Cienega’s softball team took its first step towards repeating as the Division II state champion on Saturday.
The 12th-seeded Bobcats rolled to a 7-3 first-round win against No. 21 Mesa Skyline, capping off a week that saw the program make headlines for an off-the-field hazing incident.
Cienega (11-8) moves on to play No. 5 Phoenix Arcadia. Three other local Division II teams advanced Saturday, putting nine Southern Arizona programs in Tuesday's second round. (Scroll down for a complete look at the softball state playoffs)
The Bobcat offense exploded early and sophomore pitcher Anicela Parra struck out 14 while pitching a three-hitter to extend Cienega’s winning streak to four.
“We are absolutely starting to gel,” said Bobcats coach Eric Tatham. “They’re all as talented as the team we had last year, just not as mature right now. That’s where we’ve been working. It takes a season to do that and I think we are getting there. We always say it out loud but it’s starting to sink in and they’re starting to feel it.”
The Coyotes (11-8) had won four in a row coming into the game but a six-run first inning proved too much to overcome.
“When our bats are on, we have one of the best lineups in the state,” said Tatham. “When it happens, you saw what happened in the first. I’d like to see it happen more often throughout the game but they’re special.”
Cienega’s Abby Doughty reached on a leadoff walk and then scored the game’s first run on a single to shallow right by Kaitlyn Anderson.
After a double by Shae Bushey, Tori Brown hit a ball back up the middle, bringing in Anderson to make it 2-0. A similarly placed ball by Miranda Carley on batter later, brought in Bushey and Brown to push Cienega’s lead to 4-0.
After Micaela Barber reached on an error, a bunt single by Kenzie Carson scored Carley to make it 5-0.
Taylor Lambert tacked on another run when she scored Barber with a single to shallow left in her second at-bat of the inning.
The Bobcats stayed quiet until the fifth inning when a double by Carley scored Brown and put the hosts ahead 7-0.
“Everyone knows that we’ve had a bunch of controversy and adversity recently,” said Carley, who finished with a team-high three RBIs. “But what Bobcats are about is getting through all that. We wanted to show people that we’re not done. We are here to play. We wanted to come out and dominate like we should and usually do. Getting back to state has been our goal from the beginning.”
Eight Cienega students were suspended after a February hazing incident surfaced. The team was staying in a motel when district officials say the eight girls decided to fill a trash can full of ice, water and urine. The can was place near a door with the expectation that it would spill on anyone opening the door.
“We will not tolerate pranks,” Cienega principal Nemer Hassey told the Star earlier this week. “We will not tolerate bullying. We will not tolerate hazing or any kind of harassment.”
Skyline slightly got through to Parra on Saturday, in the fifth and sixth innings. But the sophomore finished strong with a quick 1-2-3 inning in the top of the seventh.
“She’s still just learning to be a pitcher,” said Tatham. “You can see that she’s got what it takes to be something special. She has her days. Her moments. She’s been having a lot more moments recently. Today was a good one but the best is yet to come.”
— Jason Harris
Desert View moves on to face top-seeded CDO next
Sixteenth-seeded Desert View extended its season one more game by defeating No. 17 Flagstaff 3-0 in the opening round of the Division II state tournament.
Jaguars coach Louis Gonzales was excited about his team’s performance and what the victory, which sets up a second-round showdown at top-seeded Canyon del Oro on Tuesday.
“This was a long time coming," Gonzales said. "It is not just winning a playoff game, its winning a playoff game at home. These kids have endured a lot. I am their third coach in four years. It speaks to their resiliency and perseverance to play ball.”
Things stayed quiet early, but Desert View got on the board in the fourth inning thanks to some timely hitting.
Freshman pitcher Reanna Martinez powered the Jaguars in the circle, striking out eight.
“She has carried us most of the season, and continues to work on things and get better,” Gonzales said. “I’m pleased to have her and lucky to know that I have three more years with this young lady.”
Desert View (17-13-1) has faced CDO twice this season, losing both meetings. The Dorados have rattled off 15 straight wins and are a heavy favorite to win the Division II championship, but Gonzales is up for the challenge.
“That is an amazing team over there, top to bottom, but you gotta like your chances in a one-and-done situation,” Gonzales said. “Keep it close, play error free, and hit the ball to give ourselves a chance. That’s why you play the game anything can happen in softball.”
— Fernando Galvan
Foothills rallies in final at-bat to move on in D-III playoffs
Catalina Foothills made its return to the postseason at a memorable one on Saturday morning, scoring four runs in the bottom of the seventh inning to beat No. 26 Lake Havasu 5-4 in walk-off fashion.
Seventh-seeded Foothills (21-10) faces No. 10 Douglas on Thursday at Rose Mofford Complex in Phoenix for a trip to the Division III state quarterfinals.
Foothills coach Mark Stevens said he was nervous but confident going into the bottom of the seventh.
“This team has been like this, they battle to the very end and they don’t ever give up,” he said. “It was a big deficit I thought to overcome in the last inning but these guys have done it before and I know they play hard, every single one of them can make a play and get a hit.”
This is Foothills’ first playoff appearance since 2009. The Falcons went 10-18 last year and 5-22 in 2014.
No. 26 Lake Havasu scored two runs in the sixth inning following a hit by pitch and two errors. Then Lake Havasu scored again after three errors in the seventh.
