For a brief moment, the Burbank High softball team held a lead, but the hammer in the form of crosstown rival Burroughs exploded for seven runs en route to a 13-6 thumping on Wednesday in the Pacific League finale at McCambridge Park.
With the win, the Indians (21-4 and 14-0 in league) managed a perfect league campaign and now await which team they will face in the CIF Southern Section playoffs.
“It’s great that we won the league title, but right now everybody is zero and zero,” Burroughs coach Doug Nicol said referring to the upcoming postseason.
Nicol knew that Burbank wouldn’t quit after falling behind early. “When they took the lead we needed to come back and score runs,” he said.
Presley Miraglia earned the victory after working seven innings and yielding five hits with 10 strikeouts and three walks.
Allie Benson absorbed the loss after toiling six and two-third frames, allowing 11 hits with five walks, four hit batters and four strikeouts.
Reace Rushing gave up two hits with a walk and a hit batter in two-thirds of an inning.
Burroughs jumped ahead 2-0 in the top of the third inning when Lauren Lopez singled to left field, moved to second base on an error, third base on Kaitlin Okimoto’s infield single and scored on an error.
Okimpto took second base on an error, advanced to third base on a wild pitch and scored on Isabel Frias’ force out.
The Bulldogs (11-16 and 8-6 in league) rallied in the bottom of the third with three runs on two hits and an error.
Anysia Gonzalez walked and later scored to cut the lead to 2-1 and Desiree Gomez singled with two out.
Julia Duarte, who singled in the first inning, walked and both scored on Emily Monterrey’s booming double to left center that made it 3-2.
“We battled but the difference was our defense,” Burbank coach Mike Delaney said of his club that committed four errors to three for the Indians. “We struggled in some at-bats. But you have to love their fight. We’re young.”
Delaney added: “It’s a learning thing. It’s too bad these seniors won’t have another year to play with this group because it would be something special.”
The Indians broke the contest open in the fifth inning by sending 10 batters to the plate with seven scoring.
Hannah Talavera’s triple to left center scored two runs and Miraglia, Lopez and Okimoto each had run-producing triples.
Brianna Johnson had a run-scoring double and Destiny Velasquez’s sacrifice fly drove in another. Okimoto led off with a triple to left field and came around to score.
“All of the cards were falling into place,” Okimoto said. “Everyone on our team can hit. This is a great way to end the season.”
The Indians scored a run in the sixth when Miraglia walked to open the frame. Pinch runner Nikki Ricciardella stole second base, went to third base on Frias’ grounder and came home on an infield hit by Amanda Flores.
Burroughs made it 13-3 after adding three runs in the seventh when nine batters went to the plate.
Key hits included Mia Storer’s run-scoring single that scored Brianna Devellano, who led off with a base hit to center field.
Ricciardella, who tallied a pair of runs, had a run-producing base hit to left center.
Jessie Amaya also singled in the seventh inning, but was retired on a force out.
Burbank, which finished fourth in the league and will make the playoffs, cut the lead to seven runs with a three-run seventh on Cailey Stevenson’s two-run triple to right center and Gomez’s run-producing single up the middle.
