Fast Start Lifts No. 18 Citrus Past No. 15 El Camino, 8-6

No. 18-ranked Citrus College Softball defeated No. 15-ranked El Camino College, 8-6, in a road non-conference game on Friday, April 3. The win moves the Owls to 23-11 overall while they remain 5-3 in conference play.

The Owls set the tone early, plating three runs in the first inning. Jaelynn Eaves delivered an RBI double to open the scoring, followed by an RBI double from Mia Godoy. Jocelyn Escobedo added an RBI groundout to cap the inning and give Citrus a 3-0 lead.

El Camino answered with two runs in the bottom of the first, but Citrus responded in the second behind Eaves' biggest swing of the day. The sophomore third baseman ripped a bases-clearing triple to right-center, driving in three runs to push the Owls' advantage to 6-2.

The Warriors chipped away, scoring twice in the second and once in the fourth to cut the deficit to 6-5. Citrus added a key insurance run in the fifth when Aalijah Aranda reached on an error, allowing Escobedo to score. El Camino answered with an unearned run later in the inning to make it 7-6.

Citrus created breathing room in the seventh as Brooke Whiteman lifted a sacrifice fly to center field, bringing home Escobedo for the final 8-6 margin.

At the plate, the Owls finished with 13 hits. Eaves led the way, going 2-for-4 with a double, a triple—her third of the season—and four RBIs. She now holds the program's single-season RBI record with 65. Escobedo (2-for-4, two runs, RBI), Alivia Martinez (2-for-4, two runs) and Izzy Poveda (2-for-3) also recorded multi-hit efforts, while Godoy added an RBI double. Martinez also set the program's single-season runs record, bringing her total to 59 on the year.

In the circle, Brissa Ayon (W, 18-8) went the distance, allowing six runs (four earned) on nine hits with four walks and one strikeout across seven innings to secure the win.

Citrus will travel to Los Angeles Valley College for a conference game at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, April 7.