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sbnewsNEWS
Willams Becomes First Warrior Ever Named To All-American Team
May 10, 2012
(2012 CalJC All American Team)
Sophomore outfielder Alia Williams was recognized for her magnificent season this week as the National Fastpitch Coaches Association selected her to the 2012 CalJC All-American team. Williams becomes the first softball player in the history of El Camino College to receive an All-American selection.
Williams had a terrific season for the Warriors in 2012, earning a selection earlier this month to the All-South Coast Conference First Team. Williams had a .475 batting average, good for 14th in Southern California and 25th in the state. She led the Warriors with 38 hits, five triples, three home runs and 23 RBI and was second on the squad with six doubles.
Along with her stellar performance with the bat, Williams set herself apart from all others with her speed and intelligence on the base-paths. She had 36 stolen bases to lead the state and was only caught twice. In conference, Williams swiped 15 bags in 16 attempts. The sophomore outfielder stole multiple bases in 10 of the 26 games she played this season. She stole four bases in one game twice this season including in a game against state No. 2 Canyons on April 23 and stole three bases in a game on five other occasions.
Williams was also very versatile in the field for the Warriors this season, playing 15 games in center field, nine games at catcher and two games at both positions. She also led the team with 11 multi-hit games and was tied for second with four multi-RBI games. She reached base in 11 consecutive games at one point during the season and ended the year on a six-game hitting streak.
Her best performance of the season came on Feb. 10 at San Bernardino Valley where Williams was 4-for-4 at the plate with a triple, home-run and six RBI to go along with two runs scored and three stolen bases.
Sophomores Say Goodbye As Warriors Nearly Upset Cerritos
April 24, 2012
TORRANCE, Calif. – On a day where the team honored six outgoing sophomores, the Warriors nearly capped off that celebration with an upset.
The Warriors led late into the game, but a seven-run 6th inning powered state No. 6 Cerritos to a 10-5 South Coast Conference victory Tuesday at the El Camino College Softball Field.
Kendall Roles, Alia Williams, Yasmin Antonio, Vivian Santacruz and Eliana Gomez combined to go 4-for-13 with two RBIs and two runs scored in their final game as Warriors. Antonio went a perfect 2-for-2 to finish the season with 23 hits and a .371 batting average, both marks good for third on the team. Williams finished the year with a .475 batting average, 38 hits, 36 runs scored and a .788 slugging percentage, all tops on the team. She also led the SCC with 36 stolen bases.
Marissa Merced pitched four innings for the Warriors (11-19, 8-13) and allowed three runs, two earned, on seven hits. Jacklyn Peyrefitte took the loss as she gave up seven runs, six earned, on 10 hits in three innings of relief.
Lily Cornejo went the entire way for the Falcons (29-8, 20-1), surrendering five runs on eight hits with two strikeouts to help them secure the conference title. Krista Mele went 4-for-4 with a double and two runs scored and Alexxa Sanabria hit a crucial three-run home run to pace the offense for the Falcons.
The Falcons jumped out to a 3-0 after three innings, but stranded six baserunners in the process. The Warriors made them pay, erupting for five runs in the bottom of the 3rd to take the lead.
Antonio began the rally with an infield single to short. Second baseman Priscilla Cardona followed with a sacrifice bunt attempt, but the Falcons were slow to field the ball and Cardona legged out a bunt-single instead. Freshman Olutunmike Salami reached on another bunt-single and the bases were loaded for Williams, who hit an RBI groundout to first. Roles then walked and advanced to second when ball four got behind catcher Jackie Flores, allowing Salami to score from third and Cardona to advance to third. Peyrefitte then cashed in the mistake, lacing an RBI single to right scoring Cardona. Catcher Faafili Taamilo capped off the scoring, lifting a sacrifice fly to left field to bring in Roles. The Warriors had five of their eight hits in the bottom of the 3rd.
They led 5-3 until the top of the 6th when the Falcons bats woke up. They scored one run on two singles and a walk to start the inning and then, with two on and one out, second baseman Alexxa Sanabria blasted a three-run homerun over the left-center field wall to give the Falcons a 7-5 lead. They went on to tack on three more runs and never looked back.
The Falcons will wait to find out who they face in the playoffs while the Warriors finish the season with 11 wins, matching their total for the last two years combined. It is their highest win total since they won 18 games in 2008.
Cardona Has Big Day But Warriors Edged By Harbor
April 17, 2012
TORRANCE, Calif. – Shortstop Priscilla Cardona went 3-for-3 with a double and a triple but it was not enough as the Warriors fell 3-2 to L.A. Harbor Tuesday in a South Coast Conference game at the El Camino College Softball Field.
