Hesperia, CA—Colton High is moving on to round two.

Valerie Varela hit a two-run double in the sixth inning, propelling the Yellowjackets to a 2-0 victory over Sultana High.

After five scoreless innings, Colton finally broke through in the sixth. With one out, Jasmine De La Rosa took first on a walk, then Jocelyn Ornelas got the first Yellowjacket hit of the game with a single. After a fly out by Maleah Juarez, Valerie Varela went up to bat and won the game.

Varela shared her experience at the plate. “While I was walking up to the plate, having runners in second and third, I felt the adrenaline and excitement running through my body. Seeing the ball go over the right fielder and seeing the runners score and everyone screaming and excited brought me joy and I’m glad I was able to help us win.” 

Going into the game, the team felt prepared since they’ve been in a winning state all season long.

This game was an intense matchup. Both pitchers dominated in different ways. 

Sultana’s pitcher Savannah Vanderpool had the Yellowjackets offense jammed up all game. The senior recorded 15 strikeouts and only allowed two hits. However, she gave up seven walks, and the timely hits to Ornelas and Varela.

“I thought we played against [Sultana High], especially knowing that pitcher, I thought the girls played extremely well. We did not give them extra bases through walks. And our pitcher did great.”

Colton’s pitcher, Andrea Verela was equally dominant, shutting out the Sultans and holding them to only two hits. She only struck out three batters, but gave up zero walks.

The Yellowjackets hope to keep the momentum going on Sat. May 17 against Dos Pueblos. Game time is 2:00 p.m. 

Dos Pueblos were also on the road Thursday. They won a close game against Viewpoint, 4-3. Now, the team has to travel from Goleta to Colton to face the confident Yellowjackets.

“I feel that we are as prepared as we can be,” says Jocelyn Ornelas, “and if we play how we’ve been playing, we’ll be fine.”