2008, softball: Final San Diego rankings and final state rankings

Softball

Sportswriters / Sportscasters poll

May 27, final rankings

Rank, school, overall record, league record, division, last year's final ranking

1. Escondido, 27-1-2, 12-0 Valley, Div. I, 1

Playoffs: Escondido was the No. 1 seed in Div. I. 5-20, lost to Helix, 1-0.

Escondido's dominating Penn State-bound pitcher Lisa Akamine opened the playoffs allowing only one hit with 14 strikeouts, but that one hit was a home run on a day the No. 1-seeded Cougars' bats were shutout in a 1-0 loss to unseeded Helix. In the first inning, Akamine threw an outside drop ball on a 3-0 count and Helix's Alyssa Droneburg reached out with her bat for a home run over the right-field fence. Escondido had four hits, including a 2-for-3 performance from Ashley Lance, but the Cougars couldn't push across a run. The loss ended a 37-game unbeaten streak for the Cougars, who had been tied three times over the past two seasons. Escondido was seeking a third straight San Diego Section Division I title and sixth straight trip to the finals. The previous three years, the Cougars were the Division II runner-up (2004 and 2005) and the Division II champion (2003) under coach Cary Weiler.

2. Granite Hills, 24-7-1, 7-3 Grossmont South, Div. I, 8

Playoffs: Granite Hills, No. 4 seed, won the Div. I title. 5-20, def. Rancho Bernardo, 3-2; 5-22, def. Helix, 4-1; 5-24, def. La Costa Canyon, 7-1.

Granite Hills, one of the San Diego Section's traditionally strong programs, won its first CIF title with a 7-1 victory over La Costa Canyon in the Division I championship game. The Eagles were ranked only No. 8 entering the playoffs in San Diego's final regular-season poll, but they took advantage of upset losses by No. 1 seed Escondido in the quarterfinals and No. 2 seed El Camino in the semifinals to pull off a mild upset of its own in the championship game. The No. 4-seeded Eagles, the Grossmont South League runner-up, defeated No. 3 seed La Costa Canyon. Two days after Helix upset Escondido, 1-0, Granite Hills eliminated Helix, 4-1. Then, two days after La Costa Canyon upset El Camino, 3-2, Granite Hills beat La Costa Canyon. Sophomore pitcher Jenny Lahitte became the team's ace at midseason and went 6-0 in the month of May. She tossed a two-hitter with seven strikeouts. Kyee Wilson and Jill Sciarra both had two RBIs for th Eagles.

3. Mt. Carmel, 27-4-0, 9-1 Palomar, Div. II, 3

Playoffs: Mt. Carmel, the No. 1 seed, won the Div. II title. 5-20, def. Grossmont, 2-1, 9 innings; 5-22, def. Westview, 10-1; 5-24, Div. II final, def. Scripps Ranch, 6-1.

Mt. Carmel wrapped up a second straight San Diego Section Division II title with a 6-1 win over Scripps Ranch. Ironically, the Sundevils' toughest test was in the quarterfinals when they needed nine innings to beat Grossmont 2-1. Mt. Carmel outscored its opponents 16-2 in the semifinals and finals. Mt. Carmel was the No. 1 seed and Scripps Ranch the No. 2 seed. In the 6-1 championship victory, Alix Johnson, a starting guard on the Sundevils' CIF championship basketball team, was 1-for-3 with one run scored and on RBI. Ashley Romano was 2-for-3 with one run scored and one RBI. Chico State-bound pitcher Jessica McDermott pitched a complete game in all three victories, allowing only two hits in the nine-inning affair against unseeded against Grossmont.

4. Santana, 31-2-0, 12-0 Grossmont North, Div. III, 4

Playoffs: Santana, the No. 1 seed, won Div. III. 5-20, def. Mount Miguel, 13-0; 5-22, def. Madison, 21-1; 5-24, def. Brawley, 11-1.

Santana wasn't tested in Division III as the Grossmont North League champions and No. 1 seed beat three opponents by a combined scored of 45-2. The Sultans opened the playoffs with a 13-0 win over Mount Miguel in the quarterfinals, defeated Madison 21-1 in the semifinals and finished with an 11-1 win over Brawley in the championsip game. Against Brawley, Britti Balough only only three hits and struck out six. Balough was also 1-for-4 with a bases-loaded double for two RBIs. Third baseman Kelsey McIlonie was 2-for-4 with one run scored and three RBIs.

5. La Costa Canyon, 23-9, 6-4 Palomar, Div. I, unrasnked

Playoffs: La Costa Canyon was the No. 3 seed in Div. I. 5-20, def. Poway, 2-1; 5-22, def. El Camino, 3-2; 5-24, lost to Granite Hills, 7-1.

6. Scripps Ranch, 28-4-2, 9-1 Eastern, Div. II, 6

Playoffs: Scripps Ranch was the No. 2 seed in Div. II. 5-20, def. Mission Hills, 1-0; 5-22, def. Steele Canyon, 1-0; 5-24, lost to Mt. Carmel, 6-1.

