KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star
SAN BENITO — In Tuesday’s first meeting of this year’s softball Battle of the Arroyo, San Benito needed a spark to get their offense going.
Trailing 1-0 in the bottom of the third inning, the Lady Hounds got that pick me up from senior Joanna Gonzalez.
Gonzalez swatted a two-run home run that hugged the foul pole and stayed fair. The long ball gave the Lady Hounds the momentum and the lead.
Meanwhile in the circle, junior Sarah Garcia shook off a first-inning run, settled in and shut out the Lady Cards over the next six frames en route to a 7-1 win.
“I went to the plate, thinking, I need to move the runner over and get a base hit,” Gonzalez said. “I ended up hitting a homer and it felt great. At first I thought it was foul but it stayed fair. Right now we’re playing together and we have picked up the energy and I like that. We finished the first round strong and we’re looking to keep that going in the second round (of district play).”
Gonzalez finished the night 3 for 4 with three RBIs and two runs scored. Teammate AJ Jasso chipped in with a 2 for 3 night with a pair of RBIs.
With the win, San Benito improved to 6-1 through the first round of District 32-6A play while Harlingen is still in good shape with a 4-3 re-cord. San Benito will start the second round with a road game at Los Fresnos on Thursday. Meanwhile, Harlingen will turn around and play at league-leading Harlingen South.
“The kids are just connecting at the plate right now,” said San Benito coach Denise Lira. “The girls are very resilient at the plate, they battle well and try and make the most of every opportunity at the plate.”
The hits for San Benito came at the right time. The Lady Hounds’ first six runs all came with two outs. After Gonzalez’s two run homer, Jasso hit a solo homer in the fourth inning that pushed the lead to 3-1.
In the fifth inning, Stephanie Lopez added a two-run single, followed by an RBI single by Gonzalez that put the game on ice at 6-1.
“Overall we take it one game at a time,” Lira said. “After the South loss we needed to find ourselves and we did. The girls figured it out and continue to work hard in practice and we continue to take it one game at a time, and I’m proud of them for their fight. The kids have done a great job of staying in the zone and being patient.”
Garcia pitched a complete game and only allowed one run on an RBI double by Emily Garcia in the first inning. After that Garcia kept the Lady Cards at bay. Garcia yielded six hits and struck out seven.
“I was just staying ahead in the count,” Garcia said. “That was important for me to stay ahead in the count and to figure out where I can attack. This is a big win for us. Right now we’re playing with confidence. Right now the communication is great and our chemistry is great, and we’re improving each game.”