Softball: Las Vegas Robertson hopes to find balance to make a run at state

Pancho Morris | The New Mexican

5/6/2008 - 5/7/08

On the championship cusp, are the Lady Cardinals of Las Vegas Robertson also on the precipice of collapse?

"We are one of the better teams in triple-A if we play as a team," Chris Najar, Robertson head softball coach, says.

If.

"We can actually take state if we start working together again," Faith Gallegos, Robertson pitcher, says. "If we come together and work together as one, we'd be unstoppable."

If.

If.

The Lady Cardinals have overcome losing a couple starters to grades. And they are preparing to play at state without first baseman Kassandra Tapia, who will be competing in five events at the state track meet, which is the same weekend as the state softball tournament but in another city.

What the Lady Cardinals can't solve is chemistry.

"We've been struggling with that," Najar says. "We have the skills and the abilities, but we don't have the team chemistry we've had in the past."

Percolating for most of the season, it recently boiled over.

"We've been falling apart," Gallegos, a senior, says.

Gallegos, a varsity fixture since eighth-grade, shrinks the problem to a single word.

"Attitude," she says.

Toward one another.

Even so, the Lady Cardinals are 13-9, including 9-4 in District 2AAA. They are a loss behind Santa Fe Indian School, the team they face at 4 this afternoon at SFIS. The winner owns the tiebreaker and most likely the title.

"Santa Fe Indian School is a team you have to respect," Najar says. "You know when you play them you have to play a full game or else they will beat you. We have to play one of our best games against them.

"When we play well, we can be explosive. We have the defense, we have the hitters and we have Faith."

Gallegos stepped into her first circle at age 4. Her mom, Elizabeth, was her coach. Her older sister, Angel, was her inspiration.

"I always wanted to do what my older sister wanted to do," Gallegos says of Angel, who is a year older.

Angel had the speed. Faith has the savvy.

"She's a pure placement pitcher," Najar says. "She knows where to pitch. She knows situations. She knows what pitches to throw and when to throw them to get a hitter out."

Gallegos' memory is as sharp as her curve and as deep as her drop.

"If I've seen them in the past, I'll remember how I struck them out or got them out," Gallegos says. "It's something I've always had. If not, I look at the way they are standing."

In addition to her curve and drop, Gallegos also owns a rise and her favorite, the change-up.

What, no heat?

It's simmering.

"I used to hold back a lot because I was afraid to hit people," Gallegos says.

No longer. Not after working with a coach in Albuquerque over the summer.

"He told me, it's the batter's fault for not moving away," Gallegos says. "Now, if I hit them, I say, 'My bad" and keep going."

So, what are her recollections of Santa Fe Indian School?

"They're a good-hitting team," Gallegos says. "But their weakness is still outside and low."

The Lady Cardinals' batting order is a little tougher to figure out.

"They can hit the ball," Paul Abeyta, Santa Fe Indian School head coach, says. "They're tough to get out."

Numbers, please?

Left fielder Victoria Olguin, center fielder Jessica Encinias and Gallegos are all hitting above .500. Third baseman Daniella Montoya, catcher Kris Padilla and shortstop Marka Garcia are batting better than .400.

"Daniella, she's an awesome hitter," Gallegos says of her least-favorite player to pitch against in practice. "When she hits it out of the part, it's not a good feeling. When Jess gets a hold of the ball, she'll crank it too. Vic is just as tough."

It isn't just batters' box averages.

"Crystal Baca played some varsity last year, but she's really come through for us this season," Najar says. "And when we lost those girls to grades, we put ninth-grader Ashley Concha at second base. She's play better than I thought she would."

Now it is Larissa Baca's turn. The starting right fielder is learning to play first base in preparation for Tapia's departure.

"We're going to miss Kassandra's athleticism," Najar says. "She's amazingly fast. But she has a chance at five medals at state. I would love to have her, but we need to do what's best for her."

The Lady Cardinals support Tapia. Now, they need to strengthen their own bond.

Maybe, they already are.

When the team was forced to take batting practice indoors because of rain on Monday, the smiles and laughter were total team.

"Everybody was having fun," Gallegos says. "It felt like we're starting to come together again.

"Finally."