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Los Angeles Times
4 days ago
- Sport
- Los Angeles Times
Marina softball beats Westlake to win first CIF title in 30 years
IRVINE — Mia Valbuena had offered up nothing short of sheer dominance in the circle during the postseason for the Marina softball team. So it wasn't going to take much offensively for the Vikings to feel good about their chances in the CIF Southern Section Division 3 championship game. The production came early, and then it came often. Avi Valbuena and Eva Mazzotti each drove in four runs, as Marina beat Westlake 8-1 on Friday at Deanna Manning Stadium to deliver the program's first section title in 30 years. The Vikings had taken the lead before Mia Valbuena, the Michigan-committed right-hander, had thrown her first pitch. It was her twin sister whose two-out, bases-loaded double scored two runs in the top of the first. Shelly Luth, who co-coaches the Vikings with Dan Hay, called striking first in the contest 'huge.' First baseman Ava Kim had an infield single, Mia Valbuena also singled and center fielder Rachel Ruiz walked before Avi Valbuena, the designated player, laced the ball inside the left-field line. 'It just sets the pace for [Mia Valbuena],' Luth said. 'She's such a fierce competitor, and that's just insurance for her to go out there. Mia tends to think that she has to do it all on her own, and she knows it's not true, but you know, that's the funny thing about pitchers. You know, they wear it, and so we've been working really hard. … 'We have a mental coach for all of them that we brought in. She's been amazing for all of them to reset. One pitch. Don't make it bigger. Be present. Be in the now.' Avi Valbuena said her sister gave her 'a really hard high-five' after the first-inning hit. She added a single to drive in two runs in the third inning. When she returned to the dugout, she said she received 'an even harder high-five.' Marina (19-13) won its sixth CIF championship overall and first since 1995, when the Vikings completed a set of back-to-back Division I titles against Foothill and Mater Dei. Luth was the Vikings' bench boss then, too. 'I've been to the championship game once with Canyon,' Hay said. 'We fell short. [I have] been to the semifinals five or six times. This is my first championship, and I couldn't have written the script any better than doing it with Shelly. 'We came back out of retirement together and thought we'd be here two or three years, and this is our eighth season with Marina. Coaches strive to have their teams peak at the right time, especially at the end of the year in playoffs, and this team started to peak the minute playoffs began.' Mia Valbuena's postseason numbers epitomized that peak performance. She allowed a total of two runs across five games in bracket play, racking up 56 strikeouts over 33 innings pitched. The junior ace struck out 13 batters in the championship game. When the final out was recorded, the Marina bench emptied out onto the field. In short order, Mia Valbuena was crowned with a Viking helmet. 'That was me,' Avi Valbuena said. 'I brought it out and put it on my sister.' Pride was on the mind of Mia Valbuena when asked her thoughts on ending the extended section title drought for Marina. 'Our entire school is really proud,' she said. 'It's really amazing to have this feeling right now.' Avi Valbuena and Mazzotti (two doubles), the Vikings' sophomore shortstop, each had three hits. Catcher Gabby DiBenedetto had two hits and a run scored. Left fielder Halle Piramo scored two runs, and Ruiz reached base safely three times and scored twice. Marina will not compete in the CIF State Southern California regional playoffs, Hay said. Westlake (19-14) broke up the shutout in the sixth inning on a double by first baseman Lily Barrett. After the Vikings completed their postgame engagements, their fans wrapped them in hugs as they ascended the stairs out of the stadium down the right-field line. 'It was crazy to see a crowd like that for us,' Mazzotti said. 'I'm only 15. I haven't seen a crowd like that anywhere. It was amazing. Being able to see our team come together from the beginning of the season and producing this on the field, it was awesome.'
