Esperanza knocks out Mater Dei in first round

Esperanza put together a four-run rally in the top of the second inning and went on to stun top-ranked Mater Dei, 5-2, in the first round of the CIF-SS Division I softball playoffs on Thursday at Thornton Park.

The Aztecs needed an at-large berth to get into the playoffs after finishing fourth in Sunset League and they needed a 6-4 wild-card victory over Roosevelt on Tuesday just to get into the main draw.

Esperanza (18-13-2) moves on to the second round where it will play host to third-ranked El Modena on Tuesday at 3:15 p.m. The Monarchs finished the season 20-5-1.

The Aztecs got eight hits off Mater Dei's freshman ace Bri Matthews. Trea Steele led the way, going 2 for 3 with a double and three RBIs. Brittany Virgoe went 2 for 3 with an RBI and Kailyn Johnson went 2 for 3 with a run scored.

Esperanza's Chelsey Anderson relieved Alexis Borden in the fourth and pitched four scoreless innings of relief to get the save.

In other Division I games:

El Modena 3, Cypress 0: Sophomore Haylie Wagner pitched a no-hitter with 16 strikeouts as the Vanguards (22-9) moved past the visiting Centurions (12-12-1).

Wagner had her perfect game broken up in the top of the sixth after an error by the shortstop, but she still faced the minimum because El Modena picked off Cypress' lone base runner.

"She has held herself with such great poise all season," El Modena coach Steve Harrington said. "She just doesn't get rattled. We're pretty lucky to have a girl who is only a sophomore and is that poised."

Freshman Alyson Kulp led the Vanguards offense, going 1 for 3 with an RBI double and a run scored.

Pacifica 1, M.L. King (Riverside) 0: Pinch-runner Lissa Avitia scored from second base on Kristina Akiona's sacrifice bunt and a throwing error by the pitcher in the bottom of the seventh to give the Mariners (20-10) a victory over the visiting Wolves (19-9).

Jessica Alexander got the rally started with a single and took second base on an error by the M.L. King left fielder before giving way to Avitia.

Krystian DeWitt scattered six hits, walked one and struck out six to record the shutout victory for Pacifica.

Canyon 3, Orange Lutheran 0: Briana Gwaltney and Katelyn Price each had RBI doubles and Cheyanne Tarango pitched a three-hitter with eight strikeouts to lead the Comanches (24-7) past the visiting Lancers (19-12).

Edison 5, Brea Olinda 2: Jessica Plaza went 2 for 3 with a double, a homer run and three RBIs to help the Chargers (21-5) beat the visiting Wildcats (11-14).

Riverside Poly 1, Rosary 0: Sophomore Desiree Ybarra pitched a three-hit shutout to lift the Bears (22-8) over the Royals (14-15) at Clark Regional Park.

Rosary loaded the bases in the bottom of the seventh, but failed to score.

Norco 4, Kennedy 0: Stanford-bound Teagan Gerhart pitched a three-hitter to lead the top-seeded Cougars (28-2) to a victory over the visiting Fighting Irish (15-11).

Los Alamitos 5, Simi Valley 0: Amanda Sugita pitched seven strong innings, allowing one hit and striking out eight to get the shutout and Chanelle Spalding went 2 for 4 with a two-run triple as the visiting Griffins (23-8) defeated the Pioneers (19-9).

Foothill 7, Valencia (Placentia) 0: Hallie Wilson belted two solo homers and Taylor Cantillo went 4 for 4 to lead a 13-hit attack for the Knights (19-7-1) in a victory over the visiting Tigers (17-10) at Hillview School.

Hart (Newhall) 1, Trabuco Hills 0: UCLA-bound Destiny Rodino pitched a one-hitter with one walk and eight strikeouts to outduel Iowa-bound Kayla Massey, who allowed two hits, and lead the Indians (25-4) over the visiting Mustangs (19-9-1).

Pacifica (Oxnard) 4, Marina 2: Sandy Simmons had an RBI double for the Vikings (22-6), but it wasn't enough to get past the visiting Tritons (17-9).

Contact the writer: carias@ocregister.com