ANAHEIM – Orange Lutheran looked every bit the part of the defending tournament champ at the start of the afternoon.
While fatigue appeared to play a role in a far more average showing on the back end of Wednesday’s double-header, the Lancers rode a dazzling all-around performance from their senior ace to stay alive in their pursuit of a second consecutive Michelle Carew Classic championship.
Maddy Dwyer tossed a two-hit shutout and helped her own cause by belting a two-run home run as part of No. 4 Orange Lutheran’s 3-0 victory over Kennedy in the second-round of the Carew Classic Wednesday evening at Peralta Park.
The top-seeded Lancers (14-2) – who defeated Huntington Beach to win last season’s tournament title – were the first team to punch their ticket to Friday’s quarterfinal round. They will await the results from Thursday’s action to determine their next opponent.
“It’s always a good day when you’re 2-0,” Lancers coach Steve Miklos said. “We were pretty fired up this morning, but with the break and everything, we were just a little flat in that second game. But I’m happy because sometimes when you’re flat, you still need to find a way to win those games, and we did that. Maddy pitched well and shut them down.”
Starting her third game in just over a 24-hour window, Dwyer pitched consecutive shutouts on Wednesday, striking out five Kennedy batters and allowing just a pair of harmless singles in the sixth and seventh innings. The senior right-hander was perfect through four innings, and in combining her numbers with the Lancers 9-0 first-round win over Santiago of Corona, the senior ace allowed just five hits over 13 innings of work.
Against Rosary on Tuesday afternoon, she struck out three batters in three innings of work and gave up no hits.
“She’s throwing really well and our defense is playing really well,” Miklos added. “We made all our plays in the field which helps the pitcher out a lot.”
Dwyer’s two-run shot to left-center field came with two outs in the second inning. Senior catcher Lauren Espalin accounted for the only other run of the game, slicing an RBI double down the left field line, scoring Mya Rodriguez from first base in the top of the third.
Kennedy (6-5) advanced to the second-round with an 8-6 win over Valencia of Valencia to open the day.
Also in the Carew Classic:
No. 1 Los Alamitos 11, Murrieta Valley 3: Senior second baseman Allisha Martinez ripped a bases-clearing double as part of a five-run first inning that fueled the Griffins (13-2) past the Nighthawks. Los Alamitos will play Foothill on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. in the second round.
No. 2 Mission Viejo 5, Cypress 1: After five scoreless frames, Kyra Snyder’s two-run double put the Diablos up in the sixth inning. An RBI triple from Olivia Viggiano and a two-run homer from Bella Loya padded the lead and helped the Diablos (11-4) advance to Thursday’s second round. Mission Viejo will play the La Habra-Roosevelt winner at 7:30 p.m.
Huntington Beach 5, No. 5 Pacifica 1: Freshman pitcher Grace Uribe scattered just three hits in an impressive complete-game effort, giving the Oilers (6-5) their second win of the day and a spot in Friday’s quarterfinals. Uribe no-hit the Mariners (9-6) through five and two-thirds innings on Wednesday. She also went 2-for-2 at the plate with an RBI single in the fourth and later scored after a leadoff triple in sixth.
Mater Dei of Chula Vista 1, No. 9 Capistrano Valley 0: Despite a tremendous one-hit performance from senior pitcher Delaney Hull in the circle, the Cougars (9-5) were unable to manufacture any runs in a first-round loss.
No. 10 Canyon 9, Great Oak 1: Senior centerfielder Taryn Young blasted a three-run home run as part of the Comanches first-round victory. Canyon (10-5) will play the winner of Bullard and West Ranch on Thursday at 1:15 p.m. in the second round.
