Escape artist Rauskin scatters nine hits, pitches Centennial past Legacy

Katelynn Rauskin looked like anything but a rookie Tuesday.

The Centennial sophomore pitcher, making her Northwest League debut, had the poise of a seasoned veteran.

And an ability to escape a jam that rivaled that of Harry Houdini.

Rauskin tossed a nine-hitter and worked out of sticky spots in the final three innings to preserve the Bulldogs' league-opening 2-1 win at Legacy.

"She showed a lot of composure, especially for someone who is in her first year up (on varsity)," said Centennial coach Mike Livreri, whose team improved to 5-3.

Rauskin needed only 74 pitches, 60 of them strikes, in seven innings as she struck out six. Only one Legacy batter had a two-ball count.

"She's efficient. When she's on, she's on," Livreri said. "She's in the strike zone. When she's in a groove, she just stays in the groove.

"That's huge. It keeps your defense in the game, and for the most part, our defense made a lot of plays."

Rauskin had only one speed bump in the first four innings, as the Longhorns loaded the bases with one out in the third. But a force at the plate and a strikeout ended that threat.

She allowed an unearned run on a two-out error and consecutive singles by Sierra Pico and Danielle Fuller in the fifth inning, but escaped further damage.

The Longhorns (10-3) had runners at first and second with one out in the sixth and seventh. But Rauskin induced two ground balls in the sixth and got a strikeout and a lineout to end the game.

Meanwhile, Centennial's offense did just enough to support their pitcher.

Kylie Bartlett's bloop double with two outs in the third inning allowed Mikayla Djordjevic to score from first to give Centennial a 1-0 lead.

After Legacy had tied the score in the fifth, Heather Bowen ripped a two-out triple to left-center in the sixth inning and scored on Savannah Horvath's single to center.

"It was getting late on us," Livreri said. "The way Pico was pitching, she was shutting our bats down. That run was huge."

Bowen was 2-for-3 for Centennial.

"This one was very big," said Livreri, whose team hosts Arbor View today. "We have another tough one, and you don't want to start (league play) 0-2. We feel a sense of urgency early this season."

Pico went 3-for-4 and tossed a six-hitter with five strikeouts for Legacy.

Contact reporter Bartt Davis at bdavis@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5230.