Batting practice pays off for softball players

The Lady Bulldogs went one and two in the first week of the North County Softball Tournament as they continued to get strong pitching and broke out of a team batting slump.

The Lady Dawgs opened the tourney with a 2-0 loss to Torrey Pines. Kelly deGraff continued to pitch well for the Lady Dawgs, but the Ramona offense could not push a run across the plate.

“We hit, but we could not get down a bunt when we needed to move runners. That cost us,” said Coach Robin Brainard.

DeGraff went six innings and gave up two runs on six hits. She struck out four.

K.K. Melgoza led the Ramona offense with two hits in four trips to the plate. Courtney Fick was 1-for-2. Kellsie Domnitz and Lexi Slater both went 1-for-3.

Ramona’s coaches had a hitting practice on Friday and the batting practice paid off as the team came out hitting in the Saturday double-header at Cardiff Sports Complex.

Ramona collected eight hits in an 8-7 loss to Rancho Bernardo High School. Tory Roberts led the attack by going 2-for-4 with two RBIs. Slater also went 2-for-4. Stephanie Kiesel, Melgoza, Fick and Hillary Roloff also delivered hits for the Lady Dawgs. Kiesel and Roloff drove in runs.

Ramona continued hitting in the second game of the twin bill and beat Escondido 10-2 in a game that ended in the Mercy Rule. Ramona blasted out nine hits in four innings.

Kiesel and Roloff each had 2-for-3 outings. Roloff had two RBIs and a triple. Melgoza, Slater, Fick, Cassie Ford and Allie Ferguson all hit safely in the game. Fick, Ford and Ferguson drove in runs. Kellsie Domnitz got hit by a pitch to drive in a run with the bases loaded.

DeGraff pitched five innings and picked up her second win of the season. She gave up three hits. Ferguson and Roberts turned in defensive gems during the game. Ferguson made a diving catch on a sinking line drive to stop a rally. Roberts made a backhanded grab going to the hole to end another rally.