ROUNDUP: Monarchs’ Johnson deals shutout

By ECS Staff
Updated: March 16, 2019

2019 EAST COUNTY PREP SOFTBALL

East County Sports staff report

SPRING VALLEY (3-16-2019) – The future of Monte Vista High softball might possess a silver lining, if you can find her.

Sophomore pitcher Abigail “A.J.” Johnston, who is listed standing at an even 5-foot-even — wink, wink — fired a 2-hit shutout, helping the Monarchs snap a 4-game losing skid by blanking visiting Montgomery, in Friday’s (Mar. 15) run-rule triumph.

Johnston only struck out a pair of Aztecs, instead retiring a long list of batters on pop-ups on her riseball. In addition, Johnston displayed some power with a double, batting 2-for-3 with a pair of RBI, as the Monarchs (3-4) rallied for five runs in the 1st to carry the young pitcher.

Meanwhile, Kayla Gonzalez also went 2-for-3, but a double and a triple. She also knocked in two, but also scored twice. Teammate Mia Owens went 2-for-2, also with two RBI and a trio of stolen bases.

After Johnston retired Montgomery in order to open the contest, she would walk to load the bases. Dessire Corona followed with a 2-run single and the Monarchs were on their way.

Johnston carried a no-hitter into the 4th, when the Aztecs posted a pair of consecutive singles with two outs. Montgomery (3-3) now has dropped three straight.

PATRICK HENRY 6, HIGH TECH SAN DIEGO 2: At Del Cerro, Patriots freshman shortstop Kaiah Altmeyer batted 1-for-2, but that actually lowered her season batting average to .550 (11-for-20) in a non-league victory over the visiting Storm on Friday (Mar. 15).

Altmetyer was also at the center of both Patrick Henry rallies, scoring in the 1st and 3rd innings when the Patriots tallied all of their runs.

Collectively, the Storm looked nervous when the hosts took their first cuts, as Altmeyer was hit by a pitch, Jessica DeWitt walked, with both advancing into scoring position on a wild pitch.

Lauren Nett followed with a routine grounder to first base, but the ball went through the defender for an error, allowing both runners to breeze home.

High Tech answered with a run in the 2nd to ruin the shutout bid by “H.” Jenks. However, the Pats put the victory away with four runs in the 3rd.
Again, Altmeyer led off. peppering a sharp, ground single to center field, scoring when Nett and Olivia Gigante (RBI) also registered base hits for a 3-1 lead.

Jenks made it four straight singles to load the bases, then Dezianna Patmon walked to force in a run. And when freshman Savannah Sutton singled through the left side, two additional runs came home for her first career RBI.

Meanwhile, Jenks struck out 6 Storm batters in her complete-game, 4-hitter for the Patriots (6-1).

For High Tech San Diego (4-3), the lone run saw Alliyah Sample single, steal second base, then score when cleanup hitter Chelsea Runyon followed with another basehit.

MATER DEI CATHOLIC 13, GROSSMONT 1: At Chula Vista, the unbeaten Crusaders (8-0), champions of the Cougar Classic, validated their top ranking in the CIF San Diego Section by grounding Grossmont on Friday (Mar. 15). And it wasn’t UCLA bound pitcher Lexi Sosa who stopped the Hillers.

Mater Dei sophomore Enissa Weakley fired a 3-hitter over her four innings of work to gain the victory. Sosa made a token appearance in the 5th, striking out two in a contest terminated early via the run rule.

An 8-run outburst in the 1st did the trick as co-captain Alyssa Garcia opened the scoring with a 2-run homer just three batters into the home-half of the 1st.

The Hillers (3-4) only run came in the 2nd. Following one-out singles by Jordan Brown and Jessica Medlin, a ground ball by Halle Sweiss was booted, allowing the unearned marker to come home.

MOUNTAIN EMPIRE 26, EL CAJON VALLEY 0 At ECVHS, RedHawks pitcher Abby Curran tossed a 5-inning no-hitter in Friday’s (Mar. 15) non-league romp over the Braves. Curran registered 11 strikeouts.

Curran’s no-no was preserved in the 5th inning when shortstop Jewelia Mendez made a shoestring catch for the second out, ranging deep to her left to grab a ball that was ticketed for the first-base side of second base.

Mountain Empire (4-0) is now coached by former Sonoma State player Nichole Schuler. The ballclub is off to its best start since the last of the Majam sisters graduated; the youngest, Grayce Majam finished her collegiate career at Long Beach State in 2018 following three season at Mississippi.

Majam LINK: https://longbeachstate.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=2802

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