Softball Roundup: Marina takes charge

Marina clinched a tie for the 2013 Sunset League softball championship Tuesday when the Vikings rolled to a 12-0 victory at Newport Harbor.

Emili Olague went three for three with a home run and junior pitcher Tera Blanco earned the win to improve to 23-3.

“I am very pleased with the team’s performance,” Marina Coach Shelly Luth said. “They came out on fire and really took charge and played all six innings with intensity.

Marina, ranked No. 2 in CIF Southern Section Division 1, can earn the Sunset title outright with a victory Thursday over Fountain Valley. The Vikings play host to the Barons at 3:15 p.m. on senior day in the league and regular season finale for both teams.

The CIF Southern Section softball playoff pairings will be announced Monday.

Marina took a huge step toward the Sunset crown on May 2 when the host Vikings rallied late to edge Edison, 2-1, in a battle for first place. The Vikings scored the winning run in the bottom of the seventh when Samantha Agamaite drew a lead-off walk and scored on a single to right field by Blanco, who also went the distance for the pitching win.

Edison had taken a 1-0 lead in the top of the first on an RBI single by Karley Wester. Marina drew even in the bottom of the fourth on an RBI single up the middle by Sydney McCollum.

“We’ve been struggling a bit and have been in a bit of a slump offensively,” Luth said. “We had been hitting the ball real well but in the past few weeks, our timing has been a bit off. We did just enough to win this one.”

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Chargers rebound, blank Barons

Edison secured second place in the Sunset League and stayed a game behind league-leader Marina by blanking host Fountain Valley Tuesday, 2-0.

Senior Karley Wester had a hit, drew a pair of walks and stole three bases, sophomores Reis Birkett and Catrell Robertson had RBIs, and junior Liz Talataina had a double for the Chargers Senior Sammy Cordova registered nine strikeouts in improving to 9-5.

Edison is 7-2 in league and 19-10 overall, and closes out the regular season Thursday at home against Huntington Beach at 3:15 p.m.

Tuesday’s game was the first outing for the Chargers since their 2-1 loss May 2 at Marina.

“Marina was a heartbreaking loss for the entire team but the girls knew their season wasn’t over and set their sights on CIF,” Edison Coach Kim Ensey said. “I am proud really of them.”

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Oilers have game postponed

The Sunset League game between Los Alamitos and host Huntington Beach was postponed from Tuesday to Wednesday . The score wasn’t available at press time.

Huntington will close out the regular season at 3:15 p.m. Thursday at Edison.

The Oilers improved to 4-4 in league and 14-11 overall on May 3 when they defeated Newport Harbor, 5-3. Freshmen Kristina Inouye and Callie Saccacio and senior Jillian Martinez had two hits each. Martinez hit a key, two-out single in the third inning that brought home two runs. Saccacio came off the bench to lead two rallies for the Oilers.

Junior Micaela Vierra struck out eight and allowed eight hits in improving to 11-6.

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Seahawks rained out

Ocean View’s Golden West League game against Orange scheduled for Tuesday was rained out. The Seahawks will play host to the Panthers at 3:15 p.m. Thursday.

The Seahawks faced Loara in a league contest Wednesday. The score wasn’t available at press time. The teams entered the game tied for second place in the league standings, a game behind Segerstrom.

Last Friday, Ocean View, ranked No. 3 in CIF Southern Section Division 4, routed host Westminster, 12-0. Senior Brittany Hitchcock (five innings) pitched a one-hit shutout for her 16th win of the season. The Seahawks racked up 14 hits led by Olivia Russ with three hits. Senior Erika Jason, junior Tobi Salzman and sophomore Anika Ortiz had two hits apiece.

The Seahawks defense played an error-free game.

In a May 1 game that determined the Golden West League leader, Ocean View dropped a 2-1 showdown at Segerstrom in a game that went nine innings. Hitchcock took a one-hit shutout into the bottom of the seventh inning. With two out, the Jaguars reached base on an Ocean View error, scored the tying run, then won the game in the bottom of the ninth.

“We had two great practices before the game and did everything needed to win for 6 2/3 innings,” said Ocean View Coach Mike McLaughlan who called the loss “heartbreaking.”

“Brittany was outstanding,” he said. “I was so proud of our girls, they battled all the way until the last out. I must give Segerstrom credit they made all plays and even took a home run away from Brittany [Hitchcock] with a over the fence catch by their right fielder.”

Ocean View starts CIF Southern Section playoff action next week. The playoff pairings will be released Monday.