When the dust cleared after the championship game of the Michelle Carew Classic, Rosary of Fullerton players were the ones with the highest honors. Photo: Harold Abend.
It was two weeks ago when the last State TOP 25 rankings for softball had been compiled, but unranked Rosary of Fullerton showed it has the makings of another top-level squad in the CIF Southern Section with a title game win in the Michelle Carew Classic on Saturday night vs state No. 4 Orange Lutheran. Previous state No. 1 Norco finished in third-place.
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When the qualifying rounds in the upper and lower brackets of the Michelle Carew Classic sent the top eight teams to the Gold Bracket for championship play, it appeared the lower half of the bracket was the much more loaded one with all four of the teams in the top 14 of the most recent Cal-Hi Sports state rankings.
The upper half of the bracket only had one of its four teams ranked, but in a grueling, five-game Carew Classic over three days that every year seems to produce its share of upsets, it was a team from the upper half that wasn’t even on the bubble in the last rankings that prevailed in a upset when Rosary Academy of Fullerton won the most prestigious softball tournament in California with an 8-4 victory over No. 4 ranked Orange Lutheran.
“My head was swimming for sure,” replied veteran Rosary head coach Tom Tice when asked if he realized his Royals had just turned the California softball world on its ear.
“I’m not surprised because we’re capable,” Tice continued. “But I have to say I’m certainly pleased.”
Not only was Orange Lutheran in the lower half of the Gold Bracket but so was a top-ranked Norco squad that Orange Lutheran defeated 1-0 in the semifinals. No. 3 St. Francis of Mountain View played Norco in the quarterfinals and was turned away 5-1 also on the lower side. Previous No. 14 Chula Vista Mater Dei was even there and was sent to the consolation side by Orange Lutheran in a 10-5 quarterfinal loss.
“It happened game-by-game,” Tice remarked. “We kind of put an exclamation point on each game, and that’s what it takes to win a major tournament like the Carew Classic.”
Any of a number of different players could have been MVP of the Michelle Carew Classic from Rosary, but pitcher Ava Phillips was the one who got the nod. Photo: Harold Abend.
Sophomore Ava Phillips got the start in the circle and although she didn’t get the win after being relieved by senior Daleah Cardenas after 5.1 innings and the score tied 4-4, Phillips pitched in all five games, won three and against the state’s toughest competition, and only gave up five earned runs combined. The winning team gets its choice of the Carew Classic Most Valuable Player Award or the Most Valuable Pitcher Award and they chose the later and Phillips was the recipient.
Rosary (16-2-1) got on the board right away with a two-spot in the top of the first inning off of Orange Lutheran sophomore starting pitcher Josephine Marsh. Royals’ sophomore Hayden Huerta (4-for-4, RBI, two runs scored) led off with a single. Sophomore Jenna Caldera (2-for-3, double, RBI, run scored) then walked. Both advanced on a wild pitch, and then senior Domonique McCoy drove them both in with a two RBI single.
Rosary made it 3-0 in the second inning when Huerta drove in her younger sister, freshman Hailey Huerta.
Orange Lutheran answered with two runs in the bottom of the second. Freshman Mia Scott drew a one-out walk, advanced to second when senior Grace Harrison was hit by a pitch, both advanced on a sacrifice by senior Olivia Oskorus, and junior Sierra Nichols drove them both in with a single.
Rosary added a run in the fourth but Orange Lutheran tied it at 4-4 in the bottom of the frame with a two RBI-single by Madelyn Armendaris that drove in Oskorus and Nichols.
After a scoreless fifth inning, Rosary got the go-ahead and eventual winning run when sophomore Boo Boo Barajas doubled and came around when senior Sabrina Martin hit a grounder to short and the throw to first was wild.
Dalea then retired the side in order in the bottom of the sixth and Rosary got some insurance with three runs in the top of the seventh. Hayden Huerta singled, sophomore K’lene Gutierrez walked, McCoy reached on an error. Huerta and Gutierrez scored on an error at first base and McCoy scored the game’s final tally on a single by sophomore Alisa Fair.
“Depth and health,” said Tice about the keys to winning the Carew. “Our pitching depth is amazing and our lineup depth helps keep putting runs up every inning.”
Rosary scored eight runs in four of the five games, but had it not pulled out a 5-3 win over Vista Murrieta (Murrieta) in a tiebreaker in their opener, they would not have even been in the championship Gold Bracket and no one would be talking about the Royals likely ascent in the next state rankings.
After the Vista Murrieta win, Rosary was an 8-5 winner over a Roosevelt (Eastdale) team that defeated Carew host and previous No. 10 ranked Canyon of Anaheim. From there, Rosary was a solid 8-1 winner over a Los Alamitos team that is a bit down this year.
The semifinals was dubbed the battle for the bragging rights of the City of Fullerton, and it was Rosary winning 8-5 over Fullerton High behind a four-hitter by Phillips where she gave up no earned runs in 6.2 innings pitched. Barajas blasted a three-run home run and senior Annalise Adamsen drove in three runs to provide the bulk of the offense for Rosary.
“We’ve been in the Carew before when we had good teams 15-20 years ago when Foothill (Santa Ana) was winning everything and we almost got them, but this is obviously the best we’ve ever done,” Tice said in conclusion.
For Orange Lutheran (14-2), it just couldn’t overcome some poor fielding and an inability to get some timely hitting. Oklahoma-bound senior star Kai Minor just missed a home run in the first inning that would have tied it at 2-2, and in four at-bats the only time she reached base was on an intentional walk.
Nichols, who was named the Carew Classic Most Valuable Player, went 3-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored, and Armendaris had two hits and drove in two runs, but the rest of the Lancers’ lineup was only able to muster two hits.
Norco (17-2) won the third-place game with a 4-2 victory over Fullerton.
JSerra of San Juan Capistrano (12-9) won the fifth-place game in a 4-3 victory versus St. Francis.
Harold Abend is the associate editor of CalHiSports.com and the vice president of the California Prep Sportswriters Association. He can be reached at marketingharoldabend@gmail.com. Don’t forget to follow him on Twitter: @HaroldAbend
