Key second inning rally, dominance by Rubalcava in circle lead Vintage past Redwood in pitcher’s duel
By Kyle Foster
Follow on Twitter/X: @NapaKyle @NapaSportsNews
In pitcher’s duels, scoring can be a challenge. But if one team does this, it can vault them to victory.
On Tuesday afternoon at the softball diamond, Vintage did this as they beat Redwood-Larkspur, 1-0, in a pitcher’s duel.
The Crushers (1-1) scored the game’s lone run in the bottom of the second. It all started when Devin Viruet was hit by a pitch in the foot and two batters later, Mia Griffith poked a double to the left-center field gap. On the next pitch to Noelle Rofkahr who went to the backstop, Viruet scored the lone run.
“I think Mia is really seeing the ball right now really well and putting the ball in play from our game last week to this week,” Vintage head coach Megan Lopez said of the game’s lone run. “Devin might not be our fastest player, but she’s definitely a smart runner and able to pick that pitch off going to backstop and scoring for us.”
Vintage had another chance to score in the fourth when Brianna Allen singled and got to second on a wild pitch. But a groundout ended the inning.
Their last chance was again in the fifth when Ava Raines poked a single to right and then got out on a fielder’s choice by Malina Viruet.
In the game, Vintage was 0-for-2 hitting with runners in scoring position. In the game, the Crushes got just 3 hits on the day.
The main reason they had such a hard time getting anything going on offense against Giants pitcher Stella Belluomini. The sophomore was equally as dominant as she struck out 8 and gave up the one run, which was unearned.
She was able to keep the Crushers off balance all day with a nasty dropball.
“It was just falling right in where it’s past you and the umpire calls it a strike,” Vintage junior pitcher Angie Rubalcava said of the challenge of hitting the tough drop ball. “It’s hard to get some pitches. But sometimes you’ve just got to tip your hat.”
The challenge was that Vintage had a hard time adjusting to the pitch being on the inside corner of the plate.
“I think she challenged us with that drop all that you were talking about and throwing us inside,” Lopez explained. “We didn’t make the adjustments as quickly as we would like to have. But I’ll take the win.”
However, even more dominant on the day was Rubalcava. The junior right-hander struck out a whopping 12 batters and walked just one. She threw 96 pitches on the way to getting her first winning decision of the season by throwing a complete game shutout.
“She picked up right where she left off last year, but she’s stronger,” Lopez added. “She’s really honed in on her position as a pitcher, as a leader, and knowing where her strengths are. I’m really proud of her so far this season with two games under her belt.”
Rubalcava carried a no-hit bid into the fifth inning as well. The only time she even had to worry about giving up a run was in the seventh. Otherwise, the other baserunners were never a threat.
With it being such a close game, she knew she had to stay ahead in the count as well.
“Every at-bat, I knew I had to stay ahead,” Rubalcava pointed out. “Even if a runner got on, I wouldn’t worry. I would just know, ‘I got this runner. I’m gonna get this at bat. I’m gonna get her.’”
The win was also nice because rain has been impacting them like everyone. It’s been hard to play games consistently and even practice on their field for any normal time. It was also nice after they were a few outs away from winning their opener last Wednesday.
“It has definitely been a wild week with the rain and indoor practices,” Lopez explained. “I’m glad we got the win now.”
Vintage will be back in action on Thursday at 3:30 pm when they host Granada-Livermore.