Then Falcons senior infielder/pitcher Marisa Garcia tied the game up with two RBIs and then sophomore utility player Zoe Garcia hit a walk-off single.
“Honestly, I was just worried that I was going to have a panic attack and mess it all up but honestly, after that last hit I had, I just cleared my head and just let me do what I do with all the hitting that I do,” Zoe Garcia said.
— James Kelley
Defending champ Empire advances to face No. 1 seed
Empire’s offense was clicking on all cylinders on Saturday morning as the defending state champion Ravens topped No. 17 Glendale Apollo 13-2 in six innings.
Sixteenth-seeded Empire moves on to play top-seeded Yuma Cibola in the second round of the Division III state tournament on Thursday at Rose Mofford Complex.
Junior outfielder Jadyn Duncan, Empire's No. 9 hitter, finished 2 for 2 on Saturday, with a triple, a two runs scored and a two-run homer to end the game. It was Duncan's first career homer for the Ravens.
“Jadyn is probably one of my favorite players because she wants it,” Empire coach Shannon Woolridge said. “She listens to coaching and keeps at it. To see her persevere as much as she has, good for her, she deserves it.”
Sophomore pitcher Jaden Romero recorded her sixth win in the circle as she struck out four over four innings.
Empire totaled 15 hits, including five for extra bases. Sophomore catcher Emma Garbutt launched a two-run homer — her sixth of the season — to cap an eight-run, seven-hit third inning for the Ravens.
“I didn't know (it was gone),” Duncan said about her home run. “I just looked down and almost fell because I was running so hard to beat out the throw. I looked up and saw no one with the ball in their hands, so I realized I hit my first home run.
"It really feels great, the intensity that we played with was so amazing and as we go on, we should only be getting better and better."
— Chuck Constantino
POSTSEASON GLANCE
DIVISION II STATE TOURNAMENT
(24 teams, double-elimination after second round. Winner-take-all championship game)
Saturday’s first-round results
No. 12 Cienega 7, No. 21 Mesa Skyline 3
No. 16 Desert View 3, No. 17 Flagstaff 0
No. 18 Sunnyside 9, No. 15 Buckeye Verrado 5
No. 19 Sierra Vista Buena 12, No. 14 Gilbert Mesquite 7
Second round – Tuesday, 4 p.m.
No. 16 Desert View at No. 1 Canyon del Oro
No. 18 Sunnyside at No. 2 Ironwood Ridge
No. 19 Sierra Vista Buena at No. 3 Sahuaro
No. 22 Cave Creek Cactus Shadows at No. 6 Salpointe Catholic
No. 9 Goodyear Desert Edge at No. 8 Tucson
No. 12 Cienega at No. 5 Phoenix Arcadia
DIVISION III STATE TOURNAMENT
(32 teams, single elimination)
Saturday’s first-round results
No. 7 Catalina Foothills 5, No. 26 Lake Havasu 4
No. 10 Douglas 15, No. 23 Lee Williams 0
No. 16 Empire 13, No. 17 Glendale Apollo 2
No. 11 Phoenix Bourgade Catholic 3, No. 22 Sahuarita 1
No. 19 Rio Rico 9, No. 14 Avondale Agua Fria 1
No. 24 Nogales 6, No. 9 Goodyear Estrella Foothills 0
Second round – Thursday at Rose Mofford Sports Complex in Phoenix
No. 10 Douglas vs. No. 7 Catalina Foothills, 5:30 p.m.
No. 16 Empire vs. No. 1 Yuma Cibola, 3:30 p.m.
No. 19 Rio Rico vs. No. 3 Mohave Valley River Valley, 3:30 p.m.
No. 24 Nogales vs. No. 8 Show Low, 3:30 p.m.
DIVISION IV STATE TOURNAMENT
(24 teams, single elimination)
First-round results
No. 19 Pusch Ridge Christian 16, No. 14 Willcox 14
No. 20 Tanque Verde 13, No. 13 Globe 0
No. 24 Amphitheater 18, No. 9 Florence 1
Saturday’s second-round results
No. 1 Benson 12, No. 16 Phoenix Country Day 0 (5 innings)
No. 3 San Manuel 9, No. 19 Pusch Ridge Christian 8
No 5 Pueblo 14, No. 21 Thatcher 4
No. 4 Yuma Catholic 13, No. 20 Tanque Verde 11
No. 24 Amphitheater 2, No. 8 Chandler Prep 0
Quarterfinals – Friday at Rose Mofford Sports Complex in Phoenix
No. 24 Amphitheater vs. No. 1 Benson, 5 p.m.
No. 11 Morenci vs. No. 3 San Manuel, 5 p.m.
No. 4 Yuma Catholic vs. No. 5 Pueblo, 5 p.m.
DIVISION V STATE TOURNAMENT
(24 teams, single elimination)
First-round results
No. 13 San Miguel 13, No. 20 Williams 0 (5 innings)
No. 12 Mayer 13, No. 21 Bisbee 12
No. 9 San Carlos 8, No. 24 Academy of Tucson 7
No. 11 St. David 14, No. 22 Mogollon 10
Saturday’s second-round results
No. 4 Elfrida Valley Union 17, No. 13 San Miguel 6 (5 innings)
No. 6 Joseph City 16, No. 11 St. David 14
Quarterfinals – Friday at Rose Mofford Sports Complex in Phoenix
No. 5 Winkelman Hayden vs. No. 4 Elfrida Valley Union, 5 p.m.
