Dana Hills Rallies in 6th to Reach the 1st Round

Catcher Liz Lefler and pitcher Loren Thornburg have played softball for four years at Dana Hills, but Wednesday was their first playoff victory.

“It means the world,” said Lefler, whose run-scoring triple highlighted a three-run sixth inning in Dana Hills’ 4-2 victory over Los Alamitos in a Southern Section Division I wild-card game.

“It means everything,” said Thornburg, who pitched out of several sticky situations and left eight baserunners stranded.

The victory moved Dana Hills (23-5-2) into a first-round game at Lakewood (18-10) at 2 p.m. Friday. Los Alamitos finished 13-14.

The Dolphins, without the rich softball history of their opponent, fell behind in the top of the sixth, 2-1, on two walks and Darcey Brown’s single. Though Thornburg induced two ground ball forceouts at home, her wild pitch to No. 9 hitter Mandi Treece enabled Andrea Castillo to score.

Thornburg then struck out Treece, who had tripled in the third inning with one out, only to be stranded.

In the bottom of the sixth, an error by Castillo (9-13), who gave up four hits, preceded Lefler’s score-tying triple.

Dana Hills wasn’t done. A walk to Drew Faulkner was sandwiched between ground balls to shortstop Phelan Wright, who twice held pinch-runner Tracy Julius at third base. But Nicole Gilchrest--the No. 8 hitter--looped a two-run single to right-center field as Faulkner scored ahead of the tag.

Los Alamitos tried to rally. Its first two batters reached base in the seventh inning with the Nos. 3 and 4 hitters up, creating an anxious moment for Lefler, a catcher headed to Brown. “I thought, ‘This could be it,’ ” she said. “That was their last chance, and their best chance.”

But Thornburg got Wright to foul out, and Sara Kahler to hit into a game-ending double play.

In another game:

San Clemente 2, El Toro 0--Christie Bennett had two hits and scored a run, and Ricky Lugo had two hits, including a triple, and an RBI as San Clemente (17-10-1) advanced to play at Palos Verdes Peninsula. El Toro (20-8), ranked eighth in the section’s final poll, failed to score against Nikki Shanafelt (10-4) and Ashley Haight despite having eight runners in scoring position.