Pinch-Hit Single in 10th Sends Jaguars to Heartbreaking Loss in Doubleheader Opener Against Siskiyous
SAN JOSE, Calif. — In a doubleheader opener that took three hours and ten innings to decide, a pinch-hit RBI single by Maddi McClure in the top of the tenth inning lifted College of the Siskiyous to a 3-2 victory over San José City College on Saturday at Lady Jag Field.
McClure's walk-off hit to left field scored pinch runner Kaelyn Lange, who had moved into scoring position ahead of the decisive blow, handing San José a gut-wrenching defeat in what had been a tightly contested pitchers' duel all afternoon. Particularly stinging for the Jaguars: all three Siskiyous runs were unearned, the byproduct of an afternoon plagued by San José miscues.
The Eagles (1-2) opened the scoring in the first inning when Rylee Reasoner singled home June Woster, who had reached on an error. Siskiyous pushed across another unearned run in the fourth on an RBI single by Alexes Collier, and San José found itself in a 2-0 hole heading into the late innings with little offense to show.
The Jaguars finally broke through in the seventh when a two-out error by the Siskiyous right fielder allowed both DJ Martinez and Jaelynn Corona to score, tying the game at 2-2. Shelby Apostolo was credited with two RBIs on the play, reaching on the miscue to spark the comeback. It was the kind of rally that seemed to shift momentum firmly in San José's favor — but the Jaguars could not push across the go-ahead run in either the seventh, eighth, or ninth innings despite continued chances.
Martinez was one of San José's steadiest bats, going 2-for-4 with a sacrifice fly, while Apostolo's 2-RBI game in the seventh was the offensive highlight for the Jaguars. Corona added a hit and a walk. Belle Walker, however, went 0-for-5 with five strikeouts, and San José left 10 runners on base over the course of the game.
Makenna Sieling started in the circle for San José and took the loss, falling to 0-2 on the season after allowing seven hits and three runs — all unearned — over six innings, walking three and striking out four. Priyah Quinonez threw four solid innings in relief, surrendering just one hit and keeping the game tied long enough for San José to have a chance.
Kaelyn Lange and Mia Perez combined for ten innings of work for Siskiyous, limiting San José to just six hits and four walks while striking out six.
Three San José errors — committed by Corona, Walker, and Izzy Gutierrez — proved to be the ultimate difference in a game the Jaguars otherwise had the pitching to win.
The two teams were set to return to Lady Jag Field immediately for the second game of the doubleheader.
