The CIF Southern Section released its softball and baseball playoff pairings this past weekend. The long-awaited day arrived for these sports that had their season canceled by the coronavirus pandemic last season and a handful of local teams will be competing in the section’s first playoff tournaments since the spring of 2019.
On the baseball fields, Murrieta Mesa, Citrus Valley, Aquinas, and Hesperia Christian baseball teams all received the top seed in their respective divisions. Murrieta Mesa is the No. 1 seed in the Division 4 bracket after capturing the Southwestern League title. The Rams (22-6) will open the playoffs at home Friday, June 4, against California.
Ambassador League champion Aquinas received the top seed for the Division 6 playoffs. The Falcons (16-2) open at home Friday, June 4, against the winner of the Big Bear-Chaffey wild-card game. With graduation week also looming in the air for many of these schools, there will be adjustments made to days and times with the approval of the CIF Southern Section offices. Stay tuned for those. For now, here is a look at the local teams that made the playoffs. Game times will be 3:15 p.m., unless otherwise noted.
CIF Southern Section Baseball Playoffs
Division 1
First Round (Thursday, June 3)
Vista Murrieta at Yucaipa
Temecula Valley at Cypress
Temescal Canyon at Harvard-Westlake
Division 2
First Round (Friday, June 4)
El Dorado at Paloma Valley
Division 3
First Round (Thursday, June 3)
Arlington at Tahquitz
Division 4
First Round (Friday, June 4)
California at Murrieta Mesa
Segerstrom at Heritage
Division 5
First Round (Thursday, June 3)
Orange Vista at Sultana
Laguna Hills or Bellflower at Citrus Hill
Serrano or Silverado at Hemet
Division 6
Wild-card Round (Wednesday, June 2)
Gladstone at West Valley
Linfield Christian at Lakeside
First Round (Friday, June 4)
Bloomington at Elsinore
Linfield Christian or Lakeside at Colton
Division 7
First round (Thursday, June 3)
Santa Clarita Christian at Cornerstone Christian
Los Amigos at Temecula Prep
Desert Mirage at Santa Rosa Academy
Second Round (Tuesday, June 8)
Santa Clarita Christian or Cornerstone Christian at Hesperia Christian
On the Softball diamond, the only local team to be a top-seed was Inland Valley League champion, Orange Vista (12-4), and is the No. 2 seed in Division 5 and hosts Gabrielino in the first round Thursday, June 3. Lakeside, which tied for second in the Inland Valley League, is the No. 3 seed in Division 7 and has a first-round bye. The Lancers (10-6) host Orangewood Academy or Santa Ana Saturday, June 5. Wild-card round games are Tuesday, June 1, and first-round contests start Thursday, June 3, with the accommodations also being made for graduation conflicts. All games start at 3:15 unless otherwise noted.
CIF Southern Section Softball Playoffs
Division 1
First round, Thursday, June 3
Valley View 0, Murrieta Mesa 8 (played Tuesday, 6/1)
Highlight: Lacie Ham throws a no-hitter to take the win for Murrieta Mesa. Ham lasted seven innings, allowing zero hits and zero runs while striking out 14 and walking one. Murrieta Mesa tallied three home runs on the day. Hill went deep in the second inning. Burns put one out in the fifth inning. Eaves had a homer in the second inning. Bella Flexen, Burns, and Caylea Rains-Campbell all had multiple hits for the Lady Rams.
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Vista Murrieta at Sonora
Great Oak at Huntington Beach
Division 2
First round, Thursday, June 3
No local teams
Division 3
Wild-card round, Tuesday, June 1
B: Paloma Valley at Bonita
First round, Thursday, June 1
Winner WC B at Louisville
Division 4
First round, Thursday, June 3
Hemet at West Valley
Laguna Hills at Temescal Canyon
Division 5
First round, Thursday, June 3
Canyon Springs at San Jacinto
Division 6
First round, Thursday, June 3
Monrovia at San Jacinto Valley Academy
Gabrielino at Orange Vista
Division 7
First round, Thursday, June 3
Pomona at Lakeside
Hamilton at Riverside Prep
* Playoff brackets can also be seen on the CIF-SS website on the sport’s page at www.cifss.org.
** If we missed any local high school teams, or scores are wrong, please report them to the Valley News Sports Department.
JP Raineri can be reached by email at sports@reedermedia.com.
