Allyssa Purser drove in five runs and Liza Lozano capped a nine-run first inning with a grand slam as Apple Valley outslugged Oak Hills 16-13 in a showdown between the Mojave River League’s top teams Wednesday, April 15.
Both teams entered unbeaten in league play, but Apple Valley improved to 5-0 while Oak Hills fell to 4-1 to close the first round of league action.
Apple Valley erupted for nine runs in the first inning, highlighted by Lozano’s grand slam. Oak Hills answered immediately with three runs in the bottom half, then surged ahead with five runs in the second inning. Dallyse York hit a grand slam and Kayla Cazares followed with a solo home run to pull the Bulldogs within a run, before Oak Hills took a 10-9 lead in the third on a two-run home run from Amaya Sigala.
The Sun Devils responded again, as Purser hit a two-run home run in the fourth to give Apple Valley an 11-10 lead. Apple Valley added another run in the fifth and held off Oak Hills the rest of the way, with both teams trading home runs again in the seventh as Purser and Sigala each went deep.
Purser went 3 for 4 with five RBIs and two runs, while Lozano went 3 for 5 with four RBIs and three runs.
Makaylee Cerf went 3 for 5 with two RBIs, and Madison Buzzard went 3 for 5 with one RBI and two runs.
For Oak Hills, York ended 4 for 5 with five RBIs and three runs, Sigala went 3 for 4 with four RBIs and four runs, and Cazares went 2 for 4 with two RBIs.
The teams will open the second round of league play Friday and meet again May 1 at Apple Valley.
Other softball scores from April 15
Serrano 8, Hesperia 7
At Phelan, the Diamondbacks jumped into a tie for third place in the MRL standings.
Alia Berlanga led Serrano’s offense by going 3 for 4 with one RBI and one run; Lilliana Gutierrez and Aubrey Malone both went 2 for 4 with two RBIs and one run.
For Hesperia, Jenevy Hidalgo went 3 for 3 with two home runs, three RBIs and two runs, and Annamarie Flores went 3 for 4 with one RBI.
Sultana 19, Burroughs 6
At Ridgecrest, Charlotte Thompson drove in five runs to lead the Sultans past the Burros.
Thompson ended 5 for 6 with a home run and three runs.
Alondra Flores went 3 for 6 with two home runs, three RBIs and four runs; Maddie Rios went 2 for 5 with two RBIs; and Camila Casillas went 2 for 4 with one RBI.
University Prep 18, Excelsior 1
At Victorville, the Jaguars improved to 2-1 in Cross Valley League play with a victory over the Eagles.
Paityn Zimmerman went 2 for 2 with two walks, three RBIs and three runs; Sadie Gonzalez went 2 for 2 with two RBIs, four runs and one stolen base; Amarie Castro went 2 for 2 with two RBIs and one run; and Brieana Villanueva went 2 for 2 with two walks and two RBIs and struck out nine over three innings.
Hesperia Christian 7, Academy for Academic Excellence 6
At Hesperia, Elyse Vander Weide scored the game-winning run in the seventh inning.
Vander Weide was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning, stole second and third, and scored on a pop up from Charli Lewis. Vander Weide ended 1 for 2 with two RBIs, three runs and four stolen bases.
Riverside Prep 6, Downey 4
At Downey, Lila Morris struck out 14 and allowed one earned run on three hits as the Silver Knights won their 11th-straight.
Sadie Martinez went 2 for 4 with three RBIs, and Denise Hernandez went 2 for 2 with a run.
Baseball scores from April 15
Hesperia 4, Sultana 1
At Hesperia, the Scorpions remain atop the Mojave River League as Carlos Ramirez tossed a complete game with six strikeouts.
At the plate, he went 2 for 3 with two RBIs.
Burroughs 9, Apple Valley 4
At Apple Valley, the Burros held onto second place in the standings with a victory over the Sun Devils.
Kanon Schiller led the Burros by going 2 for 4 and struck out 10 batters.
Oak Hills 21, Serrano 10
At Serrano, the Bulldogs surged back from an early deficit, and paired with Apple Valley’s loss, are alone in third place in the MRL standings.
Manuel Berumen went 4 for 4 with three RBIs, three runs and one stolen base; Eric Sotelo went 2 for 3 with a home run, five RBIs and one run; and Kelvin Lackey Jr. went 3 for 5 with one RBI, three runs and one stolen base.
For Serrano, Aiden Brambila went 3 for 5 with two RBIs and one run, while Broden Langley went 2 for 4 with a home run, four RBIs and one run.
Didn’t see your team’s scores in this roundup? All local varsity scores and results can be reported by email to Daily Press reporter Jose Quintero at JQuintero@VVDailyPress.com. You can also reach out to him on Instagram at @760Varsity or on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @J0seQuintero to report any results throughout the season.
This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Apple Valley outslugs Oak Hills in a MRL softball showdown | April 15 roundup
Reporting by Jose Quintero, Victorville Daily Press / Victorville Daily Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
