{"id":12945,"date":"2026-06-07T04:02:17","date_gmt":"2026-06-07T04:02:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=12945"},"modified":"2026-06-07T04:02:17","modified_gmt":"2026-06-07T04:02:17","slug":"la-habra-softball-falls-to-mater-dei-catholic-in-bittersweet-regional-final","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=12945","title":{"rendered":"La Habra softball falls to Mater Dei Catholic in \u2018bittersweet\u2019 regional final"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

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CHULA VISTA \u2014 Heads bowed after the final out at third base. Tears flowed as a historic postseason ended deep in San Diego County. But after the dust settled Saturday, La Habra\u2019s senior softball players sat side-by-side on the grass, kicked off their cleats and giggled.<\/p>\n

The Highlanders lost at Mater Dei Catholic 3-1 in the Division I final of the CIF Southern California Regional but maintained their perspective on a four-year journey that reached new heights and formed tight bonds.<\/p>\n

The tears were about more than the final score. They were about a chapter closing for the seniors, who symbolically removed their cleats for the final time as Highlanders.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m going to miss this team a lot,\u201d senior second baseman Milee Valencia said amid tears. \u201cJust hanging out with them, honestly, and the feeling of family.\u201d<\/p>\n

La Habra (25-9) climbed from missing the playoffs in 2023-24 to reaching the Division 1 semifinals for the first time in the CIF Southern Section.<\/p>\n

Rallying behind the slogan \u201cWhy not us\u201d, the Highlanders decided to play the regional when several contenders opted out.<\/p>\n

In its first regional final, La Habra dueled a record-setting SoCal champion with its defense and the pitching of senior Madison Payne.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

The Highlanders brought the tying run to the plate with two outs in the top of the seventh in Valencia.<\/p>\n

She delivered a RBI single to shallow left center off Arizona commit Arri Romero. But on the hit, which scored pinch-runner Sophia Cabral from second base, Mater Dei Catholic center fielder Bella Harris threw a strike to third baseman Gianna Flores to nab a runner racing from first.<\/p>\n

\u201cBittersweet but I think they\u2019re very proud of what we\u2019ve done this year,\u201d interim La Habra coach Paul Caffrey said of his team\u2019s emotions. \u201cThe senior class, they mean a lot to the kids. Not just talent-wise, it\u2019s just they\u2019re a fantastic group of young women.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more \u2018Giant\u2019 south swell to bring biggest waves of the year in coming days<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

Final: Mater Dei 3, La Habra 1 pic.twitter.com\/nbfNlmQrru<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

\u2014 Dan Albano (@ocvarsityguy) June 6, 2026<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

La Habra, co-champion of the Crestview League, showed its grit.<\/p>\n

Top-seeded and defending champion Mater Dei Catholic (31-3) blasted a comebacker off Payne\u2019s left forearm in the first inning but she recovered to strand eight runners over the next five innings. The Crusaders, who claimed a SoCal-record third regional title, racked up 14 hits but Payne worked out of several jams.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s going to be a bruise but it\u2019s OK,\u201d Payne said of her arm. \u201cI just knew that my team had my back and I trusted myself and my pitches.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what pushed me forward,\u201d added the Holy Cross commit, who teamed with catcher Eliana Corona. \u201cWe wanted to win but it\u2019s good that we made it this far. We\u2019re proud of ourselves but for the seniors, it\u2019s our last high school game and our last time getting to be with these girls. It\u2019s bittersweet that we lost but we also fought hard.\u201d<\/p>\n

La Habra\u2019s defense produced several sparkling plays to keep the Highlanders close after Mater Dei Catholic scored once in the first and twice in the third.<\/p>\n

Georgia Rickenbacker made a diving catch in center field to end the first. In the third, third baseman Mireya Gonzalez scooped up a grounder headed for the hole. The junior later snagged a line drive.<\/p>\n

Senior right fielder Alyssa Hernandez threw out a runner at home plate in the third. In the sixth, senior first baseman Evelyn Dickerson grabbed another liner and stepped on the bag for a double play.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re solid. Defensively, especially,\u201d Mater Dei Catholic co-coach Mike Centrullo said of La Habra. \u201cThey\u2019re a good team. They play a tough schedule up there. We knew that we were going to have a fight no matter what.\u201d<\/p>\n

Romero, a junior committed to Arizona, retired the first 12 batters she faced until Gonzalez led off the fifth with a single. Rickenbacker and Valencia followed with singles but Mater Dei threw out runners at third and second to dodge the threat.<\/p>\n

The Highlanders scored in the seventh to avoid being shutout for the first time this season.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe never gave up and we had trust in ourselves, that we could do it,\u201d said Valencia, who had the game-winning hit in the semifinals. \u201cWhy not us?\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more What to know about the ongoing protests and arrests outside a New Jersey detention center<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Milee Valencia singles in a run with two outs in the seventh but Mater Dei throws out a runner at third base on the play to seal the CIF SoCal Division I title.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12944,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[43,2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12945","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-based-on-facts-either-observed-and-verified-directly-by-the-reporter-or-reported-and-verified-from-knowledgeable-sources","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nLa Habra softball falls to Mater Dei Catholic in \u2018bittersweet\u2019 regional final - Silicon Valley Moving Post<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=12945\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"La Habra softball falls to Mater Dei Catholic in \u2018bittersweet\u2019 regional final - 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