Sacrifice fly lifts Thousand Oaks to victory

WENDY PIERRO/Acorn Newspapers CRUSHED- Thousand Oak High's Karli Adkins makes good contact with the ball during the Lancers' first-round CIF-SS Division I playoff victory last week against Northwood. On Tuesday, TOHS defeated Rosary 3-2 in nine innings to advance to the quarterfinals. The second time around, Thousand Oaks High senior left fielder Brooke Johnson seized the moment.

Johnson's runscoring sacrifice fly in the bottom of the ninth inning Tuesday afternoon lifted the Lancers to a 3-2 victory over visiting Rosary in the second round of the CIFSouthern Section Division I softball playoffs.

With the win, Thousand Oaks (25-5) advances to today's quarterfinal matchup at Corona Santiago. Rosary finished 21-10.

For Johnson, the gamewinning RBI was sweet redemption after she failed to push the winning run across the plate in the bottom of the seventh inning under the exact same circumstances- one out, bases loaded, game on the line.

"I've been in the same position about four or five times this season already, and my teammates are always behind me and there to cheer me on," said Johnson, who also made a key defensive play in the bottom of the eighth inning when she threw out a Rosary base runner who was attempting to advance to second on a leadoff single.

"The funny thing is (the Rosary pitcher) threw me the exact same pitch when I grounded out in the seventh, so I kind of knew what was coming. I just set myself, set my hands and hit the ball where it was pitched."

Johnson's clutch extra-inning sacrifice made a winner out of TOHS senior pitcher Brittany Reynolds.

Under the sizzling Conejo Valley sun, Reynolds went nine strong innings, allowing two runs, seven hits and three walks. She struck out eight and hit a batter.

After breezing through the first three frames, Reynolds stranded a pair of Rosary base runners in the fourth and fifth innings. With her team leading 2-0, Reynolds allowed a run in the sixth and another in the seventh, with the gametying score coming on a two-out hit in the top of the seventh.

Reynolds escaped her final jam of the afternoon in the top of the ninth when she stranded Rosary runners on second and third base.

"It was a little mentally draining, but I knew we were going to do it," Reynolds said. "It was just a matter of when we were going to do it. I always had confidence in this team."

With Reynolds controlling Rosary's hitters from the circle, Lancer senior center fielder Tiffany Messerschmidt did most of the damage for the Lancers' offense.

Messerschmidt, the team's speedy leadoff hitter, went 3for5 and scored all three of Thousand Oaks' runs. She started the ninthinning rally with her third single, a perfectly placed bunt that stopped just shy of the first-base foul line.

"I got on three times and relied on my teammates to move me across," Messerschmidt said. "I scored all three times, which shows that it was a total team effort."

Lancer senior third baseman Emily Martino finished 2-for-2 at the plate with a pair of sacrifice bunts and a walk.

Right fielder Carisa Mudgett knocked in the game's first run on a third-inning single. Mudgett was 2-for-3 with a sacrifice bunt and a hit-by-pitch. Catcher Marla Mathews plated T.O.'s second run on a fifth-inning RBI single. Karli Adkins and Jenna Bandy also had base hits for Thousand Oaks.

The win was especially exciting for the Lancers' seniors, who've never advanced past the second round of the playoffs. Thousand Oaks, in fact, hasn't been to the quarterfinals since winning the CIF-SS Division II championship in 2001.

"We've had some bad luck in previous playoffs, but we're climbing now, and I couldn't be more excited going into (today's) game," Messerschmidt said. "We have lots of momentum in our favor."

Despite Tuesday's prolonged pitching outing, Reynolds said she'll be ready to start against Corona Santiago. Her teammates said they'll have her back and anticipate another solid outing.

"If anyone can bounce back, Brittany can do it," Mudgett said. "She's always been a trooper for us. We have absolute confidence in her."