Del Oro, Whitney advance in section softball playoffs

Timely hitting, great defense and strong pitching has added up to the Del Oro girls softball team reaching the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division II playoff tournament's final four. Hosting Atwater Wednesday, with the contest start time moved up an hour to beat the impending rain that was forecasted, the Lady Eagles spotted the visiting Falcons an early 1-0 lead but roared back to make the plays when they counted in notching a decisive 5-2 win over their Merced County opponents. The victory leaves No. 2 seed Del Oro as the lone South Placer squad remaining in the D-II tournament as No. 1 seed Rocklin was eliminated in a 1-0 loss to No. 9 Vacaville, and No. 11 Woodcreek was ousted by No. 3 Yuba City, 7-0. Wednesday's D-II results – which also included Ponderosa's 10-inning, 2-1 win over Vista del Lago – sets up Saturday's D-II semifinal, scheduled at the Arnaiz Softball Complex in Stockton. In 9:30 a.m. games Saturday, Vacaville will battle No. 13 seed Ponderosa in the Arnaiz Stadium while No. 2 seed Del Oro will meet No. 3 seed Yuba City on Field No. 1. The two 9:30 a.m. winners will advance as the undefeated team to next Tuesday's semifinal game, also at Arnaiz. In Del Oro's win over Atwater, the Robison sisters, Michalah and Olivia, teamed up to deliver key RBI doubles to ignite the Lady Eagles' offense. Tied 1-1 with two outs in the bottom of the third, Michalah Robison's line-drive double to left field tallied Jenna Birch and Maddie Moore, who had both worked walks following Madison Urrutia's leadoff single. Urrutia had tallied Del Oro's first run scoring on a passed ball. Leading 3-2 in the fifth, after Birch drew another walk, Moore doubled her home before Olivia Robison added another two-bagger that scored Moore for the final 5-2 margin of victory. Kendal Manley went 2-for-3 for Del Oro (19-8-2) while winning pitcher Katelyn Oldwin tossed a seven-hitter, fanning five and walking three. Whitney 13, Bear Creek 3 In Division I action played in Rocklin, Whitney erupted for six first-inning runs in racing past their Stockton foes to advance to Friday's quarterfinal round also at Arnaiz in Stockton. Top seed Whitney, 23-5 overall on the season and winners of 10 straight games, will tackle No. 4 seed Tracy at 5 p.m. in the Arnaiz Stadium. Tracy advanced with an 8-1 win Wednesday over Lincoln of Stockton. On the other side of the bracket in Friday's 7:15 p.m. game, No. 6 seed Folsom, a 6-5 upset winner over No. 3 seed Sheldon, will meet No. 2 Elk Grove, which defeated Lodi, 4-3. In Whitney's victory, Mazie Macfarlane opened the game by drilling a solo home run over the fence in right field and before the opening frame was over, Nina Trinidad followed with a two-run single and Sierra Bedrin added another RBI hit. Both Macfarlane (3-for-3, three RBI) and Montanah Hermosillo (3-for-4, two RBI) had big offensive days for the Wildcats. Trinidad and Ashley Williams also paired hits for the winners, who finished with 13 base raps on the day. Bedrin earned the win, allowing just five hits in the five-inning game. She fanned six and walked only one.