Injuries have plagued San Marcos all season.
Head coach Cathy Stoughton still believes a fully healthy team presents a better representation of the season her team has had this year. Most of the lineup has faced nagging injuries all season. Ice packs melt on sore body parts and players are forced to adjust to new positions or move spots in the lineup.
Sophomore pitcher Kaylie Juergens is a prime example. The sophomore faced a severe hip injury, forcing her to miss over half of the season. It took her no time to get back into rhythm in the circle. Her first two performances were both complete games, and in a 7-3 win over Del Valle on Friday, she held the Lady Cardinals scoreless in five out of seven innings.
“Honestly, just watching, I was kind of down about it. I should have been more excited watching my team but I was like, ‘Dang, I could be out there with them,’” Juergens said. “But now that I’m out here, I’m just so energized and happy that I’m back out there with them and playing. It’s a big change for me.”
She didn’t succeed without the help of her defense. Freshman Brycelyn Pinales — one of the injury replacements for freshman infielder Ava Serna — set the tone at third base by being responsible for half of Del Valle’s first six outs. After surrendering two runs in the first inning, the Lady Rattlers turned up the defensive intensity, making every play you could think of defensively. To end the top of the third, junior catcher McKeanne Saenz threw a laser quick throw catching the runner trying to steal third.
That gave the purple and white some incentive. On offense, senior shortstop Kaylee Cavazos singled to left field to drive in a run. Immediately after that, sophomore Angelina Alvarez copied Cavazos’ moves with an RBI single on a line drive to center. The score handed San Marcos its first lead of the night, 3-2.
The defense continued to hold strong. Although Del Valle pulled off a run on an error, with one out and runners in scoring position, Eliza Silva wanted to end the inning herself. The ball popped up right into her glove in the infield, allowing her to toss it to second for the double play. That play saved two runners from scoring.
Head coach Cathy Stoughton was pleased by her team’s ability to get major outs when they needed it.
“Our defense bailed us out of a couple of tough situations, the throw Annaleah (Lombardo) made from right field. Those are things that we need to make happen in order to prevent them from putting more runners in scoring position and putting more pressure on the defense. We turned the double play,” Stoughton said. “We made smart decisions with our throws, we didn’t go the long way, we went the short base. Juergens never got her head down, even when she was a little wild, she came back in, battled and got some big outs. Of course, to end the game, to have a shot like that hit right back in your face and you just raise your glove to get the final out, it’s just really nice to see her back out there.”
San Marcos (14-12-1, 4-8 district) added three more runs in the bottom of the fifth extending its score to 7-3. Meanwhile, Juergens and company held the Lady Cardinals scoreless from the fourth inning on.
Although the Lady Rattlers are likely out of playoff contention, they still are playing every game like they are fighting for a spot. They take on Austin Bowie (18-7, 9-2) on Tuesday in the final home contest of the season at 7 p.m.
“They’ve never quit this year. The way we look at it, we’ve got a district championship game tonight, we have one on Tuesday and we’ve got one on Friday, that’s how we’re viewing it,” Stoughton said. “This is our last Saturday. We’re going to come in, work out and you know, we’re still just as committed to every game.”
