trojans are home Tuesday to play Healdsburg.
Baseball
Middletown 10
Upper Lake 0
At Upper Lake, Cody Chorjel took a no-hitter into the fifth inning before Upper Lake’s Sal Sanchez rolled a single into right field, Upper Lake’s lone hit in a non-league loss to the Middletown Mustangs, who pounded out 13 hits.
Chorjel was making his first start of the season and did well. He faced 18 batters in 4 2/3 innings, struck out nine of them and walked four. Tyler Holt and John Kelly followed him to the mound and combined for 2 1/3 hitless innings with five strikeouts and no walks.
The Mustangs (2-5) scored in each of the first four innings to build a 6-0 lead. They added another run in the sixth and three more in the seventh.
Chris Davis continued his red-hot hitting for Middletown, going 4-for-5 with two doubles and two RBIs. Stephen Amos went 2-for-2 with a double and Albert Ruske went 2-for-3.
Losing pitcher Cody Rybolt went the distance for Upper Lake (1-4), striking out eight and walking three. He allowed only four earned runs.
“We just made two many errors,” Upper Lake first-year coach E.J. Crandell said. “They (Mustangs) hit the ball really well, but there were some balls hit into the outfield we should have caught but didn’t call for and let drop.”
On Rybolt’s complete-game effort, Crandell said, “He threw 158 pitches. They hit him pretty good but he’s just a freshman.”
Upper Lake returns to action Wednesday in Esparto while Middletown faces Del Norte in the opening round of the El Molino Tournament on Thursday in Forestville at 4 p.m.
Tennis
Cloverdale 3
Clear Lake 2
At Cloverdale, Ethan Jones won a marathon in No. 2 singles, the final match of the day, but the Clear Lake Cardinals still lost to the Cloverdale Eagles in the Coastal Mountain Conference opener for both squads.
Jones beat Tanner MacDonald 6-7 (7-5), 6-3, 7-2 for Clear Lake’s second and final win. A standard tiebreaker was played in a lieu of a third set because of time constraints.
Clear Lake picked up its other victory in second doubles as Scotty Mather and Sereno Dominguez beat Eli Arreola and Ross Sceales 6-4, 6-2.
“Second doubles played really well,” Clear Lake coach Milo Meyer said. “It was nice to see them win.”
Clear Lake came close in first doubles as Liam Stahl and Arturo Olmedo won the first set before Cloverdale’s Luke Pope and Emmett Lawson rallied for a 5-7, 6-2, 6-2 victory.
In other singles action, Adan Reynolds beat Clear Lake’s Bailey Elkington 6-0, 6-0 in No. 1 singles while Pedro Sanchez defeated Clear Lake’s Chris Vincent 6-4, 6-3 in No. 3 singles.
Clear Lake did win an exhibition singles match as Subhagya Joshi beat Ariana Mendoza 6-4, 5-4.
The Cardinals return to action Tuesday in Middletown and are home Wednesday against St. Helena.
Middletown 3
Kelseyville 2
At Kelseyville, Middletown won both doubles matches to edge Kelseyville 3-2 in CMC action, spoiling the Kelseyville coaching debut of Laurie Vargas.
Robert Amante and Jonny Nance defeated Milly Cacho and Fernando Garcia 6-0, 6-0 in first doubles while Elena Garay and Christian Nikolov beat Kristen Armendola and Savannah Molley 6-4, 6-3 in second doubles.
“Elena carried the day,” Middletown coach Vic Wroobel said of the second doubles match. “She hit some big winners when we needed them.”
Kelseyville had better success in singles as Claire Vargas defeated Ari Diaz 6-4, 6-0 in No. 2 singles and Mary McCallister rallied for a 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 win over Trevor Smith in No. 3 singles. Middletown prevailed in No. 1 singles where Chris King beat Drew Ashby 6-1, 6-2.
“They fought hard, I was proud of all of them,” Vargas said of the Knights. “I feel like we’re going to have a great year. I want to win of course, but I also want them to have a good time.”
Middletown hosts Clear Lake on Tuesday while Kelseyville returns to action Friday at Cloverdale.
