Torrance Goes Down Swinging Against Hart

Kym Weil threw seven innings of fastballs past Torrance High batters to pitch Hart to a 3-0 second-round victory in the Southern Section 4-A softball playoffs at Charles Wilson Park in Torrance Wednesday.

Weil (26-2) struck out 16 and gave up only four infield singles.

She also added to her Southern Section record for career victories with 87. Earlier this season, Weil broke the mark of 81 set by Gahr’s De De Weiman from 1986-89. Weiman is now pitching for UCLA.

“We knew what we were going up against,” Torrance Coach John Jackson said. “We knew she was going to be tough, so we practiced against quicker pitching--especially the risers and drop balls. But I guess it wasn’t enough.”

Bay League champion Torrance finished 17-3. Hart (27-3), the top-seeded team in the division, will face Pacificia, a 4-3 winner over Hacienda Heights Wilson, in Friday’s quarterfinals.

Weil will attend the University of Hawaii next year, along with catcher Stephanie Keeler. Weil has pitched all but two games for Hart, amassing a staggering 202 innings and 318 strikeouts.

She does aerobics every day to stay in shape for her heavy pitching load.

“The pressure builds every game,” she said. “Every round we play, the teams we face get better. But I tend to pitch better under pressure.”

She pitched a no-hitter last week against Rio Mesa to boost Hart into the second round.

Wednesday, she lowered her earned-run average to 0.31, striking out every Torrance batter except for leadoff hitter Jenny Yokoyama.

Hart got all the runs it needed in the third inning. Torrance pitcher Jamie Sibley walked the first two hitters of the inning, and Nicole White followed with an infield hit to load the bases.

Yokoyama, Torrance’s shortstop, made a rare throwing error on the next play that allowed two runs to score. Yokoyama handled eight other tough chances without an error.

Hart added an insurance run in the fourth when shortstop Krissy Carpenter drove home Casey O’Brien with a double down the left-field line.

“We hit the ball hard all game, but mostly it went right at them,” said Hart Coach Al Weil, who is Kym’s father. “So we went to other things, like bunting, to put the ball in play.”