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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
21-03-2025
- Sport
- Los Angeles Times
Marina ace Mia Valbuena shuts down Fountain Valley
Mia Valbuena hasn't required much run support in her time in the circle for the Marina softball program. The Vikings haven't provided much on offense of late, but the junior ace has covered up those deficiencies. On Thursday, she made the bare minimum stand up. Valbuena threw a complete game with 14 strikeouts, as Marina defeated host Fountain Valley 1-0 in a Sunset League game. Marina (7-5, 2-0 in the Sunset League) has the start it wanted with back-to-back road victories to begin its league schedule. Valbuena struck out 15 batters in a 3-0 win at Edison on Tuesday. 'A win's a win,' Marina coach Dan Hay said. 'We're having a hard time scoring runs these days, but we find a way to manufacture and do some things at the right time. With the support of that strong arm of Mia's in the circle, she's doing a great job.' Fountain Valley (5-4, 0-1) had five at-bats with runners in scoring position, each ending in a strikeout. Second baseman Kileigh Villalobos walked and stole second base before Valbuena fanned catcher Ella Kim and first baseman Natalie Loftis, the heart of the Barons' order, in the first inning. In the fourth inning, Villalobos drew a lead-off walk. Kim followed with a double to left. The Vikings intentionally walked Loftis to load the bases. Then Valbuena struck out the side. 'I tend to put myself in pressure situations like that a lot when it's not necessary,' Valbuena said. 'Having a lot of experience in those kinds of situations, I was just trying to keep myself calm and focus on every single pitch, focus on not only making a strike but also making it move so that it's not hit.' Valbuena met the moment when she faced a full count against left fielder Skyla Auger, getting a called third strike to avoid forcing in a run. The next half inning, the Vikings broke through for the game's only run. Designated player Avi Valbuena singled to begin the fifth, and left fielder Halle Piramo laid down a sacrifice bunt to advance her to second base. With two outs in the frame, second baseman Courtney Hames — the ninth batter in the order — laced a single to left to give Marina the lead. 'I think with the 2-0 [start in league], it gives us a little bit more confidence to go into the next games with a better mindset,' Hames said. 'We've been practicing hard, working hard, and I think that as a team, once we put everything together, we can definitely take advantage of it and beat those top teams.' Marina came close to adding to its advantage, but Auger made a diving catch near the left-field foul line to rob right fielder Liz Byer of a hit to extend the inning. 'She laid out on the ball, knowing that she was going to have back up,' Fountain Valley coach Saul Fernandez said. 'If you look at our center fielder [Ava Fernandez], she was actually behind her. She was trailing her right behind, so [Auger] took a chance, and we couldn't afford to give up another run in that situation, especially not the way that Mia Valbuena was pitching there in that game.' Center fielder Rachel Ruiz had two hits, including a triple, to lead Marina at the plate. Byer and Piramo each had a hit. Courtney Kols, who has committed to Drexel, also went the distance for Fountain Valley. She allowed six hits. Kols recorded six strikeouts without issuing a walk. 'She sets batters up really, really well,' said Fernandez, who has succeeded Rick Aldrich as head coach of the Barons. 'She keeps them off balance. … She wants to come out and finish her senior year with, hopefully, a nice CIF run.'
