Cypress Pitches Out of Turn and Wins

Cypress softball Coach Brad Pickler abandoned his plan of not using a pitcher two games in a row and more than got away with it.

Sophomore Mandy Rockwell pitched a five-hitter with a season-high 14 strikeouts as the first-place Chargers beat visiting Saddleback, 3-0.

Rockwell (21-1) was coming off a 4-1 victory over Fullerton Thursday in which she struggled. “I just wasn’t flowing,” Rockwell said.

But Friday she pitched one of her strongest games of the season. Saddleback (26-9, 8-3) got two doubles in the third inning, but Tracy Habiger was picked off third base between the hits so the Gauchos didn’t score.

An error and a single gave Saddleback two on in the fifth, but Rockwell struck out the next three.

“This wasn’t my turn,” said Rockwell, “but I’m excited because I got to pitch two games in a row.”

Koral King had a run-scoring single in the first inning for Cypress (41-5, 10-1) and Sasha Campbell and Yvette Martinez singled in runs in the fourth for the Chargers.