Late rally lifts Vaqueros over Cuesta 5-1 and into first

SBCC  snapped a 1-1 tie with four runs in the seventh on Tuesday en route to a 5-1 softball win at Cuesta that vaulted the Vaqueros into a first-place tie.

Lyndsi King walked to open the seventh and Alexa Sorensen reached on an error on a sacrifice bunt. Lauren Ballard made it 2-1 with an RBI single and Maggie Jo Jackson followed with a two-run triple to right-center. Sydney Townes singled to bring in Jackson with the fifth run.

The Vaqueros, ranked No. 9 in Southern Cal, moved into first place for the first time this year. Santa Barbara (26-9, 10-4) is tied for first with Moorpark (10-4), which dropped a 9-1 decision to visiting Ventura on Tuesday. Cuesta (22-10) is in third place, a half-game back at 9-4.

The Vaqueros are tied for the second-most wins in school history with the 2006 team that went 26-17. The all-time record is held by the 2011 squad that went 31-7. That team was led by All-American pitcher Kailey Snyder who's now an assistant coach.

Monica Salas drove in Alyssa-Rae Jewell with an RBI double in the sixth to give the Vaqueros a 1-0 lead.

"It took us a while to get going, then we came alive in the seventh," said coach Paula Congleton. "It was a great effort by the entire team and it feels great to be in first place."

Rebecca Pullen pitched the first four innings, allowing no runs on five hits with five strikeouts. Madison McNamee (16-5) threw no-hit ball for the final three frames, giving up an unearned run in the sixth.

The Vaqueros will host L.A. Pierce on Friday at noon.