The Warriors (10-16, 7-11) led 2-0 going into the 7th inning, but the Seahawks (16-14, 10-9) rallied for three runs on four hits in the final frame to snatch the game away and sweep the season series between the South Bay rivals.
Marissa Merced was pitching a shutout through six, allowing just three hits in that time but opposing pitcher Natalie Ayala’s leadoff double in the top of the 7th was the first of three consecutive hits in the inning, plating two runs to tie the game. Then, after a groundout, catcher Marissa Tartaglione doubled in the go-ahead run to give the Seahawks the lead 3-2. The Warriors could not respond in the bottom of the 7th as Ayala struck out the side to end the game.
Ayala pitched a complete-game, surrendering two runs on nine hits and one walk. She struck out eight. Merced finished after 6.1 innings, allowing three runs on six hits and two walks with one strikeout.
The Warriors took the lead in the bottom of the 5th on back-to-back extra basehits with two outs. Third baseman Jacklyn Peyrefitte tripled on the second pitch of the at-bat and catcher Faafili Taamilo followed with a double despite being behind 0-2 in the count to bring in Peyrefitte. Taamilo finished the day 2-for-4.
In the bottom of the 6th, the Warriors tacked on what appeared to be an insurance run when Cardona’s one-out triple was cashed in on an RBI groundout by left fielder Yasmin Antonio, her 15th RBI of the season.
The Warriors will travel to ECC Compton Center on Wednesday followed by a game with state-ranked Mt. San Antonio on Thursday. They will close out the 2012 season on April 24 when they host Cerritos.
Merced Helps Own Cause In Victory Over Pasadena
April 3, 2012
TORRANCE, Calif. – Starting pitcher Marissa Merced showed she knows how to hit as well, smacking three hits as the Warriors upended visiting Pasadena 11-5 in a South Coast Conference game Tuesday at the El Camino College Softball Field.
Merced went 3-for-4 with two RBIs and a run scored and pitched six innings, surrendering five runs on eight hits, walking four while striking out two. She earned her third victory of the season. Every player in the Warriors (9-14, 6-9) starting lineup recorded a hit and as a team they hammered out 13 hits including three doubles. Alia Williams did her job at the top of the lineup, going 2-for-3 with one RBI, four runs scored and stole her 31st base of the season. Jacklyn Peyrefitte added two hits and two RBIs of her own and also pitched the top of the seventh, allowing one hit to go along with one strikeout.
The Warriors jumped on the Lancers (8-23, 3-12) early, leading 3-0 after two innings. But the Lancers answered with a four-run third inning to take the lead thanks to five hits, including doubles from Nikki Salas and Nicole Valencia. Salas finished the game 1-for-4 while Salas was 1-for-2.
The Warriors came up dry in the bottom half of the 3rd, but it proved to be the only inning in which they did not score at least one run. In the bottom of the 4th, they retook the lead with three runs on two hits. Peyrefitte lifted a sacrifice fly to left for the first run of the inning to score Williams and tie the game. First baseman Vivian Santacruz followed with an RBI single to plate the go-ahead run and then Merced followed with an RBI single of her own to bring in what proved to be the game-winning run.
They added three more runs in the bottom of the 5th on four hits to put the game away.
The Warriors will host Long Beach on Thursday in the rubber-match of their season series. The Warriors pulled out a thrilling 4-3 victory over the Vikings in extra innings on Feb. 16 but dropped a close 1-0 decision at Long Beach on March 13.
Mounties Eight Run First Dooms Warriors
March 28, 2012
TORRANCE, Calif. – For five innings, the Warriors played well enough to give No. 8 Mount San Antonio a competitive game. Unfortunately, those innings came after the Mounties erupted for eight runs in the first inning and the Warriors could not overcome the deficit, falling 14-4 in six innings Wednesday in a South Coast Conference game at the El Camino College Softball Field.
Center fielder Alia Williams had a great day at the plate for the Warriors, going 3-for-4 with a double, two RBIs and two runs scored along with her SCC leading 27th stolen base of the year.
Things started off badly for the Warriors (7-12, 5-8) as the Mounties (18-3, 12-1) jumped up 2-0 on a two-run blast from Devin Vanderhoff with no outs. The Mounties batted around and went on to score eight runs on nine hits in the inning.
