Ceres, East Union softball advance to quarters of Sac-Joaquin Section D-III playoffs

Mahlena O’Neal and the Ceres softball team crushed the lowest remaining seed in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division III playoffs.

O’Neal went 2 for 2 with a home run and teamed with Ray Sagapolu on a two-hitter as No. 4 Ceres rolled into the quarterfinal round with a 10-0 victory over No. 12 Cordova on Friday at the Sacramento Softball Complex.

Now the challenge becomes this: Can the Bulldogs put together the same complete effort against the tournament’s top seed?

Ceres won’t have long to ponder the question.

The tournament continues on Saturday with a 1 o’clock appointment with No. 1 Pioneer.

The Patriots improved to 24-2 with a 6-4 victory over Christian Brothers on Friday afternoon.

The Bulldogs (22-7) have enjoyed a near-perfect start to their postseason, outscoring their first two opponents 12-0.

Ceres peppered Cordova — the same team that upset Oakdale in the first round — racking up 10 runs on nine hits, including a pair of doubles by Sabrina Baisdon and Callie Nunes.

Nicole Bates and Andrea Duran each went 2 for 3 for the Bulldogs, who induced the mercy rule with a four-run fourth.

Baisdon, Duran and Makenzie Veuve drove in two runs, while O’Neal powered the assault with three RBIs.

Sagapolu struck out two and faced just three batters over the minimum.

East Union 9, Lincoln 5: Alexis Erich and Alejandra Rascon connected on two-run home runs and the second-seeded Lancers survived an early scare from Lincoln of Lincoln.

The Zebras jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning, but the momentum was fleeting.

Erich and Rascon erased the deficit in the home half of the inning with a pair of might swings, lifting East Union into the quarterfinal round of the D-III playoffs.

Sam Owens went 3 for 4 to lead the Lancer hit parade. Oregon-bound outfielder Cherish Burks (two runs) and Rascon were both 2 for 4.

East Union (26-2) will face Ponderosa on Saturday at 1 p.m.

This story was originally published May 15, 2015 at 11:51 PM with the headline "Ceres, East Union softball advance to quarters of Sac-Joaquin Section D-III playoffs."