Etiwanda softball team makes adjustments, holds off Beaumont in Division 2 opener

BEAUMONT – For Etiwanda’s softball team, the first three innings Thursday were study hall. Then, it was time to pass the test and move on to the next level.

The Eagles’ bats, silent during the first trip through the lineup, made a big noise in the fourth inning, carrying them to a 3-2 victory over Beaumont in a CIF-SS Division 2 first-round playoff game.

Etiwanda (11-6) will play host to Grand Terrace on Saturday.

Etiwanda didn’t get a hit and didn’t get the ball out of the infield against Beaumont freshman pitcher Cambria Salmon in the first trip through the batting order. But the time wasn’t wasted.

“She’s a great pitcher,” Etiwanda coach David Masucci said. “But we got a little lucky because she is pretty similar to some of the pitchers in our league. The first time through, we got to do a lot of studying.

“We took a good look at her rise. We kept track of the frequency she was throwing it.”

The results paid off when the order came around again. Four of the first six Eagles had hits, capped by Casey Fazzini’s three-run home run to left-center. Fazzini saw six pitches in her first at-bat, but needed only one this time.

“Yeah, I definitely wanted that first one,” she said. “When I came up, I just didn’t want to chase that rise. And I was trying to stay away from the changeup. Her changeup is amazing.”

Like the rest of the Eagles, the coronavirus-altered schedule likely affected Fazzini’s early-season production. But her bat has warmed with the weather.

“I’m feeling way more confident,” she said. “I’ve made a lot of changes to my swing and I’m feeling really good about it.”

Etiwanda pitcher Miranda Roldan breezed through the middle innings and appeared on a glide path to the second round until she ran into heavy resistance in the seventh.

A leadoff walk was followed by two outs before Jillian Vasquez provided a jolt with a two-run, opposite-field homer. KayLee Vasquez followed with a single to put the tying run aboard, but Roldan retired leadoff hitter Leah Mays to secure the victory.

“She (Roldan) kept us off-balance,” Beaumont coach Frankie Fuimaono said. “She had us chasing her rise. We started making adjustments, but we didn’t take advantage of our opportunities.”

The arrival of Salmon, however, has the Cougars (18-4) optimistic about the future.

“She brought a lot of spunk to the team,” Fuimaono said. “I was hoping she could do something with this senior group because it’s a really good group. But I like where we’re at.”

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