The thinking was the Carson High softball team would have to ride the arm of Jailene Salciedo to make a deep run in the Northern 4A playoffs.
But when Salciedo was hit by a line drive in the arm, Caydee Farnworth showed the Senators have another arm they can rely on. Farnworth didn’t allow a hit in pitching three scoreless innings in relief to pick up the save as Carson pulled away for a 10-2 win over Reed in an opening round playoff game on Thursday at CHS.
Carson, the No. 3 seed, advanced to play Manogue, the No. 2 seed, in a winners bracket game at 12:30 p.m. today at CHS. Manogue swept the season series against CHS in two hard fought games, winning 9-7 and then overcoming a 5-0 deficit for a 7-5 win.
“Rumor was we only had one pitcher,” Carson coach Carlos Mendeguia said. “Caydee is more than capable of getting it done. We’re really confident she’ll do a great job. I don’t hesitate to put Caydee in there. We have confidence in her.”
And oh by the way, Farnworth also drove in four runs for the Senators.
Mendeguia said Salciedo will be able to return to the mound when CHS returns to action today. Salciedo was the winning pitcher for Carson, allowing two runs over four innings.
CHS took a 1-0 lead in the first as Kassidy Cooley and Camryn Quilling each singled and Farnworth followed with a two-strike hit, an RBI single.
Carson took a 3-0 lead in the third. Kailee Luschar manufactured a run when she beat out a groundball that was bobbled by the second baseman. Luschar then advanced to second on Bella Kordonowy’s sacrifice bunt and kept running for third. She scored on the overthrow to third.
Salciedo was then hit by a pitch and Amaya Mendeguia walked. Cooley followed with an RBI single to give Carson a 3-0 lead.
But Reed responded with a solo home run in the fourth to pull to within 3-1. The Raiders went on to have runners at first and third with one out when Salciedo was hit by the line drive that actually ended up being turned into a key defensive play for CHS by Luschar at second.
After the ball deflected off of Salciedo, Luschar fielded the deflection and nailed the runner from third trying to score at the plate on the play.
Salciedo actually stayed in the game but after an intentional walk to load the bases, Salciedo threw a wild pitch, allowing a run to score to bring Reed to within 3-2. But Salciedo went on to get a strikeout to end the inning.
Salciedo, though, allowed a leadoff single to begin the fifth, prompting coach Mendeguia to go to Farnworth. “She’s one of the toughest kids in the school,” coach Mendeguia said. “You know it had to be hurting her. She lost a lot of velocity.”
Carson scored three runs in the fifth to take a 6-2 lead. Mendeguia began the rally by hitting a shot off the left field fence that was knocked down by the wind just enough to prevent it from being a home run. Mendeguia settled for a double.
Cooley fought back from a 1-2 count to draw a walk and on an 0-2 pitch, Quilling loaded the bases with a single. Farnworth followed with an RBI single and Luschar hit a two-run single to give CHS a 6-2 lead.
Carson broke the game open when it scored four runs in the sixth to take a 10-2 lead. Kedra Luschar led off with an infield single and Cooley was hit by a pitch.
Quilling reached on an infield single and Luschar scored all the way from second on the play. Farnworth followed with a two-run single to give Carson a 9-2 lead. After Shannon VonDuering singled, another run scored on a throwing error to give CHS a 10-2 lead.
Mendeguia continued to praise his team’s two-strike approach at the plate. “We preach that to be a two-strike hitter,” he said. “We battle. It only takes one pitch. They’re going to get up there and fight.”
Farnworth and Quilling each had three hits and Cooley had two hits for the Senators.
