West Valley pounded out 26 hits, including a trio of homers, to take both ends of a Thursday doubleheader at American River College. The 15-8 and 9-1 victories moved the Vikings to 4-0 on the young season and were the first of five consecutive dates with Big 8 squads. The Vikings jumped out on top of the previously-unbeaten Beavers (3-2-1) in both games with big 1st innings.

Andrea DeJesus opened the scoring with an RBI-single that drove home Tyla Arbuckle, who had reached on the first of two ARC errors in the inning. DeJesus came home on the second infield error, and after Raylene Cruz walked and Jasmine Mixco singled, Makayla Villapando roped a two-run double up the middle for a 4-0 WVC lead.

After Lindsay Paredes homered in the Beaver 2nd to make it 4-1, the Vikings put four more on the board in the top of the 3rd. Mixco led off with a single and moved to third on free passes to Alexis Bojorquez-Nava and Villapando. Alina Perez cleared the bases with a single and then came home on an Ella Moser SAC fly to left that made it 8-1.

American River made things interesting at 8-6 with a four-run 5th inning, but West Valley got an RBI-double from Cruz and a Mixco run-scoring single in the top of the 6th to breath easier at 10-6. The Beavers inched back to 10-8 on a Kaylah Adams two-run HR in the 6th, but the Vikings would put it away with five runs in the top of the 7th.

Villapando doubled and scored on a Moser single for an 11-8 WVC lead. After an Arbuckle single, DeJesus increased the advantage to 13-8 when she lined a Felesha Lapenske 2-2 pitch over the fence at left-center. Brianna Chambers Lee hammered Lapenske's next offering to straight-away left for a solo HR to close out the scoring.

Timely hits were the order of the game, with WVC recording 14 RBI. Mixco had four of WVC's 15 hits, while DeJesus went 3-for-5 with four RBI. Villapando finished 2-for-2 with two RBI and two runs scored. Arbuckle, Chambers Lee, Cruz, DeJesus and Mixco also scored two runs each. Anna Bean went 6 2/3 innings to earn the win in the circle and improve to 2-0 on the year.

The Vikings would score all the runs they would need in a three-run 1st to open game two. Arbuckle led off the game with a single and scored on a DeJesus double. DeJesus moved to third on a wild pitch, Chambers Lee walked and stole second, just before DeJesus came home on a passed ball. Cruz walked, stole second, advanced to third when Lee was thrown out at the plate on a steal attempt, and came home on another Beaver wild pitch. 

After the teams exchanged solo runs in the 3rd (ARC) and 4th (WVC), West Valley scored three in the 5th inning for a 7-1 lead. Cruz singled to open the 5th and came home on a Mixco single. The next batter, Villapando, homered to left, knocking in Mixco and extending the WVC advantage to 7-1. The Vikings added 7th-inning insurance runs on a DeJesus RBI-double and an Arbuckle wild pitch-run.

Arbuckle finished 3-for 4 with two runs scored. DeJesus had two hits and a pair of RBI. Mixco was 2-for-3 to finish the doubleheader a combined 6-for-8. Ashlie Nakano (2-0) went the distance, surrendering one run on four hits and striking out seven.

West Valley hosts the perennially-powerful Panthers of Sacramento City (4-0) Tuesday (2/4) at Viking Field. First pitch is 2:00pm.