Prep softball playoffs: Fifth-inning explosion lifts Vanden to semifinals

With Antelope still within striking distance late in Friday's Sac-Joaquin Section Division III quarterfinal matchup, the Vanden High School softball team needed some breathing room.

Luckily for the Vikings, they got just that - and then some.

Vanden erupted for eight runs on eight hits in the bottom of the fifth inning to pull away for a 13-5 victory and advance to the semifinals.

"When you get into the playoffs, even if we have more talent, even if we have a better team, it's gonna be hard," Vanden head coach Anthony Trujillo said. "Sometimes they're gonna get the bounces, but we gotta be able to bounce back."

Next up for the third-seeded Vikings is a showdown with second-seeded Ponderosa in Shingle Springs on Tuesday. The Bruins (27-0, 12-0) have yet to lose a game this season.

"This is what we wanted," Trujillo said. "No disrespect to them, they're a good team but, if we're gonna go out, I wanna go out against a team that's supposed to get us."

Junior right fielder MJ Barlaan said Vanden needs to stay ready heading into the marquee clash.

"We just need to keep practicing and doing what we're doing," Barlaan said. "Keep hitting the ball and staying together as a team."

Barlaan ignited the Vikings' eight-run surge with a two-run double to left after Daisy Pallares reached on an error and Ayrelyn Chavez singled. It was her first at-bat of the game after entering as a pinch hitter.

"Even if I see myself on the bench, I always make sure to stay ready," Barlaan said. "There could be any time where he could want me to do my job."

Through two innings, however, all signs pointed to a pitchers' duel

Vanden's Kendyll Childers and Antelope's Andrea Quintanilla allowed just three hits combined through the first two frames, with Quintanilla stranding runners on first and second in both innings.

"We just didn't get the timely hit," Trujillo said. "We had 17 of them, but we didn't get the timely hit 1-4. Then in the fifth inning, we just went crazy. It got contagious."

The Vikings finally got on the board with a run-scoring single from DJ Evans in the bottom of the third, but Antelope responded with two runs in the top of the fourth to take a 2-1 lead.

After surrendering two hits and a sacrifice fly in the fourth, Childers retired the Titans in order in the fifth. She threw five scoreless frames and struck out seven batters in seven innings.

"She gets in a little bit of trouble, but she never gets flustered," Trujillo said. "She's young, but her skin is thick because of all the tough teams that we scheduled early."

Vanden took a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the fourth after consecutive two-out RBI singles from Niayli Calvo and Amyia Clay. Calvo went 4-for-5 with three RBI, while Clay went 3-for-4 with one RBI.

From there, Calvo and KJ Horton followed up Barlaan's fifth-inning double with back-to-back two-run singles, giving the Vikings an 11-2 lead they never looked back from.

"I felt amazing after that hit," Barlaan said. "It was definitely needed. I was due for a double."

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