Aztecs aggravate Spartans - again

STRATHMORE — Jenny Boone could easily be throwing temper tantrums right about now.

And no one would blame her.

For the second consecutive year, the Strathmore High School softball team was foiled in the championship game of its host tournament by Farmersville.

But Boone saw the defeat as a positive outcome.

“I think it was good for us for this to happen,” Boone, Strathmore’s coach, said after her team’s 6-0 loss. “We’ve won quite a few games recently.”

The Spartans rolled into the title game with a 13-1 massacre of Lindsay’s junior varsity squad and a 10-2 thumping of Central Valley Christian.

But they were shut down by Aztecs pitcher Heather Hall, who allowed a meager three hits and struck out five in a complete-game effort.

Strathmore (6-2) failed to move any of its runners past second base.

“My team motivated me to pitch harder,” Hall said.

Farmersville led 1-0 after 4 1-2 innings and it was still anybody’s contest.

But its offense erupted in the bottom of the fifth to provide tons of breathing room.

Valeria Guerra led off and drove a Krystal Austin fastball over the right-field fence.

Veronica Velasquez slapped a single through the 3-4 hole and Karen Garcia followed with a base hit up the middle.

Ayra Sanchez, Catherine Deloera and Nikki Martinez collected back-to-back-to-back singles, plating three runs.

Martinez, whose base hit was to right field, trotted all the way home on a series of Strathmore throwing errors.

The Aztecs (3-3) pushed across five runs in the fifth, padding their lead to 6-0.

“We just started to explode,” Farmersville coach Emily Torres said. “All of a sudden, a couple hits, and they started to pick up the momentum.”

In the top of the seventh, Strathmore hoped to create a two-out rally.

After two ground outs, Jessica Tenhet trickled a single past second base, but was caught stealing with Mercedes Magallon at the plate.

“Just mental mistakes, errors,” Boone said. “They started hitting a little and we didn’t.”

Austin only gave up seven hits, but the Spartans’ defense committed three errors, which led to three unearned runs.

And Boone was fully aware.

“We just need to work on the fundamentals,” she said. “Definitely hitting, definitely eliminating errors and working as a team. That was a problem today.”

Austin, Tenhet and Olivia Arellano were all 1 for 3.

Strathmore will play three non-league games before traveling to take on Farmersville in its East Sierra League opener at 3:30 p.m. April 1.

“We’ll be fine,” Boone said. “Now we’re looking forward to league.”

-- Contact Alex K.W. Schultz at 784-5000, Ext. 1049 or aschultz@portervillerecorder.com.