Northwood’s softball team after a semifinal victory over Covina Saturday. (Photo courtesy Mike Jones).
Northwood’s softball team is gearing up for the CIF Division 5 finals Saturday and looking to bring home the first championship for the program.
The Timberwolves will take on Grace in the CIF final at 10 a.m. at Deanna Manning Stadium and will be appearing in the softball championship game for the first time in school history.
Northwood (14-7-1) advanced to the final with a 15-3 victory over Covina Saturday in the semifinals at Northwood. Grace (16-10) qualified with a 16-10 victory over Patriot.
“I’m incredibly proud of this group of young ladies,” said Northwood Coach Maddy Grimm. “They’ve put in the work and earned the right to be here. No team makes it this far on accident. We will need to play a good game of softball Saturday to walk away as champions.”
In the CIF playoffs, Northwood has been led by shortstop Natalie Keith who has a ,750 batting average, two doubles, a triple, a home run, six RBI and 10 runs scored. She had four RBI in the win over Ontario.
Marissa Lee is batting .588 in the playoffs with 10 hits, five RBI and 10 runs scored; Olivia Chen is batting .467 with a double, two home runs and nine RBI (including two RBI vs. Ontario and six in the semifinal victory over Covina); and Katerinna Rizos is batting .462 with a double, three home runs, 12 RBI and six runs scored.
Rizos had a grand slam against Duarte, a three-run home run vs. Santa Monica and a three-run home run against Covina.
In the circle, Olivia Chen in 26 1/3 innings has eight strikeouts and a 4.25 ERA in the playoffs.
Grimm said the key for her team in Saturday’s game is “staying in our zone and playing our game. Attack good pitches, throw strikes, keep the defense clean and rally together.”
Northwood has opted out of the CIF So Cal Regional, so Saturday’s game will be the final of the season for the Timberwolves.
Northwood finished 7-3 in third place behind co-champions Irvine and Rosary in the Pacific Coast League.
The Timberwolves played one league game at Deanna Manning Stadium, winning 13-0 against Woodbridge on April 28. Woodbridge’s home field is Deanna Manning Stadium.
—Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone; timburt@ocsportszone.com
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