MARAUDERS WIN FOURTH STRAIGHT AS THEY HOLD ON TO BEAT CHAFFEY

PHOTOS by Byron Devers

AVC Softball outlasted the Chaffey Panthers 8-5 at home on Tuesday. Trying to build on a 3-game win streak, the Marauders jumped on the board early in the 2nd inning. Victoria Alcantar, Ariel Nieto, and Nayely Delgado all singled to drive in runs. Delgado's hit was a 2-RBI shot to right-center to bring home Nieto and Hailey Johnson, who reached base on a walk. Nayely has a team-high 18 RBI on the season for the Marauders.

Up 4-0 in the bottom of the 3rd, AVC increased the lead when Ariel Nieto hit another RBI single. Nieto finished 3-for-3 with 2 RBI. She leads AVC in plate appearances with 52, has 16 hits, and has also scored a team-high 21 times this season. Savannah Cervantes then drove in a run with an RBI single to give the Marauders a 6-0 lead. Cervantes is AVC's season leader in hits with 25 and is second in RBI with 17.

The Panthers went on a 5-run rally in the 4th inning with one earned and four unearned runs. With a 1-run lead, Alanna Hernandez and Natalie Gomez each drove in a run to give the Marauders some breathing room. Victoria Alcantar pitched all 7 innings and threw 89 of 128 pitches for strikes. She had 8 strikeouts on the day.

AVC is now 12-5 and will face Glendale College at home on March 10, in their first conference game of the season.