The562’s coverage of Long Beach Poly is sponsored by Bryson Financial.
“This should be business as usual.”
That’s what Millikan softball coach Michelle Lehr said to her team after their 8-3 win over Long Beach Poly at home on Tuesday. The victory all but clinched a fifth consecutive Moore League title for the Rams but there wasn’t any celebration.
“The focus is staying humble,” said Lehr, who noted that Poly is a legit title contender this year and next. “We know what we’re up against… There’s no reason to throw it in their face and fuel the fire. We’ve just got to keep working. Next year is not going to be easy. Every year we win league the more the teams want to beat us.”
Millikan (15-8. 8-0) has a three-game cushion on the rest of the league with three winnable games left in the regular season. The Rams weren’t surprised that Lehr specifically told them not to take the Millikan flag to the circle like they’ve done the last few years to celebrate the league title.
“It’s just what is expected of us,” junior Riley McAndrew said. “We know that we should compete against teams and we know we should come out on top. That mindset is that we know we’re going to be successful.”
McAndrew and junior Addy Everrett combined for five RBI hits while Everrett scored twice.
“Our mindset is just see ball hit ball,” Everrett said. “Once we get fired up in the dugout then it just keeps going.”
Lehr added that her team was motivated by a quote from Poly’s Emoni Lam Sam in The562 coverage. She said Poly’s players and coaches believed they were the best team in the league.
“I didn’t have to say anything, every girl on my team was talking about it,” Lehr said. “That helped them prepare, like how much they wanted it more. (Poly) have elite talent but I think our preparation is better. They’ve got bigger committed players, but we prepare better.”
That preparation paid off early as Millikan took an early lead. Ace Lauren Cantwell struck out the first seven batters she faced and went the distance while giving up only three hits and two walks.
The Rams scored twice in the bottom of the first inning and then a four-run fourth inning killed the momentum right after a Poly rally.
Senior Morgan Zimmerman and junior Kayla Cisneros wet the table nicely at the top of the Millikan order. Zimmerman had two hits and two runs scored while Cisneros was busy with three runs scored and two knocks.
Two of the three Poly hits came from Lam Sam, who drove in all of the Jackrabbit runs with doubles. The first one came after Ki’ele Ho-Ching’s RBI triple that got the Poly dugout fired up and cut the score to 3-2. Ho-Ching has been sidelined with injury, but Millikan still knew what they were dealing with.
After the back-to-back extra base hits in the fourth inning, Lehr called timeout and walked to Cantwell. She told her, “We’re through the thick of it. Now just hammer.”
Cantwell showed why she’s the best pitcher in the league by shutting down the rest of the Poly lineup. The bottom six spots of the Jackrabbits order went a combined 0-for-16 in the game.
Poly (11-5, 6-3) is still in the battle for second place in league with a final key game with Lakewood next Tuesday.
