A day after letting a slim lead get away in the sixth inning of a heartbreaking winners’ bracket semifinal loss, Summerlin South starting pitcher Raelyn Lingenfelter was determined on Wednesday not to let it happen again.
She was dominant through four innings, and the Nevada team stormed to a 5-0 victory over Southern California (2-2) in the elimination bracket semifinals of the Little League Softball West Region Tournament at San Bernardino, California.
Summerlin South (3-1) will play Northern California (3-0) Thursday at 2:15 p.m. for the championship, with the winner advancing to next week’s LLS World Series at Greenville, North Carolina.
Northern California rallied past Summerlin South in the final inning on Tuesday for a 4-1 win in the first meeting between the teams.
Lingenfelter allowed one hit through four innings Wednesday, and her team provided her a comfort margin with two runs in a second inning capped by Kelsey Miranda’s RBI double. Isabella Vu drove in another run with a single in the third, and Lingenfelter helped herself with an RBI single in the fourth.
“We preach that once a game’s over, you’ve got to flush it,” coach Aaron Dalzell said of Lingenfelter’s semifinal setback. “Raelyn wanted the ball again, and we felt good about it. Ten pitches in, I knew she was dialed.”
Nevada tacked on a run in the fifth inning to make it 5-0 before Southern California opened the bottom of the inning with two walks off Summerlin South reliever Alexis Cappetta. But reliever Zoe Lewis was sent into the circle, where she quickly worked out of the jam, allowing just one baserunner the rest of the way.
Miranda went 3-for-3 with two doubles and an RBI to lead the Nevada team, which outhit its opponent 10-1 while making the most of four Southern California errors. Lingenfelter, Moana Quinn and Brooklyn Dalzell had two hits apiece.
A victory on Thursday would provide Summerlin South with its second consecutive West Region championship.
“We’re just going to go out and play and have fun,” Dalzell said. “We want the girls to go out and enjoy the moment.”
Contact Jeff Wollard at jwollard@reviewjournal.com.