But the Warriors did their best to claw into that deficit. Center fielder Alia Williams led off the bottom of the 1st by smoking a double over the head of left fielder Alyssa Maldonado. She moved over on a sacrifice bunt from left fielder Kendall Roles and, with two outs in the inning, catcher Faafili Taamilo lined a single into left field to drive in Williams.
Then, after falling behind 11-1 in the fourth inning and in danger of being mercied, the Warriors fought back by putting up a three spot with two outs in the bottom of the 4th. Marissa Merced started the two-out rally with a single to right field. Designated player Olutunmike Salami followed that by stroking a double down the left field line, advancing Merced to third. Williams then brought both of them in with a single to center to cut the deficit to 11-3.
Following a stolen base by Williams, Roles came up and hit a groundball to shortstop that should have ended the inning, but Victoria Bernard had the ball go between her legs and into center field, allowing Williams to come around and score. A groundout by Jackie Peyrefitte finally ended the inning for the Warriors.
It proved to be their last stand, however, as the Mounties got a three-run blast to right field from designated player Breanna Munoz in the top of the 6th to put the Mounties up 14-4 and the Warriors could not score in the bottom half of the inning to avoid the mercy rule.
Merced started the game for the Warriors, tossing one inning and got roughed up for eight runs on nine hits with one strikeout. Peyrefitte came in and threw five innings of solid relief, surrendering six runs, only two of them earned, on 11 hits with four strikeouts.
The Warriors games this week only get tougher as they travel to face No. 11 Cerritos on Thursday followed by a tough draw at the Santa Barbara Tournament on the weekend.
Williams, Antonio Homer In Rout Of Compton
March 20, 2012
TORRANCE, Calif. – The Warriors scored in every inning and pounded out 14 hits on their way to a 25-2 South Coast Conference victory over El Camino College Compton Center Tuesday at the ECC Softball Field.
The Warriors (7-10, 5-6) loaded the bases in the bottom of the 1st and second baseman Barbara Goodwin promptly cleared them with a 2-out double to left to open the floodgates. They went on to score five more runs in the second and erupted for 13 runs in the third to put the game away.
Marissa Merced (2-5) went all five innings to get her second victory of the year. She allowed two unearned runs on six hits and struck out three.
Alia Williams was only 1-for-1, but that one hit was a two-run inside-the-park home run. She also scored four runs. Right fielder Yasmin Antonio also hit an inside-the-park homerun to right field to cap off her great day at the plate. She went 3-for-4 with 6 RBI and scored three runs.
The Warriors as a team had four extra-base hits and seven stolen bases. Kendall Roles and Merced each went 2-for-5. They will face off against L.A. Harbor in their next game on Thursday on the road.
Warriors Lose To No. 11 Cerritos
March 7, 2012
TORRANCE, Calif. – The Warriors had trouble getting anything going on offense for a third straight game and lost to No. 11 Cerritos 13-0 in five innings Tuesday in a South Coast Conference game at the El Camino College Softball Field.
The Warriors (5-8, 3-4) managed just two hits and were shutout for the second time in three games. It was also their third consecutive loss in the SCC after starting conference play 3-1. Falcons pitcher Lily Cornejo (14-3) was very effective, going all five innings and living in the strike zone for the entire game. She gave up two hits and struck out one on just 52 pitches.
Vivian Santacruz (0-1) made her first start of the season, taking the loss. She got out of the first inning easily enough, but the Falcons batted around in the top of the 2nd, thanks to four walks and a hit batter. They scored nine runs on five hits in the inning and never looked back.
Santacruz did record the first hit of the afternoon for the Warriors in the bottom of the 3rd, a flare over third base that just landed in fair territory. Catcher Faafili Taamilo had the other single for the Warriors, a line drive to left field in the bottom of the 4th.
Shelby Blair was 2-for-3 with two RBI for the Falcons. Her double in the second inning brought in two runs and opened the floodgates for the Falcons. Alexxa Sanabria, Briana Quintana and Jackie Flores all added two hits and two RBIs apiece.
The Warriors will travel to Pasadena on Thursday.
Offense Stalls As Warriors Fall To Harbor
February 29, 2012
TORRANCE, Calif. – The Warriors managed just three hits and their defense faltered, committing three errors on their way to a 6-0 South Coast Conference loss to L.A. Harbor Tuesday at the El Camino College Softball Field.
The loss snapped the Warriors (5-6, 3-2) three game winning streak despite a solid outing from starter Marissa Merced. The sophomore pitcher tossed a complete game, surrendering six run, just one earned, and struck out five. The Warriors also came in averaging nine runs a game, but could not solve Seahawks (6-8, 2-3) starter Natalie Ayala.
