Perry softball: 9-2. Mesquite softball: 1-8. A good game to view Tuesday night with those polar-opposite records?

Yep.

It took Perry catcher Devon Ryan's RBI double in the top of the ninth to snap a tie and lift the Pumas to a 9-8 victory over host Mesquite in a Division I night game  that saw the teams trade four-run leads the first two innings.

It also took a three-run rally in the top of the seventh by Perry to force extra innings, plus seven innnings of 17-strikeout relief from Pumas' staff ace Jillian Leslie for them to prevail. In addition, the tying run in the seventh scored on a controversial play.

Too many thrills for Mesquite faithful to have to swallow a ninth defeat and a sigh of relief for Perry folks as they watched their Pumas record a 10th win. Perry is 5-0 in power-ranking games so far with two extra-inning wins in as many days. Mesquite is 0-4 in power-ranking games.

"It's a life lesson for us," Hernandez said after complementing her team for their effort. "We haven't been going well. We got behind tonight 4-0 right away. We came right back and scored five on them. That showed me something. We kept fighting, and that's what you look for."

Perry, which grabbed a 4-0 lead in the first, only to see that become an 8-4 deficit after two innings, scored a run in the sixth to pull within 8-5. Then in the seventh RBI hits by Monica Marrufo and Layne Gomez made it 8-7. With one out and runners at second and third, reliever Laura McLaughlin got Leslie to loft a fly ball to right. Both runners tagged and Gomez beat the throw to the plate tying the game. Mesquite appealed that the runner on second left too soon and the base umpire concurred. That was the third out. But the home plate umpire ruled the run still counted since that took place before the appeal was made or could have been made -- the situation was all about timing.

"That's how it was explained to us," Hernandez said. 

Gomez, who reached base four times from her leadoff spot, notched an infield hit with one out in the ninth. Gomez stole second and was still there after McLaughlin recorded a strkeout for the second out. Ryan was down in the count 1-2, but laced a sharp liner to the left-centerfield gap to plate Gomez.

Leslie, who pitched the third through ninth innings following starter Madi Gloss and Taylor Vogel, was outstanding. She allowed four hits and four walks in seven innings of work, fanning 17 and at least two every inning.

"I think in at least half the games we've won we've had to come from behind," Perry coach Kevin Chapin said. "Being able to come back is a good trait. I don't like doing it as much as we have. .....They came at us. Played us tough last week. It's hard to figure they haven't won yet." 

Freshman catcher Kylie Ridge was 2-for-4 for Mesquite with four RBI, including a three-run homer in the Lady Wildcats' five-run first inning. Mesquite leadoff hitter McKensey Madsen was as pesky as Perry's Gomez. Madsen had four hits -- three of the infield variety.

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