McNamee powers SBCC sweep at the Bash

Madison McNamee went 6-for-8 with a double and a triple on Saturday as SBCC swept past two Orange Empire Conference opponents on the first day of the Bash at the Beach softball tournament at Pershing Park.

McNamee, a sophomore first baseman from Cabrillo High in Lompoc, was 3-4 in a 5-0 shutout of Golden West and 3-4 with an RBI in a 6-2 win over Orange Coast. The Vaqueros improved to 6-0 at home and 13-10 overall.

"With these kind of pitchers, I have to slow everything down and then just wait and explode," said McNamee, who raised her team-leading averages to .479 in batting and .813 in slugging percentage. "At practice, I was popping everything up, so I was focusing on my top hand and hitting the top of the ball. That's how I got a lot of my hits today and was able to hit some in the gap.

"We had more energy in the second game. When you go 2-0, it's always a good day."

The Vaqueros, who are seeking their second straight Bash title, won their sixth straight game in the tournament. They rapped out 14 hits in the first game and 11 in the second.

Isabella Gregson (4-2) tossed a three-hitter in the first game, striking out four and walking none.

Felicia Granlund, Alyssa Richter, Maggie Jackson and Jasmine Manson all had two hits against Golden West.

"It's a good start for us for the Bash," said coach Paula Congleton. "Last year, we went 4-0 and we're trying repeat as champions. The second game was much better for us. We were working on all cylinders and Calista threw a complete game. We had some good hitting, Maddie driving the ball up the middle. We're keeping her healthy and she's doing a great job at first base."

Calista Wendell (5-2) gave up nine hits in the nightcap. Nala Osorio paced the Pirates (6-17) by going 3-4 with a 2-run homer in the fourth.

Monica Salas, who started at catcher for Connie Towne (illness) in both games for the first time this year, went 2-3 in the second game with three RBIs. The former Dos Pueblos High standout had an RBI single in the first and a sacrifice fly in the third that made it 2-0. Jackson delivered an RBI single to left in the same inning, boosting the margin to 3-0.

Leadoff hitter Sydney Townes was 2-4 with three runs scored in the nightcap.

SBCC was one of three teams to go 2-0 on Saturday. Saddleback and Fullerton also won two games in the eight-team round-robin tourney.

The Vaqueros will face those two Orange Empire teams on Sunday, taking on Saddleback at 11 a.m. and Fullerton at 3 p.m.