Ayala scattered three hits in seven innings of work. She struck out nine.
The Seahawks got on the board in the top of the first thanks to Warriors miscues. Third baseman Jacklyn Peyrefitte overthrew first baseman Vivian Santacruz on a routine groundball by Erika Williams, who advanced to second on the play. She came around to score on a two-out single by Sarah Barba.
It was more of the same defensive issues for the Warriors in the third and sixth inning, committing an error in each inning. The Seahawks capitalized each time, scoring four times in the third and once in the sixth.
The Warriors did put together a rally in the bottom of the 6th. Yasmin Antonio led off with a double to right centerfield, only their second hit. After a pop up, Kendall Roles slapped a first pitch fastball toward third base, where it bounced off of Sarah Barba’s glove and into foul territory, allowing Antonio to advance to third and Roles to second. But they could not take advantage of the opportunity, with Barbara Goodwin striking out and then Roles getting called out for running out of the baseline and interfering with the defender on a groundball to short by Peyrefitte.
Antonio finished 1-for-2, as did catcher Faafili Taamilo. Centerfielder Alia Williams recorded the first hit for the Warriors, a bunt single in the third inning. She finished 1-for-3 and stole her SCC-leading 18th base of the year.
First baseman Christine Barba starred for the Seahawks, going 3-for-4 with two RBI and centerfielder Brandi Sutcliffe was 2-for-4 with two RBI.
The Warriors will travel to Mt. San Antonio on Thursday.
Warriors Score Big Win Over Long Beach In Extras
February 17, 2012
TORRANCE, Calif. – For the second straight game, the Warriors needed to mount a seventh inning comeback to force extra innings. Only this time, the Warriors were able to come out with the victory.
One game after losing to Pasadena in extra innings, the Warriors scored on a throwing error in the bottom of the eighth inning to record a 4-3 South Coast Conference victory over Long Beach Thursday at the El Camino College Softball Field.
The Warriors (3-5, 1-1) let a 2-0 lead slip away with two outs in the top of the seventh inning after left fielder Kendall Roles misread a flyball off the bat of Vikings second baseman Liz Melendrez and had it sail over her head for a triple that plated two runs. Melendrez scored the go-ahead run on center fielder Dani Hannan’s single in the following at-bat.
After mounting a two-run seventh to tie their game against Pasadena on Tuesday, the Warriors weren’t fazed by a one-run defecit against the Vikings (6-6, 1-1). Center fielder Alia Williams picked a perfect time to get her first hit of the game, legging out a one-out single after her line drive smacked off pitcher Nancy Montanez’s glove. She stole second to get herself into scoring position, then she continued to use her legs along with some good baserunning instincts to tie the game.
Roles dropped a sacrifice bunt to Montanez in the next at bat. The play at first was close as first baseman Cassie Garcia appeared to be straddling the bag and blocking Roles’ path to the base. While the Vikings attempted to decipher what the call was from the umpire, Williams seized the opportunity and continued running toward home and slid past the tag of catcher Melisa Sponholz to score the tying run.
After a 1-2-3 inning by reliever Jackie Peyrefitte in the top of the eighth, the Warriors drew back-to-back walks to put the winning run in scoring position. Shortstop Priscilla Cardona dropped a bunt in front of the plate in the next at bat, but Garcia ducked under the throw from Sponholz and the ball sailed into right field, allowing Peyrefitte to bring in the winning run.
Marissa Merced started for the Warriors, going seven strong innings. She allowed three runs on six hits, walked four and struck out two. Peyrefitte (2-1) pitched the eighth, striking out two of the three batters she faced to get the win.
The Warriors will travel to East Los Angeles College on Feb. 21 for their next conference game.
Warriors Comeback Falls Short Against Pasadena
February 15, 2012
The Warriors fought back from a 5-0 deficit to send the game to extra innings, but they ran out of gas as they fell 7-6 in eight innings to Pasadena in their South Coast Conference opener Tuesday at the El Camino College Softball Field.
The Warriors (2-5, 0-1) fell behind quickly, surrendering five runs in the first three innings thanks to some costly errors and mental breakdowns. Their bats did not do them any favors as the Warriors could not get anything going on offense in the first half of the game.
But the Warriors began to chip away at the lead in the bottom of the fourth inning, plating one run thanks to a Peyrefitte double followed by a clutch two-out RBI single by second baseman Eliana Gomez. They added two more runs in the sixth inning to cut the deficit to 5-3 and then they showed just how much fight they had in them in the bottom of the seventh inning.
