- Lodi took the lead in the 5th inning with a two-out rally, but Merced scored 2 in the 6th to claim victory.
- The Flames are only the second team all season to score at least five runs against the Bears.
- Merced advances in the SJS Division 2 playoffs and will play Rocklin High in the next round.
The Merced Bears hosted the Lodi Flames in the opening round of the 2026 CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division II Softball Playoffs. The Bears came into Wednesday’s home playoff matchup quite confident after a 19-3 regular season, while the Lodi Flames finished the regular season 8-7. However, the number of wins made little difference in this playoff matchup as both teams stepped over the lines with their best foots forward.
Things picked up in the bottom of the third inning when Merced’s Macey Saucedo led the inning off with a single to center field. The next batter, Antonia Lejarde, blasted a ball past third base to the left fielder who misplayed the ball, allowing Saucedo to score and Lejarde to go to second base. Later, with Lejarde on third base and Madison Cabral on second base, a dropped third strike allowed both runners to score after an error by Lodi’s first baseman. Lodi escaped the jam after that, but the Bears took a 3-0.
Lodi answered in the fourth. An error by Merced’s shortstop allowed Avery Mauch to reach base before Allison Frank drew a walk. This set up Isabella Pantoja, who delivered the Flames’ biggest hit of the game at that point. She singled to right field, but an error by the right fielder allowed both runs to score and Pantoja to reach third base. All of a sudden, the deficit was cut to 3-2.
The Bears were able to add another run in the fourth inning. However, the game shifted dramatically in the fifth inning. After Merced was able to secure two quick outs, Lodi began to rally. Taylor Blank reached on a fielding error, Avery Mauch reached safely for a single, and Allison Frank walked to load the bases. Pantoja came through again with a single to center field that passed the center fielder for an error. As Pantoja reached third on the error, Lodi cleared the bases and took its first lead of the evening, 5-4. Bears pitcher Annalise Ramirez managed to get the final out on a ground ball to second base, but by that point the Flames had completely changed the momentum.
Down but not out, the Bears responded in the bottom of the sixth inning. With two outs and the Bears’ Emma Ramirez on first base, Bree Pimentel delivered a clutch single to left field that moved Ramirez to third and put Pimentel at second after an aggressive slide. Saucedo then followed with one of the biggest swings of the game. With a 1-1 count, Saucedo hit a fly ball to shallow center field that the defense just couldn’t reach. The hit allowed both Pimentel and Emma Ramirez to score, putting Merced back in front 6-5. The two-run rally proved to be the difference as Merced’s defense stayed strong in the seventh inning, extinguishing the Flames and sealing the victory.
Senior catcher Ava Waldron shared that the Bears’ focus entering the game was to “just focus, play hard, and hopefully win the game.” Waldron said the comeback win means a lot as she continues her senior season during Merced’s playoff run. “I obviously don’t want my senior season to end, so I feel like getting a chance to play with my friends again is really exciting.”
Looking ahead to the next round, Waldron said “We need to keep our energy up and troll like we used to.” She added, “Just really keeping our energy up in the dugout is definitely what keeps us connected as a team.”
The Bears win advances them to the second round of the Division II playoffs where they will take on the Rocklin Thunder at Rocklin High on Friday, May 14, at 4:00pm.
- Photos by Grace Gallegos. ↩︎
