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2009 Prep Softball
San Diego Section

Softball playoffs: Three East County teams finish second

Posted June 2, 2009
The championship round of the 2009 San Diego Section softball playoffs proved bittersweet for three East County teams as the Steele Canyon Cougars, Santana Sultans and Christian Patriots all settled for runner-up finishes in their respective playoff divisions.

Second-seeded Steele Canyon (21-9) lost 8-2 to the top-seeded Mt. Carmel Sundevils (28-6-1) in the Division II championship game while top-seeded Santana (25-7) dropped a 12-2 decision in five-innings to the second-seeded University City Centurions (19-7-2) in the Division III championship game. In the Division IV final, the top-seeded Francis Parker Lancers (24-4) stopped third-seeded Christian (23-12) by a score of 6-3.

All four division championship games were played Saturday, May 30, at San Diego State University. In the Division I title game, top-seeded Rancho Bernardo (26-7-1) shut out second-seeded El Camino (25-8) by a 1-0 score.

Division II
Steele Canyon, which advanced to the championship game by virtue of its 8-3 win over fifth-seeded West Hills on May 28, took a 2-1 lead on the Sundevils after the first inning of play but ran into trouble in the latter stages of the contest, coughing up the tying run in the bottom of the third inning and then yielding three more Mt. Carmel runs in the fourth inning to fall behind 5-2.

The Sundevils pushed across three more runs in the final two fames, out-hitting the Cougars 8-2 in the game.

The title was the third consecutive for Mt. Carmel while Steele Canyon had its bid for a third CIF title halted. The Cougars entered this year's Division II championship game with Division III titles in 2006 and 2007 to their credit.

Jazmin Daigle drove in two runs with a double in the first inning. But after that, Mt. Carmel starter Briana Williams (25-5) settled down to otherwise tame the Cougars, finishing with seven strikeouts.

Maggie Doremus keyed Mt. Carmel on the base paths by going four-for-four with four stolen bases and one RBI. Ashley Romano, however, delivered the key hit of the game with her two-run single in the sixth inning. Romano finished the game with three RBI.

Lorena Klopp (10-4) took the loss for the Cougars. She struck out seven batters but also walked seven batters.

Steele Canyon finished 3-1 in this year’s playoffs by defeating seventh-seeded Valhalla (12-0 in five innings) and third-seeded Bonita Vista (10-2 in regulation play) in the opening two rounds of the eight-team double-elimination tournament.

Klopp threw a no-hitter in the win over Grossmont South League rival Valhalla and limited Mesa League champion Bonita Vista to three hits. In the latter game, Daigle went four-for-four with four RBI, three coming on a home run. The Cougars rapped out 17 hits against the Barons.

Mt. Carmel proved to be a shining example of the softball playoffs' new double-elimination format after absorbing a 2-1 loss to ninth-seeded Westview in the opening round of double-elimination play and then fighting back with four consecutive elimination victories against fourth-seeded Scripps Ranch (11-0), Bonita Vista (2-0), sixth-seeded Hilltop (4-0) and West Hills (4-2) to reach the championship game. The Sundevils finished 5-1 in the tourney.

Division III
The Sultans found themselves down 8-1 on the scoreboard after the opening two frames as the Centurions poured across four runs in each of the first two innings. It was an uphill battle from there — one that was shortened because of the 10-run mercy rule after UC pushed across four more runs in the fourth inning.

The Centurions tied a section single-game record with five triples, including two by Gabby Clement (who racked up five RBI in the contest). Stephanie Wood racked Santana pitching for four RBI in the game.

Meanwhile, Amanda Hansen held the Sultans to just two hits while Jessie Owens (9-4) took the loss. She gave up four runs without retiring a batter in the opening frame. Shannon Fryson finished the game in relief, giving up eight more runs on nine hits.

Amanda Grable had a run-scoring single in the third inning for Santana, which was making its third consecutive finals appearance.

The Sultans won last year's division title.

Santana advanced to the championship game after defeating ninth-seeded Our Lady of Peace (10-0), fourth-seeded Clairemont (8-0) and third-seeded Cathedral Catholic (7-4) in three consecutive winners bracket games.

Owens and Fryson combined on a two-hit shutout in the win over Clairemont.

University City lost its second game in the double-elimination tournament but rallied with three straight victories to reach the final. Overall, the Cents won their last four games to emerge with the division title.

Division IV
The Lancers got off to an early 3-1 lead and added two more runs in the fourth inning to go up 5-3 behind the solid pitching of Amy McIntyre, who improved to 25-4 on the season by striking out six Patriots and while scattering seven hits.

