Great Oak softball team falters late, drops Division 3 title game to Riverside Prep
IRVINE - The Great Oak softball team put a crooked number on the scoreboard in the opening inning.
The problem for the Wolfpack, however, was Riverside Prep freshman pitcher Lila Morris had their number the rest of the way.
Morris allowed no runs and one hit following that rough start. Riverside Prep then took advantage of two Great Oak errors in the fifth inning and rallied for a 4-3 victory in the CIF Southern Section Division 3 championship game Saturday night at Barber Park.
“We have a young team, and unfortunately a couple of mistakes really cost us today,” Great Oak coach Fernando Ornelas said.
Great Oak junior pitcher Graclyn Necochea also had a rough start in the circle, as she walked four batters during the top of the first inning. Riverside Prep grabbed a 1-0 lead when leadoff batter Meeka Martinez stole third base and scored on an overthrow.
Necochea avoided further damage by striking out the side, including two straight with the bases loaded that ended the frame.
And Great Oak (15-16) jumped on Morris immediately in the bottom half of the first inning. Senior center fielder and leadoff batter Sydney Smith roped a double to deep center field and later scored the tying run on an fielding error. The Wolfpack took the lead on an RBI single by Adriana Castillo and added another run when Jenna Leon Guerrero drew a bases-loaded walk with one out.
“I was hungry and ready to go,” said Smith, who was a freshman on Great Oak’s Division 2 title-winning team in 2023. “I wanted to start things off strong and leave everything on the field. That was my mentality. Go up there and do anything to help my team.”
Great Oak hoped to make the number even more crooked, but Morris got a grounder and a strikeout to leave the bases loaded.
“I went through their entire lineup in the first inning. That is not an ideal way to start a game,” Morris said with a laugh. “It was a tough start, but I looked at my teammates and in the stands and saw everybody who had my back. That gave me the confidence to get back out there. … I was able to adjust. A lot of those hits were on outside pitches, so I really started attacking inside more.”
Necochea settled in, as well, allowing only one hit through four innings. She walked only one more batter after that initial inning.
“I think she puts a lot of pressure on herself, and that played a part in all of those early walks tonight,” Ornelas said of Necochea. “She really bounced back well after that start and pitched a great game. She gave us a chance to bring home a championship.”
Things unraveled quickly for the Wolfpack with two outs in the fifth inning. Sophia Chavez and Breeanna Garcia had back-to-back singles, and both runners moved up a base on a wild pitch. Great Oak twice had an opportunity to get out the inning with the lead as Necochea induced Riverside Prep to hit the ball on the ground. Both were misplayed, however, and Riverside Prep scored three runs and regained the lead at 4-3.
“Right before that inning, I pulled them together and told them that we don’t need to do too much up there,” said Riverside Prep coach Lou Allan, who played her freshman season at Grand Terrace before finishing her high school career at Oak Hills. “We needed to do a better job putting balls in play. Good things can happen when you make the other team have to make plays.”
Morris retired 14 of the final 15 batters she faced, with the lone base runner being a hit batter to open the bottom of the sixth.
“We didn’t make enough adjustments at the plate that second or third time though the lineup,” Ornelas said. “We knew she was probably going to come in on us. We moved off the plate and tried to hunt those pitches. We just were too late with our swings.”
Smith was the only senior in Great Oak’s lineup. Five sophomores and four juniors started for the Wolfpack on Saturday night.
“It took some time for this young group of players to realize they are on varsity for a reason,” Ornelas said. “I’m sure it was scary for a few of them at the beginning, but they continued to buy in and work. This will be a great experience for them to learn from.”
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This story was originally published May 31, 2026 at 12:41 AM.