GRAND TERRACE >> No. 1 seeds for the CIF-SS softball playoffs are not supposed to lose in the first round, but it can and does happen.
Grand Terrace almost found that out the hard way.
The Titans had to rally with four straight hits to start the bottom of the seventh and Alyssa Martinez’s walk-off single enabled them to stun Palos Verdes Peninsula 2-1 in a CIF-SS Division 3 first-round game at Grand Terrace High School.
The Panthers’ season ends at 18-14. Top-seeded Grand Terrace (23-3) advances to play at Irvine Tesoro in the second round on Tuesday, but it almost didn’t happen.
“The thing we always preach is ‘never give up,’” Grand Terrace coach Bobby Flores said. “It doesn’t matter who you play in CIF, everyone’s going to come out hard.”
Said Peninsula coach Tim Hall: “That’s high school softball at its finest. It was a great game to be a part of.”
For six innings, the Titans were stymied by Peninsula junior Jessica Hay. Hay allowed five hits and no walks in the first six innings as Peninsula led 1-0.
“We couldn’t square a ball up against her. You have to give her credit,” Flores said of Hay.
But things changed in the bottom of the seventh.
Jocelyn Betancourt lined a single to right to start the inning, a ball hit so hard she was nearly thrown out at first.
Morgan Parsons then reached on an infield single and Rita Garcia, pinch-running for Betancourt, went to third on a throwing error.
Danielle Rico followed with a single up the middle to tie the game. Martinez also singled up the middle to score Parsons from second setting off a Grand Terrace celebration.
“The whole time, I was thinking ‘up the middle,’” Martinez said.
It was a stunning end since Hay had retired eight batters in a row, including Grand Terrace’s 2-3-4 hitters in the sixth.
Before the bottom of the seventh, each team had a potential run wiped out.
In the top of the seventh, Soraya Shahbazian led off with a double then stole third with one out.
Hall elected to have Hannah Lyons try a suicide squeeze bunt, but it was high, Lyons couldn’t connect and Betancourt, playing shortstop, tagged out Shahbazian.
“I didn’t want to have to try and string a couple of hits together against that pitcher (Melanie Olmos),” Hall said. “And that was a tough pitch to bunt.”
Grand Terrace thought it had scored the game’s first run in the bottom of the first when Eliyah Flores doubled with one out and Destini Peck followed with a single to apparently score Flores.
But Flores was called out for missing third base.
“Give them credit, because their coach saw it,” Bobby Flores said. “That is something that is not going to happen again.”
Shahbazian drove in the first run that did count with a sacrifice fly in the fourth inning.
