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Mission Prep softball, Atascadero baseball headed to CIF championship games

matthew ho, joe tarica
·5 min read

Two San Luis Obispo County teams have advanced to the CIF championship after winning their semifinal games this week.

The Atascadero baseball team secured a spot in the CIF Central Section Division II title game after defeating St. Joseph in Santa Maria on Tuesday.

And on Thursday, the Mission Prep softball team reached its fourth consecutive CIF championship after beating Kerman on Wednesday.

Mission Prep softball headed to title game for fourth straight year

Mission Prep pushed across two runs and pitcher Roxanne Guerra threw a one-hitter as the Royals advanced to the CIF Central Section Division IV softball championships with a 2-0 win over Kerman on Wednesday at Cuesta College.

As the public address announcer yelled “B-money” to the crowd, the Royals broke a scoreless tie in the fifth inning when Brooklyn Neenan hit a pop-up that bounced off a Kerman outfielder’s hand and drove in freshman Landrie Hinrichs, who had drawn a walk earlier in the inning.

Landrie Hinrichs scores the first run of the game as catcher Jaymee Hick fields the throw. Mission Prep won 2-0 over Kerman in a softball playoff May 22, 2024.
Landrie Hinrichs scores the first run of the game as catcher Jaymee Hick fields the throw. Mission Prep won 2-0 over Kerman in a softball playoff May 22, 2024.

After Neenan’s at-bat, junior Mikaylie Gordon hit a sacrifice fly to drive in sophomore Samantha Rodriguez for the second and final run of the game.

Samantha Rodriguez scores the second run as Mission Prep won 2-0 over Kerman in a softball playoff May 22, 2024.
Samantha Rodriguez scores the second run as Mission Prep won 2-0 over Kerman in a softball playoff May 22, 2024.

That was all Guerra would need, completing a one-hit shutout on 85 pitches with 13 strikeouts and no walks. Only two Lions got on base during the game.

Now, the Royals will move onto their fourth consecutive CIF championship game against fellow Sunset League member Pioneer Valley, where they will look to break a two-season championship losing streak.

“It kind of feels unreal,” Head Coach Johnnie Martinez said. “Four years in a row is a tough feat, but they do it. They’ve grinded for four years.”

In the past two seasons, the Royals fell in the championship to Orange Cove. However, Orange Cove fell to Pioneer Valley in the semifinals. The Royals and the Panthers split the season series with Pioneer Valley winning 4-2 on May 8 and Mission winning 4-2 on April 19.

Sadie Huff dives back to second base as Sydney Yep fields. Mission Prep won 2-0 over Kerman in a softball playoff May 22, 2024.
Sadie Huff dives back to second base as Sydney Yep fields. Mission Prep won 2-0 over Kerman in a softball playoff May 22, 2024.

As freshmen, Neenan and many other seniors on the team won a CIF championship but have come up just short since.

According to Neenan, she feels this year there is something different about the team.

“We were a really young team for a really long time,” said Neenan, who will be playing softball at Cuesta College next year. “We all started as freshmen and were really young.”

In her junior season, the team had no seniors. This season, the Royals have five seniors that have made deep postseason runs four years in a row.

But the five seniors and many others on the team have been playing together for many years even before Mission Prep.

Neenan recalls she’s played with Guerra since T-ball and with Ruelas since they were 8 years old.

Samantha Rodriguez takes third as throw gets away from Jayanna Gonzales. Mission Prep won 2-0 over Kerman in a softball playoff May 22, 2024.
Samantha Rodriguez takes third as throw gets away from Jayanna Gonzales. Mission Prep won 2-0 over Kerman in a softball playoff May 22, 2024.

“I think almost every single girl I’ve played with with either since I was 8 or since T-ball,” Neenan said.

Martinez was also the group’s coach from a young age. He helped found 805 Elite softball, a travel team that many Royals formerly played on.

“I just can’t explain the camaraderie that they do have because it’s second nature to them to know what each other’s doing on the field,” Martinez said. “They have the faith in one another when somebody is batting or Roxanne’s pitching.”

The Royals have had to mix in a new group of freshmen, but according to Neenan, they’ve been able to bring them into the team.

“Just getting them to be on our team and into a really close-knit circle because our team is very much like a family,” Neenan said. ”We don’t have a weak spot on the field and we’ve really come together this year.”

The Royals will take on the Cougars at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday at Fresno State.

Atascadero beats St. Joseph to earn spot in title game

Atascadero advanced to the CIF Central Section Division II baseball championships after beating St. Joseph 9-7 on Tuesday for the Greyhounds’ third straight road playoff win.

Atascadero (20-10, 7-8 Mountain League) now will face Bakersfield Christian (25-5, 12-0 South Yosemite League) in the title game at on Friday.

On Tuesday, the Hounds got out to a 6-1 lead going to the sixth inning, according to MaxPreps, only to see the Knights storm back with four runs in the bottom of the sixth to make it a one-run game.

Atascadero added three insurance runs in the top of the seventh and then held off St. Joseph in the bottom of the inning as the Knights added two runs but ultimately came up short.

Jarom Damery led the way offensively for Atascadero going 2-5 with a double, two RBIs and two runs scored. Drew Cappel and Uly Kaul also added two hits apiece amid an 11-hit Greyhound attack. Damon Mitchell went 1-4 with a double and two RBIs.

Cappel threw 6-2/3 innings on the mound, giving up seven runs on 10 hits with four strikeouts.

The No. 9 seeded Hounds beat No. 8 Lompoc 4-2 on May 14 and then knocked off No. 1 seeded Cabrillo 3-2 in extra innings.

Atascadero takes on Bakersfield Christian at 7:30 p.m. in its fourth straight road game at Valley Strong Ballpark in Visalia.