Here’s who Merced County softball teams will face in the first round of playoffs
The Merced High softball team, undefeated champion of the Central California Conference, was awarded the sixth seed in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division 2 tournament on Friday.
The Bears will host 11th-seeded Lodi, the third-place finisher from the Tri-City Athletic League, Wednesday at 4 p.m.
Merced went 10-0 to win the CCC title and is 19-3 overall. The Bears are led by senior pitcher Annalise Ramirez, who has committed to play for Cal State Monterey Bay.
Lodi went 8-7 in the TCAL and is 13-10-1 overall.
If Merced wins, it will play the winner of the first-round game between 14th-seeded Atwater, the second-place finisher in the CCC, and third-seeded Rocklin on Wednesday. Atwater went 7-3 in the CCC and is 14-11 overall.
Le Grand earns No. 1 seed
The Le Grand High softball team, which went unbeaten to win the Southern League title, earned the top seed in the Division 7 tournament.
The Bulldogs, who went 12-0 in the SL and 16-7 overall, get a first-round bye and will play their first postseason game in the section quarterfinals.
Le Grand will host the winner of Wednesday’s first-round game between eighth-seeded Rio Vista and ninth-seeded Delta Charter on May 15.
The Bulldogs are led by Ava Avila, a junior who leads the team in batting percentage (.621), home runs (8) and RBIs (51). As a pitcher, Avila is 15-1 with a 0.61 ERA and 196 strikeouts.
Other Merced County teams in the postseason
- Buhach Colony, the third-place finisher in the CCC, is seeded 13th in Division 3 and will play at fourth-seeded Manteca in the first round. Buhach Colony went 5-5 in the CCC.
- El Capitan, which finished fifth in the CCC, is seeded 14th in Division 3 and will play at third-seeded Vanden of Fairfield.
- Los Banos, the fourth-place team out of the CCC, is seeded 11th in Division 4 and will play sixth-seeded Del Campo of Fair Oaks.
- Livingston is the 15th seed in Division 5 and will have a play-in game on Tuesday against 18th-seeded Venture Academy of Stockton.
- Hilmar, the fifth-place team out of the Trans-Valley League, is seeded fifth in Division 6 and will play 12th-seeded Mariposa in the first round.
- Stone Ridge Christian is seeded eighth in Division 6 and will host ninth-seeded Summerville in a first-round matchup.
