CALISTOGA — Lexi Wurm got to leave work a little early, at least as a pitcher, Thursday afternoon as the Upper Lake Cougars staked her to a 17-0 lead in what turned into a 23-4 softball win over the Calistoga Wildcats in Calistoga.
It was the North Central League II opener for Upper Lake.
Wurm had a 7-0 lead to work with before throwing her first pitch in the bottom of the first. Upper Lake batted around in the third to score 10 more runs, at which point Upper Lake head coach Nick Williamson went to his bullpen for freshman Ashlyn Rhodes, who worked the final three innings.
“She did real well, she stepped up,” Williamson said of Rhodes, who was making her high school pitching debut.
Upper Lake had a 23-0 lead before Calistoga finally reached the scoreboard with a run in the bottom of the fourth. The game was stopped after Calistoga’s three-run fifth because of the 10-run mercy rule.
“We have a team that is very much about chemistry and today the girls were all playing very well,” Williamson said.
Nya Marcks led the Cougars at the plate, going 3-for-5 with four RBIs. Wurm (1-for-3) doubled and drove in three runs while Rhodes went 2-for-3 with a double and a RBI. Ashlyn’s older sister, Tristin Rhodes, went 1-for-3 with a RBI.
Wurm struck out four and walked two before giving way to Rhodes, who struck out one. They combined on a one-hitter.
Upper Lake squared its overall record at 6-6 against a Calistoga team playing only its fourth game.
“They used three pitchers against us,” Williamson said. “They were not as seasoned as us.”
