Well represented

HARD KNOCKS FOR SOFTBALL-A Westlake batter makes contact with a pitch earlier in the season. Below, coach Bob Sisco gives batting tips to La Reina star pitcher Vicky Brown as they prepare for another run at a CIF crown. Eight local teams are represented in the CIF-Southern Section playoffs, a tribute to the strength of the sport in the Conejo Valley and surrounding areas.

The T.O. Acorn’s softball playoff preview

Royal Highlanders (24-2, 13-1, first-place in Marmonte)

First-round opponent: Bishop Amat (16-9, 4-4), home

Playoff picture: Tournament tested. League champions. Dominant pitching. The ability to crush the ball at the plate. From the outside looking in, it appears as if the Royal Highlanders have all of the necessary ingredients to capture a Division I softball championship this year.

Royal, currently ranked No. 2 in the Los Angeles Times’ softball poll, opens its quest for a Southern Section title at home Friday afternoon against Bishop Amat (16-9, 4-4), third-place finishers in the Serra League.

On offense, Bishop Amat is anchored by a pair of sophomores, second baseman Nikki Dominguez (.382 BA, 12 RBIs) and shortstop Lauren Mirabal (.324, 14 runs, .419 OBP). Bishop’s top pitcher is junior Breanna Gomez (12-4, 1.42 ERA, three shutouts). Expect Gomez to get the call Friday.

Royal is red hot entering the postseason. Over the past month, the Highlanders have won 11 of 12 games, with their last loss coming April 21 to Newbury Park. In that 12-game span, Royal has outscored its opponents 68 to 24, and has held five teams to one run or less.

Like Royal’s baseball team, the Highlanders led the Marmonte in runs scored (155) and runs allowed (42) during the regular season.

Collectively, the Highlanders batted .325 this season. They can run, too, having converted 28 of 28 stolen base attempts on the year.

"We’ve got a very strong lineup," said head coach Bill Dishon, whose teams have lost in the quarterfinals three consecutive years. "We are by far the best hitting team that’s out there."

Senior shortstop Andi Ramirez (.446 BA, 33 runs, five triples) and senior Devon Hofland (.417, 24 RBIs) are great at setting the table for the team’s power hitters, sophomore Kris Lesovsky and junior Rebecca Heteniak (three HRs each).

Junior pitchers Jessi Waers (10-1, .724 ERA) and Rebecca Heteniak (14-1, 1.20) will split time on the mound.

Circle Tues., May 31 on the calendar. If everything goes according to plan, that’s the day Royal will face No. 1 ranked Pacifica of Garden Grove (26-2-1) in the semifinals.

Newbury Park Panthers (16-9, 9-5, third in Marmonte)

First-round opponent: Los Alamitos (19-9, 8-2), away

Playoff picture: A midseason run that saw the Panthers reel off 12 consecutive victories from April 12 through May 3, all but assuring Newbury Park its first playoff appearance in five years. But a late-season slide that saw the team drop three of four games to finish the year (one loss was by forfeit) begs the question: which Panther team will show up for the playoffs?

Third-place finishers in the Marmonte League this season, Newbury Park has a difficult draw in its march to Deanna Manning Stadium in Irvine, site of the Division I Southern Section championship game.

"We’ve got a tough draw, no question about it," head coach Darrin Carr said. "We’re in the same bracket with Pacifica and Royal. And our first-round opponent, Los Alamitos, is a very, very tough team. They don’t give up many runs at all."

Newbury Park will open the postseason on the road Friday afternoon at 3:15 p.m. when they take on Los Alamitos (19-9, 8-2), champions of the Sunset League. Carr estimates a 90-minute bus ride to the Orange County school.

Quite a pitching matchup is in store Friday, as the Panthers will send out their ace, senior Tiffany Curtis (12-7, 1.09 ERA, 166 Ks), and the Griffins counter with the Sunset’s top hurler in senior Stacy Nelson (17-6, .511 ERA, 219 Ks).

Curtis has started 21 of Newbury Park’s 25 games this season.

With runs expected to be at a premium, Newbury Park will need senior catcher Cailtin Bailey (.485, 23 RBIs, three HR) to carry the load offensively. Bailey hit safely in 12 of 14 league games this season.

Outfielders senior Kacey Garziano (.316, 13 runs) and junior Whitney Born (.384, 28 hits, .416 OBP) have been swinging hot bats as of late and need to find a way to get on base against Nelson.

A win Friday means a possible showdown against Saugus in round two Tuesday afternoon. Saugus is rated seventh in the Division I Southern Section coaches’ poll.

Westlake Warriors (15-11, 7-7, fourth in Marmonte)

First-round opponent: Valencia (25-3, 9-1), away

Playoff picture: So much for entering the postseason with a full head of steam.

Westlake gained the Marmonte’s at-large playoff bid despite going 4-8 over the last month of play. The high-powered offense and standout pitching that guided the Warriors to an 11-3 mark midway through April has taken the Jimmy Hoffa route in recent weeks.

The lackluster performance down the stretch earned the Warriors a tough draw in the first round of the Division I playoffs, where they will travel to play Valencia on Friday afternoon. Valencia finished atop the Foothill League standings and is currently ranked fifth in the Los Angeles Times’ softball poll.

