Warden's Jizelle Pruneda signs with Mt. Hood

WARDEN — Warden starting pitcher Jizelle Pruneda had a busy Saturday.

First, Pruneda picked up a pair of wins against SCAC East rival Connell, the second coming by way of a two-hit shutout. After, she sat down with her friends, family and teammates to make her college choice official.

With her various softball jerseys adorning the backstop, Pruneda put pen to paper on her national latter of intent to play softball for Mt. Hood Community College.

“I contacted that school and I knew Iris (Rodriguez) was over there and I had an idea that I would have someone there and I wanted to go somewhere where I knew I’d get help and would know that I can stay and continue playing,” Pruneda said. “I chose it because it was something new to try and I liked it after I visited and I never visited anywhere else.”

Iris Rodriguez, a Warden native, is an assistant coach at Mt. Hood. Rodriguez rewrote the softball record books at Warden before moving on to play at Wenatchee Valley College and Corban University.

Rodriguez, as well as the Saints’ roster, helped make Pruneda’s decision an easy one.

“I really liked the fact that when I went the team made me feel like I was welcome, like I was already part of the team,” Pruneda said. “They really made it feel like it was already season.”

Pruneda was the MVP of the SCAC East as a junior and has helped the Cougars start 4-0 in league play.

Mt. Hood reached the NWAC Softball Championship in 2017 and currently is in second place in the NWAC South.

— Staff report