Pirates Split Pair of Home Games

The Pirate softball team split a pair of home games Saturday, pulling away from Fullerton 13-6 before falling to Citrus 10-0. Jayla Raya had three hits and a walk with two runs batted in and a run scored in the opener while Erika Sanchez had a triple, four RBI and scored twice against the Hornets.

Ventura turned a tie game into a comfortable win with a six-run fourth in defeating Fullerton. After the teams were even at 4-4 through three innings, the Pirates broke it open in the fourth and never gave the lead back.

The Hornets struck first with a run in the first inning, but VC answered in the second to tie it at 1-1. Both teams scored three times in the third, leaving the game deadlocked entering the decisive stretch. The Pirates then took control in the fourth, sending six runs across to build a 10-4 advantage, adding another run in the fifth. After Fullerton scored twice in the top of the sixth to trim the margin to 11-6, Ventura responded with two more in the bottom half to finish off the victory.

The Pirates finished with 13 runs on 12 hits and did not commit an error, while Fullerton totaled six runs on nine hits and four errors. VC's offense was led by Sanchez, who drove in four runs and added a triple. Raya went 3 for 4 with two RBI, helping pace the balanced attack. Baylany Magana also contributed at the plate with two hits and three runs scored. Aubrey Aguirre and Isabella Padilla also totaled two RBI each.

In the circle, Magana earned the win after working 4.0 innings. She allowed five hits and four runs, three earned, while striking out five. Emma Estrella covered the final three innings to record the save and help Ventura close out the game after FC's late push in the sixth.

In Game 2, Citrus broke open a scoreless game with four runs in the third inning and never let VC recover, handing the Pirates a 10-0 loss.

The decisive stretch came across the middle innings, when Citrus scored four times in the third, added three more in the fourth and tacked on another three in the fifth.

VC used Estrella and Magana in the circle. Estrella worked the first three frames while Magana covered the final two.

The Pirates put five hits in play but could not string together the timely hit needed to break through. VC also left six runners on base.