Recap: Jaquish hits 7th inning blast for 165 points and victory

Team Jaquish provided the latest example of this on Friday night, scoring five runs in the top of the seventh inning to outlast Team McCleney in the first game of Week Three in the 2022 Athletes Unlimited Softball Championship Season at Parkway Bank Sports Complex.

Pitcher Danielle O’Toole claimed MVP 1 honors after spinning her second straight complete game, finishing the night with 244 leaderboard points. The former Arizona Wildcat, who upped her record to 2-1 in the circle, scattered six hits and allowed just one earned run while striking out two hitters.

Team captain Sahvanna Jaquish paced the offense by going 2-for-4 with a home run and three runs batted in, collecting MVP 2 accolades and 200 leaderboard points in the process.

Designated player DJ Sanders completed the MVP trio after hitting her first home run of the season in the fourth inning and finishing the night with a 2-for-4 performance and two runs scored.

Outfielder Victoria Hayward and middle infielder Sierra Romero each notched two hits in the loss for Team McCleney. Relief pitcher Taylor McQuillin took the loss after allowing five runs on seven hits over 3.2 innings with three strikeouts.

HOW IT HAPPENED

After the teams battled to a 2-all tie through six innings, Team Jaquish exploded for five runs on five hits in the top of the seventh inning to claim a 7-2 advantage. Jaquish got the outburst started with a three-run home run to left field before RBI doubles by Kelsey Harshman and Tori Vidales extended the advantage to five runs.

LEADERBOARD IMPACT

O’Toole elevated her position on the leaderboard by 15 spots after compiling her 244 points on Friday night. Meanwhile, Jaquish’s 200 points moved her into the top spot pending the results of Friday’s second game between Team Mulipola and Team Chidester.

GAME NOTES

• Hayward extended her hitting streak to 14 consecutive games with a triple in the first inning … She also became the second player with a triple this season, joining Jaquish.

• Hayward was caught stealing for the first time in her Athletes Unlimited career when she was thrown out in the third inning … She had swiped 18 consecutive bases in Championship Season play and was 1-for-1 during the AUX season in June.

• Sanders became the 16th player to hit a home run this season when she blasted an 0-1 pitch over the center field fence for a two-run shot in the top of the fourth inning.

• There have now been 197 home runs hit in Athletes Unlimited Softball Championship Season history, including 31 homers through 13 games this season.

• O’Toole became the first pitcher to throw consecutive complete games since Carrie Eberle spun back-to-back complete games on Sept. 20 and Sept. 25, 2021 … It is the sixth time a pitcher has posted consecutive complete games in Athletes Unlimited Softball Championship Season history.

• Middle infielder Sydney Romero’s eight-game hitting streak came to an end after she went 0-for-2 with two walks in the win for Team Jaquish.

• Team McCleney got its leadoff hitter on base in 4-of-7 innings, but was just 2-for-11 with runners in scoring position.

GAME MVPS

• #1 – Danielle O’Toole (Team Jaquish, +60)
• #2 – Sahvanna Jaquish (Team Jaquish, +40)
• #3 – DJ Sanders (Team Jaquish, +20)