In past years, the San Diego Section’s baseball and softball championship games were given their own showcase on consecutive weekends.
Not so this year.
The CIF baseball finals faced off May 26 — the same date of the softball semifinals — and wrapped up with games on May 27. The softball finals took place May 27-28, also at UC San Diego.
To split the interest level, the state track and field meet took place May 27-28 in Clovis.
Fans had to make a choice as to which teams (or sports) to follow.
The Metro Conference didn’t fare too badly as Eastlake (Division I) and Mar Vista (Division III) both won baseball titles while Montgomery (Division II) settled for a runner-up finish.
The weekend’s success continued in the softball finals as Otay Ranch captured the elite Open Division championship and Mater Dei Catholic emerged victorious in the Division I bracket.
On an individual basis, Eastlake senior Justin Cardoza came home with a fifth-place medal in the boys high jump competition despite competing in adverse wind conditions in the Fresno region.
Overall, it was a highly successful spring season for South County teams as Mar Vista won the Division IV boys volleyball championship on May 13, Eastlake finished runner-up in the Division I boys track and field section finals on May 21 after placing second in the section’s girls swim finals on May 7.
Additionally, Eastlake’s softball team advanced as far as the Division I semifinals while Otay Ranch’s boys tennis team recorded a runner-up finish in the Division III championship game on April 30.
Eastlake senior Emily Lundgren became a state champion in the girls 100-yard breaststroke in competition at the Clovis Olympic Swim Complex on May 14 as the spring sports championships started to gain momentum.
Mater Dei Catholic freshman Valentino Nieto captured seventh place in the boys diving card on May 12 to face off this year’s state swim and dive championships.
Ladies first
Otay Ranch, seeded fourth in the elite eight bracket, defeated fifth-seeded Mission Hills, 7-6, to open the softball playoffs on May 18, then defeated eighth-seeded Rancho Buena Vista, in a second round game on May 21 after the Lady Longhorns had upset top-seeded Del Norte in the opening round.
The Lady Mustangs topped Del Norte, 7-2, in fourth round play on May 26 and defeated second-seeded San Marcos, 2-0, as their crowning achievement in the championship game on May 28.
Otay Ranch finished its season with a 23-8 overall record after posting a 5-1 record to capture the Metro-Mesa League championship.
The Mesa League championship and the Open Division championship are both firsts at the school. It’s also a first with the softball team winning back-to-back CIF championships after winning the Division II title in 2021.
“Fantastic!” Otay Ranch athletic director Judd Rachow noted with an exclamation mark. “When you take it into consideration that three years ago we were lucky to be in the playoffs, being CIF Division II champions last year and now in the Open Division, it’s a testament to the girls’ team chemistry and determination, along with a lot of talent.
“The Mesa League is really one of the toughest softball leagues in the county.”
The Lady Mustangs displayed their toughness in their first playoff game by rolling across three runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to erase a 6-4 Mission Hills lead.
Senior Natalie Alvarez drove in three runs while classmate Michaela Mau (double) had two RBI while freshman Kaylin Phillips, junior Alexa Munoz and senior Maya Loper combined on a three-hitter from the pitching circle.
Sophomore Viviana Vargas led the offensive assault in the win over RBV with two RBI while seniors Daniela Sandez (double) and sophomore Isabel Cintron (double) each chipped in with one RBI. Loper tossed a complete game five hitter with nine strikeouts to pick up the win.
Freshman Iztel Soto swung the big stick with a home run and three RBI in the win over Del Norte to push Otay Ranch into the Open Division championship game.
Junior Isabel Vinluan (two doubles) tacked on two RBI while sophomore Nataly Lozano and Lopez also drove in one run. Lopez notched a complete game four-hitter with 10 strikeouts.
The championship game was scoreless until the Lady Mustangs pushed across two runs in the top of the seventh inning in a game in which both teams racked up nine hits — five for Otay Ranch and four for San Marcos.
Cintron knocked in both runners —Soto and Vinluan — to spark the history-making Open Division victory.
Loper scattered four hits and struck out seven batters to earn the win in the pitching circle.
Crusader Nation
The Lady Mustangs did not participate in last week’s Southern California regional tournament but Metro-Mesa League Mater Dei Catholic did after securing the section’s Division I championship and went on to win it all.
