Rachel Garcia, pitcher for Highland High in Southern California, was beyond lights-out as she faced Camarillo in the Thousand Oaks Tournament final on Saturday night. In the semifinals, she had thrown a two-hitter, striking out 18 and walking just one. On Saturday night, she was even better. In fact, she was perfect. She struck out an unbelievable 23 batters, including the first 18 batters that she faced. Only one opposing hitter put the ball in play all night -- on a groundout.
This is how you throw a perfect game and lose
A softball pitcher struck out 23, didn’t allow a hit ... and still wound up on the losing side.
Bill Hanstock is a writer, author and Emmy Award-winning producer. He began writing for SB Nation in 2011.
However, since neither team was able to score any runs, the game went to a tiebreaker, which by California rules puts a runner at second base at the start of each extra inning played. Garcia threw a wild pitch, advancing the runner. The catcher opted to throw down to third, but the throw went into the outfield, allowing the winning run to score.
It should still be regarded as an incredible achievement for Garcia. Here are some of the highlights from her dominant performance:
Here is Garcia after the game, talking about taking the loss and her incredible performance:
You’ll get ‘em next time, Rachel. And everyone who has to play against her when she gets to UCLA next year: watch out.
(via Los Angeles Daily News)
