Edison survives 13-inning battle with Marina
It was a day of marathon games in the Sunset League, and all of the teams involved realized the importance of every victory.
Nicole Zopotoczny delivered an RBI single in the top of the 13th inning and sophomore Sammy Cordova pitched the final 10 innings, including a perfect 13th with two strikeouts, as No. 3 Edison pulled out a 4-3 victory over No. 6 Marina on Tuesday at Marina High.
Cordova scattered seven hits, walked one and struck out 15 to nail down the victory. Corodova relieved Ally Hecht in the fourth.
The victory kept the Chargers (21-3, 4-1) one game behind first-place Los Alamitos (20-2-1, 5-0). The Vikings (14-5-1, 3-2) fall two games behind the Griffins, who needed a two-run double with two outs in the bottom of the 13th to beat Fountain Valley, 5-4, in extra innings Tuesday.
"You still gotta stay on your toes," Cordova said. "You can't expect a big win. You have to stay on your toes to win. We've been doing really well lately. Hopefully, we can keep it going."
Jamie Sullivan, who went 3 for 5 with a home run, two runs and two RBIs, gave Marina a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first with a line-drive homer into the wind and over the fence in left field.
The Chargers got an RBI single from Casey Africano in the top of the fourth and an RBI double from Karley Wester in the top of the fifth to tie it, 2-2.
Zapotoczny, who was 3 for 6 with two RBIs, drove in Wester with a two-out single in the top of the eighth to give Edison a 3-2 lead.
But Kristen Struett kept the Vikings hopes alive with an RBI double with two outs in the bottom of the eighth to extend the game.
Freshman Tera Blanco went the distance for Marina, allowing four runs on 10 hits and two walks, while striking out 13 to take the loss.
In the Century League:
Foothill 2, No. 5 Canyon 0: Liana Ogata and Emilee Koerner had RBI singles in the bottom of the third as the Knights (14-11, 3-5) knocked off the visiting Comanches (14-6, 4-3).
No. 1 Esperanza 7, Villa Park 1: Jenny Melberg hit a three-run homer in the fourth and Kelsea Roth had a two-run shot in the fifth as the visiting Aztecs (19-1, 8-0) took down the Spartans (6-12, 1-5). Roth has eight homers this season.
In the Trinity League:
No. 7 Orange Lutheran 4, No. 10 Santa Margarita 3: Madison Osias and Alyssa Taylor had two hits apiece, and Osias, Taylor, Brittany Boesel and Allison Hand each drove in runs as the Lancers (19-4, 5-0) held on to beat the visiting Eagles (15-7, 1-2) for the second time this season. Savanna King went the distance for her eighth victory of the season.
In the Empire League:
No. 4 Pacifica 3, Tustin 0: Freshman Kaylee Carlson tossed a four-hitter with one walk and 10 strikeouts to record the shutout for the host Mariners (17-2, 8-0).
In nonleague:
No. 9 Laguna Hills 2, Capistrano Valley 0: Freshman Syd Lahners pitched a two-hitter to record her sixth consecutive shutout for the host Hawks (17-3-1). Lahners has pitched 42 consecutive scoreless innings. Lahners' older sister, Kylee, who has signed with Washington, had two hits.