Senior catcher Megan Shie (.500, 18 RBIs, two HRs, .767 SLG), who has been sidelined with tendinitis in her elbow, may be able to serve as the team’s designated hitter against Valencia, depending on how the elbow feels, said head coach Lynn Baum.

Shie, along with senior centerfielder Monica Gonzalez (.470 BA, 39 hits, six doubles) and senior shortstop Ava Amini (.356, 12 RBIs, eight SBs), must produce solid at-bats Friday if the team is to advance.

Freshman pitcher Jenna Becerra (11-7, 1.62 ERA, 116 Ks) will start on the mound for Westlake.

"She’s a pretty strong kid and a pretty calm kid," Baum said of Becerra. "Hopefully (starting) won’t affect her too much. The pressure is more on them because they’re the ones who are expected to win."

Valencia has a pair of legitimate aces in senior Courtney Baughman (10-0, .620 ERA, six shutouts) and sophomore Jordan Taylor (15-3, .700 ERA, nine shutouts). Either pitcher could get the call in round one.

Westlake and Valencia have played three common opponents this season—Rosary, Millikan and Chaminade. Both teams defeated Rosary and lost to Millikan at the Thousand Oaks Tournament. The Warriors defeated Chaminade, 3-0, March 12, while Valencia lost to Chaminade five days later, 1-0.

Thousand Oaks Lancers (18-8, 10-4, second in Marmonte)

First-round opponent: Hart (14-12, 5-5), home

Playoff picture: It’s been a roller coaster season for Gary Walin and the Lancers, forever altered because of the early-season ankle injury suffered by Marmonte League ace Suzanne Cominski.

But T.O. has persevered, in large part due to the play of a talented group of freshmen, and now the Lancers have the opportunity to right all of their wrongs in the Div. I playoffs.

Tomorrow, T.O. opens the playoffs with a home game against Hart, a team the Lancers defeated less than two weeks ago in the Thousand Oaks Softball Tournament, 7-5. The Indians are led by junior shortstop Emily Sudik, who’s batting .405 and has stolen 18 bases in 21 attempts.

The Lancers counter with the deadly hitting duo of senior Genna Allen (.321, 20 RBIs) and freshman Marla Mathews (21 RBIs, two HRs), two batters who love the chance to hit with runners’ aboard. More often than not those base runners are freshmen Samantha Takeshita (.366, 18 runs) and Tiffany Messerschmitt (.329, 16 runs), who are one and two on the team in batting average.

Expect the Lancers to go with Cominski, who’s still not 100 percent, to start tomorrow’s game. Freshman Brittany Reynolds (1.04 ERA), who’s filled in admirably, will be standing by.

A model of inconsistency, Hart won four games in a row just once all season. They are 0-3 on the season against Marmonte League opponents (Agoura, Royal).

The winner of that game will most likely have to face returning Div. I finalist Camarillo and pitching ace Lindsay Dean in a tough second-round contest.

Oaks Christian Lions (24-5, 8-0, first in Frontier)

First-round opponent: Beverly Hills (10-14, 5-5), home

Playoff picture: The Lions may not have the same dominant regular season record as they’ve had coming into the playoffs in past seasons, but don’t think that makes Oaks Christian any kind of an underdog, even in its new home in Div. III.

The Lions first hurdle en route to what they hope will be a third straight CIF championship, having already captured two in Div. IV, is a lackluster team from Beverly Hills. After that game, Oaks Christian will most likely take on Lancaster, a team it already beat twice during the regular season.

The team’s stiffest competition probably won’t come until a possible quarterfinal matchup against Sunny Hills, the champion of the Sunset League. If they’re able to win that game, then a showdown should be set between OC and Lakewood, formerly of Div. I.

Expect Cajon of San Bernardino, which lost just one game since March, to be waiting for the Lions in the finals, in what should be another classic championship showdown.

Oaks Christian is led by its two-headed pitching monster, senior Ashlee Veilleux (13-2, .383 ERA) and sophomore Taylor Schlopy (10-3, .319 ERA), two players packed with big-game experience and confidence. Head coach Pete Ackermann isn’t sure yet how he’ll use the dangerous duo, but considering they’ve only given up nine earned runs all season, any approach is likely to produce success.

With six seniors on the roster, these already successful Lions are hungry to go out on top, and they’re not going to let a jump in division intimidate them. Seniors Amber Pederson, Kaslin Tucker and Erin Sakakini, along with Veilleux, are brimming with leadership qualities, as well as talent.

Hitting will be the biggest question mark for the Lions against what’s expected to be consistently better pitching in Div. III. The top of OC’s lineup—Schlopy, Veilleux and Peterson—must produce if the team wants a shot at the title game.

La Reina Regents (20-2-2, 10-0, first in Tri-Valley)

First-round opponent: El Segundo (11-10, 5-3), home

Playoff picture: After dropping its first two games of the season, the always competitive Regent softball team hasn’t lost in 22 tries (two games with Rio Mesa ended in a tie). Led by star pitcher Vicky