Prep softball playoffs: Granite Bay, Whitney, Vista del Lago, Capital Christian top fields

Pete Dufour, Joe Davidson
·6 min read

After weeks of heated league races on the regional softball front, the Sac-Joaquin Section softball races figure to be just as intense, a single-elimination format that leaves little to no room for error.

The northern part of the section figures to be dominant in the upper brackets with a few exceptions. The Bee is projecting six of the seven divisions will go to teams from the northern side of the section. Expect some surprises to contrast the seedings, including a No. 7 seed to win it all.

Division I

This bracket is loaded, per the norm. League champions Pleasant Grove of the Delta and Granite Bay of the Sierra Foothill are seeded 1 and 2 and have the pitching and pop at the plate to end up facing each other in the finals May 27 at Sacramento State, home of the D-I and D-II finals.

Granite Bay has not faced a Delta League opponent this season, and Pleasant Grove is 1-2 vs. the SFL this spring. Both teams have pitchers who have proven themselves against strong competition. Pleasant Grove sophomore sensation Maddie Lawson is 12-1 with a 0.96 earned run average, and University of Santa Clara commit Avery Seva is 9-1 with a 0.81 ERA.

Franklin and defending champion Sheldon of the Delta and Oak Ridge and Folsom of the SFL are also dangerous draws. Inderkum earned the No. 5 seed and can’t be overlooked. Enochs and Gregori of Modesto have the best shot from the south to make a run at the title. Enochs owns an 11-5 win over Inderkum. Gregori lost to Inderkum but Beat St. Francis.

Projected winner: Granite Bay.

Sheldon High School softball coach Mary Jo Truesdale holds the team’s pennant after defeating Lincoln of Stockton for the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division I title in 2022. The Huskies are seed No. 9 in this year’s bracket.
Sheldon High School softball coach Mary Jo Truesdale holds the team’s pennant after defeating Lincoln of Stockton for the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division I title in 2022. The Huskies are seed No. 9 in this year’s bracket.

Division II

Whitney’s late-season loss to Granite Bay dropped the Wildcats to a second-place tie in the SFL and made the Wildcats instant favorites in this division. Whitney is stacked with hitting and defense, including the Flindt sisters, Mya and Alyssa, holding steady at catcher and shortstop. Pitcher Hanna Duncan has 153 strikeouts in just 89 innings of work and is 6-0.

Top-seeded Vacaville has returned to prominence, earning the top seed and having won 26 consecutive games. The Bulldogs’ only loss was in the season opener against Pleasant Grove. Mikayla Freshour is hitting .526 with six home runs for Vacaville, and pitcher Xochitl Atayde has 183 strikeouts in 121 innings.

While Whitney has been facing some of the best competition week in and week out in the SFL, the Bulldogs have not been put to quite the same test in the Monticello Empire League. But that’s the fun thing about the section playoffs — people get to see the matchups so many have wondered about all season.

St. Mary’s of Stockton is the south’s best bet of the bracket. Del Oro of the SFL along with St. Francis and Elk Grove are veterans of the postseason. Woodcreek is the No. 5 seed and finished strong in the Capital Valley Conference.

Projected winner: Whitney.

Division III

Randi Roelling may just be the best player in the entire section. The Central Catholic of Modesto senior is headed to Cal this fall. She is hitting over .400 with six home runs, but it is in the pitching circle where she really shines. Roelling has a 15-3 record, a whopping 283 strikeouts in 131 innings and a 0.74 ERA. The fiery lefty, who can hit 70 mph on the radar gun, is at her best right now, coming off a 17-strikeout performance against rival Oakdale.

While Central Catholic is the top seed, this division features two of the top teams in the Sacramento area in Vista del Lago and Ponderosa. Both are built for tournament play and will likely face each other in the semifinals. The Eagles and Bruins feature strong pitching staffs to compliment good hitting and defense. Ponderosa’s duo of Chase Mueller and Ana Nile are monsters in the circle and at the plate. Mueller is hitting .488 with six home runs and sports a 1.48 ERA. Niles is hitting .400 with seven home runs and and ERA of 1.26.

Vista del Lago also features a pitching duo of Charlize Cai and Olivia Manchester. Cai is hitting .488 and plays great shortstop when she’s not pitching. Manchester is hitting .500 with a 1.05 ERA. While Vista lost to Ponderosa 5-3 last month, the Eagles also own a tournament win over top D-I seed Pleasant Grove. This will be a toss-up division.

Projected winner: Vista del Lago

Division IV

Audrey Graham, Ashley Garcia and Felesha LaPenske are each hitting over .475 for Dixon. LaPenske has a .625 on-base percentage and an ERA of 1.89 in the circle. No wonder the Rams, who finished as NorCal runners-up last year, are the top seed in this division.

Second-seeded Ripon has played a good schedule and expects to make it to the finals, but it will have to get past third-seeded Capital Christian and freshman phenom Ayla Tuua. With 11 home runs in just 16 games and a .587 batting average, the future is bright for Tuua. What makes it even brighter is her work in the circle. The 5-10 right-hander has 99 strikeouts in just 55 innings and can touch 70 on the radar gun.

Projected winner: Capital Christian

Dixon’s Brianna Humphries wipes her eye as she is carried by teammate Felesha LePenske after beating Marysville in the Division IV title softball game in 2022. LePenske is batting .478 this season for the No. 1-seed Rams, who have a first-round bye.
Dixon’s Brianna Humphries wipes her eye as she is carried by teammate Felesha LePenske after beating Marysville in the Division IV title softball game in 2022. LePenske is batting .478 this season for the No. 1-seed Rams, who have a first-round bye.

Division V

This is Sutter’s bracket to own, thanks to experience, talent and rolling momentum. Sutter at 25-1 has 10 players hitting over .400 with 26 home runs between them. Olivia Bauer in the circle and at the plate has been dominant with 13 doubles. Alex Carino has 11 home runs and 10 doubles. The defending CIF NorCal champion Huskies are coming off their biggest win of the season, a 1-0 win over East Nicolaus of the Northern Section, and have a tournament win over powerful Huntington Beach.

Projected winner: Sutter

The Sutter High School Huskies are the top seed in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division V playoffs. Sutter won a CIF NorCal championship last spring.
The Sutter High School Huskies are the top seed in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division V playoffs. Sutter won a CIF NorCal championship last spring.

Division VI

The top seed is Millennium of Tracy. Riverbank is the No. 2 seed and comes from the competitive Trans Valley League. But defending champion Woodland Christian has nearly all of its players back from last year’s championship game win over Millennium. Teagan Hayes is hitting .508 with eight home runs for WC.

Projected winner: Woodland Christian

Division VII

Stone Ridge Christian of Merced could be the lone southern section team to prevail in the finals this year. Cali Cole has 108 strikeouts, a 0.77 ERA and is hitting .500. Buckingham Charter of Vacaville and plucky Foresthill are the north’s best hopes.

Projected winner: Stone Ridge Christian

Full brackets for the section softball playoffs are available at cifsjs.org.

▪ Softball coaches are encouraged to submit All-Metro nominations by emailing Pete Dufour at PeteBeeSports@gmail.com or Joe Davidson at jdavidson@sacbee.com.