Mission Viejo softball lets lead slip away against Oxnard in Division 4 final

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IRVINE — Of the record six Orange County softball teams that reached the CIF-SS finals this week, Mission Viejo traveled arguably the most improbable road.

With their power ranking for the playoffs and their youth, the Diablos carried the profile of an underdog. That description, however, didn’t tell the entire story.

Mission Viejo entered Saturday’s Division 4 final against Oxnard riding a season-high seven-game winning streak and buoyed by a newfound confidence.

The Diablos’ emergence showed with three sparkling defensive plays and a lead going into the bottom of the fifth inning. Oxnard, however, ended the run late.

Rachel Godoy hit a three-run home run with two outs in the fifth inning and Destinee Herrera earned her fifth win of the playoffs as Oxnard beat Mission Viejo 3-1 at Deanna Manning Stadium.

Mission Viejo right fielder Riley Campbell collected her third hit in the seventh to bring the tying run to the plate but Herrera escaped another jam to spark a celebratory dogpile.

“I don’t like to lose but I was proud of how we competed,” Mission Viejo coach Clint Watson said. “They found their confidence and they believed in each other, like they played today. They played like a Division 1 team today.”

“We’ll be back,” the coach added.

Mission Viejo’s two seniors — shortstop Mars Ruvalcaba and catcher Bailey McNeal — again delivered highlights for the Diablos (17-16), who finished ranked 17th in Division 4.

McNeal, a first-year catcher who normally plays outfield, made two excellent defensive plays in the second.

She caught a foul ball near the plate and threw out a runner attempting to steal third to end the inning. Junior Brooke Neale applied a slick tag.

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“I didn’t know I was going to be a catcher this season but my coaches gave me the call and I wanted to do the best I could,” McNeal said amid tears.

In the pivotal fifth, Ruvalcaba snagged a line drive and threw to first baseman Kylee Jepson for a double play.

But No. 10-ranked Oxnard (18-10-1) responded with five consecutive hits, including the home run by Godoy. The junior also hit a game-winning home run in a 1-0 win against Monrovia in the semifinals.

Mission Viejo took a 1-0 lead in the top of the fifth on a bases-loaded groundout by McNeal, which forced an error by Oxnard. After Ruvalcaba scored on the play, Herrera limited the damage by recording two quick outs.

Mission Viejo had a chance to give starter Taylor Billings a lead in the first inning. The Diablos loaded the bases with no outs but didn’t score.

“Taylor pitched a good game,” Watson said of the sophomore, who scattered eight hits. “We needed to put up four or five runs. We left nine runners on bases.”

“They’re a great team,” Herrera said of the Diablos. “We just had it today.”

Mission Viejo took pride in reaching its first section final since ’22.

“It was a really hard season for us,” Ruvalcaba said. “After a while, we just kind of knew, we had to do it. We had to extend our season. It was two seniors left. We had to give everything.”

“A lot people told us we weren’t going to make it far,” added McNeal, a co-captain with Ruvalcaba. “The biggest thing was playing for us, for God, for making our coaches proud and just proving to everyone that we do belong here.”

Orange County set a record for most teams in the finals.

Mission Viejo opted out of the next week’s CIF Southern California Regional. Champions JSerra and Northwood and runner-up Mater Dei also opted out.

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