WALLA WALLA - The 2012 WP Tigers softball team is virtually guaranteed a playoff berth at the state qualifier in Pasco later this month, despite Tuesday night's doubleheader loss against DeSales.

After Tekoa- Rosalia- Oakesdale swept Asotin on Monday, the Panthers dropped to five losses, putting them behind WP. The Lady Tigers now rank second and has tiebreaker status in case of a draw for second.

"We'll stay in second," head coach Angie Potts said after Tuesday's games against the Irish, who narrowly defeated the Tigers in Walla Walla.

The Tigers will play in the Round Robin tournament at TRAC in Pasco on May 18, she said.

The Lady Tigers showed their teeth and claws against the Fighting Irish Tuesday, but fell short in each of the two doubleheader games, which ended in the identical scores, 6-5 .

After some initially errors put the Tigers behind, 5-0, in the third inning, they came back swinging after an RBI from Hailey Goenen fired up the team and brought the mar- gin down to three at 6-3. At the top of the sixth, Enedina Fuentes pounded a ball deep bringing in Sarah Lindt and putting herself on third base. Samantha Moss then brought in Fuentes to make it 6-5.

At the top of the seventh inning, Rhiannon Chapman tried to make up for her team's earlier throwing and catching errors with a first-base hit and a steal, but her teammates struck out, handing DeSales its first-game victory.

"The girls picked it up on defense and fought back," Potts said about the Tigers' sharper play halfway through the first game.

The team "played solid" in the second game, but some errors and accidents let De- Sales keep a slight edge on the scoreboard, Potts said.

WP scored its first run in the first inning, but DeSales outscored WP by one in the bottom of the first by one. At the top of the third inning, Fuentes came through in a big way with a double and a subsequent hit from Moss evened the score, 2-2.

Although the Irish scored in the bottom of the third, an impressive double play from the Tigers limited the damage on the scoreboard. A high catch by outfielder Samantha Henze yielded a second out and a timely throw to catcher Dionna Baker resulted in the inning-ending third out.

Throughout the second game, Baker threw fast enough to avoid several stolen bases.

Goenen and Fuentes had two hits, while Baker and Moss each had one during the second game.

Potts was as pleased with the Tigers' performance during the first game against Liberty Christian on Saturday, which the girls won, 12-2.

After getting over their first inning "miscues," the girls "played really well," Potts said. 'The girls played the way I expect them to play every time they step onto the field. They were focused and confident."

Hailey Goenen had two hits, while Chelsey Brannock, Heidi Miller, Katie Hofer, Moss, Baker, Chapman and Fuentes each had one.

The third inning was a scoring extravaganza after Miller's out-of-bounds catch retired the Patriots and put her team up to bat.

The second game, however, was a different story.

"Maybe it was overconfidence or the distraction of prom getting closer in the evening," Potts said. "But the effort and energy weren't there."

The big highlight for WP came in the fourth, when Fuentes hit a home run. But the Tigers were still well behind against the better-hitting Patriots, 10-5.

"They brought out their defense and our hitting went down," Tiger Paige Wood said. Liberty Christian went on to defeat the Lady Tigers 14-5.

WP vs Liberty Christian April 27

Game 1

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LC 200002

Game 2

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LC 215200414