BY NATE KOTISSO | STAFF WRITER
ALAMO — As Edinburg High coach Ramon Arciba tells it, PSJA Memorial gave his team “all we could handle” when they met for the first time this season on March 14. Down 6-5 in the bottom of the 10th inning of that game, the Lady Bobcats manufactured two runs to walk off the field with a 7-6 win.
“After that game (in March), I told the girls, ‘We left 15 runners on base. We’re not going to leave 15 runners on base the second time we play them,’” Arciba said.
Friday night’s game was not nearly as close.
The Lady Bobcats (21-2, 10-0) scored five runs in the first inning, which was more than enough to down the Lady Wolverines (16-9, 7-3) 14-3 in five innings at PSJA Memorial High School in Alamo.
“We needed to make today a ‘no doubt’ game,” Arciba said. “We still have some competition in our district that we’ve played already once. If we wanted to separate ourselves from the rest of our teams in the district, then this has to be a ‘no doubt’ game. We’re going to come out, swing the bats early and we’re not going to let up.”
A big part of the team’s offensive attack was catcher Anngie Salinas, who had three hits and three runs batted in versus PSJA Memorial starter Victoria Gonzalez and reliever April Luna.
“Today, Coach (Arciba) told us to keep our hands back to make sure we let the ball travel to the plate,” Salinas said. “And then have quick hands at the end to hit line drives.”
In the 10-inning game on March 14, Arciba sent Amber Reyes to the hill. Fearing the Lady Wolverines would be comfortable at the plate versus Reyes, Dezi Marmolejo was handed the ball Friday and went the full five innings, allowing three runs on five hits, striking out two.
“I think I did OK,” Marmolejo said. “I had my team behind me, and that’s all that mattered. They motivate me to pitch the way that I do.”
A win Friday for PSJA Memorial coach Gilberto Rodriguez would have put some pressure on Edinburg High in the district standings.
“They started hitting our pitcher early, and it’s hard to come back from that,” Rodriguez said. “We hung with them during the spring break game. I told them, ‘This is the same team.’ We’re young, but that doesn’t give us an excuse to give up or put our heads down.”
Rodriguez said his team’s 7-3 district record isn’t strong enough to be under the impression that clinching a playoff berth will be a cinch.
“Expect the unexpected from any team,” Rodriguez said. “Everybody battles and scores can change. You never know who will be on top. We’re in third place, but that doesn’t guarantee us a playoff spot. There are still two or three more teams that are still in the hunt.”