Spartans carve up Mustangs

STRATHMORE — A stalky heavyweight vs. a skimpy bantamweight.

An undefeated power vs. a broken-down machine.

And yes, things got as ugly as they sound.

The Strathmore High softball team, which clinched the East Sierra League title last week against Farmersville, hosted a battered and beaten Laton program Wednesday.

The Spartans needed just five innings to shellac the Mustangs 10-0.

“I knew it would be this way,” Strathmore coach Jenny Boone said. “We just cranked the pitching machine way down and had a good practice [Monday].”

The Spartans, with a cast of six seniors, are now one game away from polishing off their undefeated season.

They will travel to take on McFarland at 4:15 p.m. Friday.

“McFarland’s going to probably be a little more of a challenge,” Boone said, “but we should win.”

Strathmore (16-4, 9-0 ESL) piled on 10 hits while pitcher Krystal Austin held the Mustangs to just one.

Austin racked up eight strikeouts and was true on 10 of 17 first-pitch strikes.

“A lot of it was working with my riseball,” Austin, a four-year varsity starter, said. “My riseball was working really well.”

Laton shot itself in the foot by committing five errors.

Strathmore, on the other hand, played mistake-free while converting a few key plays on defense to preserve the shutout.

In the top half of the third inning, Laton’s Jenna Richmond led off and drew a four-pitch walk.

The next batter, Cassie Lopez, smashed a line drive toward shortstop Kim Austin. Austin made a diving catch, then turned to double up Richmond.

“Very good backup,” Krystal Austin said. “I have lots of trust in my team.”

The elder Austin was at the forefront of the offensive assault as well, finishing 2-for-3 with a pair of doubles and three RBIs.

“We do a lot of hitting at practice,” she said. “It’s worked really well for us.”

The Spartans went to work right away, sending nearly the whole lineup to the plate in the opening inning.

With one out and Mercedes Magallon at second base, Olivia Arellano towered a fly ball to left fielder Richmond, who was unable to make the catch. Magallon hustled around third to score.

Krystal Austin laced a double down the left-field line to bring Arellano home and Haylee Cristian worked another walk from pitcher Amanda Hawkins.

Sara Gonzalez, who pinch ran for Austin, and Cristian advanced on a passed ball before Kim Austin dropped a base hit into left to push both runners across.

Austin, who advanced to third on the relay home, later scored on a bunt single laid down by Angelica Sanchez.

With one frame in the books, Strathmore had already assembled a 5-0 advantage.

“We work together all-around,” Arellano, also a senior, said. “We encourage each other and try to pick each other up.”

While Laton found it impossible to manufacture any kind of offense, the Spartans were feasting at the plate.

Strathmore scored four more times in the second inning and tacked on another run shortly after to end the game quickly.

“We always play as a team,” Boone said. “They’re systematic, they do everything the same every game and they practice hard.”

Kim Austin went 2-for-3 with two RBIs, Arellano finished 1-for-3 with a pair of RBIs and Cristian was 1-for-2 with a double and one RBI.

Magallon was 1-for-2 with an RBI while Sanchez went 1-for-3 with an RBI. Savannah Rascon and Mata were both 1-for-3.

No matter what happens Friday in McFarland, the Spartans can rest assured they are ESL champions.

“It feels awesome,” Krystal Austin said. “It took us four years of building.”

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