COC Softball Earns 7-1 Win Over L.A. Valley

The College of the Canyons softball team confidently handled conference rival L.A. Valley College on Thursday, winning 7-1 on its home field behind a combination of balanced offense and dynamic pitching.

COC freshman Ashley Russo surrendered just two hits while pitching five scoreless innings before fellow freshman Kaitlyn Reed finished things off with two innings of sturdy relief pitching. The win moves Russo to 5-1 on the year.

Canyons second baseman Alija Ramirez drove in two runs for the Cougars, while catcher Lauren Anderson continued her solid play with a two-hit performance.

The heart of the order was on point for COC in Thursday's win, as Kaitlyn Shreves, Anderson and Jennifer Metcalf combined to go 6-for-9 with four runs scored and two RBIs.

COC got on the board in the bottom of the second inning when Jennifer Metcalf scored on an RBI groundout from Ramirez, and then followed things up with a three-run third inning.

In that frame, Metcalf got the offense going without even swinging her bat, with a bases loaded walk that drove home a run. On the very next play Canyons scored two more runs with a single to left field from Erica Esparza. 

In the bottom of the fourth, COC built on an already convincing lead with two more runs, which brought the score to 6-0 and all but clinched the game given the dominant pitching from Russo and Reed.

Canyons (17-4-1, 8-2) will next face Riverside College in a non-conference game at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, March 28.