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Finishing on a high note

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Editor’s Note: The Independent looks back on the 2011-2012 high school season. Below is the third of three parts, focusing on the spring season.

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The softball season saw several local teams turn in successful runs.

Edison ran up a program-record 26 victories and reached the CIF Southern Section Division 1 semifinals. The Chargers had their season end with a 6-4 loss to defending-champion Santiago of Corona, which a week later lost to Norco in the title game.

Ocean View won the Golden West League title and the ninth-ranked Seahawks reached the second round of the Division 4 playoffs. There, they were edged by sixth-ranked La Habra, 5-4.

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Marina and Fountain Valley both advanced from the Sunset League to the CIF playoffs. The Vikings, the No. 3 team from the Sunset, dropped a first-round game to Etiwanda and the Barons lost a wild-card game to Rosary.

Edison junior Sammy Cordova (25-5) was named Pitcher of the Year and freshman Ali Wester was named Rookie of the Year on the 2012 All-Sunset League Softball Team. Cordova also was named to the All-CIF Division 1 first team.

In the Golden West League, Ocean View junior Brittany Hitchcock was named Pitcher of the Year.

On the baseball field, Marina (17-11) and Huntington Beach (20-9) got to the second round of the CIF Division 1 playoffs, where both fell to Century League opponents.

Marina, the No. 2 team from the Sunset League, fell, 2-0, to Century champ Esperanza, and Huntington was defeated, 6-1, by El Dorado.

“In the playoffs, there is only one team out of 32 going home happy,” said Huntington Coach Benji Medure, whose team played each of its postseason games on the road. “It is very tough to win the whole thing, especially with the quality of baseball in Division 1.”

Edison, the No. 3 team from the Sunset League, and Ocean View, the No. 2 team from the Golden West League, also were in the playoffs. The Chargers (13-14) beat Chaparral, 2-0, in a wild-card game, but lost a first-round game at defending Division 1 champion J.W. North. The Seahawks (13-14) traveled to Whittier and fell, 5-4. Senior Timmy Robinson hit his 12th home run of the season in the loss.

The All-Sunset League Baseball Team was headed by MVP Timmy Lopes of Edison. Marina junior Jake Bauers was named Rookie of the Year.

Ocean View senior Timmy Robinson was named MVP of the Golden West League.

Huntington Beach High and Ocean View turned in strong seasons in boys’ volleyball.

Huntington won a Sunset League championship, enjoyed a lofty CIF ranking throughout the season and was one of the hot teams entering the Southern Section playoffs. The Oilers knocked off defending-champion Newport Harbor on the final day of the regular season to win league. They became the first Sunset team to sweep Newport Harbor since the Sailors joined the league five years ago.

“These guys have been focused on their goals since last fall, last summer in fact,” Huntington Coach Craig Pazanti said of winning the Sunset title. “They knew what they wanted to achieve, and they went out and did it. They felt that they had underachieved last year and were hungry this year.”

Huntington advanced to the second round of the Division 1 playoffs, where it was edged by San Clemente in five games. The fifth-ranked Oilers ended their season at 23-3.

Ocean View turned in a 16-5 season that saw the Seahawks roll to the Golden West League title and reach the second round of the Division 3 playoffs. Their campaign ended in a loss to sixth-ranked Camarillo. Ocean View senior outside hitter Adam Wills was named to the All-CIF Division 3 team.

In boys’ golf, Andre Vu (tie for ninth place) of Fountain Valley, Marina’s Matt Janelli (tie for 20th) and Jake Schulze of Huntington Beach (tied for 48th) competed at the CIF Southern Individual Regional at Skylinks Golf Course in Long Beach. Vu and Janelli advanced to compete at the CIF Finals tournament at Victoria Country Club in Riverside. Swimming

In swimming, Edison went undefeated in Sunset League meet competition. At the CIF-SS Swimming and Diving Championships at Riverside Community College, Edison finished in fourth place and Fountain Valley was seventh in the girls’ Division 1 team standings. In the Division 1 boys’ team standings, Edison was fourth and Huntington Beach was in 28th place. In the Division 4 boys’ team finals standings, Ocean View finished ninth and the girls’ program placed 28th.

In boys’ tennis, Fountain Valley reached the second round of the CIF Southern Section Division 1 playoffs, where the Barons were eliminated, 13-5, by Northwood.

In track and field, Laura Hollander capped a stellar career at Marina by finishing in third place in the girls’ 3,200 meters at the 2012 CIF State Track and Field Championships in June at Buchanan High in Clovis. Hollander, the CIF Southern Section Division 1 champion in the girls’ 3,200, finished the event in 10 minutes, 26.02 seconds. Also at State, Kylie Nishisaka of Marina finished 20th in the girls’ 1,600 meters and Edison’s Karen Sanpper was one of three vaulters to clear 11 feet 3 in the girls’ pole vault during the prelims and finished in a three-way tie for 17th place.

“It’s really a great accomplishment for these kids,” Marina Coach Dick Degen said of Hollander and Nishisaka reaching the state meet. “It’s an individual achievement that not too many get to experience. It’s just awesome and I’m proud of them.”

In the first week of June, Edison senior Timmy Lopes was taken in the sixth round (No. 191 overall) by Seattle in the Major League Baseball First-Year Draft. A week later, he with the Mariners. Lopes had previously signed with UC Irvine.

Ocean View senior Timmy Robinson was drafted in the 31st round (940th overall) by the Minnesota Twins. Robinson, who made the All-CIF-SS Division 3 Baseball Team, signed in May with USC.

michael.sciacca@latimes.com

Twitter: @MikeSciacca

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