Lady Huskies advance to 2A state tournament

SELAH - One goal down, another one to go.

The Othello Lady Huskies' softball team made it a point to emphasize when the season started that 2011 would see them back at the Class 2A state tournament and hopefully make a run to an always desired state title.

On Saturday, the Lady Huskies finished 2-1 in regional tournament play to take third and advance to Selah where they open up their state tournament with a 10 a.m. encounter with Port Angeles at Carlon Park.

Now it's more than just about showing up for the party. These Lady Huskies want to be the center of the 2A softball universe when all is said and done.

"Our goal from the beginning of the season has been to get to state, and place as high as possible once there," Othello head coach Rudy Ochoa said. "I feel the girls will take advantage of the opportunity they've created for themselves and work to do well at state."

Othello took advantage of their opportunity in regional play by holding off Cheney 8-5 in a loser out contest Saturday morning in Selah.

Othello trailed early, 4-0 after the first inning, but slowly crept back in and eventually took the lead for good with a five-run fourth inning.  

In the crucial fourth frame, Othello (19-6) knocked out five hits, including doubles by Anica Garza and Daisy Salgado.

Cheney tried to crawl back, trailing 8-4 going into the seventh inning, they got a run across and had baserunners on first and third with one out before Othello executed a game ending double play.

"The girls showed a lot of guts as we could easily have given up after the first inning," Ochoa said. "But instead they kept their spirits up and kept working. They worked hard and did an impressive job."

Alyssa Martinez went 2-for-3 with a double to lead Othello's hitting attack.

In the regional semifinal, Othello met fellow Central Washington Athletic Conference (CWAC) members, Selah, and the league champions cruised to a 10-0 win over the Lady Huskies.

Othello were held to two hits in the loss.

"This game went all Selah's way as we weren't in the game from the beginning," Ochoa said. "Selah hits the ball very well and has solid defense."

Yet, with the pressure of having to qualify for state already gone with the win over Cheney, the Othello bats got cranking in the regional third/fourth place game as they battered the CWAC's Ellensburg Bulldogs 11-1.

Kim Bullis was the winning pitcher of record as her team scored at least once in every inning, including seven runs in the game's first two innings.

"Kim Bullis had a great day on the mound as she won both of her games," Ochoa said. "She struck out 12 batters total for the two games. Several of our hitters had multiple hits for the day, It was a good day all the way around."