Prep softball: Lila Partridge’s late home run powers Casa Grande past Vintage

Casa Grande softball knows how to make it entertaining.

The Gauchos avenged their early-season loss to Vintage, winning 4-3 and moving just a game back of the Crushers in the Vine Valley Athletic League standings heading into the final week of the regular season.

Kansas commit Lila Partridge was the hero yet again, as her go-ahead solo home run in the top of the sixth inning gave Casa the lead for good.

“We bend, but we don’t break,” Casa Grande head coach Billy Brody said. “People have been asking us all year what our identity is, and you just saw it. And I’ll say it now, our identity has been spoken for. Last week, with the American Canyon game and going up to Elk Grove and doing what we did, the girls are ready. They know what’s at stake and they’re there for each other. This is a family.”

Along with opening the scoring in the top of the fourth, Partridge also got the win in the circle, going six innings strong and allowing three runs on four hits while striking out nine.

Georgia Moss came on the final frame to pitch for Casa with no outs in the bottom of the seventh and Vintage’s Cienna Alvarez, who just hit a leadoff double, on second base.

Moss was able to get Mia Griffith to ground out before a wild pitch advanced pinch-runner Abygail Sims to third. Dessiana Garcia then grounded into a fielder’s choice which resulted in no outs, and the Crushers had runners on the corners with one out.

The Gauchos sophomore needed only two pitches to force a pop-out to right field for the second out, and three pitches later got Taylor Lauritsen to fly out to right field for the game-ending catch.

In a game that was a pitchers’ duel early on between Partridge and Malina Viruet, Casa struck first in the top of the fourth. After Lauren Ketchu and Alex Giacomini ripped back-to-back singles, Partridge laced a single to left field, scoring Ketchu.

Not one batter later, Abby McSweeney went opposite field, hitting a triple down the right field line and clearing the bases. All of a sudden, Casa had a 3-0 lead.

“Honestly, I think winning on someone else’s turf is even better than winning on our own,” Partridge said. “That’s what we did today; we made them hurt. At first we pounded them three-nothing, unfortunately we let them come back into the game, but then we just did our jobs and made it hurt for them.”

Vintage, however, answered right back in the bottom of the fourth. A bloop single to right from Desiree Griffith, followed by an RBI single from Alvarez, cut the lead to one. A wild pitch scored Griffith from third. Tie ballgame.

Both pitchers settled down in the fifth inning before Partridge took over in the sixth.

Viruet went five innings, allowing three runs on five hits and striking out four. Angie Rubalcava, who pitched two innings in relief, took the loss, allowing one run on one hit and three strikeouts.

Vintage is now 9-1 atop the VVAL standings, with two league games left. Casa is 9-2 with one league game remaining, and can tie Vintage for first place with a win in that contest and a loss by the Crushers.

You can reach Staff Writer Kienan O’Doherty at 415-887-8650 or kienan.odoherty@pressdemocrat.com. On X (Twitter) @kodoherty22.