By RYAN ARENA

L’Observateur

RESERVE – Monday’s softball game against crosstown rival St. Charles Catholic couldn’t have gone any better for pitcher Destin Vicknair and her Riverside teammates. In many ways, in fact, it was absolutely perfect.

Vicknair indeed tossed her second perfect game of the season as the Rebels ran out to an early lead and never looked back, downing SCC 13-0 in a non-district showdown between perennial contenders.

The game ended after five innings because of the 10 run rule.

“I kind of had an idea that it was going on,” said Vicknair, “but I never thought about it. (The win) feels good. We’ve never 10-run ruled them before.”

Said Riverside coach Kristy Hebert, “I thought she did an excellent job. Everything was working for her. Once she saw the defense making plays for her early, she gained even more confidence.”

Vicknair finished with eight strikeouts to go along with her perfect statline. At the plate, she went 2 for 3 with three RBIs.

Riverside’s Taylor Terrio went 4 for 4 with two RBIs. Carleigh Trosclair went 1 for 2 with a double and three RBIs. Megan Stein, Kori Bourgeois, Rayne Weber and Madison Watson each collected two hits.

The Rebels (19-4) led 5-0 after two innings after a bases loaded single by Terrio and a two-RBI single by Vicknair highlighted a four-run second inning.

Riverside tacked on six more runs in the third inning. After Riverside loaded the bases with one out, a two-run double by Trosclair and an RBI single by Watson made it 8-0. That chased SCC starter Chelsea Loupe from the game after just 2.1 innings – she was relieved by Brittany Lambert, who finished the remainder of the game.

“That was really surprising,” said Terrio of the hot start to the game. “We all just came to play today.”

Riverside shuffled its lineup for the game, with usual starting third baseman Erica Delaneuville and catcher Katie Bailey sidelined for the day.

But Bourgeois and Watson stepped into the starting lineup and went a combined 4 for 5. And the Rebels defense, with Toni Hebert sliding over to catcher from shortstop, Caitlin Roussel taking her spot at short and Watson playing at third base, didn’t miss a beat.

“I was really proud of the girls,” said Kristy Hebert. “One through nine, everyone in the lineup stepped up. People playing out of position did a good job.

“Early this season, we had everyone swinging the bats well. Then we had some spells where the top was hitting but not the bottom or vice versa. Today, we had everyone clicking.”

Vicknair’s previous perfect game came March 15 against Neville. Her last three starts have all been shutouts, including a 2-0 victory last Thursday over defending Class 1A champion Hannan.

“I feel a lot stronger this year,” said Vicknair. “I’m in better shape to finish games. We’ve put a lot of work into our conditioning.”

St. Charles fell to 16-6 with the loss. SCC had bounced back from a loss to Brusly with a 4-3 win over South Beauregard Saturday.

The Comets return to action Thursday at home against E.D. White.

The Rebels’ win over St. Charles stands as another victory over a team in the top 10 in its classification as per power points. SCC was ranked eighth in Class 3A as of Monday. The Rebels are ranked second in Class 2A. The Rebels have notched 10 wins over teams in the Top 10 of their respective classifications; all four of their losses have come to teams ranked in the top four.”

“When I first saw (the schedule), I just kind of felt, ‘Wow, that’s pretty brutal,’” said Terrio. “But I knew we could fight through it. It’s really going to prepare us for the playoffs.”

RIVERSIDE 10, SOUTH BEAUREGARD 0 – Riverside defeated South Beauregard by the 10-run rule Saturday at Riverside.

Hailey Tassin went 2 for 2 with three RBIs. Toni Hebert went 2 for 4 with two RBIs. Megan Stein was 2 for 3 with an RBI and Taylor Terrio went 3 for 4.

Destin Vicknair earned the win. She tossed a two-hit shutout and struck out eight.

The game ended after five innings via the 10-run rule.