Softball notes: Vaqueros, Argos to decide title
The Garden Grove League title is at stake this week as first-place Garden Grove plays host to Rancho Alamitos on Thursday at Mark Twain School.
Garden Grove (16-4, 6-0) pulled out a 6-1 victory over the Vaqueros (9-10, 5-1) in the first round of league play.
The Argonauts are led by Cal State Fullerton-bound pitcher Jasmine Antunez and San Diego State-bound Jenavee Peres. Rancho Alamitos' top players are sophomore shortstop Felicia Duran and junior pitcher Paulynn Mao.
"It's always an emotional game," Garden Grove coach John Petrie said. "They are a well-coached team. Their coaches will have them ready. Paulynn (Mao) keeps them in games.
"The defense gives her good support. If they get clutch hitting, they could win. Our senior pitcher Jasmine Antunez is throwing great and we seem to be getting run support for her. I think we win a close one."
CENTURY SHOWDOWN
The Century League title is going to go down to the wire as usual. Esperanza (19-6, 8-1) and Canyon (15-7, 8-1) are tied for first place and El Modena (16-7, 6-2) is in the mix. Esperanza plays at Canyon on Thursday.
"Canyon, Esperanza and El Modena have to play each other during the next 10 days," Canyon coach Dan Hay said.
"It looks like the Canyon-Esperanza matchup will match two up-and-coming freshman pitchers. This game should decide the league championship with both teams having 8-1 records (in league) and tied for first place. The following week, both teams face off against El Modena and I'm sure they will have something to say about the final outcome of the Century League."
NOTES
• Tesoro is locked in a great race for the South Coast League title and Aliso Niguel is mixed up in a battle for the Sea View League title. These two South County teams hook up in a nonleague game Tuesday at Aliso Niguel.
"Tesoro is a well-coached team loaded with talent," Aliso Niguel coach Alan Caouette said. "With a big win against top-ranked Mission Viejo, I expect their confidence to be at an all-time high.
"They always seem to rise to the top on the back half of the season and I expect them to give us a hard game. After a hard-fought week in some close games, I expect our team to play and continue our goal of moving forward into the CIF playoffs." ...
• Marina had a tough week with losses to Los Alamitos, Rosary and Mater Dei. The Vikings have been dealing with injuries. Star pitcher Tera Blanco has been playing despite a sore back. Marina has games against Newport Harbor on Tuesday and at Fountain Valley on Thursday.
"For us to be successful Tera has to be healthy," Marina coach Shelly Luth said. "Our leadership is emerging. And the Fountain Valley game is huge, but no reason to panic." ...
• Edison bounced back from its 2-1 loss to Los Alamitos with a 1-0 victory over Newport Harbor. This week, the Chargers play Fountain Valley on Tuesday and are at Huntington Beach on Thursday in two crucial Sunset League games.
Contact the writer: carias@ocregister.com