7. El Camino, 26-5-1, 10-0 Avocado, Div. I, 2

Playoffs: El Camino was the No. 2 seed in Div. I. 5-20, def. Vista, 8-1; 5-22, lost to La Costa Canyon, 3-2.

El Camino, the San Diego Section's second state-ranked Division I school behind Escondido, suffered an upset in the semifinals two days after the path to a title was cleared when Escondido was shocked in the quarterfinals. El Camino fell to No. 3 seed La Costa Canyon 3-2 after opening the playoffs with an 8-1 win over Vista in the quarterfinals. El Camino's winning formula has been to outscore opponents with a heavy-hitting lineup since they don't have a dominating pitching staff, but the Wildcats managed only three hits against La Costa Canyon. Jerin Faasua was 1-for-3 with two RBIs. In the romp over Avocado runner-up Vista, Chelsea Troupe was 3-for-4 with two runs scored and two RBIs. Celine Doerr was 2-for-2 with one run scored and two RBIs.

8. Helix, 21-10-1, 5-5 Grossmont South, Div. I, unranked

Playoffs: Helix is unseeded in Div. I. 5-17, def. Mira Mesa, 11-1; 5-20, def. Escondido, 1-0; 5-22, lost to Granite Hills, 4-1.

9. Steele Canyon, 21-6-1, 9-1 Grossmont South, Div. II, 7

Playoffs: Steele Canyon was the No. 3 seed in Div. II. 5-20, def. West Hills, 1-0; 5-22, lost to Scripps Ranch, 1-0.

10. Brawley, 21-8-0, 10-2 Imperial Valley, Div. III, unranked

Playoffs: 5-17, def. Mar Vista, 1-0; 5-20, def. University City, 8-7; 5-22, def. Cathedral Catholic, 7-1; 5-24, lost to Santana, 11-1.

Others

Cathedral Catholic 22-7, 10-0 Western, Div. III; Playoffs: Cathedral is the No. 2 seed in Div. III. 5-20, def. Clairemont, 10-9; 5-22, lost to Brawley, 7-1.

Patrick Henry, 18-7-1, 9-1 Eastern, Div. I; Playoffs: Patrick Henry was unseeded in Div. I. 5-17, 5-17, lost to Vista, 9-4.

Rancho Bernardo, 21-9-1, 5-5 Palomar, Div. I; Playoffs: Rancho Bernardo was unseeded in Div. I. 5-17, def. Eastlake, 13-0; 5-20, lost to Granite Hills, 3-2.

Poway, 17-12-1, 4-6 Palomar, Div. I; Playoffs: Poway was unseeded in Div. I. 5-51, lost to La Costa Canyon, 2-1.

Westview, 18-12-1, 5-5 Palomar, Div. II; 5-20, def. El Centro Southwest, 5-2; 5-22, lost to Mt. Carmel, 10-1.

Horizon, 19-6, 8-2 Coastal South, Div. IV: 5-13, lost to Bishop's, 1-0. Playoffs: Horizon is the No. 2 seed in Div. IV. 5-17, def. Santa Fe Christian, 7-0, by forfeit; 5-20, def. Palo Verde, 9-1; 5-22, def. Christian, 2-0; 5-24, lost to Francis Parker, 2-0.

Bishop's, 17-6, 6-4 Coastal South, Div. IV: Playoffs: Bishop's is the No. 4 seed in Div. II. 5-17, def. Borrego Springs, 15-0; 5-20, def. Imperial, 8-2; 5-22, lost to Parker, 14-3.

Parker, 23-8, 9-1 Coastal South, Div. IV: 5-13, def. Mountain Empire, 7-5. Parker wins Coastal South League title. Playoffs: Parker, the No. 1 seed, won the Div. IV title. 5-20, def. 8-0; 5-22, def. Bishop's, 14-3; 5-24, def. Horizon, 2-0.

2008 State rankings

CalHiSports.com polls

Ranking, school, last week

All Divisions, final rankings, June 11

6. Escondido 11

11. Escondido 2

18. Santana 18

21. Granite Hills unranked

22. El Camino unranked

40. Scripps Ranch unranked

By Divisions, final rankings, June 11

Division I

6. Escondido 9

17. Granite Hills

18. El Camino

Division II

1. Mt. Carmel 1

7. Scripps Ranch 7

12. Steele Canyon

On the bubble: Steele Canyon

Division III

2. Santana 2

On the bubble: Brawley

Division IV

7. Parker 7

9. Horizon

13. Bishop's

Division V

On the bubble: San Diego Jewish Academy 9

Southern California

5. Escondido 7

6. Mt. Carmel 6

7. Escondido 1

11. Santana 11

13. Granite Hills 14

14. El Camino 15

24. Scripps Ranch

33. La Costa Canyon

National rankings, June 24

By Student Sports

25. Escondido 43

30. Mt. Carmel 27

For more state rankings, visit calhisports.com.

Tom Shanahan can be contacted at 619-699-2334 or toms@sdhoc.com.