Warriors Have No Problem With Lemire

IRVINE —  Alan Dugard remembers it vividly, Lizzy Lemire’s second triple in last year’s Southern Section playoffs against Long Beach Millikan.

Lemire was then a sophomore who had tripled leading off the second inning and scored Woodbridge’s first run. The Warriors had threatened to score in four consecutive innings coming into the 13th, only to be turned away. Then . . .

Lemire led off the 13th with a triple and scored the go-ahead run in a 6-3 victory.

“She has always been an excellent defensive player, but from that point [against Millikan], she found herself as a hitter and conducted herself that way,” Dugard said. “She feels she belongs in the No. 4 spot, and I really believe she’s totally confident all the time.”

The Warriors went on to win the Division II championship, a title they defend against third-seeded Saugus (26-4) at 7:30 p.m. tonight at Lakewood’s Mayfair Park. At third base and batting cleanup will be Lemire, the team leader statistically and emotionally, and the player who homered against Saugus pitcher Jamie Gillies in Woodbridge’s 3-0 victory over the Centurions on April 13.

Lemire did her part last year. She batted more than .600 in the playoffs, drove in the tying run against Lakewood in the championship game and scored the winning run.

But Lemire made an amazing concession this week--she has a confidence problem. Although she has hit the ball hard in the 1996 playoffs, she has only one hit to show for it, “a cheapie,” she called it.

“The last couple of games, I haven’t had that much confidence,” she said, dispelling Dugard’s belief. “It’s like I can’t be satisfied with anything but a hit. Last year, I hit so well in CIF, and now I can’t do anything. I get down because I feel I’m letting my teammates down, but I shouldn’t.

“It’s all mental.”

How mental?

She went 0 for 4 against Santa Maria Righetti in the semifinals, a 1-0 victory. “I hit it hard a couple of times,” she said.

She went 0 for 3 against La Crescenta Crescenta Valley in the quarterfinals, a 4-0 victory. “I mean, yeah, I hit the ball hard that game, too,” she continued, “but the fact that you don’t get an actual hit. . . .”

She has had her share of actual hits, batting a team-high .370 with a .463 on-base average. She scored 16 runs and led top-seeded Woodbridge (28-5) with 23 runs batted in and six doubles. Most impressive, however, is the fact that she struck out only five times in 100 at-bats.

Despite Lemire’s so-called “major slump,” the Warriors are averaging 3.5 runs per playoff game.

And Dugard’s confidence in Lemire is unwavering. He says she is one of the better pure hitters he’s seen in a long time.

“I know there are people out there with better averages, but she has a lot of hard outs,” Dugard said. “She hits the ball hard all the time. Shortstops and third basemen have made some awfully good plays on her. She doesn’t drive the ball over the fences, but she hits hard line drives.”

The major flaw in Lemire’s game is this contradiction of character. She is the team clown who keeps teammates loose and upbeat, yet Dugard says “she takes herself too seriously.” She emotes confidence, yet inwardly struggles.

“She doesn’t remember the successes as much as the failures,” Dugard said, “and that’s something she’ll get over as she gets older. If she doesn’t get the base hit with a runner in scoring position, she will take that home with her.”

Diagnosis? Perfectionist.

“It’s something I really need to work on,” Lemire conceded. “But it’s disappointing when it’s the most important time to hit and you can’t do it. I don’t know. . . .

“I’m trying my best.”