LA JOLLA — Jayla Stafford knew The Bishop’s School’s softball history. The seven straight section titles from 1987 to 1993. Then … zippo.
So Stafford, a senior shortstop bound for Duke, was talking to a teammate this week and told her: “At the beginning of the season, we knew we were going to make a difference. We wanted to make history.”
And on a strange, humid, cloudy Saturday afternoon at UCSD, the Knights did just that. With two outs, the bases loaded and the game tied, freshman Jessica Yao smacked a game-winning single to center field, giving Bishop’s an 8-7 win over Canyon Crest Academy and the Division 4 San Diego Section championship.
“This,” said Stafford, who went 3-for-4 with three doubles, scored two runs and knocked in one, “is super, duper amazing.”
The day was odd long before the first pitch. Lightning delayed the start by 30 minutes. A power outage rendered the scoreboard useless and moved the Open Division championship night game from UCSD to Helix High School.
Yao batted leadoff for Bishop’s in the bottom of the first. Staring at her in the circle, pitching for CCA, was her sister, senior Grace Yao.
Jessica drove Grace’s first pitch into the left-center field gap for a double. With Jessica standing on second base, Grace looked at her and jokingly said, “I hate you.”
Little sister said nothing in reply.
“I just smiled,” said Jessica.
“I knew she would be the one to hurt us,” said Grace. “She’s good at everything in softball and she’s got the cutest smile.”
Bishop’s (16-8-1) scored three runs in the first inning, then four in the third to take a 7-2 lead. But gritty CCA demonstrated resolve. The Ravens pulled to within 7-5 in the fifth.
CCA (17-14-1) rallied in the seventh. With two out and two on, freshman Kate Newlander roped a triple to right-center field to tie the game.
In the eighth inning, Jessica Yao took over in the circle for Bishop’s after starting pitcher Sydney Mafong was banged up making a diving catch for the final out in the seventh.
Jessica told head coach Joe Moreno she wasn’t ready, that she wasn’t warmed up enough but took the ball anyway.
She pitched a 1-2-3 inning.
“She pitched the best inning ever,” said Moreno.
“The moment is never too big for her,” said Stafford, who finished the season hitting .549 with 41 RBIs.
That set the stage at the plate for the freshman. Her game-winning hit boosted her batting average to .425.
“I wasn’t even nervous,” said Yao. “I was in the moment. I said, ‘Trust the mechanics. I got this. I prepared for this.’ I was ready, ready to rock.”
— DON NORCROSS
No-hitter carries Olympian to title
Olympian 7, Southwest-El Centro 0: Olympian High School pitcher Alexandra Perez picked the right time to throw her first high school career no-hitter.
The sophomore allowed just four runners to reach base to give the seventh-seeded Olympian a convincing shutout over No. 2-seeded Southwest-El Centro in Saturday’s Division 3 final at UCSD.
“I’ve been so close before, I had a one-hitter earlier this year,” said Perez proudly of her no-no. “I was nervous at the beginning, but my teammates had my back all day. My rise ball really flowed.”
Olympian (19-12-1) got Perez all the runs she would need in the top of the first. Freshman Isabella Zamora reached on a one-out error and was driven home as Jacqui De Murguia blasted a triple to right. De Murguia came in to score when Kailynn Robeson in the next at-bat.
“Coming in, I was already pretty confident,” said De Murguia, a senior who set the Olympian career hits record this season. “That first inning got the dugout going.”
De Murguia later added a single and a double, finishing 3-for-4 with a pair of RBIs.
Olympian added a pair of runs in the second and three in the fifth, finishing with 10 hits on the day.
Perez gave up just a pair of walks and hit a batter; another reached on an error.
“She did great in the circle for us today,” said Olympian head coach Gavin Kumar of Perez. “She’s our super sophomore. Hitting-wise, we win when we hit, and today we hit. Our girls did a great job controlling themselves in the box.”
It was the Eagles’ third title overall and first since 2018.
— KEVIN J. FARMER
