Southern Section Softball : Ocean View Continues Comeback With an Upset of Los Alamitos, 1-0

It has been two years since the Ocean View High School softball team won the Southern Section 4-A title with a 32-0 season, but a few weeks ago it must have seemed much longer.

After not making the playoffs in 1986, Ocean View opened Sunset League play this season with three straight losses, finishing in fourth place with a 4-6 record.

Third-place teams make the playoffs; fourth-place teams stay home.

Usually. But Ocean View was awarded one of two at-large playoff berths, and the Seahawks have made the most of it.

They won their third-round playoff game Thursday, edging Empire League champion Los Alamitos, 1-0, at Ocean View to advance to a 4-A semifinal game Tuesday against Thousand Oaks, a 4-1 winner over St. Paul Thursday.

“They’re up for it now, ever since we got in,” said Sarah Oakley, Ocean View coach. Oakley’s daughter, Jackie, a pitcher, went undefeated to lead the 1985 championship team.

The Seahawks (16-11) scored with none out in the fourth inning Thursday on a triple to left by Christa Lawson, who plays third base and was a starter on the 1985 team. Lawson’s hit scored Marla Pickard, who had singled and stolen second for the second time in the game.

Los Alamitos got out of the inning with a strikeout and a double play, as shortstop Kelli Moore threw out Lawson coming home on Gretchen Bock’s ground ball and catcher Margie LaCasto threw Bock out as she headed to second.

Ocean View narrowly averted a Los Alamitos comeback in the sixth, when the Griffins (18-8) loaded the bases on a single by Moore (the Orange County batting champion with a .557 regular-season average), a sacrifice, an infield single and an intentional walk to Nancy Clark. The Seahawks escaped after Laura Junkermann flied out to left too shallowly to score the runner and Lisa Caudillo took a called third strike.

“(Schneller) put the ball in there. We just didn’t produce,” said Jami Moore, Los Alamitos coach. “Basically, it probably should have been an extra-inning game.”

Schneller (13-8), another veteran who played on the 1985 team, earned the victory with a three-hitter, striking out three and walking three.

Clark (12-5) allowed one run on four hits, taking the loss.

“We should get more runs, but we’ll take 1-0,” Oakley said.

Ocean View finished stronger in league play after the slow start, winning four of its final seven.

“We just didn’t hit that well in league,” said Oakley, who said the Seahawks are playing “loose” now.

“We’re aggressive,” she said. “We do things other teams won’t try.”

In other 4-A games:

Cypress 1, St. Joseph 0--With two outs in the first, Diane Pohl hit a home run, giving the Centurions the only score they would need to win their 4-A quarterfinal game. Nicky Luce (20-4) pitched a complete game for Cypress (20-8). Lisa Fernandez took the loss.

Marina 1, Dos Pueblos 0--Mindy Burgess hit a triple in the 20th inning, driving in Christa York, who led off the inning with a single. In spite of the game’s 13 extra innings, only three errors were committed--two by Marina and one by Dos Pueblos. Christy Larson, who pitched all 20 innings, gave up five hits, striking out 10 and walking 1 for Marina (18-6). Andrea Larson struck out 25 in 20 innings but took the loss for Dos Pueblos (25-4).