The Sunnyvale Sun
Sports
Young Firebirds off to 6-0 start in softball
By MIKE BARNHART
What Fremont's softball team lacks in varsity experience this season, it is making up for in victories.
The Firebirds, a 13-player squad with six freshmen, two sophomores and only two seniors, closed out the first half of their Santa Clara Valley Athletic League El Camino Division schedule with three wins in three days last week. Heading into their spring break, they were sitting atop the division with a 6-0 record.
Fremont also has fared well in non-league games, with a 13-4-1 overall record. It also earned some local bragging rights with wins over De Anza Division neighbors Homestead and Monta Vista and Sunnyvale private school The King's Academy.
Freshman Tieni Householder was the winning pitcher in two of the Firebirds' three wins last week. Householder (8-3) earned decisions in the first two games, 16-1 over Gunn and 10-2 over Santa Clara. Junior Candi Latini's pitching record improved to 5-1 when the Firebirds defeated Palo Alto 7-3.
Senior Samantha Ellis and freshmen Rachael Mahoney and J.T. Wozniak all smacked home runs against Gunn, in a game called after five innings. Ellis had three of Fremont's 12 hits and drove in four runs.
Sophomore Celine Kealiinohomoku walloped a homer against Santa Clara, and Mahoney had two hits and three RBIs to pace an 11-hit attack at Palo Alto.
It was not a perfect week for Fremont, though. Santa Clara avenged its division loss by knocking off the Firebirds, 5-2, in a consolation bracket game at the Mission City Easter Classic last Friday. In a game called after six innings because of a tournament time limit, Santa Clara broke up a 2-2 tie with three runs in the sixth.
Other members of coach Ray Loya's Fremont squad are senior Nicole Gil, juniors Samantha Jennings and Abby McNeil sophomore Bianca Lopez and freshmen Abby Duggan, Jessica Lopez and Micaela Henrich.
Like Fremont, Homestead has just two seniors and a roster that has more freshmen and sophomores than upperclassmen. Unlike Fremont's young players, Homestead's newcomers must cut their varsity teeth in the pitching-strong, always-tough De Anza Division.
Heading into the break, the Mustangs (7-11-1) shared fourth place with Mountain View at 3-4. They trailed Lynbrook (7-0), Monta Vista (6-1) and Milpitas (4-3).
"We were hit hard with the graduation of last year's seniors," Homestead coach Steve Allemandi explained, referring to the departure of four key players, including the starting battery for the past three seasons, pitcher Melanie Gularte and catcher Jessica Allemandi.
Gularte, a two-time all-SCVAL pick, now fires pitches at Pomona-Pitzer, while four-year all-leaguer Allemandi is handling pitchers and swinging the bat for San Jose City College. The Mustangs lost another three-year starter, first baseman Courtney Gosnell, and two-year center fielder Rachel Nishimoto.
"This year's team is extremely young, but hungry," Allemandi noted. "We are hoping to see similar production from the next generation of Gularte and Gosnell."
Junior Becca Gularte was a part of the varsity team the past two seasons, but this is her first year as the primary pitcher. She has allowed just 16 earned runs in 102 innings of work, a 1.09 earned run average.
Molly Gosnell, a sophomore infielder, was an all-league performer and her team's Most Valuable Player at the junior varsity level in 2006. Entering the break, Gosnell's batting average (.298) was second only to that of junior first baseman Olivia Hartoon (.320), one of eight newcomers to the Homestead varsity.
Third baseman Lauren Gniadek, a four-year varsity starter, and centerfielder Kelly Verstegen are the team's only seniors. Junior Gen Fernandez, who plays both second base and catcher, joins Gularte as a third-year varsity player. Sophomore Maddy McKenna, the team's RBI co-leader with Gniadek, is in her second year at shortstop. Gniadek earned all-De Anza first team honors last year, while Fernandez and McKenna were honorable mention.
Junior catcher Karen Clark and sophomore utility player Courtney Hampton, JV players last season, are varsity contributors this year. Of the team's four freshmen, Kelly Hamilton has made an impact with nearly a hit a game and nine runs scored. Utility player Kelly Utley and outfielders Vivian Reed and Ashley Lauborough are the other ninth-graders.
Homestead lost to a pair of the division's best teams last week, 7-2 to Lynbrook and 12-2 to Milpitas. The Mustangs collected five hits against Lynbrook pitcher Kendra Wood, including a double and triple by Gosnell, but they also struck out 15 times against the dominant Viking senior. Hamilton had two hits and two RBI against Milpitas.
