ARVADA — Just like the late-August temperatures … Arvada West’s softball squad has stayed hot through the first few weeks of the Fall 2021 season.
The Wildcats — No. 9 in the current CHSAANow.com Class 5A softball rankings — improved to 5-0 on the season with a 15-3 home victory over Bear Creek in the blistering heat Tuesday afternoon.
“We obviously have a lot of season left. It’s still pretty early,” Arvada West coach Brenna Millikan admitted. “We have a big road ahead of us, but I’m excited for what this team has in store.”
A-West has jumped out of the gates quickly with five wins over the last eight days. The Wildcats actually trailed Bear Creek (1-3 record) after the Bears put up a trio of runs in the top of the third inning.
Sophomore Ariana Caballero started the inning with a single and later scored on a fielder’s choice. Junior Tia Henke had the big hit for the Bears with a 2-run double to give Bear Creek a 3-2 lead. However, it was all A-West from there on out.
“I don’t think we were nervous,” A-West sophomore Mac Ferguson said of Bear Creek taking a 1-run lead. “We trust Brooklyn. We trust all of our pitchers and our defense. We are confident.”
A-West sophomore Brooklyn Burgess got the start in the circle and scattered five hits over four innings. It was the Wildcats’ offense that really got going in the bottom of the third inning.
Ferguson got things going leading off the bottom of the third inning with a triple to deep right field. A-West would eventually send 13 batters to the plate in the inning to score eight runs, taking a 10-3 lead after three innings.
“I’m really proud about or discipline at the plate,” Millikan said. “Our second time through the line-up I thought everyone made an adjustment. They were able to stay back and worked to make them throw strikes.”
A-West benefited by taking 11 walks in the game. Eight off those walks scored. The Wildcats had seven hits with junior Kendall Mulvaney leading the way in the RBI department with four runs batted in.
“It was a big team effort working together to get to the point we got to,” Mulvaney said.
Mulvaney ended the game in the bottom of the fourth inning with a soft liner up the middle that scored two runs to induce the 12-run mercy rule through four innings.
“We just had to be picky at the plate,” Ferguson said. “When we saw our pitch we just had to jump on it.”
A-West would love to jump into the mix for a 5A Jeffco League title this season. The Wildcats finished 3-4 in conference play last season and didn’t qualify for the reduced postseason field.
“It was heartbreaking for my seniors. I had such a great group of kids,” Millikan said of the shortened COVID season a year ago. “To have our season end at league instead of get the shot at the postseason was tough.”
The Wildcats have already surpassed their non-league win total of four from a year ago.
“It definitely gives us a little push toward the rest of our season,” Ferguson said of the 5-0 start. “We have a really talented team. We know we have each other’s backs. I think that is going to take us really far.”
There is no doubt in the minds of A-West players that they can to get back on top of one of the deepest conferences in 5A.
“We are all very confident in this season knowing that we can beat our rivals and other teams in the league,” Mulvaney said.
A-West begins league play Sept. 14 against rival Ralston Valley.
Bear Creek will have its hands full when it gets into 4A Jeffco League play in mid-September. The Bears open conference play on the road against Wheat Ridge — a 4A state semifinalist in 2020 — on Sept. 18.