SOFTBALL: Valley Christian, behind Ireland’s home run, embraces offensive onslaught against Irish

 April 8, 2026

By Loren Kopff • @LorenKopff on X

LA PALMA-It had been nearly two weeks since Valley Christian High’s softball team played a game, so it wasn’t out of the realm that the Defenders would be a bit rusty in their first game back. And while V.C. scored in double figures for the sixth time this season and had a season-high 22 hits against Kennedy High, head coach Chet Kingery wasn’t all that pleased.

What he witnessed was a combined 26 runs, 37 hits and six errors, but junior right fielder Tallulah Ireland smacked a key two-out, two-run home run over the center field fence in the top of the sixth inning with the wind blowing out to help her team to a 16-10 win this past Tuesday. At the time of the dinger, the Defenders were only up 9-4 and as it turned out, they needed every run they could get as the Fighting Irish scored five runs in the bottom of the seventh, all with one out.

“You could totally tell we haven’t played in a week,” said Kingery. “It showed offensively and defensively, but we got better as the game went on. The bats got better, the pitching got better, the defense still struggled, but we have to clean it up.

“Energy is the most part,” he later said. “You have to have good energy coming in, and if you don’t, this game is going to be a long game. You coach the energy first, then you coach to what the game brings.”

One area on defense that grew the ire of Kingery throughout the contest came when his outfielders would miss the cutoff person, or threw unnecessarily to the wrong infielder, allowing a Kennedy runner to advance a base.

“That’s just giving up free bases for no reason instead of…you’re splitting runners,” said Kingery.

Still, it was the offense that bailed out the suspect defense, and the pitching of junior Rachel Zhang, who went into the fifth inning, scattering seven hits, allowing three runs and striking out three batters.

The offense got things going on the first pitch of the game when senior center fielder Choyce Chambers, who is committed to Sacramento State University, bunted her way on to first base and immediately went to second on a throwing error. An out later, she thought she had stolen third base, but the base umpire ruled her out on a questionable obstruction play from Kennedy third baseman Cienna Wilson.

Chambers would injure herself on the play and was replaced by sophomore Molly Douglas and the Defenders would not score. The Irish scored twice in the second before V.C. tied the game in the third as a sacrifice fly from Ireland scored Douglas, who had led off the inning with an infield single. On the next pitch, junior center fielder Samantha Mora, playing in her first game of the season, singled to bring in senior shortstop Aubrielle Ramirez.

The Defenders kept the pressure on in the fourth as senior catcher Brianna Ramirez and sophomore second baseman Jewel Malae singled and Kennedy pitcher Aubrey Garcia walked junior third baseman Lydia Dietz to load the bases. Then on a 0-2 count, Brianna Ramirez scored on a sacrifice fly from Douglas with the other two runners moving up a base. That was followed by a triple from University of North Texas-bound and senior first baseman Peyton Kingery. One pitch later, Aubrielle Ramirez singled to left to make it 6-2.

With V.C. up 6-3, Dietz began the sixth inning with a single to right before Samantha Torrez, who replaced Garcia in the fourth, got two quick outs. But Aubrielle Ramirez singled to right on a one-strike pitch to plate Dietz before Ireland’s home run. The Irish would get a run back in their half of the inning before V.C. had its second biggest inning of the season.

Freshman left fielder Jade Jaquez doubled to left and Brianna Ramirez reached on an infield hit on consecutive pitches before Malae’s single to center brought in Jaquez. Two batters later, Douglas was safe on an error to load the bases before Kingery popped up for the second out. That was followed by a first-pitch two-run single from Aubrielle Ramirez, a one-strike run-scoring single from Ireland a base hit from Mora on a 1-1 count and first-pitch run-scoring singles from Jaquez and Brianna Ramirez.

The Defenders seemed to be comfortable with a 16-5 lead going to the bottom of the seventh. But Kennedy tacked on five runs on four hits and a walk with half those hits were a three-run home run from Wilson and a solo shot two pitches later from Natalie Headley.

“In the bottom of the seventh, we were working on some things with my young pitcher, trying to hit certain spots that we were struggling with,” said Chet Kingery. “We were trying to do certain things with her to make her better. If [Ireland’s] home run didn’t happen, I would have coached the seventh a lot different. I would have pitched more to her strength than trying to work on locations and pitches.”

That pitcher he was referring to was freshman Amani Cadena, who worked two and two-thirds inning, yielding eight hits, striking out one and walking one while allowing seven runs. Chet Kingery added that the plan was to work Zhang into the fifth and have Cadena finish the contest.

Each starter, plus Douglas, all had at least a hit with Aubrielle Ramirez going four for four and driving in four, Brianna Ramirez going four for five and Jaquez and Malae each collecting three hits. Ireland, who hit her second home run of the season also drove in four runs. Mora, a transfer from Los Alamitos High, went two for five and drove in a pair in her V.C. debut.

“You could tell that she hasn’t played in three months,” said Chet Kingery. “I see her every day; she hits the ball well…so I knew she would fit in right away. But now it’s just getting in front of a crowd and getting her heart rate down and getting her to slow the game down right away.”

After playing 11 games from Feb. 18 through this past Tuesday, the Defenders (7-4) will be busy the remaining four weeks of the regular season with nine games. The first of those came on Apr. 9 against California High, but V.C. will travel to Olympic League nemesis Whittier Christian High on Tuesday before hosting Maranatha High on Thursday.

“Not to overlook Cal by any means, but our whole focus is league,” said Chet Kingery. “That’s our only focus, and we have an acronym named WIN. It stands for what is necessary, and that’s league. I don’t care about these [non-league] games. The league is what counts.”