Yasmin Aguilar started the inning with a single up the middle and then center fielder Alia Williams put the tying run on the basepaths when she drew a walk. Both runners advanced on a wild pitch and one out later, catcher Faafili Taamilo singled to left-center to tie the game. Taamilo was then erased on Peyrefitte’s ground ball to short, but the freshman third baseman advanced to second base on a throwing error by Nikki Salas. The Warriors almost won the game on the following at bat, but Vivian Santacruz’s line drive sailed right into the glove of center fielder Alyssa Gonzalez to end the threat.
Aguilar finished the day 2-for-4 with one run scored in her first game of the season. Taamilo had two hits on the day as well to go along with her two RBI.
Despite blowing a five run lead, the Lancers responded in the top of the eighth with two runs, leaving the Warriors with the task of mounting one more comeback.
Shortstop Priscilla Cardona started the inning by reaching on an error and eventually came around to score on pitcher Marissa Merced’s one-out single. Aisha Salami then pinch ran for Merced and advanced to second on a fielder’s choice, but was stranded there when Williams popped out to short to end the game.
Kayla Moore went the distance for the Lancers (4-7, 1-0), surrendering six runs, three earned. She walked four and struck out four.
Peyrefitte started the game for the Warriors, but went just one inning, surrendering three runs, only one earned. Merced came into the game in the second inning and pitched seven innings in relief for the Warriors (2-5, 0-1), taking the loss. She gave up four runs, two earned on nine hits. She struck out eight while walking three.
The Warriors will host Long Beach on Thursday in their next conference game.
Williams Helps Warriors Upend San Bernardino
February 13, 2012
The Warriors Feb. 7 game at Orange Coast College was postponed due to rain and will be rescheduled at a later date. The team used that extra rest as an advantage when they travelled for their game at San Bernardino on Feb. 10.
Catcher Alia Williams had a magnificent day at the plate, going 4-for-4 with a triple, a grand slam and six RBI to lead the team to a 21-1, five-inning victory over the Wolverines.
The Warriors scored in every inning, capped off by a nine-run explosion in the top of the fifth inning. Center fielder Kendall Roles went 1-for-3 with one RBI and scored four times. Every Warriors player scored at least one run and five players drove in at least one run.
Freshman Jacklyn Peyrefitte did the rest on the mound, going five strong innings surrendering one run on three hits while striking out eight. She also did her job at the plate, going 2-for-3 with two runs scored.
Warriors Open Season With A Split
January 30, 2012
The Warriors had the tying run at third in the bottom of the seventh, but they could not get the run across as they dropped their 2012 opener to L.A. Valley College 2-1 at the El Camino College Softball field on Jan. 27.
The Warriors (0-1) fell behind in the first inning when the Monarchs’ Vivian Topete scored on a sacrifice fly by first basemen Sarah Rojas with one out in the frame.
But Alia Williams drew a leadoff walk in the bottom half of the inning, stole second base and then came all the way around from second to score on a groundout.
But the Monarchs (1-0) scored the go-ahead run in the top of the fourth and held on from there. Pitcher Mariah Ruz (1-0) got the victory for the Monarchs, going all seven innings, and despite walking 10 batters, she surrendered just two hits while striking out six.
On the Warriors side, Marissa Merced (0-1) pitched a complete game of her own in a losing effort. She scattered five hits through her seven innings of work and struck out one.
The team quickly shook that loss off, however, as they travelled to L.A. Pierce on Jan. 28 and won a barn-burner. The Warriors offense was not timid this time around, putting up double figures in a 13-10 victory. The runs came early and often as the Warriors clung to an 11-10 lead going into the bottom of the fourth inning.
Closer Jacklyn Peyrefitte came in and shut the host Brahmas down, not allowing a run for the rest of the game to secure the win. Second baseman Barbara Goodwin had a stellar day at the plate, going 4-for-4.
El Camino Softball Hopes New Energy Brings New Success
January 25, 2012
A new season is bringing new energy from the softball field at El Camino College. A young Warrior team is starting fresh, looking beyond last year’s season that finished with just three victories in South Coast Conference play and not many more out of conference.
Elaine Martinez takes over in 2012 as the new head coach and she, along with assistant coach Melissa Sanchez, hopes to use past successes to change the culture at El Camino College.
“I think we are just bringing this energy that (the team is) feeding off of,” Martinez said. “We know what we want to do and what we expect of the team and they are doing a good job of just following along with that.”