The division title was the fourth consecutive for the Francis Parker.

Alli Gunter (16-5) took the loss in the pitching circle for Christian, which advanced to the title game with a eight-inning 5-2 victory over second-seeded Horizon Christian (28-3) on May 28.

Gunter finished with two hits and scored once in the championship game. Amanda Marcos drove in two runners with a triple in the fifth inning.

The title game was a rematch of the winners bracket final that Francis Parker won by a score of 3-1 on May 28. The loss forced the Patriots to top Horizon Christian in the challenger bracket final later that same day. The challenger bracket final was a rematch of a second-round game also won by the Patriots by the same score.

Francis Parker finished 5-0 in this year's playoffs. The Lancers reached the championship game with victories over Guajome Park Academy (14-0), Imperial (5-4), Mater Dei Catholic (5-4 in nine innings) and Christian.

The Patriots, who were fielding one of their best-ever teams in school history, opened the playoffs with lop-sided victories against Mountain Empire (18-1) and Coronado (8-0).


CIF notepad
El Camino also benefited from the new double-elimination format after losing 6-3 to seventh-seeded Carlsbad in the opening round.

Barons top Lancers in CIF playoffs opener
Posted May 27, 2009
The Bonita Vista Barons and Hilltop Lancers apparently had so much fun duking it out in the final two regular season games of the 2009 softball season for the Mesa League championship title that the San Diego Section playoff pairing committee saw fit that they would potentially match-up in the opening round of this year’s double-elimination tournament.

Such indeed occurred when Hilltop battered visiting Ramona, 4-2, in last Friday’s play-in round to rematch the next day against host Bonita Vista, which received the No. 3 seed in the Division II field.

The Mesa League champion Barons out-slugged the league runner-up Lancers, 11-10, in a high-scoring contest to go 1-0 in the double-elimination tournament, sending Hilltop to the challenger bracket in the process.

The win was the third consecutive by Bonita Vista over Hilltop in as many meetings.

Also advancing to the double-elimination field were South Bay League champion Mar Vista (Division III) and Mater Dei (Division IV).

The new double-elimination tournament for softball is similar to the one that has been employed in the baseball playoffs the past few seasons. Eight teams compete in a play-in round, with the four winners joining four previously seeded teams in an eight-team double-elimination field.

The play-in round was followed by the opening round of double-elimination tournament. Five rounds of double-elimination play in four divisions lead up to the section finals Saturday, May 30, at SDSU.

Just one South County team received a seeded position in this year’s double-elimination tournament. After defeating Hilltop last Saturday, Bonita Vista (22-5) dropped a 10-2 decision at second-seeded Steele Canyon (20-8) on Tuesday to join the sixth-seeded Lancers (24-10) in the challenger bracket.

Hilltop remained alive in the challenger bracket by eliminating Valhalla, 4-3, in 12 innings Tuesday.

In other play-in games, Mar Vista eliminated Canyon Crest by a 10-0 score in a game shortened to six innings while Mater Dei ousted San Diego High Tech High 11-5.

In the opening-round of the double-elimination tournament, fifth-seeded Mater Dei upset fourth-seeded Madison, 8-6, in Division IV play while fourth-seeded Clairemont (14-12) handed fifth-seeded Mar Vista a 1-0 setback in Division III action.

In Tuesday’s winner bracket games, top-seeded Francis Parker edged Mater Dei, 5-4, in nine innings to advance to the winner’s bracket final. In Tuesday’s challenger bracket, Mar Vista held off ninth-seeded Our Lady of Peace, 6-5, to eliminate the Pilots.

In Wednesday’s elimination games, the Mariners traveled to second-seeded University City as play in the Division III bracket continued while the Crusaders hosted sixth-seeded Coronado in a Division IV match-up.

Bonita Vista drew top-seeded Mt. Carmel while Hilltop drew ninth-seeded Westview in Division II elimination games on Wednesday.

Alysha Isaacson went 3-for-3 with two doubles and two RBI and scattered five hits to improve to 14-5 in the pitching circle to lead Hilltop to its play-in victory.

In the ensuing game against Bonita Vista, the Barons overcame a 5-0 deficit on the strength of three runs in each of the fourth and fifth innings and a five-run explosion in the bottom of the sixth inning to erase a 10-6 Lancer advantage. Jennifer Hartman picked up the win in relief to hike her pitching record to 12-2 on the season.

