Foster powers 8-6 comeback win

Madison Foster and SBCC doubled their pleasure on Tuesday by rallying from five runs down to beat L.A. Mission 8-6 in softball for the second time in five days.

Foster went 3-3 with three doubles, two RBIs and four runs scored from the leadoff position. Isabella Gregson was 4-4 with four singles and an RBI.

"For the last few weeks, I've been working on letting the ball get into my zone and looking for the pitches I hit well and that's helped me a lot," said Foster, a freshman second baseman from Frederick, Colo. "I'm able to drive runners in rather than just trying to make contact. I have a better game plan."

Foster is batting .444 with a .694 slugging percentage. She has five doubles and 10 RBIs.

The Vaqueros (8-6) overcame an 8-3 deficit in the sixth inning on Saturday and scored six in the fifth inning to beat the Eagles 10-8.

Mission scored four in the first on Tuesday and stormed out to a 6-1 lead after three innings. Shortstop Mabel Calderon had a double and a solo homer in the third that chased Gregson, the Vaqueros' starter, from the circle.

Calista Wendell (5-2) got the last two outs of the third and tossed two-hit shutout ball over the final 4.2 innings. She struck out six and didn't walk a batter.

The Vaqueros got two runs in the third on a single by Emily Bland, an RBI double down the left-field line by Foster, an infield hit by Gregson and an RBI fielder's choice from Janet Salas. They cut the deficit to 6-5 with two more in the fifth on an RBI single by Sloane Greeley and an infield error that scored Gregson.

Bland opened the bottom of the sixth with a double to left and Foster followed with a double to a similar spot. Chloe Wells reached on an error to score Foster with the go-ahead run, 7-6. Gregson followed with a sharp single up the middle to score Wells.

"We all trust each other, even when we fall behind," Foster noted. "We believe in our pitchers, our defense and our hitting."

Wendell struck out four of the last five batters and pitched a 1-2-3 seventh.

"Maddie has been doing an amazing job for us," said coach Justine Bosio. "She is one of our smartest hitters and it shows. When you're a smarter hitter, you're able to get those big doubles and triples and home runs because you're patient and waiting for those pitches to drive.

"Calista has been doing a great job in the circle. She always seems to be able to shut them down and give us time to come back. We showed great resilience today."

The Vaqueros will open WSC North play on Thursday at Bakersfield with the first pitch at 2 p.m.