Makenzie Butt’s two homers in fifth lead Fountain Valley softball over Barstow

Makenzie Butt took a practice swing so violent, the bat wrapped around her and thumped her back.

She stepped into the box and repeated the motion against a live pitch.

The result was a leadoff home run — one of two blasts to leave the yard for Butt in a nine-run fifth inning — that sent Fountain Valley over visiting Barstow 11-2 on Thursday in the first round of the CIF Southern Section Division 5 softball playoffs.

Fountain Valley’s Makenzie Butt is mobbed at home plate by her teammates after hitting a solo home run in the fifth inning.

(Scott Smeltzer / Staff Photographer)

“It felt great, honestly,� said Butt, a first baseman whose initial home run of the inning hit the top of the scoreboard beyond the center field wall 205 feet away. “Especially doing it in a CIF game, when we were going back to back those innings and battling. I felt like that lit a fire under us, and from there, it was a no-doubter for the game.�

Butt gave the top-seeded Barons a 3-2 lead with her scoreboard shot, and she later added a two-run home run with Wave League MVP Veronica Moore aboard to stretch the lead out to the final margin.

Fountain Valley (21-4-1), the Wave League champion, scored nine runs before two outs were recorded in the fifth. Jenna Bixler, who went three for three with a walk as the designated player, had a run-scoring single in the frame. Shortstop Marissa Sardinas, second baseman Kira Velasco and Moore each tacked on a run with their bats, too.

Fountain Valley’s Samantha Estrada scores in the fifth inning against Barstow at Fountain Valley High School on Thursday.

(Scott Smeltzer / Staff Photographer)

“I’ve been practicing really hard to try to fix my swing because it wasn’t working too well in the beginning, and now I’m finally getting it,� Bixler said of her three-hit afternoon.

Butt picked up four hits, and left fielder Delaney Mondino ran out two infield base hits for the Barons.

“I’m very pleased with the way they finished the game,� Fountain Valley coach Rick Aldrich said. “Once they settled down and started becoming patient at the plate instead of chasing, then they became the team that I’ve known they’ve been all season long.�

Fountain Valley’s Marissa Sardinas beats the throw at home and scores on a throwing error in the fifth inning.

(Scott Smeltzer / Staff Photographer)

After the fifth inning, the Barons could smile, but Barstow (17-6) provided some tense moments for Fountain Valley earlier in the contest. The Aztecs took a 2-1 lead in the fourth on a pair of doubles by Annica Carrion and Riley Purdy, the latter producing the go-ahead run.

Lauren Franco authored the third of three consecutive singles in the previous inning, as Barstow knotted the score at 1-1. Mariah Rodriguez and Paige Siembab both dropped hits into right-center in front of Franco to begin the streak.

Courtney Kols allowed 10 hits, but she limited the damage to just two earned runs in drawing the start in the circle for the Barons. She recorded six strikeouts and walked none.

Fountain Valley’s Courtney Kols, left, gets a high-five from catcher Brooke Bonny after pitching a complete game.

(Scott Smeltzer / Staff Photographer)

Fountain Valley plays at Arcadia Rio Hondo Prep (19-5), a 10-0 winner over Westminster La Quinta in the first round, on Tuesday.

“I think we’re capable of four more [wins],� Aldrich said of his team’s chances of going all the way. “I really believe that. I don’t think that there’s a team out there that we can’t beat. It’s just if we play our game and not try to play theirs, then we’re in good shape.�

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