In Hilltop’s challenger bracket win over Valhalla, Jordan Rhudy had the game-winning RBI as both teams settled for nine hits apiece in the elimination contest. Isaacson pitched the whole game, striking out nine batters to get the win as well as hitting a double (as did teammate Nikki Furuya). Rhudy had a two-run homer in the earlier playoff loss to Bonita Vista while also scoring three times.

Steele Canyon, meanwhile, unleashed a 17-hit attack against two Baron pitchers on Tuesday. Jazmin Daigle went 4-for-4 with three home runs and four RBI to lead the Cougars.

In Mar Vista’s play-in victory, Samantha Avi’i tossed a one-hitter to improve to 15-5 on the season while Kristin Anderson and Angel Iacovetti both slammed home runs.

In Mater Dei’s play-in win, Miranda Tamayo went 4-for-4 with three RBI.

Bianca Lujan supplied Mar Vista’s game-winning hit in Tuesday’s elimination victory over OLP.

Three East County teams receive playoff seeds
Softball playoffs show promise for some East County squads

Posted May 26, 2009
New this year for softball teams in the San Diego Section is a double-elimination tournament similar to the one that has been employed in the baseball playoffs the past few seasons. Eight teams compete in a “play-in” round, with the four winners joining four previously seeded teams in an eight-team double-elimination field.

The play-in round was held Friday, May 22, followed by the opening round of double-elimination tournament on Saturday, May 23. The section finals (four divisions) are scheduled May 30 at SDSU.

Three East County teams received seeded positions in the double-elimination tournament: Santana (No. 1 in Division III), Steele Canyon (No. 2 in Division II) and Christian (No. 3 in Division IV).

In play-in games, Granite Hills lost, 1-0, to La Costa Canyon in the Division I field while Valhalla bested Pt. Loma, 2-1, and West Hills stopped Mt. Miguel by a 4-2 score in the Division II field. Westview eliminated Grossmont, 1-0, in the Division II play-in round while Brawley ended Monte Vista’s season with an 8-2 win in the Division III play-in round.

In the Division IV play-in round, Christian blasted Mountain Empire by an 18-1 score.

In the opening-round of the double-elimination tournament, Steele Canyon shut out Valhalla, 12-0, behind a no-hitter by Lorena Klopp while Santana blanked Our Lady of Peace by a 10-0 score. West Hills won its double-elimination opener by a 7-4 verdict over Scripps Ranch while Christian topped Coronado by an 8-0 score.

Santana (23-6) entered the playoffs with an 11-1 record in Grossmont North League play, followed by West Hills (23-7) at 8-3. Steele Canyon held the lead in the Grossmont South League with a 9-1 record, followed by Valhalla (19-13) at 8-2 and Granite Hills (16-10) at 7-3.

Softball season ends on a buzz
Bonita Vista, Hilltop collide in Mesa League title showdown

Posted May 20, 2009
The Metro Conference’s schedule of two-game sets between baseball and softball teams has been praised by some and criticized by others. In the case of softball this season, it couldn’t have been scripted better as the Bonita Vista Barons and Hilltop Lancers — both undefeated in Mesa League play — squared off in the final two games of regular season play.

The Barons emerged on top of the Lancers by a 3-2 score in Monday’s match-up at BVHS to go one up on Hilltop in the league standings.

Wednesday’s return game went into extra frames, with the Barons recording a climactic 9-8 victory in 12 innings to claim sole possession of the 2009 Mesa League championship title.

Bonita Vista’s Jennifer Hartman and Hilltop’s Alysha Isaacson faced off in the pitching circle in Monday’s game. Hartman got the win to improve to 10-2 on the season by striking out four batters and scattering five hits. Isaacson gave up six hits and struck out four batters in six innings.

The Barons used three hits and three errors to score three runs in the home half of the first inning to take a commanding edge on the scoreboard. A base-on-balls, stolen base, and fielder’s choice helped set things in motion, with Kayla Jordan, Anissa Pinedo and Celinna Cosio each scoring runs in the inning.

Jordan and Pinedo each had two hits and scored one run apiece while Ruby Elliott also was credited with two hits in the game. Cosio, Megan Isbell and Nikki Fonteneaux each were credited with one RBI in the contest. Jordan was credited with two stolen bases.
Hilltop got both of its runs in the third inning, scored by Monica Armas and Nikki Furuya. Tiffany Salcedo knocked in both runners with a basehit. Isaacson had two hits in the game, including a double.

