CYPRESS, Calif. ---  The Lady Chargers tried sparking a rally on Thursday afternoon but ended up falling short against the visiting Gauchos from Saddleback College by a score of 11-12.

Alendrina Pichardo and Alejandra Guillen helped close the gap for Cypress when they were both walked in the bottom of the second inning, bringing in Monique Martinez and Gabby Juarez for the first Charger runs of the game.  

After shutting down Saddleback in the third inning, Cypress found themselves down 2-6 with some momentum from the previous at bats.  Martinez was able to get on base once again and eventually scored another Cypress run.  Kelsey Choate and Mylee Macahilig also scored in the inning on passed balls which then led to a 5-6 game.

Saddleback continued to lead Cypress by a score of 10-8 heading into the bottom of the sixth, but Khailey Campos was determined to keep the Chargers in the game.  Campos crushed a deep home run over the center field wall, making it a one point game, 9-10.  Macahilig scored her second run of the game later in the inning and helped tie up the contest at 10-10.

Tiffany McCracken singled for the Gauchos in the top of the seventh driving in Smith and Angulo for two more Saddleback runs, making it a 12-10 game in Saddleback's advantage.

Down 10-12, Campos delivered in the clutch once again for Cypress.  Campos drove in Jessica Gutierrez for one more Cypress run, making it a one point game.  Unfortunately, the attempt of a comeback came to an end as the Lady Chargers fell short by a score of 11-12.

The loss puts Cypress at 18-7 overall on the season with a 8-5 conference record.  

The Lady Chargers will look to bounce back when they travel to Ventura this weekend to compete in a four game tournament.

The next Cypress home game is set for Wednesday, April 2, vs. Riverside College with first pitch at 3:00 PM.