California regional softball champions crowned, final brackets completed

Four second seeds escape with regional championships on a day of upsets

Del Oro pitcher Mikayla Finn led the Golden Eagles to the CIF Northern California Division i title, going the distance in a 5-3 win over top seed and arch-rival Oak Ridge on Saturday / Photo by Dorie Anderson

If you were a top seed heading into the CIF Region Softball Championship game on Saturday, it probably wasn't a good day.

Saturday's championship tilts in Northern and Southern California largely went to the underdogs, especially the second seeds.

In the six of the 10 championship games played, the No. 1 versus No. 2 seeds squared off. Four times the No. 2 team prevailed. Also in Division 2, sixth-seed Eastlake upended the top seed Christian.

The top seed did hold serve in Division 3 where Point Loma and Hillsdale did prevail but both games were highlight competitive.

Below is a roundup of all 10 games which crowned 10 champions. For the most part the games were close, other than Mater Dei Catholic's 12-1 win over El Modena in D1 South. The combined scores of the other games were winners 34, the losers were 12. Three games were decided by one run and three games were decided by two runs.

DIVISION 1

South — No. 2 Mater Dei Catholic 12, No. 1 El Modena 1: Six runs in the fifth and five in the seventh lifted the visiting Crusaders (27-7) to the easy championship win as Maya Matthies and Analesse Garcia each slugged home runs and Arri Romero went the distances, striking out nine. Garcia added a double and four RBIs and Mathies had two hits, runs runs and two RBI. Another sophomore C Masingale contributed two singles, a double and two RBI for the winners. Monica Garcia slugged a two-run homer for El Modena (23-10).

North — No. 2 Del Oro 5, No. 1 Oak Ridge 3: The host Trojans had won two of the three previous games between the Sierra Foothill League rivals, but three doubles from Caelyn Campos and three singles and an RBI by junior Chloe Champas lifted Del Oro (31-2) to the road victory. Sophomore Mikayla Finn scattered 11 hits while going the distance to pick up the win. She was helped by a two-run double from Kate Brown and a run-scoring double by Avyn Brower. Brooklyn Paratore had three hits and Emery Glaser and Aly Watson had two hits apiece for Oak Ridge (26-5).

Mikayla Finn finished her sophomore season 21-1 with a 1.13 ERA and 210 strikeouts in 148.1 innings. / Photo by Dorie Anderson

DIVISION 2

South — No. 6 Eastlake 2, No. 1 Christian 1: Addison Suriano walked 10 and gave up 10 hits yet somehow allowed just one run thanks to 14 strikeouts. She threw an astounding 226 pitches. Deziree Gomez had three hits and an RBI, while Jaelene Jenkins and Mia Vasquez had two hits each for Eastlake (23-11-1). Ashley Wood had three hits for Christian (24-9-1).

North — No. 2 Salinas 4, No. 4 Liberty-Brentwood 1: The hot-hitting and visiting Lions were cooled off by Salinas senior Pitcher Abi Jones, who fired a three-hitter with 12 strikeouts. Liberty (25-5) had scored 31 runs in two NorCal playoff games, but could muster only a RBI single by Kelsie Skaggs in the third inning. But that time Salinas (21-8) had a 2-0 lead and would never trail thanks in part to a home run, double and single from Gigi Rossi.

DIVISION 3

South — No. 1 Point Loma 4, No. 2 Legacy 1: Freshman Ella Poulin threw a five-hitter with eight strikeouts and just two walks leading the host Pointers (28-6-1) to the championship win. Another freshman, Siena Balistreri had a two-run double and Nanko Schroth and Avery MacPherson also drove in runs as Point Loma finished the season on a seven-game win streak, allowing just 14 runs in that span while scoring 32. Katelen Pedroza had two of her team's four hits for Legacy (26-8).

Point Loma's softball team won the Southern California Division 3 regional with a 4-1 win over Legacy on Saturday / Photo by Steven Silva

North — No. 1 Hillsdale 1, No. 2 Cardinal Newman 0: Sophomore pitcher Lola Jones (three-hitter, seven strikeouts, no walks) outdueled Cardinal Newman-Santa Rosa senior Callie Howard (two-hitter, eight strikeouts, two walks) leading the Knights to victory. Taylor O’Mahoney’s one-out RBI single scored Mia DeMartini who led off with a double to score the winning run in the seventh for the Knights (21-9-1), who won their second straight game in walk-off fashion. Nicole DiMarco, Cienna Alvarez and Jordyn Johnsen had singles for Newman (24-7).

DIVISION 4

South — No. 2. Woodlake 4, No. 1 Pioneer Valley 3: The visiting Tigers scored twice in the top of the sixth to take a 3-2, increased it to 4-2 in the top of the seventh, then held on behind senior pitcher Audrina Rodriguez who improved to 23-0 on the season with a 0.66 ERA. Ella Lara and Hannah Lafferty led the offense with two hits and a RBI each while Noemi Aldana also drove in a run. Woodlake, a town of 7,500 residents near the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, finished 30-1. Host Pioneer Valley of Santa Maria (21-13) got an RBI double by Natalia Rocha and two hits by Kianna Real.

North — No. 1 East Nicolaus 4, No. 3 San Leandro 0: In Stevie Knight went 4-for-4 and pitched a one-hitter with eight strikeouts to lead the Spartans (24-6) to victory over the Pirates (23-9). Makinze Massey also had an RBI for East Nicolaus.

DIVISION 5

South — No. 2 Orcutt Academy 6, No. 1 Rancho Mirage 1: The Spartans, from an unincorporated town in Santa Barbara County, lashed 13 hits including two hits each and an RBI each from Marissa Martinez and Kaleena Barragan. Lylah Garcia and Valerie Gonzales combined on a a three-hitter for the Spartans (18-11-1). Rancho Mirage, which got an RBI single from Amiah Olvera, finished 21-11.

North — No. 1 Biggs 4, No. 3 King City 2: Allie Little went 3-for-4 and Riley Harrison drove in two runs, helping to make a winner out of Garcie Sheppard, who struck out five and allowed two earned runs for the host Wolverines (29-3-1), who won their first NorCal title. Avery Munoz had a single and a double and scored two runs and Amity Hearne singled in two runs for King City (20-12).

COMPLETE BRACKETS

NORCAL

• DIVISION I
• DIVISION II
• DIVISION III
• DIVISION IV
• DIVISION V

SOCAL

• DIVISION I
• DIVISON II
• DIVISION III
• DIVISION IV
• DIVISION V