Los Angeles Times
22-05-2025
- Sport
- Los Angeles Times
Rachel Ruiz's late homer sends Marina into CIF softball semifinals
SANTA FE SPRINGS — When the Marina softball team got off the bus on Wednesday, the players took notice of a fence fit for a fortress that extended from the left-field line to center field. After the game, the Vikings were still talking about the girl who conquered the wall at St. Paul. Rachel Ruiz's go-ahead home run in the sixth inning was the difference, as visiting Marina defeated St. Paul 3-1 in the quarterfinals of the CIF Southern Section Division 3 playoffs. The towering two-run shot cleared the fence, which provides an approximately 20-foot-high partition between the baseball and softball fields at the Santa Fe Springs-based private school. 'That was gone,' said Shelly Luth, who co-coaches Marina along with Dan Hay. 'That was a launch by Rachel Ruiz.' Gabriella DiBenedetto had reached base on a walk, and with two outs in the inning, Hay said he started yelling, 'Go, go, go,' when he thought the ball was going to go off the fence. In the end, she was able to trot home. Ruiz wasn't taking any chances, either, although she cracked a wide smile as she rounded third and headed toward the plate. 'Honestly, I thought it was going to hit the top of the fence,' Ruiz said. '[Hay] told us before the game, 'If you see it going to the fence, you better run.' … I was running, and then I hear everyone cheering, and I'm like, 'What is going on?'' Ruiz said she didn't realize the ball had left the yard until she saw the umpire twirling his index finger to signal a home run. Marina's ace pitcher Mia Valbuena, who played a big role in the team making it to the quarterfinals, recorded 10 strikeouts and had not surrendered a hit through the first four innings. Aleena Gutierrez broke up the no-hit bid leading off the fifth, an infield pop-up landing short of the second base position and digging into the dirt that she beat out. The bases were loaded with one out following a hit batter and a walk. Then the second infield single of the inning — this one by Addisyn Navasu — knotted the score at 1-1. Marina (17-13) was fortunate to get out of the inning with no further scoring from St. Paul (14-15). Audrey Prado sent a low line drive to left field. Halle Piramo made the catch and threw to third to double off the runner and bring an end to the frame. 'I was really focusing on throwing strikes,' said Valbuena, who racked up a dozen strikeouts. 'I feel like lately, especially, I've been able to trust my defense a lot more. They've been performing so well, so I know I have that trust in them.' It was also a redemptive moment for Piramo, who had popped up a bunt that resulted in a double play with the Vikings looking to squeeze home a run in the second inning. Avi Valbuena had doubled to the left-center gap to give Marina two runners in scoring position. Marina will travel to Yorba Linda (16-12) for a semifinal on Saturday at 11 a.m., as the Vikings attempt to reach the CIF finals for the first time since beating Mater Dei for the Division I title in 1995. 'We're just so excited,' said Mia Valbuena, who has allowed one run over 19 innings in three playoff games. 'I think our school is really proud of us, too. Last time we won, my mom [Willa Parchen] was playing here, so it's pretty cool. My mom played for Shelly, too, when she came here, so it's really cool. I feel like we're all really proud of ourselves, and we're just trying to keep the momentum going throughout all these games.'
Los Angeles Times
13-02-2025
- Sport
- Los Angeles Times
Fountain Valley rally falls short against Warren
Fountain Valley erased a pair of one-goal deficits in the second half, but visiting Downey Warren walked away the winner in a CIF Southern Section Division 3 boys' soccer opener decided by penalty kicks on Wednesday afternoon. Ezequiel Santana, Nicolas De Leon, Dylan Sears and Christian Alvarez scored in the shootout for Warren (12-6-4), the Gateway League champion. The Bears took their kicks low and to the corners in the skills competition after several near misses in extra time, including a Sears shot that was driven off the left elbow of the goal in the 89th minute. Gideon Griffiths converted as the initial selection for Fountain Valley (10-5-1), which was the second-place team in the Sunset League. Drew Payne's attempt went over the goal, before Nixon Hunt struck the crossbar. Duel Hernandez-Vasquez scored on the fourth kick for Fountain Valley, but Alvarez continued his side's success in the shootout, which had the Bears dancing in the rain. Payne and Hunt supplied a key connection for Fountain Valley in regulation. Hunt provided stretch passes up the left wing on the Barons' opening and final markers, which accounted for Payne's 15th and 16th goals of the season. It took just four minutes for Payne to find the back of the net. The senior captain corralled the deep ball shy of the corner flag, then worked back to the 15-yard line to improve his shooting angle before sending the ball on a hop inside the far post. Warren played with possession for the majority of the first half, and the Bears were rewarded with two goals late in the opening stanza. Diego Montes cashed in on a penalty kick in the 35th minute. Adrian Soto Diaz then exhibited deft touch to deflect in a cross from Sebastian Pelayo in the 39th minute. Fountain Valley changed systems to a 3-5-2 formation after halftime, and the Barons applied more pressure as a result. A free kick from the 40-yard line by Ethan Ro found the head of Payne, who flicked it across the box. Cash Heit crashed the net and scored to make it 2-2 in the 54th minute. Only three minutes later, Warren was awarded another penalty kick for a hand ball in the box. Montes' aim was true once more. The duo that combined on the game's first goal linked up again in the 71st minute. Payne ran onto Hunt's deep ball, sprinting down the left side and lifting the equalizer into the top left corner.