The Lady Crusaders bulldozed their way through both tournaments undefeated — 4-0 in the section playoffs and 3-0 in the regionals to finish the season on a nine-game winning streak.
Mater Dei Catholic opened the section playoffs with an 8-2 win over ninth-seeded Santana and followed with a 6-2 win over fifth-seeded Steele Canyon. The Lady Crusaders topped third-seeded Mt. Carmel, 8-4, in the semifinals before recording a wild 13-12 victory over second-seeded Cathedral Catholic in the championship game on May 27.
Michelle Cervantes, Ayanna Shaw (two triples) and Analesse Garcia (home run) each drove in two runs in the playoff opener against the Lady Sultans (13-16) while Garcia picked up the complete game victory in the pitching circle.
Cervantes (double), Shaw (triple)and Isabella Hiner (home run) all picked up two RBI in the ensuing win over the Lady Cougars (18-13-1) while Isabela Valdez and Garcia combined on a four-hitter.
Shaw had four RBI in the win over Mt. Carmel to place the Lady Crusaders in the championship game. Amy Jones, Garcia and Cervantes each dove in one run in support of Valdez and Garcia, who combined on a five-hitter with eight strikeouts.
Cathedral Catholic and Mater Dei Catholic combined for 19 hits and 25 runs in the division finales. The Lady Crusaders erased an early 5-0 Lady Dons lead with three runs in the bottom of the second inning and went ahead, 7-6, on the strength of a four-run rally in the bottom of the fourth inning.
Cathedral Catholic rolled across four runs in the top of the fifth inning to go in front, 10-7, but Mater Dei Catholic responded with five runs of its won in the bottom of the frame to regain the lead at 12-10.
The scoring wasn’t finished as the Lady Dons scored twice in the top of the sixth inning to tie the contest 12-12. The stalemate continued until the Lady Crusaders, despite being charged with seven errors in the game, pushed across the winning run in the bottom of the seventh inning in dramatic fashion to steal the championship game victory.
Cervantes had three hits and three RBI in the winning effort while Shaw and Hiner both knocked in two runs apiece. Michaella Salvaierra, Lilia Alpuche and Alexis Serrano all were credited with one RBI.
The Lady Crusaders benefited from eight walks in the game.
Valdez was charged with eight hits, four walks and 12 runs in five innings while Garcia pitched two frames with one hit and no runs.
Mater Dei Catholic bulldozes to nine-game win streak, SoCal regional championship
The Southern California regional softball and baseball championships took place May 31 to June 4 following the conclusion of sectional playoffs.
Eight teams were included in each of four brackets with quarterfinal round play followed by semifinals and a championship game.
Overall, nine San Diego Section softball teams were admitted to this year’s regional brackets, including Open Division runner-up San Marcos, Open Division semifinalists Del Norte and Rancho Buena Vista, Division I champion Mater Dei Catholic, Division I runner-up Cathedral Catholic, Division II champion Granite Hills, Division III champion Calexico, Division IV champion Escondido Charter and Division V champion Fallbrook.
Open Division runner-up San Marcos (18-10) received the No. 7 seed in the Division I regional bracket but lost, 5-0, to second-seeded Oaks Christian in the opening quarterfinals. Oaks Christian (34-1) went on to defeat top-seeded Roosevelt (28-4) by a score of 6-5 in the division championship game.
Four section teams were included in the Division II bracket: second-seeded Del Norte (26-6-1), fifth-seeded Rancho Buena Vista (18-12-1), seventh-seeded Mater Dei Catholic (22-11) and eighth-seeded Cathedral Catholic (19-14-1).
The bottom backet featured two upsets in the opening quarterfinals as Mater Dei Catholic eliminated Del Norte (26-6-1) by a score of 5-3 and sixth-seeded Tesoro upended third-seeded South Hills, 2-1.
Mater Dei Catholic defeated Tesoro, 2-0, in another upset in the semifinals while top-seeded Torrance edged fourth-seeded Bonita, 3-2, to reach the championship game.
The Lady Crusaders (22-11) made no doubt they were worthy champions after posting a 15-9 win as the bracket buster. Torrance finished 26-9.
Mater Dei Catholic rapped out 11 hits in the regional opener. Sophomore Michelle Cervantes (double) delivered with three RBI while junior Ayanna Shaw (two walks) drove in one run.
