Roundup: Gregori, Oakdale softball earn league wins on Senior Day
Gregori and Oakdale high schools were two of the many softball programs around the Sac-Joaquin Section honoring their seniors Thursday afternoon. The Jaguars honored Alyssa Blanco, Gabby Castro, Kailey Estes, Kylee Huff, Caitlin Veneman and Mikayla Lancaster before taking on Pitman High.
Gregori maintained its perfect Central California Athletic League record with a 12-0, five-inning victory. Each senior recorded a hit as the team moved to 14-0 in league play and 20-4 overall. They have won eight straight games heading into their CCAL finale against Downey Tuesday.
Oakdale honored Morgan Wright, Marley Leighton, Taylor Suarez, Raegen Everett, Bailey Peterson, Presley Barnes, Aaliyah Sesma and Abigail Rushing on the day they played a key Valley Oak League game against Manteca.
The teams entered the contest tied for second place with 6-2 league records. The winning team stood to gain an advantage in the Division III playoff seedings.
After four and a half scoreless innings, the Mustangs struck first, scoring in the bottom of the fifth inning but the Buffaloes answered in the top of the sixth. In the bottom half, Barnes drove a two-run homer over the left field fence for what ended up being the game-winning home run. Oakdale took control of second place with a 3-1 win.
“I’ve been working really hard and I was praying. I was going to trust in God’s plan,” Barnes said. “No matter what happened, if I went up there and struck out or if I hit a home run.”
Everett and Manteca pitcher Nayellys Torres each struck out 11 in the pitchers’ duel.
“It feels great,” Everett said of picking up the key win. “We work hard for moments like these and rely on each other. Every teammate has a part in our wins.”
The Mustangs take on Central Catholic Tuesday while the Buffaloes finish league play against East Union.
Softball
Beyer 7, Pacheco 2: Juniors Kylee Stanley and Chelsee Toon and sophomore Alanna Verges each drove in a run to lead Beyer to a WAC win, spoiling Pacheco’s senior day. The Patriots take on Johansen in their league finale Tuesday.
Johansen 13, Davis 12: The Vikings rallied in the bottom of the seventh inning, scoring five runs to win in walk-off fashion to claim their first victory this season. Junior Belicia Albarran put the ball in play, scoring Madilyn Flores for the game-winning run.
Orestimba 13, Waterford 3: Belany Martens and Sophia Machado each drove in three runs for the Warriors, who are chasing a playoff spot and currently sit at third place in the Southern League. The Warriors play a pair of league games to end their season.
Gregori 12, Pitman 0: Kailey Estes struck out nine of the 10 batters she faced and Audrey Pacheco (4), Kylee Huff (2) and Gabby Castro (2) recorded multiple RBI. Huff recorded a double and a home run.
Central Catholic 13, Sierra 0: Jazmarie Roberts collected three hits with a triple and a home run and drove in five RBI to lead the Raiders. The Raiders scored eight runs in the second inning to break the game open. They produced 11 hits. Sophomore Amaya Gustavis stuck out 11.
Oakdale 3, Manteca 1: Jayci Volonte and Audrey Romiti led the team with two hits apiece in addition to Barnes’ game-winning home run. Morgan Wright drove in the Mustangs’ first run. The Mustangs travel to Central Catholic Tuesday.
Enochs 6, Downey 4: Natalie Camarena struck out four of the six batters she faced and collected a team-high three hits with one double and drove in two runs. The Eagles finish the regular season second in the CCAL (8-5) and have won three straight.
Turlock 16, Modesto 1: Abby Maxwell, Cadence Campbell and Hailey Bacon each hit a home run to help the Bulldogs secure their seventh CCAL win. Maxwell finished with a team-high four RBI and Bacon added three.
Ceres 11, Mountain House 1: The Bulldogs claimed the WAC championship by finishing out a big week of victories, beating second place Los Banos Tuesday and third place Mountain House Thursday. Seven Ceres players drove in at least one run and Ailzae Cole struck out eight in the complete game effort.
Baseball
Central Valley 12, Buhach Colony 5: Juan Alonzo had a pair of doubles and sophomores Fernando Dominguez and Carter Hernandez drove in two runs apiece as the Hawks completed the series sweep of the Thunder. Central Valley is playoff-bound after an 8-5 CCC record and third-place finish in the league.
Hughson 16, Hilmar 1: Seniors Caleb Wilson and Blaine Fusi and junior Max Mankins each recorded multiple RBI to lead the Huskies to their league-best 11th TVL win. Hughson finishes the season with a non-league contest against Linden Friday.
Turlock Christian 12, Big Valley Christian 11: After finishing seven innings tied at 8-8, the Eagles scored four runs in the top of the eighth inning. Big Valley could only plate three, losing a nailbiter in extras. Turlock Christian earned the series sweep over the Lions.
Ripon 7, Escalon 3: Ripon split the season series with the Cougars but still locked up third place in the TVL after Thursday’s win. On the other side, Escalon was unable to finish league play tied with Hughson for the top spot.
Patterson 11, Atwater 1: The Tigers needed just five innings to put league foe Atwater away in its final series as a member of the CCC. Patterson outscored Atwater 22-5 in the series.
Central Catholic 14, Kimball 0: The Raiders won the season series against Kimball but the job is not finished. If they beat the Jaguars Friday, they finish as Valley Oak League co-champions, tying Oakdale with an 11-4 record. Through the first two games of the series, Central Catholic has outscored Kimball 30-0.
Boys Volleyball Playoffs
Jesuit 3, Pitman 0: After beating Johnson 3-1 in a home Division I play-in game, the No. 16 Pride traveled to top-seeded Jesuit for a first-round matchup Thursday. Pitman fell in straight sets. Pitman finishes the season 11-13 overall and 6-5 in CCAL play.
Folsom 3, Downey 1: The No. 14 Knights was the only CCAL team to take a set in the first round of the Division I postseason Thursday. They got the best of third-seed Folsom in their match, but ultimately fell, 3-1. The Knights earned 18 wins to just seven losses this season.
Monterey Trail 3, Enochs 0: The CCAL champion Eagles earned the 10-seed in the D-I playoffs. They traveled to No. 7 Monterey Trail and gave the Mustangs all they could handle in the competitive three-set match. They scored 17 points in the first set, 19 points in the second and took the home team to a 32-30 third set duel. Enochs finished the season an impressive 23-6 overall record.
Livingston 3, Beyer 2: The No. 12 Patriots nearly pulled off an upset over fifth-seed Livingston Thursday in the first round of the Division III playoffs. Beyer took the first two sets, but lost three straight, ultimately falling in the match.
Ripon Christian 3, Wheatland 0: The defending NorCal champion Knights picked up a dominant three-set win over visiting Wheatland in the D-III playoffs. Listed as the No. 7 seed this season, the Knights advance to play No. 2 Vanden Tuesday at 6 p.m.
Big Valley Christian 3, Westlake Charter 0: The Lions pulled off the home sweep in the No. 8 vs No. 9 matchup in the D-IV tournament. They advance to play No. 1 Futures May 7.
Ripon 3, Sierra Academy of Expeditionary Learning 0: No. 5 Ripon advanced in the Division IV postseason with a win in straight sets over the 12-seed Fire Wolves. It moves on to play the winner of No. 13 Western Sierra Collegiate Academy at No. 4 John Adams Academy.
