No. 2 Comets de-claw Jaguars, 11-0
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Palomar | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 11 | 13 | 0 |
|
Southwestern | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
CHULA VISTA, CA. (3/20/2024) – Returning to the road after having another home game rained out four days earlier, Palomar College rolled to an 11-0 softball victory Wednesday at Southwestern.
Ranked No. 2 in the state in the latest 3CFCA coaches poll released Wednesday, the Comets scored in all five innings of the Pacific Coast Athletic Conference contest shortened by the mercy-run rule. In addition to being Palomar's 11th consecutive victory, the win was the fifth straight game decided in five innings by the mercy rule.
While improving to 19-1 overall and 6-0 in PCAC play, the Comets also registered their 10th shutout of the season, a two-hitter featuring sophomore Guilianna "Gigi" Clavel pitching four scoreless innings for her 14th win of the year against one loss. Clavel allowed two hits, two walks and struck out one. Freshman Nevaeh Haywood pitched the fifth inning with one walk and two strikeouts.
A 13-hit attack at the plate helped Palomar overcome the Jaguars (14-8, 3-3). Freshman first baseman Breanna Lutz drove in three runs with three hits, including a triple and two singles.
Palomar blew open a 6-0 advantage with a five-run fifth inning sparked by a leadoff single by sophomore shortstop Tess Altevers-Harris, an RBI double by Clavel, a two-run single by Lutz and a run-scoring single by sophomore third baseman Itzell De Los Rios.
Freshman second baseman Josephine Heuberger and De Los Rios each had a triple and a single for the visitors, and sophomore right-fielder Faith Steffany added a double and a single.
The Comets were scheduled to host Cerritos for a non-conference game on March 16, but wet grounds at Bradley Park forced that game to be postponed to a later date yet to be determined. Palomar has a home PCAC contest against San Diego Mesa on Friday at 1 p.m. before hosting Bakersfield on Saturday for a nonconference doubleheader. The first pitch for Game 1 on Saturday has been moved up to 11 a.m. in anticipation of precipitation forecast for later in the day.