Freshman Analesse Garcia pitched six innings with six hits and three runs allowed while senior Isabela Valdez pitched one inning with one hit and no runs allowed.
The Lady Crusaders out-hit Tesoro 10-4 in the regional semifinals but it took 10 innings to settle the outcome as Shaw and sophomore Michaella Salvatierra scored the only runs of the extra-innining contest. Shaw had two doubles while Garcia had one double.
Garcia went all 10 innings in a marathon pitching performance by scattering four hits.
That left the regional title to be decided between Mater Dei Catholic and Torrance. The Lady Crusaders recovered from a 5-2 deficit in the first inning to eventually prevail by scoring six runs in the the eighth inning to snap a 9-9 deadlock.
Cervantes cracked two doubles and amassed five RBI.
San Diego Section 2022 Divisional Softball Playoff Log
Play-in Round
Monday, May 16
Division II
Clairemont 2, Ramona 1
Division V
Castle Park 28, Victory Christian Academy 14
Single-Elimination Round
Tuesday, May 17
Division I
(9) Santana 5, (8) Patrick Henry 4
(5) Steele Canyon 6, (12) Scripps Ranch 0
(11) University City 4, (6) San Pasqual 0
(10) Eastlake 2, (7) Carlsbad 1
Division II
(9) Mission Bay 8, (8) Olympian 2
(5) Valhalla 4, (12) Clairemont 0
(11) Grossmont 2, (6) La Costa Canyon 1
(7) El Camino 6, (10) Hilltop 5
Division III
(8) Imperial 8, (9) Canyon Hills 7
(5) Westview 14, (12) Sweetwater 0
(6) Coronado 2, (11) Bayfront Charter 1
(7) Christian 8, (10) Mission Vista 2
Division IV
(9) La Jolla Country Day 6, (8) Classical Academy 5
(5) San Ysidro 13, (12) Madison 0
(6) Montgomery 18, (11) Monte Vista 2
(7) Palo Verde Valley 11, (10) Southwest El Centro 7
Division V
(9) Borrego Springs 18, (8) Bonsall 13
(5) Calipatria 21, (12) Castle Park 5
(11) Francis Parker 9, (6) Hoover 8
(7) Calvary Christian Academy 15, (10) Crawford 5
Double-Elimination Round
Open Division
First Round
Wednesday, May 18
(8) Rancho Buena Vista 7, (1) Del Norte 2
(4) Otay Ranch 7, (5) Mission Hills 6
(6) Bonita Vista 2, (3) Rancho Bernardo 0
(2) San Marcos 6, (7) Torrey Pines 2
Second Round
Saturday, May 21
(4) Otay Ranch 6, (8) Rancho Buena Vista 4
(1) Del Norte 7, (5) Mission Hills 2
(2) San Marcos 9, (6) Bonita Vista 3
(7) Torrey Pines 8, (3) Rancho Bernardo 3
Third Round
Tuesday, May 24
(1) Del Norte 7, (6) Bonita Vita 0
(8) Rancho Buena Vista 8, (7) Torrey Pines 7
Fourth Round
Thursday, May 26
(4) Otay Ranch 7, (1) Del Norte 2
(2) San Marcos 5, (8) Rancho Buena Vista 5
Championship
Saturday, May 28
(4) Otay Ranch 2, (2) San Marcos 0
Division I
First Round
Thursday, May 19
(1) Mater Dei Catholic 8, (9) Santana 2
(5) Steele Canyon 3, (4) Brawley 1
(3) Mt. Carmel 14, (11) University City 5
(2) Cathedral Catholic 1, (10) Eastlake 0
Second Round
Saturday, May 21
(1) Mater Dei Catholic 6, (5) Steele Canyon 2
(3) Mt. Carmel 10, (2) Cathedral Catholic 5
(4) Brawley 4, (9) Santana 3
(10) Eastlake 7, (11) University City 2
Third Round
Tuesday, May 24
(2) Cathedral Catholic 11, (4) Brawley 1
(10) Eastlake 3, (5) Steele Canyon 2
Semifinals
Thursday, May 26