When asked what his team did to prepare for Monday’s initial encounter, Bonita Vista coach John Carlson comically said the Barons utilized some magical rituals.

“They’re a good team,” Carlson said of Hilltop. “They’ve been ranked among the county’s top teams this season and have played a tough non-league schedule against many of those top 10 teams. We knew we were in for a tough game and it turned out to be just that. We came out hitting. An error gave us our third run and that was basically the ballgame.”

Wednesday’s game started off fast for Bonita Vista as well, with the Barons scoring six runs in the first inning and adding two more in the second inning. As in Monday’s game, Hilltop chipped away and tied the game by the seventh inning.

Jordan Rhudy started Wednesday’s game for the Lancers, with Isaacson entering the game in relief. Hartman also came in as a reliever, eventually picking up the win. The Lancers rolled across five runs in the third inning and later sent the game into extra innings by scoring twice in the bottom of the seventh. The teams combined for 27 hits.

Hilltop stranded a runner on base in the bottom of the 12th inning.

Mariners rule in South Bay League, set for CIF playoffs
New this year for the San Diego Section’s softball teams is a double-elimination tournament similar to baseball. The play-in round is Friday, May 22, followed by the opening round of double-elimination on Saturday, May 23. The four divisional section finals are scheduled May 30 at SDSU.

Mar Vista wrapped up a perfect 12-0 South Bay League season by defeating Southwest, 18-0, on Wednesday behind a 16-hit attack and a perfect game from pitcher Samantha Avi’i. The game was also the fourth no-hitter of the season for Avi’i, who improved to 14-5 on the season. Ashlie Cochren and Jenna Howell each hit home runs in the game. Howell collected five RBI. Ashley Ortega collected three hits and scored three runs.

The game was shortened to five innings because of the mercy rule. Avi’i put down all 15 batters she faced, striking out 12.

The Mariners (18-8-1) topped the Raiders, 13-0, in the front end of the teams’ two-game set on Monday. Avi’i hurled a no-hitter, striking out 11 of the 16 batters she faced while yielding one base-on-balls. She also helped her own cause at the plate with three hits and three RBI, including a triple. Cochren and Rebecca Sandoval both were credited with two RBI in the game.

As the South Bay League champion, Mar Vista receives an automatic entry into the Division III playoffs.

Metro teams excel in Hilltop softball tournament
Posted April 2, 2009
The 26th annual Hilltop softball tournament wrapped up with playoffs and finals last Saturday at Olympian High School. The tourney-host Lancers advanced to the championship game, falling by a 5-2 score to tourney champion Francis Parker.

Hilltop was one of two Mesa League teams to advance to the semifinals. The Lancers defeated Clairemont, 9-0, while Francis Parker defeated Bonita Vista 6-0.

Hilltop coach Nancy Acerrio called this year’s tournament proving ground a success for the local contingent of high school teams.

“We had four teams — Bonita Vista, Otay Ranch, Hilltop and Eastlake — make it to the second day,” Acerrio said. “They did a great job but, unfortunately, they had to knock each other out of the playoffs. I think it’s going to be a very competitive league season. The Mesa League is very strong this year.”

Francis Parker, the three-time defending San Diego Section Division IV champions, improved to 10-3 with the championship win
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Senior pitcher Amye McIntyre, tabbed as the tournament’s Most Valuable Player, set down the first 13 Hilltop batters she faced and ended the game with 11 strikeouts while tossing a five-hitter. Senior battery mate Kierstie Svatos collected three RBI and scored one run. She snapped a 2-2 tie in the sixth inning with a run-scoring single and added two RBI in the seventh inning for insurance.

Junior Suzanna Ahern contributed a two-run single for the winners.

Hilltop, which saw its season record climb to 9-4, received RBI singles from Maura Cien-Meyer and Danielle Torimaru, both coming in the fifth inning as the Lancers tied the score.

Alysha Isaacson allowed just three hits and struck out nine batters in Hilltop’s semifinal victory while battery mate Monica Armas slammed a three-run home run in the second inning as the tourney hosts erupted for five runs in the frame.

McIntyre also had 11 strikeouts in Francis Parker’s semifinal win over the Barons.

Both Hilltop and Francis Parker played three games in last Saturday’s tourney finals. The Lancers opened the day by edging El Capitan, 2-1, while Francis Parker defeated Santana by a 15-3 score.

Jordan Rhudy picked up the win in the pitching circle for Hilltop.

Bonita Vista opened the day with a 7-0 shutout win over Eastlake while Clairemont eliminated Otay Ranch by a 5-4 score.

