Jesuit Softball Ends Second-Round Curse with 10-0 Playoff Rout, Eyes State Title Run

No. 2-seeded Crusaders dominate Aloha to advance to the 6A quarterfinals behind Aubrey Rhodes’ one-hit shutout and Olivia Hildreth’s three-run homer

Jesuit’s (from left) Aubrey Rhodes, Selah Greene, Riley Smith and Berkleigh Tuck celebrate following Smith’s game-ending RBI single in the Crusaders’ 10-0 state playoff win over Aloha. / Dan Brood

PORTLAND, OREGON – The second-round jinx has been wiped away.

Now, it’s time to try and chase down an Oregon softball state championship.

The Jesuit High School softball team, which has lost in the second round of the Class 6A state playoffs four straight seasons, going back to 2019 (there were no state playoffs in 2020 and 2021 due to the pandemic), ended that curse in a big way, rolling to a 10-0, five-inning win over Aloha in a Class 6A state playoff second-round game played Wednesday under sunny skies at Jesuit High School.

“It’s a big win for us,” Jesuit junior pitcher Aubrey Rhodes said after the victory. “The last few years we’ve had a struggle getting past the second round of the playoffs, so it’s big to finally get past the second round, but we’re still looking for bigger things, getting all the way.”

Jesuit junior pitcher Aubrey Rhodes makes a throw to first base after fielding a grounder during the Crusaders’ 10-0 state playoff win over Aloha. / Dan Brood

“The past couple of years we haven’t got past the second round,” said Crusader junior second baseman Paisley Rhyne, who had two hits and scored a pair of runs in the win. “We’ve had a bit of trouble, so we’re really happy as a team to get past the second, but, of course, we’re going to keep going and see how far we can get.”

“It was on our minds, definitely,” Jesuit junior catcher Olivia Hildreth said of the second-round jinx. “It feels really, really good to get past that.”

With the victory, Jesuit, the No. 2 seed in the Class 6A state playoffs, improved to 24-5 on the season. The Crusaders, who defeated Sprague 17-0 in a first-round contest on Monday, also advanced to the quarterfinal round of the playoffs, where they’ll host Roseburg (a 6-2 second-round winner over Forest Grove on Wednesday) on Friday.

Jesuit is hoping that game will be the next step on the journey to its ultimate aspiration.
“I think we all have one goal, and that goal is the play on June 7 (date of the Class 6A state championship game),” Hildreth said.

“We just need to keep scoring runs and keep beating teams, no matter what,” Rhodes said. “We’ve got great talent on this team and I think we have what it takes to go all the way.”

“We want to see how far we can get,” Rhyne said. “We’re going to keep practicing, keep going, and go for it.”

Jesuit junior Paisley Rhyne dives safely to home plate for a second-inning run in the Crusaders’ 10-0 second-round state playoff win over Aloha. / Dan Brood

Jesuit sure seemed to go for it in Wednesday’s game against Aloha, a Metro League rival. Pitching, hitting, defense – the Crusaders looked impressive in all three phases.

In the circle, Rhodes was nearly flawless. She gave up just one hit, a second-inning infield single, while striking out a pair and walking none.

“I felt great,” Rhodes said with a smile. “It was a hot day out here, but I felt confident. I’ve got a great catcher behind the plate helping me, calling great pitches.”

“She looked really good,” Hildreth said of Rhodes. “She was spinning the ball really well.”

Rhodes also helped force Aloha into 11 ground-ball outs, four of which she fielded herself.
“I play shortstop as well, so anytime I can get a ground ball it’s good,” Rhodes said.

“I love playing defense behind Aubrey,” Rhyne said. “She always sets up us real well with the grounders.”

Jesuit sophomore Eleana Regnier sprints to first base after lacing a single to center field in the Crusaders’ 10-0 state playoff victory against Aloha. / Dan Brood

The Crusaders also pounded out 13 hits in the victory.

Hildreth had the biggest of those hits with a second-inning three-run home run. She came to the plate with one out and senior Berkleigh Tuck on second base and sophomore Eleana Regnier on third. Hildreth then blasted the first pitch of her at-bat for a home run over the center-field fence, upping the lead to 6-0 at that point.

“It was the first pitch, I saw it, and I just swung as hard as I could, knowing that there were runners on base and I had to get them home,” Hildreth said. “It felt really good just to help my team any way I can. It felt good coming off the bat.”

For the game, Hildreth went 3 for 3 at the plate with her home run, a walk and four RBIs.

“Hitting is very contagious with us,” Hildreth said. “I think we’re a really solid hitting team, and we’ve proved it this year.”

Senior first baseman Riley Smith went 3 for 4 with a double and two RBIs. It was her single with two outs in the bottom of the fifth inning that drove in courtesy runner Mia Harcleroad, making the score 10-0 and ending the game by virtue of the 10-run rule.

Regnier went 2 for 3 and scored three times.

“I think we all hit really well, collectively,” Rhyne said. “We hardly left any runners on base, and we played well on defense in the field.”

“I think we’re just passing the bat and getting team wins,” Rhodes said. “Everyone is getting big hits, everyone is sacrificing, whether it be sac bunts, sac flies, whatever we need to do to score runs.”

“This was really fun,” Hildreth said.

Jesuit junior Olivia Hildreth is mobbed at home plate by her Crusader teammates after her three-run home run in Wednesday’s state playoff game. / Dan Brood

Now, the Crusaders are looking to do more of the same, and have more fun, as postseason play continues.

“We’re going to keep passing the bat, playing good defense and having the mindset to focus on each game,” Hildreth said.

Sophomore Chiyori Brumley had the one hit in the contest for the Warriors. Aloha, the No. 18 seed, finished it season at 16-13. Aloha’s 6-3 first-round playoff win at Gresham was the Warriors’ first state playoff victory since 2014.