When she is on campus at Sobrato High School, be it in the
classroom or on the softball field, Katie Machado works her
hardest
MORGAN HILL
When she is on campus at Sobrato High School, be it in the classroom or on the softball field, Katie Machado works her hardest.
The senior has a cumulative grade point average close to 5.0, and on Tuesday she pitched almost as flawlessly against Prospect in the biggest game of her prep career thus far.
The Bulldogs won 2-1 to remain on pace for their first Central Coast Section playoff berth. Afterward they directed most of the praise toward their red-haired queen of offspeed who came within five outs of a no-hitter using an indecipherable mix of changeups and Tim Wakefield-esque fastballs.
“Katie was hitting every single spot I was giving her,” junior catcher Kaley Lefore said. “She knew the team needed her to pitch like that.”
Machado had one strikeout compared to two walks and five baserunners allowed — Sobrato committed two errors — but induced a bevy of soft flyballs and groundouts.
“With Katie pitching, we’re expecting people to pop up,” center fielder Sam Ribeiro said. “So our infield and outfield work on those a lot.
“Her fastball’s really slow … but it’s really hard to hit because it looks high then drops into the zone.”
No-hitters are a taboo topic of conversation not just in baseball. Machado had no idea she was flirting with one when Prospect pitcher Amanda Llerena belted a one-out double in the sixth inning for the Panthers’ lone hit.
“You don’t tell a pitcher anything like that,” said first-year SHS manager Brandi Grissom, who was well aware of the near no-no at hand. “I just let Katie know what to throw to each batter. She’s worked really hard to hit her spots this season. She knows what to throw to each batter, and our fielders know where to be in the right position.”
Llerena’s hit was just deep enough in left field to elude Ribeiro and Jasmine Caskey. Machado’s day ended in the next at-bat as Kayla Igou grounded into a five-three-six double play.
“Our defense is always solid,” Machado said. “If the ball’s going to get hit behind me, I know they’re going to get the out.
“I’m just glad we got another win.”
Gail Wiselogel sent the Panthers down in order in the seventh to get the save.
The Bulldogs mustered only five hits against Llerena but did not need much offense. Ribeiro drove in Nicole Larson for the winning run on what was close to being a rare infield double; the ball landed just behind third base and bounced onto the left field grass in foul territory.
“Definitely the shortest double I’ve ever hit,” said Ribeiro, who was two for three. “(Breaks) like that are huge with runners on.”
With seven games left to decide the division’s two automatic playoff spots, teams like Sobrato and Prospect — both tied with Oak Grove for second place at 6-3 — will take anything they can get. Sobrato holds a tie-breaker over Prospect, having beaten the Panthers twice. The Bulldogs, however, needed to beat Oak Grove on Thursday to control their destiny.
For an SHS team that has never sniffed the playoffs this late in a season, the pressure is gladly received.
“Every game is amazing,” Machado said. “It just feels great. I really want to make CCS this year, and we know we can do it.”
SCHOLAR ATHLETE
Machado was recently honored with the Bay Area All-Stars Scholarship presented by the San Francisco 49ers. She has narrowed her college choices to Cal, UCLA and Johns Hopkins University.