Isaacson, Armas and Rhudy, along with Bonita Vista’s Kayla Jordan and Hannah Shafer, all earned selection to the all-tournament team. Besides McIntyre and Svatos, Lauren Tomey also was selected to the all tourney team for Francis Parker. Clairemont’s two all-tourney picks included Paige Nicolet and Priscilla Murrillo.

East County prep athletes prepare for CIF spring playoffs

Posted May 13, 2009
The end of the 2008-09 interscholastic year is just around the corner, and with that, so are the San Diego Section spring sports playoffs. It could be a very memorable time of the year for East County teams.

Boys tennis
Champions will be crowned in three enrollment divisions Friday, May 15, at the Barnes Tennis Center in Point Loma. Team playoffs were scheduled to start Tuesday, with winners advancing to the quarterfinal round on Wednesday and the semifinals on Thursday.

Friday's finals are scheduled to start at 2 p.m.

The section's individual tournament is scheduled May 26 to June 1, also at the Barnes Tennis Center. The championship format includes singles and doubles competition.

The top four teams in Division I, Division II and Division III were seeded without regard to league championship status, with the remainder of the 12-team field placed in the draw by relative strength. The top one-fourth of the draw in singles and doubles competition may be seeded by the commissioner's office, with the remainder drawn at random.

The seeding meeting for the individual tournament is May 22 at the San Diego County Office of Education.

Kevin Brown (Orange Glen) is the team/individual tournament director. Don Ackerly (Valhalla) and Jack Einbinder (West Hills) both represent the Grossmont Conference on the section's advisory
committee.

Steele Canyon, boasting an undefeated 18-0 record, received the No. 2 seed in the Division II team tournament after claiming this year's Grossmont South League title. Also entered in the division were El Capitan (9-5), Valhalla (12-6) and West Hills (11-6).

Gymnastics
The section finals are scheduled May 22 at West Hills High School. Individual, compulsory and optional championships all will be conducted on site

Open warm-ups begin at 1:30 p.m., with competition starting at 2:30 p.m.

Trophies will be presented to the champion and runner-up team. Medals will be awarded to the first six place-finishers in compulsory and optional events, plus all-around competition, in the individual championship.

A Gymnast of the Year will be honored at the end of the meet.

Events include balance beam and bars, vault and floor exercise.

The section advisory committee is comprised of Monique Lamhiere-Tamayoshi (Mt. Carmel) representing the North County League, Sam Wilkerson (El Capitan) representing the Grossmont North League, Julian Friesen (Steele Canyon) representing the Grossmont South League and Cody Moses (Bonita Vista) representing the Metro Conference.

Boys volleyball
Playoffs start May 19 for Division I and Division III teams and May 20 for Division II and Division IV teams. Quarterfinals follow on May 22 (Division I/Division III) and May 23 (Division II/Division IV).

Semifinals are scheduled May 26 for Division I and Division III teams and May 27 for Division II and Division IV teams.

Homes sites are determined in the first three rounds by higher seed. Twelve teams will be entered in each division. Pairings will be conducted by the commissioner's office.

The divisional championships are scheduled May 30 at Cathedral Catholic High School. The order is Division IV (1 p.m.), Division III (3 p.m.), Division II (5 p.m.) and Division I (7 p.m.).

Winners will be determined in a best-of-five rally-scoring format.

Awards will be presented to the championship and runner-up teams in each of the four enrollment divisions. Individual patches will be awarded to members of the championship teams and individual silver medals will be awarded to members of the runner-up teams.

The section's advisory committee includes Sara Whitehouse (Grossmont) and Doug Babington (Valhalla) representing the Grossmont North League and Grossmont South League, respectively.

What is new for the 2009 season will be qualifying for the Southern California regionals. The first and second rounds at the home of the higher seed are scheduled June 2 and June 4, with the regional championships set for June 6 at Capistrano Valley High School.

For more information on the SoCal regionals, visit the Web site at www,cifstate.org.

The divisional breakdown is as follows: Division I (Granite Hills), Division II (Grossmont, Helix Charter, West Hills, El Cajon Valley, Valhalla and Steele Canyon Charter), Division III (Mt. Miguel, El Capitan, Monte Vista and Santana) and Division IV (Christian).

Boys golf
The section team and individual championship tournaments will be run concurrently May 20 and May 27 at Warner Springs Ranch.The Southern California regional championship is June 3 in Murrieta, followed by the state championship June 10 at Poppy Hills.