The playoffs began for the Le Grand Bulldogs softball team on Friday, May 15th, when they hosted Rio Vista High in the Division 7 quarterfinals. The Bulldogs, ranked as the #1 seed, came into the game highly favored after earning a first round bye, and they showed why they were ranked so high as soon as the game began.
Le Grand wasted no time setting the tone in the bottom of the first inning. Elisa Angel drew a leadoff walk and quickly moved into scoring position with a stolen base before Aaliyah Ceja hit a two-run home run to center field, giving the Bulldogs an early 2-0 advantage.
The Bulldogs turned the bottom of the second into their biggest inning of the game, using aggressive baserunning and back-to-back hits to break the game open. After Rio Vista gave up a run and walked a runner to load the bases with one out, Ava Avila singled on a fly ball to left center that scored two runs. Crystal Manzo followed with a single of her own that scored another. The next hitter, Makayla Leyva, slapped a groundball to center for another two RBIs before Sadie Servin smacked a ground ball to shortstop that brought in another run. By the end of the second inning, the Bulldogs had a commanding 8-0 lead.
The Bulldogs added to the lead again in the third inning after Ellie Ramirez hit a triple into right field. Elisa Angel followed with an RBI double before Aaliyah Ceja delivered another single to center field. Later in the inning, Manzo added a hit to the outfield that managed to bring in Ceja as the Bulldogs pushed the score to 11-0. Even with the large lead, Le Grand’s energy never dropped. The Bulldogs stayed aggressive in the fourth inning when Leyva hit a ball to right field and came all the way around to score after the Rio Vista center fielder struggled to recover the play. By the end of the fourth inning, Le Grand had built their lead to 14-0.
Le Grand pitcher Ava Avila stayed in complete control in the circle. The junior allowed just one hit all game and continued working quickly through Rio Vista’s lineup. The Rams were able to manage a walk in the third inning and a single by Caleigh Bloesch in the fifth inning before the game was called due to the mercy rule. Le Grand’s Avila struck out 10 total batters across five shutout innings, while the defense never allowed a Rams runner to get past second base.
The Bulldogs pitcher shared, “We go by a term, it’s just, score as many runs as we can and just stay focused all time and keep our energy up,” Avila said. As the Bulldogs continue their playoff run, Avila said the team is focused on keeping its offense consistent from game to game. “Sometimes it goes up and down,” Avila said. “We just want to stay at a flow level and hopefully keep our bats hot.” With the Bulldogs advancing to the Division 7 semifinals, Avila said the chance to continue extending the season “means everything” because the team’s “end goal” remains “winning sections.”
With the loss, the Rio Vista Rams season comes to an end. The Le Grand Bulldogs move on to the semifinals and will stay at home to face the Leroy Greene Academy Lions on May 19th at 4 p.m.
- Photos by Grace Gallegos. ↩︎
