Oak Ridge, Rocklin, Dixon win section titles; Capital Christian falls in championship game
Revenge was sweet for the Oak Ridge Trojans on Saturday afternoon at Sacramento State.
Three weeks after having their Senior Day spoiled in El Dorado Hills when Whitney delivered a tight victory to secure the Sierra Foothill League championship, the Trojans bounced back emphatically with bigger stakes on the line, beating the Wildcats 3-0 to repeat as CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division I champions.
Oak Ridge claimed its 12th championship banner. The first came in D-III in 1983. The Trojans also had a four-peat in D-II from 2007-10.
It took one inning to make this one count.
In the top of the second inning against the top-seeded Wildcats, Oak Ridge received a two-run single from Kyden Walker and an RBI from Carmen Montes de Oca for a 3-0 lead. That was all Trojans pitchers Kennedi Freeland and Ellison Schroeder needed to deny Whitney its second consecutive title, the Wildcats of Rocklin having won it in D-II in 2023.
Whitney had a 17-game winning streak halted in large part because Oak Ridge allowed just one hit outside senior slugging star Mya Flindt, who went 3 for 3.
“We told (the team) that we would see Whitney again for a chance to repeat as a section champ,“ Oak Ridge coach Samantha Toy said. “We envisioned this and got it done.”
Whitney ace Hannah Duncan struck out eight and was unhittable after the third, but her team could not muster a rally.
“We only had four hits, and Mya Flindt had three of them,“ Whitney coach Mike Mello said. “Oak Ridge is a good team, and our games against them have all been like this.“
In four head-to-head meetings between the rivals, the teams split. Every game was as intense as it was close.
A freshman, Freeland gave up just two hits in four innings of her start. As has been the case all season, Toy inserted Schroeder in the fifth inning to close it out. The junior gave up two hits.
“I have all the confidence in the world in both of them,” Toy said. “We had a game plan and they pitched beautifully.“
Whitney (21-3) came in having outscored three playoff opponents 30-3. Oak Ridge (22-4) beat Stagg of Stockton 11-1, Sheldon 6-0 and Pleasant Grove 3-2 in eight innings.
Both teams advance to the single-elimination CIF Northern California regional tournament with games at home sites on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Oak Ridge is the No. 6 seed and will open at Hollister. Whitney is the No. 7 seed and will visit Mitty of San Jose.
In other championship games:
Division II
Rocklin 7, Tracy 5: Battle tested by the rigors of the SFL, the Thunder scored two runs in the top of the 10th inning at Sacramento State to rally past the top-seeded Bulldogs, winning their first banner since 2016 despite striking out 15 times.
Tracy ace Elisa Galli had her moments with the strikeouts, but she allowed six earned runs, including a monstrous three-run home run by Oklahoma-bound shortstop star Syd Barker that put Rocklin up 3-2 in the third.
A two-run triple by Cat Alston gave Rocklin a 5-4 lead in the fourth. Cate Gladden had two diving catches in center field to prevent runs from scoring and Marley Hogue had three hits, including a bunt in the 10th to drive in Amanda Wetteland, to lead the way for Rocklin (15-15).
Freshman ace Payton Prior struck out seven for Rocklin, including the final batter to end it. Tracy (24-4-1) had won 15 of 16 coming in.
Rocklin is the No. 5 seed in the NorCal D-II field and opens at No. 4 Salinas on Tuesday.
Division III
Oakdale 3, Capital Christian 2: The Mustangs scored all three of their runs in the top of the eighth inning to break open a pitcher’s duel at Cosumnes River College.
The top-seeded Cougars scored twice in the bottom of the eighth, but they came up short in their bid to win a second consecutive section championship. The loss ended Capital Christian’s 17-game unbeaten streak, which included a tie.
Sophomore Ayla Tuaa, The Bee’s Player of the Year in 2023, struck out 13 for Capital Christian.
Oakdale won its second title since 2019 and seventh overall. UC Riverside-bound ace Raegen Everett scattered five hits and struck out 14 for the Mustangs (22-6), who capitalized on two errors and a base hit in the eighth.
Capital Christian was awarded the No. 8 seed in the NorCal D-II field in the competitive-equity model and will open at top-seeded Pleasant Valley of Chico on Tuesday.
Division IV
Dixon 7, Central Catholic 6: The Rams rallied from a 5-0 deficit after two innings at CRC, smashing two home runs in a six-run fourth inning to win their second banner in three seasons.
Dixon (20-4) had three homers on the day, one each by seniors Camryn Elliott, Caitlyn Hendershot and Audrey Graham. Felesha LePenske struck out eight and walked none to secure a NorCal berth for the Rams, who moved to 13-1 on the season on the road.
Dixon is the No. 3 seed in the NorCal D-III field and will host No. 5 San Rafael on Tuesday.
This story was originally published May 26, 2024 at 5:00 AM.