UPPER LAKE >> Julia Mooney allowed just one run through the first four innings and the Upper Lake Cougars built a big lead early en route to beating the Geyserville Broncos 12-7 in non-league softball action on Wednesday afternoon in Upper Lake.
Mooney and the Cougars (1-0) were cruising along with a 10-1 lead through four innings before the Broncos began to make some noise. They scored three runs in the top of the fifth and three more in the seventh to draw a bit closer to Upper Lake.
“I see great things with what I have out there,” Upper Lake coach Kelly Coburn said of her players. “I have a lot more depth this year. We’ll have 20 girls when everyone’s out.”
The young Cougars should pick up three upperclassmen next week when seniors Natalie Karlsson and Kejhana Taylor and junior Christina Wilson join the team. They are taking a week off after participating in winter sports.
“I’ve got a lot of rookies, but I love my rookies,” Coburn said.
Geyserville nicked Mooney for a run in the top of the first but she blanked the Broncos over the next three innings, striking out the side in the second. She finished with 10 strikeouts and walked four while scattering five hits.
Upper Lake gave its pitcher a healthy lead with a five-run bottom of the first and the Cougars continued to build on their advantage, adding two runs in the third and three more in the fourth. They tacked on insurance runs in the fifth and sixth innings.
The Cougars finished with 18 hits. Bailey Young led the way by going 3-for-3 with four RBIs and Mallory Henry, Colleen Doyle, Cheyanne Obedoza, Adrianna Saldana, Katlyn Minnis and Megan Franco added two hits apiece.
Upper Lake just missed its first home run of the season when Minnis legged out what appeared to be an three-run inside-the-park homer with a drive to the fence down the right-field line in the bottom of the fourth inning. While two runs scored on the play, Minnis failed to tag home plate and was called out, settling for a two-run triple instead.
Upper Lake hosts Lower Lake (1-0) today at 3:30 p.m.
Game notes: Upper Lake had 10 game bats stolen from its equipment shed last week. The thieves also took two old mitts and a tub full of old uniforms. The 10 bats are worth about $2,000. “Luckily I had two (game) bats with me during an indoor practice,” Coburn said. The Cougars also received a $500 contribution from Rob Young to purchase two other bats. “I’m not sure why they wanted the old game uniforms,” Coburn said.