The former Pasadena College Student Athlete of the Year takes the reins of a Warriors squad eager to record its first winning season since 2008. Martinez comes to El Camino College after serving as the head coach for Pasadena City College from 2007 to 2010. Before her coaching days, Martinez was a pitcher for Pasadena in 2001 and 2002, where she won 32 games and became the all-time strikeout leader in PCC history with 272. She broke the single-season strikeout record in 2002 when she fanned 166 batters. The two records stood for three seasons before they were broken in 2005.
Martinez sees the Warriors pitching staff this season as one of the team’s biggest strengths, no small compliment coming from someone with her background. The staff is led by ace Marissa Merced.
But she also sees potential with the Warriors defense this year and expects her team to be able to help out the pitchers with excellent fielding.
“I think defensively we are going to be able to hold ourselves into some games because we have paid a lot of attention to throwing mechanics and groundball mechanics such as seeing the ball in (to the glove),” Martinez said. “We have had some really good workouts where we have looked really good defensively.”
On the other side of the ball, Martinez has every confidence that the Warriors offense will be able to provide much-needed run support for the Warriors pitching staff, thanks in large part to her longtime friend and assistant coach Sanchez.
“I am confident with what Coach ‘Mel’ is doing with them in terms of hitting,” Martinez said. “I am expecting (the team) to be able to help our pitchers by making some plays defensively and for us to be able to put some runs on the board that will allow our pitchers to settle in and focus on the job they need to do.”
Sanchez was quite the hitter herself during her playing days. She made the varsity team at Rosemead High School in her freshman year, where she played first, second and third base. Sanchez made the All-League First Team in her sophomore and senior seasons, leading L.A. County with 13 home runs in her final year of high school, helping her get named the Mission Valley League’s Most Valuable Player.
Sanchez continued to hit the stitching off the ball at the University of California at Riverside, where she made the All Big West First team from 2004-06. She holds the single-season record at UC Riverside with 63 games played and a whopping .744 slugging percentage. She also set career records for the Highlanders with 105 runs scored, 199 hits, 26 home runs, 116 runs batted in, 127 walks and a .466 on-base percentage.
If Sanchez can pass even a fraction of those skills onto the team, the Warriors offense could be a big surprise for opposing teams this season.
In fact, the team has already turned some heads from the opposition before the season has even begun with their solid efforts playing a few games in the Fall League.
“Some of our girls have heard from some of the girls from other programs that, ‘Hey, El Camino’s really coming along, they look different,’” Martinez said. “(Our girls) get really pumped up about (that).
“(We want) to take them to the next level,” Martinez said. “I want there to be a level of respect where they (opponents) know they are going to get real competitive softball and I also want us to be a well-respected program in terms that we are a class act and we represent the college in a good light.”
The road to success does promise to be a long one, however, as the Warriors play in “the toughest conference in the state of California,” according to Martinez.
“It’s baby steps,” Martinez said. “Just work on what we’ve been doing here and let’s see if we can execute the things that we have improved on out in the games. If you are going to play, then why not play against the best so we are lucky in that and at the same time we have got a lot of work to do to be able to compete with them.”
The coaches themselves are not the only new faces on the team. Aside from a few returners, most of the players are donning the Warriors uniform for the first time, a fact that has definitely helped with the transition to a new coach and team attitude.
Despite the new faces, Martinez expects a couple of the familiar ones to take big leadership roles this year. Vivian Santacruz and Eliana Gomez were a part of the team last year and Martinez named them as captains.
“They are both kind of leaders by example,” Martinez said. “They always do what’s expected of them without anyone having to tell them what to do.”
Santacruz had 18 hits and nine RBI last year in 32 games. She also pitched 32.2 innings, striking out 10 batters.
Alia Williams is a newcomer to the team but Martinez expects big things from the 5-foot 7-inch centerfielder both on the field and in the dugout, naming her one of the captains.
“She has stepped in right away as a vocal leader,” Martinez said. “When she speaks, they listen and they look toward her to lead them. Plus she’s fast, has a gun for an arm and is just a smart softball player.”
Martinez also expects catcher Faafili Taamilo, Barbara Goodwin and freshman Jacklyn Peyrefitte to step up as big contributors this season for the Warriors.
The 2012 season looks to be a year of hope and promise for the El Camino College softball program, filled with new blood and new energy. The team will get its chance to begin fulfilling that promise Friday when they host L.A. Valley in the first game of the season at the El Camino College Softball Field.