(1) Mater Dei Catholic 8, (3) Mt. Carmel 4
(2) Cathedral Catholic 15, (3) Mt. Carmel 12
Championship
Friday, May 27
(1) Mater Dei Catholic 13, (2) Cathedral Catholic 12
Division II
First Round
Thursday, May 19
(1) Helix Charter 2, (9) Mission Bay 1
(4) Granite Hills 7, (5) Valhalla 6
(3) Poway 4, (11) Grossmont 1
(7) El Camino 7, (2) El Capitan 1
Second Round
Saturday, May 21
(1) Helix Charter 2, (4) Granite Hills 0
(3) Poway 10, (7) El Camino 1
(5) Valhalla 7, (9) Mission Bay 6
(2) El Capitan 5, (11) Grossmont 2
Third Round
Tuesday, May 24
(5) Valhalla 7, (7) El Camino 1
(4) Granite Hills 10, (2) El Capitan 4
Semifinals
Thursday, May 26
(3) Poway 11, (1) Helix Charter 2
(4) Granite Hills 6, (5) Valhalla 4
(4) Granite Hills 4, (1) Helix Charter 2
Championship
Saturday, May 28
(4) Granite Hills 8, (3) Poway 4
Division III
First Round
Thursday, May 19
(1) Holtville 5, (8) Imperial 4
(4) Our Lady of Peace 10, (5) Westview 7
(3) Calexico 5, (6) Coronado 4
(7) Christian 8, (2) West Hills 4
Second Round
Saturday, May 21
(1) Holtville 5, (4) Our Lady of Peace 3
(3) Calexico 8, (7) Christian 5
(5) Westview 10, (8) Imperial 7
(6) Coronado 5, (2) West Hills 2
Third Round
Tuesday, May 24
(5) Westview 5, (7) Christian 3
(4) Our Lady of Peace 11, (6) Coronado 1
Semifinals
Thursday, May 24
(3) Calexico 4, (1) Holtville 3
(4) Our Lady of Peace 7, (5) Westview 6
(1) Holtville 4, (4) Our Lady of Peace 2
Championship
Saturday, May 28
(3) Calexico 4, (1) Holtville 2
Division IV
First Round
Thursday, May 19
(1) San Dieguito Academy 7, (9) La Jolla Country Day 5
(4) Tri-City Christian 2, (5) San Ysidro 1
(3) Sage Creek 10, (6) Montgomery 0
(2) Escondido Charter 5, (7) Palo Verde Valley 1
Second Round
Saturday, May 21
(4) Tri-City Christian 2, (1) San Dieguito Academy 1
(2) Escondido Charter 13, (3) Sage Creek 3
(5) San Ysidro 7, (9) La Jolla Country Day 2
(7) Palo Verde Valley 9, (6) Montgomery 0
Third Round
Tuesday, May 24
(3) Sage Creek 11, (5) San Ysidro 1
(1) San Dieguito Academy 7, (7) Palo Verde Valley 6
Semifinals
Thursday, May 26
(4) Tri-City Christian 7, (2) Escondido Charter 3
(1) San Dieguito Academy 12, (3) Sage Creek 11
(2) Escondido Charter 7, (1) San Dieguito Academy 1
Championship
Saturday, May 28
(2) Escondido Charter 4, (4) Tri-City Christian 3
Division V
First Round
Wednesday, May 18
(1) Foothills Christian 10, (9) Borrego Springs 0
(5) Calipatria 3, (4) Mount Miguel 0
(3) Fallbrook 11, (11) Francis Parker 1
(2) Maranatha Christian 10, (7) Calvary Christian Academy 0
Second Round
Saturday, May 21
(1) Foothills Christian 2, (5) Calipatria 1
(3) Fallbrook 6, (2) Maranatha Christian 3
(4) Mount Miguel 1, (9) Borrego Springs 0 (forfeit)
(11) Francis Parker 11, (7) Calvary Christian Academy 9
Third Round
Tuesday, May 24
(2) Maranatha Christian 15, (4) Mount Miguel 5
(5) Calipatria 17, (11) Francis Parker 1
Semifinals
Thursday, May 26
(3) Fallbrook 8, (1) Foothills Christian 0
(5) Calipatria 5, (2) Maranatha Christian 3
(1) Foothills Christian 10, (5) Calipatria 0
Championship
Friday, May 27
(3) Fallbrook 16, (1) Foothills Christian 3
