The Texas Volts rolled into Hillsboro, Ore., and took a 7-2 win over the Portland Cascade. Dejah Mulipola had a monster game for the Volts. She went 2-for-4 with 2 home runs and 2 RBIs on the day. Behind the dish, she caught two runners attempting to steal second base.
Volts head coach Ricci Woodard, seated next to Mulipola afterward, gladly spoke about the two-way performance.
“It was fun to watch,” Woodard said. “Obviously, this young lady next to me had a lights-out game, not only at the plate, but behind the plate. She made some key plays on some strikeouts, and then throwing some people out. I mean, she was just all over the place today, so it was fun to watch.”
Mulipola has kept her focus on the process rather than the record. That mindset, along with being a great competitor, fuels her play on the field.
“Regardless of the standings, I’m still trying to have fun with my teammates and enjoy being out there,” Mulipola said. “We still want to put a product out on the field and represent the Volts well. So, I mean, I compete every time, whether we’re losing or winning, I’m just trying to compete, be a hard out every time. Obviously, the home runs are a bonus. When they come, and obviously I’m really happy about that, but just giving my team a fighting chance, that’s all I’m going up to the plate and trying to do.”
Cascade coach Tairia Flowers, who’s coached Mulipola with Team USA, spoke on Mulipola’s strengths at the plate.
“She’s a great hitter. I was fortunate to coach her on the Olympic team, and she’s got a ton of power and a good eye,” Flowers said. “She took advantage of our misses. She’s a patient hitter.”
Portland started hot. After Kelly Maxwell retired the opening frame in order, the offense scored two runs on two hits to take an early 2-0 lead. Sierra Sacco-Ferrie and Megan Grant recorded back-to-back RBI doubles, and that was all of Portland’s offense.
Ally Carda settled in after that, and the Cascade were only able to push two more hits during her outing. Carda’s movement and location gave the Cascade issues, and balls in play found the Volts’ defense. Carda went 4.0 innings, gave up 2 runs on 4 hits, and struck out 3 with 1 walk before Aliyah Binford took the ball to begin the fifth.
Woodard credited her arms for shutting things down after the early deficit.
“You got an Ally Carda on the mound, she’s gonna keep you in every ballgame because she competes her tail end off,” Woodard said. “You kind of knew the first inning we gave up a couple, but … we’re gonna try to shut that down and just compete and try to battle one pitch at a time. And then Binford coming in, she’s gonna give you a couple of really good innings.”
As for the Volts offense, they pushed and found ways to score in every inning except the first and sixth. Other than Mulipola’s two solo shots, Danieca Coffey scored Leighann Goode in the top of the third inning with an RBI double. Coffey went on to finish the day 3-for-4 with an RBI and run scored. Tiare Jennings accounted for scores in the fifth and seventh innings, with an RBI double and RBI single. Jaydyn Goodwin and Rylie Boone each chipped in back-to-back RBI doubles in the seventh inning.
Carda recorded her first win of the season, but Binford’s performance was stellar. In 3.0 innings, she gave up no hits and struck out 2 with 1 walk to record her first save of the season. Now the pressure is on in the playoff race. The Cascade no longer control their own destiny, and a win Saturday is a must.
