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CIF-SS SOFTBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS
At Deanna Manning Stadium, Irvine
SATURDAY
DIVISION 5
Northwood (14-7-1) vs. Grace of Simi Valley (16-10), 10 a.m.
Outlook: The No. 2 seeded Timberwolves missed the playoffs last season but have followed their hot bats and freshman pitcher Olivia Chen to their first section final.
Northwood, the third-place team from the Pacific Coast League, is averaging 11.8 runs in the playoffs. Several returning players are contributing. First baseman Katerinna Rizos has three home runs and 12 RBIs in the playoffs. The junior hit three-run home runs in each of the the past two games and belted a grand slam in the first round. Shortstop Natalie Keith, who is committed to Arizona, is hitting an eye-popping .750 in the playoffs with 10 runs scored, four extra-base hits and six RBIs. Leadoff batter Marissa Lee, a catcher committed to Seattle, is hitting .588 with 10 runs and five RBIs in the postseason. Keith and Lee are veterans from Northwood’s 2023 squad that reached the Division 5 semifinals and fell to eventual champion Liberty.
Fourth-year Northwood coach Maddy Grimm has blended the experience with the two-way skills of Chen. In the playoffs, she is hitting .467 with two home runs and nine RBIs. In the circle, she has posted a 4.25 ERA in 26 1/3 innings in the postseason.
Grace, the runner-up to St. Bonaventure in the Tri-Valley League, finished eighth in the Division 5 rankings. Nevada commit Grace Maguire (.584, 11 home runs) leads an offense averaging 11 runs in the playoffs. Senior pitcher Rosy Salazar is committed to Menlo College.
Mission Viejo’s Kylee Jepson (left) and Bailey McNeal combined for four hits, three runs and three RBIs in the Diablos’ 5-3 victory over Burroughs of Burbank in the CIF-SS Division 4 semifinals Saturday, May 23, 2026. (Photo by Martin Henderson)DIVISION 4
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Mission Viejo (17-15) vs. Oxnard (17-10-1), 4 p.m.
Outlook: The Diablos are a young team playing their best at the right time. Mission Viejo, which features only two seniors who start, has won a season-high seven consecutive games to reach its first section final since 2022. The Diablos have climbed after finishing third in the South Coast League and 17th in the Division 4 rankings.
Coach Clint Watson calls seniors Bailey McNeal and Mars Ruvalcaba the team MVPs. Both players are committed to Saddleback College. Ruvalcaba, who bats leadoff and plays shortstop, is hitting .408 with 28 runs scored. McNeal, who plays catcher and center field, is hitting .390 with a team-high four home runs and 32 RBIs. Junior third baseman Brooke Neale leads the team with a .417 average.
Sophomore Taylor Billings has pitched every inning for Mission Viejo in the playoffs. She is 13-7 with a 2.70 ERA and 91 strikeouts. Oxnard features its own sophomore ace in Destinee Herrera, who played for a strong basketball team. She tossed a four-hitter in a 1-0 win at Monrovia in the semifinals. It was Oxnard’s third shutout of the playoffs.
Junior Rachel Godoy hit a solo home run in the semifinals for Oxnard, which was 10th in the final Division 4 rankings.
Last season, both teams were in the Division 3 playoffs. Mission Viejo reached the quarterfinals while Oxnard fell to San Clemente 5-0 in the first round.
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