It was a productive post-season for Metro-Pacific League high school softball teams this spring. Castle Park advanced within one victory of appearing in the San Diego Section Division V championship game while Hilltop advanced to the challenger bracket semifinal in the Division III field.
Honor roll
Metro-Pacific League champion Hilltop (17-15) finished 3-2 in the playoffs. The seventh-seeded Lady Lancers won their two opening games — 3-2 in nine innings over 10th-seeded San Dieguito Academy and 10-0 over No. 2 Bishop’s.
Hilltop’s first playoff loss came against third-seeded Vista, the eventual division runner-up, by a score of 4-0. The Lady Lancers edged ninth-seeded Central Union, 1-0, to remain alive in double-elimination play before ending their season with a 9-3 loss to sixth-seeded Grossmont.
Hilltop, which captured this year’s league title with a 6-0 record, was well represented on the all-league team with seven players receiving recognition on the all-league first and second teams.
First team all-league selections for Hilltop included senior Jacquelyn Landers and sophomores Rayna Moraga, Ariana Rodriguez and Amber Trammell.
Moraga led the team with eight wins in the pitching circle while compiling a 3.54 earned-run average and a team-leading 44 strikeouts. Moraga picked up all three of her team’s playoff wins, including two by shutout.
Rodriguez batted .414 with 17 RBI and two home runs while Trammel batted .398 with 17 RBI and 14 doubles. Landers hit .354 with 22 RBI and 11 doubles.
Second team all-league selections for the Lady Lancers included senior Sandra Reza, junior Jenzanna Samaniego and sophomore Jordan Vista.
Samaniego hit. 371 with 20 RBI while Vista hit .325 with 14 RBI and Reza hit .291 with 24 RBI.
Chula Vista (13-12, 4-2 in league play) followed with six picks on the first and second all-league teams. First team selections included juniors Katya Best and Kaitlyn Tottress and freshman Raylissa Navarro. Second team selections included juniors Iliana Valderrama and Giovanna Graciano and freshman Gabriela Rodriguez.
Sweetwater (18-11, 2-4 in league play) had five first and second team all-league picks. First team selections included junior Victoria Garcia and sophomores Ingrid Nunez and Alyssa Sandoval. Second team selections included juniors Claudia Fierro and Eliza Velasco.
Sandoval led the Lady Red Devils with a .520 hitting average and 46 RBI. Garcia hit .295 with 29 RBI while Fierro hit .390 with 22 RBI. Nunez hit .361 with 16 RBI while Velasco hit .323 with 15 RBI.
Castle Park, which finished 0-6 in league play but excelled in the playoffs, had two all-league second team picks: senior Monica Verdugo and freshman Andrea Pacheco.
The Lady Trojans (12-17) finished 2-2 in the playoffs and faced third-seeded Calvin Christian (16-9) three times in the double-elimination tournament. Castle Park, seeded sixth, opened with a 4-3 loss to Calvin Christian and ended the playoffs with a 20-13 setback to the eventual division champions. The Lady Trojans posted a 5-1 victory between those two contests.
Castle Park also defeated seventh-seeded Escondido Adventist in the playoffs.
