Softball: Sweep gives Marina playoff berth on final day of season

1/10

Marina’s Nicole Logrecco, right, heads for home as Edison’s Hannah Matthews tries to make a catch in girls varsity softball action at Marina High on Tuesday. (Don Leach / Daily Pilot)

2/10

Marina’s assistant coach Shelly Luth runs in to congratulate Ashley Myers, Carlie Hoetker , and pitcher Emily Rush, from left, after they get out of the inning in girls varsity softball action against Edison at Marina High on Tuesday. (Don Leach / Daily Pilot)

3/10

Edison pitcher Jenna Bloom winds up to make a throw in girls varsity softball action at Marina High on Tuesday. (Don Leach / Daily Pilot)

4/10

Marina’s Nicole Logrecco, 19, gets the force out on Edison’s Rachel Abboud at second in girls varsity softball action at Marina High on Tuesday. (Don Leach / Daily Pilot)

5/10

Edison’s Hannah Matthews is fired up after a third out is made in girls varsity softball action at Marina High on Tuesday. (Don Leach / Daily Pilot)

6/10

Marina’s Nicole Logrecco runs down an infield hit for an out in girls varsity softball action against Edison on Tuesday. (Don Leach / Daily Pilot)

7/10

Marina coach Mandee Farish, left, congratulates Marina’s Malia Temple after she hit a triple, in girls varsity softball action against Edison at Marina High on Tuesday. (Don Leach / Daily Pilot)

8/10

Edison’s Geo Ligget dives and stops an infield hit in girls varsity softball action against Marina on Tuesday. (Don Leach / Daily Pilot)

9/10

Marina pitcher Emily Rush makes a throw in girls varsity softball action against Edison at Marina High on Tuesday. (Don Leach / Daily Pilot)

10/10

Marina’s Nicole Logrecco turns and makes a play to first in girls varsity softball action against Edison on Tuesday. (Don Leach / Daily Pilot)

By Andrew TurnerStaff Writer

May 9, 2017 9:10 PM PT

A common axiom among coaches is that much more can be learned from a loss than from a win.

Once it became evident that the fate of the season might depend on the result of the regular-season finale, Marina High softball coach Mandee Farish knew exactly which game to look back on.

The year prior, the Vikings were shut out, 9-0, in a third-place tie-breaking game against Edison.

An all-or-nothing game could have come into play again, but the Vikings took what they had learned and did not let the season get to that point.

Emily Rush allowed one run on seven hits, and host Marina clinched the third seed in the Sunset League with a 4-1 win over Edison on Tuesday afternoon.

On a senior day that saw Ryan King, Amber Baldwin, Ashley Myers, and Justine Coonis honored, they would be happy to share the glory of their day in the sun with the rest of their team.

It is the first playoff appearance for the Vikings (14-13, 6-4) under Farish, who is in her third year as the head coach. That means it is the first taste of the postseason for anyone that came along after the senior class.

“There is never a dull moment with us, that’s for sure,” Farish said. “It was very nice to get our redemption, especially with losing to [Edison] last year to go to playoffs.”

“I think it was really big going into playoffs for us.”

The Vikings qualified for the playoffs with a complete team effort. There were 15 different players to make an appearance in the game, and no errors were committed in the field.

Ashley Pilatos had two RBIs. The first tied the game when her soft liner fell in front of a diving Geo Ligget for a game-tying infield single in the first.

In the third, her groundout to second gave the Vikings the edge, 2-1, as Coonis came around to score as a courtesy runner.

“You do your job when you come up there,” Pilatos said. “You put it where it needs to be put. It doesn’t have to be the prettiest hit on the field, but as long as you put it where it needs to go, the runs score.”

Marina scored two more in the fourth. Nicole Logrecco’s bloop single fell in front of right-fielder Alex Loomis. That scored Malia Temple, who led off the inning with a triple into the right-field corner.

“I just wanted to go all-out,” Logrecco said. “We knew that we had to come out strong.”

King followed with a single to drive in Jen Swartz, who reached on a walk.

In the first meeting between these teams, Marina built up a double-digit lead after the first inning, but the Chargers rallied to bring the winning run to the plate in the final inning.

Rush and Edison starter Jenna Bloom did a far better job of keeping the offenses in check. Nevertheless, the Chargers made it interesting again in the late stages.

After Edison was down to its last out, Serena Starks singled for her third hit of the game. Riley Wester drew a walk to bring up Loomis as the tying run, but Rush got her to ground out to end it.

“It was really nerve-wracking,” Rush said. “I thought maybe something was going to happen, that I was going to mess up or something, but I knew that [my teammates] would back me up.”

King notched a two-hit effort for the Vikings. Shayla Thomas had a walk and a sacrifice bunt that led to the Vikings’ second run.

Rachel Abboud, Jayden McKeague, Mikaila Pancino, and Ligget had a hit each for the Chargers. Bloom allowed six hits and three earned runs in six innings, striking out seven.

Edison will have to participate in the waiting game. Chargers coach Melissa Roth was uncertain if her team was well-positioned for an at-large bid into the CIF Southern Section Division 2 playoffs before Tuesday’s game.

The Chargers finished the season 14-10 overall, 5-5 in league. Their win over Huntington Beach (17-9, 7-3) will be a selling point to get into the playoffs. The brackets will be released by noon on Monday, May 15.

Sunset League

Marina 4, Edison 1

SCORE BY INNINGS

Ed 100 000 0 — 1 7 2

Mar 101 200 X — 4 6 0

Bloom and McKeague, Abboud (4); Rush and King. WP — Rush, 6-4. LP — Bloom. 3B — Temple.

[email protected]

Twitter: @ProfessorTurner