DIXON, CA (MPG) – The 2022 Casa Roble High School varsity softball season came to an end on May 19 with a 6-5 loss at Dixon in the quarterfinals of the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV Softball Playoffs.

The No. 8 seeded Rams (14-11, 6-4 Golden Empire League) emphatically won their first round matchup at home, defeating No. 9 Sonora (17-11-1, 11-4 Mother Lode League) by a score of 11-1. Casa Roble scored two runs in the first and third innings, respectively, then dropped the hammer in the bottom of the fifth inning, scoring seven runs to end the game.

Sonora scored its only run of the game in the top of the fifth inning, only to be answered with seven Rams’ runs.  The Rams were victorious 11-1 and the game concluded after five innings due to the 10-run mercy rule. Casa Roble had 14 total hits as seven out of nine batters in the starting lineup recorded at least one hit. Seven out of nine batters also had at least one RBI.

Juniors, third baseman Tabitha Olsen and catcher Savannah Hanes, tallied two RBI each. Hanes and freshman outfielder Jayla Stuart tied for the game-high in hits with three each. Sophomore pitcher Elise Bous earned the win on the mound for the Rams. Bous pitched five innings and allowed four hits, one unearned run and one walk with one strikeout on 77 pitches.

Dixon earned a first round bye as the No. 1 seed in the postseason tournament. Dixon’s first playoff game was against a familiar foe, the Casa Roble Rams. The Rams from Dixon and Casa Roble clashed twice in the regular season during Golden Empire League play. Dixon was victorious in both matchups, winning 10-0 in six innings on April 7 in Dixon and 6-1 on May 10 in Orangevale, spoiling Casa Roble’s senior night.

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Dixon may have dominated the two regular season meetings against Casa Roble, however, that was not the case in the playoffs. Casa Roble scored more runs in the top of the first inning than the Rams had in the previous two games combined, plating three. Dixon responded with one run in the bottom half of the inning and one in the second to cut the Casa Roble lead to one at 3-2.

Casa Roble scored one run in the fourth inning to increase its lead to two. Then in the bottom of the fifth, Dixon scored three runs to take its first lead of the game at 5-4, a lead that Casa Roble never got back. Casa Roble tied the game at five in the top of the sixth inning with one run. In a battle of the Rams, Dixon prevailed once again, this time on a walk off hit as Dixon scored one run in the bottom of the seventh to win a nailbiter, 6-5.

Two Dixon players, senior Madi West and sophomore Aemonn Rosenberger, had two runs batted in each. West recorded two RBI, two hits, two stolen bases, one run scored and one hit by pitch in four plate appearances. Rosenberger tallied two RBI, two hits (one double) and one run in four plate appearances. Dixon senior pitcher Lexi Coyle earned another win on the mound. Coyle pitched a complete game tossing seven innings and allowed seven hits, five runs (four earned) and three walks with nine strikeouts on 108 pitches.

RELATED: Dixon varsity softball team wins D4 section title

Casa Roble statistics from the 6-5 loss to Dixon were unavailable as of press time. Dixon went on to win the CIF SJS D4 title, defeating No. 2 Marysville 10-8 in the championship game played at Sacramento City College on May 28.