SOFTBALL BEAT: VALUABLE VETERANS : OAK PARK'S RETURNING PLAYERS MAKE THEIR MARK.Byline: Jim Inghram Daily News Staff Writer At first, the reason for Oak Park High's success was due in large part to the infusion of freshman talent. Now the veterans are coming through and the team is rolling along in the Tri-Valley League. ``We play four of them (freshmen) at any one time,'' said Oak Park softball softball, variant of baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Invented (1888) in Chicago as an indoor game, it was at various times called indoor baseball, mush ball, playground ball, kitten ball, and, because it was also played by women, ladies' coach Roger Newell. ``And they have definitely made some contributions, especially early. They are still playing well, but now the play of the returning players has really picked up.'' The combined output helped the Eagles to a recent nine-game winning streak Noun 1. winning streak - a streak of wins streak, run - an unbroken series of events; "had a streak of bad luck"; "Nicklaus had a run of birdies" that ended Saturday in a loss to San Fernando San Fernando, city, Argentina San Fernando (săn fərnăn`dō), city (1991 pop. 144,761), Buenos Aires prov., E Argentina. It is a district administrative center in the Greater Buenos Aires area. at the Desert Classic tournament. ``Rachel Coulson (catcher) and Julie Christensen This article is about the singer. For the fictitious character, see Final Destination 3. Julie Christensen is an American singer, born in Iowa and resident of Ojai, California. (left field) have played well,'' Newell said. ``And Brenda Pasqua (right field) is quietly hitting .405. Our real strength is that we are solid at every position and everyone is making a contribution.'' Freshmen Michelle Bregar (shortstop), Jannel Buckley (second base/outfield) and Brittany Dahl (third base) have solidified the infield. Melissa Johnson, another freshman, has been impressive pitching and at first base. Johnson is 6-2 with a 0.88 ERA and is hitting .354. She leads the team with 14 RBI RBI abbr. Baseball runs batted in Noun 1. rbi - a run that is the result of the batter's performance; "he had more than 100 rbi last season" run batted in and is tied for the lead with 17 hits. Others that have aided in the Eagles' 11-3-1 overall record and 4-0 Tri-Valley League record are Vivian Doan (second base), Dana Porter Dana Harris Porter (January 14 1901 - May 13 1967) was a Canadian politician and jurist. After graduating from the University of Toronto in 1921, Porter went to England to continue his studies at Balliol College, Oxford from which he graduated with a Master's degree in 1923. (pitcher-first base) and Cindy Verity (center field). This week is an important one for Oak Park - the team plays at Carpinteria today and hosts St. Bonaventure on Thursday. Victories in both of those games could set up a showdown with La Reina La Reina (Spanish: "The queen") is a commune of Chile located in Santiago Province, Santiago Metropolitan Region. It consistently ranks in the top five communes with the best quality of life in the Metropolitan Region. next Tuesday. Oak Park handed the Regents their only league loss. ``If things work out,'' Newell said, ``we could be playing for the league championship or a co-championship.'' What a week: Stephanie Hall of La Reina had a week to remember. In two league games and two Desert Classic games, she went 9 for 11 with five doubles, three runs, a triple and 12 RBI. ``We've had some good weeks here,'' said La Reina coach Don Hyatt, ``but I don't ever recall one quite like Stephanie's.'' In fact, one of Hall's outs could have gone the other way. It was a sinking line drive that appeared to have been trapped by the opponent's outfielder, but it was ruled a catch by the umpire. She went 3 for 3 with six RBI against Capinteria and was 5 for 5 with five RBI in two games Saturday. Hall leads the team with a .455 average (25-55) and 19 RBI. Her 13 runs lead the team. Hall also broke the school record for doubles in a season. The old record was nine - she has 11. ``Even her outs aren't cheap,'' Hyatt said. ``She is really making good contact every time she is up.'' Hall is hitting .500 in Tri-Valley League play. Heating up: Thousand Oaks Thousand Oaks, residential city (1990 pop. 104,352), Ventura co., S Calif., in a farm area; inc. 1964. Avocados, citrus, vegetables, strawberries, and nursery products are grown. started slowly in Marmonte League The Marmonte League is a high school sports league primarily made up of schools from Ventura County. The Marmonte Leauge is part of the CIF Southern Section. Click here to view the league schedule. play, losing two of its first three games. Now, after four consecutive victories, the team is 5-2 in league and back in the title hunt. This week will prove extremely important to the Lancers lanc·er n. 1. A cavalryman armed with a lance. 2. A member of a regiment originally armed with lances. 3. lancers (used with a sing. verb) a. A kind of quadrille. b. if they are to remain in the league race. They host Simi Valley Simi Valley (sē`mē, sĭm`ē), city (1990 pop. 100,217), Ventura co., SW Calif. in an oil, fruit, and farm region; laid out 1887, inc. 1969. today and play at Westlake on Thursday. The big reason for the turnaround has been taking advantage of opportunities. ``We are getting key hits at the right time,'' said senior right fielder right fielder n. Baseball The player who defends right field. Noun 1. right fielder - the person who plays right field outfielder - (baseball) a person who plays in the outfield Kim Martin Kim Kristine Martin (born February 28, 1986 in Stockholm, Sweden) is a Swedish national ice hockey goaltender. She plays her club hockey with AIK's women's team and has also played with Hammarby IF's junior men's team. . ``In the beginning, we were not doing that. It seems like we are coming together and improving.'' Sheridan Fowler, mostly known for her pitching, has been torrid at the plate. She is hitting .500 in league and .429 overall. ``Sheridan has just been on a tear,'' coach Gary Walin said. Others that have fueled the Lancers' surge have been the Cope sisters, Lacey and Brandi, and the left-handed slap hitters, Vanessa Hanson, Shawna Lane and Michelle Spencer. Martin, known as a streak hitter, also has been productive of late. ``The girls worked hard to get back into this,'' Walin said. ``They are focusing on it one game at a time and we're playing close to our best right now. Hopefully we can continue it.'' Big play, big win: It took only one play to show the importance of Thursday's Westlake-Newbury Park showdown. The Panthers' Oli Keohohou led off the game by driving a pitch that appeared would be a home run, but Westlake's Tiffany Meadows, who was playing deep anyway, raced to the fence and crashed into and over it to take a certain home run away from Keohohou. It was an important play, since it gave the Warriors a boost and prevented a run in a 2-1 victory. ``When I first saw it hit,'' Meadows said. ``I was like, `Oh, no. Not a home run. I have to catch that.' '' Keohohou eventually hit a home run that no one could reach, but it was the only run the Panthers scored. ``We don't score many runs,'' Meadows said. ``So we have to rely on defense and pitching. We can't slack off, not even for a pitch.'' The victory pulled the Warriors into a first-place tie with the Panthers. Both teams have 6-1 league records. CAPTION(S): Photo PHOTO Oak Park freshman Melissa Johnson has a 6-2 record with a 0.88 ERA. She also is hitting .354. Michael Owen
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