BY NATE KOTISSO | STAFF WRITER
MISSION — One year ago, Sharyland Pioneer clinched a share of the District 31-5A crown on a walk-off grand slam. It was the Diamondbacks’ third title in three seasons.
This season, PSJA Memorial has proven itself as the class of the district. The Wolverines owned a blemish-free 11-0 record. They have not been pushed in their new district until Friday.
Sharyland Pioneer and PSJA Memorial were locked in a scoreless game through five innings, but the Wolverines’ bats were awakened during the final two innings. PSJA Memorial blanked Sharyland Pioneer 7-0 on Friday night.
In a cruel twist of irony, the Wolverines locked up the district championship on the Diamondbacks’ home field.
“I feel like our kids feel like they’re complacent. That’s where they are at right now,” PSJA Memorial interim coach Raquel Barbosa said. “We continue to tell these kids that they can’t be complacent. Once we get into the playoffs, we want to go to the second round and past that, but it’s not going to be easy. Playing a game like this is perfect for us because they (Sharyland Pioneer) are fighting right now in second place because they have other teams fighting after them.”
Jasmine Martinez started the sixth inning with a single for the Wolverines (21-6-1, 12-0). Martinez stole second base, went to third on a fly ball hit by Victoria Maldonado and scored when first baseman Victoria Gonzalez blooped a single to center.
“As a coach, in a tight game like this one, you start to second-guess yourself on certain calls. That’s part of being a coach,” Barbosa said. “I have a lot of confidence in these kids. They still haven’t played their best softball yet.”
Barbosa had plenty of confidence in starting pitcher Chelsea Salinas. Salinas went the full seven frames, allowing four hits and striking out 14 Diamondbacks.
Additionally, she walked six batters. Five of her six walks came during the first three innings.
“When I was warming up before the game, I didn’t feel like I was on,” Salinas said. “We get to the game, and I struggled in the beginning, but I had to make better pitches. It was intense. I knew I put those batters on base and I knew it was my job to leave them there. That’s what I had to do.”
The Sharyland Pioneer (18-10, 9-3) offense left nine players on base. The Diamondbacks left the bases loaded during the first and third innings as well as two runners on during the sixth inning.
“We had one senior on the field tonight, but for us to still be 9-3 (in district) at this stage with this group, is great,” Sharyland Pioneer coach Orlando Garcia said. “We were in a 1-0 in six innings against a team that has dominated the district. We left too many girls on base. Those are things that we have to take advantage of. As time goes on, these players will become seasoned and they’ll be able to take care of that. They came in determined to fight and they did exactly that.”