SAN JOSE – Willow Glen’s season came to an end at the same point as last year, in the Northern California Division II softball championship game. No happy ending this time, however. The Rams, attempting to repeat as NorCal Division II champs, went up against a strong Capital Christian-Sacramento team Saturday and lost 6-0.
In retrospect it’s a mystery why Capital Christian (26-3-1) was seeded as low as eighth in Division II after the team went on the road and won three games in dominating fashion by a combined score of 20-1. The Cougars hit 29 home runs this season compared to 10 for Willow Glen. They jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first and added two more in the second.
That 5-0 hole was too deep for the Rams to climb out of. Capital Christian pitcher Ayla Tuua (15-1) threw a two-hit shutout with two walks and nine strikeouts. Willow Glen (24-8) has ridden the arm of sophomore pitcher Alanna Clincy the last two years to two NorCal championship game appearances.
Clincy allowed only three hits Saturday, but had control issues, walking seven and hitting a batter in addition to her nine strikeouts. Add in the three errors Willow Glen committed and it was not a game for the scrapbooks. “She may not have had her `A’ game today,” Willow Glen coach Don Spingola said of Clincy.
“But it was enough. The errors cost us and the walks. When you play good teams like that you can’t have mental errors, you can’t give free bases.
We didn’t make them earn it tod.
