SAN MARCOS — The Comets crushed two home runs and tallied 22 hits in the series against Canyons, outscoring them 15-3 over the weekend.
The Palomar softball team entered the playoffs as the third seed this year, with a 36-3 record and an undefeated conference record. Canyons went 20-20 on the season and had a 7-5 conference record.
Palomar and Canyons met earlier in the season in a doubleheader on April 19. The Comets won both games of the doubleheader, outscoring the Cougars 21-5.
Game 1 – Palomar 8 Canyons 0
Palomar softball opened up the playoff series against Canyons with two home runs in a shutout win to start the series 1-0.
The game started slow, with the only run in the first inning being a sac fly by Lauren Doepping, but the Comets found their rhythm in the second inning with four runs, a home run by catcher Isabella de Filippis, and multiple walks.
“[The home runs] were really important, you can’t win a ball game without scoring runs, and I feel like our offense was prepared throughout the whole week,” starting pitcher Nevaeh Haywood said.
The Comets scored eight runs off of six hits and seven walks, making it clear they had no intention of ending their season here.
“We wanted to get ahead early and score every inning,” Head Coach Lacey Craft said. “It was nice to see that come into shape.”
On defense, Comet pitcher Nevaeh Haywood was dominant, giving up just three hits and no runs. The win improves her record to 17-2, and she appears to be in strong form heading into the next series.”
“My game plan was to keep it smooth and attack and give them nothing and to try and start ahead,” Haywood said.
The Comets scored three more runs in the third inning, including a leadoff home run by Gisele Gonzalez and an RBI Triple by Breanna Lutz.
“[The home runs] gave us the energy boost that we needed,” Lutz said. “Izzy has been out for a little bit, and that was a way to return, ripping it to left field, and same with Gisele, they’ve both worked very hard.”
The 8-0 victory against Canyons gave Palomar the confidence they needed to win the next game in the series and advance to the next round.
“The game plan headed into game two is more consistency … I’m glad we got the win today, but we’ve got to keep getting better at it,” Coach Craft said.
Game 2 – Palomar 7 Canyons 3
The Comets came out relentless in the first inning, instantly putting pressure on Canyon. The athletes made consistent contact at the plate, including an RBI single by Zoe Karam.
Not only was the offense on fire, but the defense played a crucial role in the game, with Taylor Armstrong making a jaw-dropping catch in left field in the second inning.
“I was a little surprised, and I thought when I fell down it was a little bit nerve-racking because I thought the ball was going to fall out, but I held onto it with everything in me and knew the girl was running, so I had to catch it,” Armstrong said.
The Comets offense carried into the third inning as Gisele Gonzalez hit a double, extending the lead over the Cougars 4-0.
“I was energized and hyped because I had some RBIs, and RBIs are helping our pitchers be more relaxed when pitching,” Gonzalez said.
Palomar continued to rack up hits against Canyons in the fourth inning as Taylor Armstrong hit a two-run double, extending their lead to 7-0.
Armstrong mentioned that her reaction to the success during the game was that she was excited to see the hard work in action on the field, and building confidence within herself.
Pitcher Nevaeh Haywood had a no-hitter against the Cougars into the fifth inning. Isabella de Filippis, catcher for the Comets, described Haywood as a diligent pitcher.
“It’s great catching her, we work together as a team and everyone on the field has her back and we just try every pitch that she throws and she trusts the backup behind her,” Filippis said.
Canyons attempted to make a comeback in the sixth inning when Krista Viereck hit a home run, scoring the first run in two games for the Cougars.
The Cougars came back for vengeance in the seventh inning when Jeniece Jimenez hit a two-run double. However, the Comets previously had two outs in the inning, securing the win against the Cougars 7-3.
Lacey Craft, head coach for the Comets, described her reaction to the game as one of excitement, looking ahead to the possibility of securing a spot in the state championships.
“I think that the athletes are all really hard workers and continue to not get comfortable and evolve as a team every week, whether it is offensively or defensively,” Craft said of the motivation during this season.
Craft added that she is looking forward to seeing the hitters continue to succeed this next series, along with keeping up pitching consistency.
The Comets will host Cerritos College in Round 2 of the 3C2A southern regionals in a best-of-three series beginning Friday, May 9. For more information, click here.
