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Orange County’s softball season ended Tuesday with a pair of losses in the first round of the CIF Southern California Regional.
Mater Dei and Oxford Academy both dropped challenging road games in the tournament that runs through Saturday.
Several of Orange County’s top teams declined automatic bids or invitations to play in the fourth-year event.
The softball calendar now turns toward the Orange County all-star game for seniors on June 5 and Opening Day for the 2025 season on Feb. 17.
Here’s a recap of Tuesday:
In Division I:
Murrieta Mesa 3, Mater Dei 0: Sophomore Lilly Hauser pitched a two-hitter with 13 strikeouts to lead the top-seeded and host Rams into Thursday’s semifinals against No. 5 Great Oak.
Junior Sienna Acosta pitched three shutout innings of relief and junior Elle McCloskey added a double to lead No. 8 Mater Dei (14-13).
In Division IV:
Oceanside 6, Oxford Academy 2: MIT-bound senior Ella Pace had two hits and scored a run to lead the visiting No. 7 Patriots (25-7) against San Diego’s Division 3 champion. No. 2 Oceanside plays host to No. 6 Eastside of Lancaster in the semifinals Thursday.
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