Watson's massive blast helps Tesoro win big

HACIENDA HEIGHTS - Tesoro pounded out 13 hits, including five extra-base hits, to overwhelm Los Altos of Hacienda Heights, 8-0, in the CIF-SS Division III softball semifinals on Tuesday at Los Altos High.

The Titans earned their first trip to the finals with the dominant victory. Tesoro will play Glendora, a 3-1 winner over Chino Hills, in the championship game on Friday or Saturday at Bill Barber Park in Irvine. The date and time will be announced Wednesday.

Tesoro had a 3-0 lead after three innings, but second baseman Rachel Watson dashed any hopes the Conquerors had of a comeback with her titanic, two-run homer in the sixth. Watson's shot to the opposite field soared over the 30-foot fence in right before landing on the East-bound 60 Freeway.

"I just waited for my pitch and swung as hard as I could and let the bat do the rest," Watson said.

The Titans got their hits and put up those runs on Western Michigan-bound Diana-Lynn Patterson, the reiging San Gabriel Valley player of the year. As awesome as the offense was, Oregon-bound Samantha Pappas' pitching performance for Tesoro (26-4) was just as impressive.

Pappas held Los Altos (23-7) to four hits and struck out eight to get the shutout. The Conquerors got two infield singles in the first and a single to lead off the second before Pappas retired 16 consecutive batters.

"I was just trying to throw hard and make my balls move," Pappas said. "I just tried to do anything I could for the team."

UC Davis-bound Chandler Wagner, who went 3 for 4 with two runs scored, got a two-out double in the top of the first and scored on Pappas' triple off the fence in left-center for a 1-0 lead.

Wagner and Pappas got back-to-back singles and scored on Kasey Lange's two-run triple in the third.

Watson delivered her bomb in the sixth and the Titans added three more runs in the seventh. Lange stole home on a first-and-third play, Addy Hoskins had an RBI single and Cassandra Roulund added an RBI double.

"We're so excited," Lange said. "This is what we've been working for all year. We've just been taking it one game at a time and we're finally here."

Contact the writer: carias@ocregister.com