Liberty is the top seed. Can the Brentwood school win its first NCS title since 1997?
Liberty is the top seed. Can the Brentwood school win its first NCS title since 1997?
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MEET THE TOP TEAM: LIBERTY
In a field as talented as the North Coast Section’s Division I bracket, Liberty has separated itself as the top team heading into the playoffs.
The Lions won 12 straight games to end the regular season and captured the Bay Valley Athletic League title with ease as they outscored their league opponents 131-10 across 10 games. Liberty (20-4, 10-0) also has non-league wins over Granada, College Park, Castro Valley, Archbishop Mitty and California.
Now, the Brentwood school will be looking to win its first NCS title since 1997.
Weber State-bound junior Kaitlyn Macias has had a monster season. She leads Liberty in batting average (.516), on-base percentage (.548), slugging percentage (1.063) and RBIs (35). In the circle, she’s been just as dominant as she boasts a 0.88 ERA and is undefeated through five starts.
Macias has formed a dynamic pitching duo with Illinois State commit Kate Skinner. The junior totaled 158 strikeouts through 16 starts this season with an ERA of 1.67.
Talented hitters such as Isabella Rice, Taylor Jennings and Madison Tuttle round out a lineup that averages 8.5 runs per game.
Since only had 14 teams qualified for the Division I playoffs, Liberty along with No. 2 seed Livermore has an opening-round bye. The Lions will play the winner of a first-round game between Vintage and San Marin in the quarterfinals.
TOP STORYLINES
A potential Livermore-Granada second-round matchup could happen should the Matadors upset No. 7 seed Alameda on the road. The crosstown rivals split their two-game series this spring, with Livermore defeating Granada 4-1 in the East Bay Athletic League regular-season finale. … In Division II, the bracket’s top three teams – Cardinal Newman, Carondelet and James Logan – all received byes into the second round. Carondelet got hot in league play, winning the EBAL’s regular-season title. The young team is led by all-league sophomore Angela Gates, who leads Carondelet in batting average (.508), home runs (three) and slugging percentage (.862). … After winning the Diablo Athletic League Foothill Division crown, Clayton Valley will host San Ramon Valley despite being the lower seed. The Ugly Eagles won nine of their last 11 games to end the regular season. San Ramon Valley is seeking its first-ever NCS title. … Last year’s Division I champion, Amador Valley, did not qualify for this year’s NCS playoffs. The Dons came out of nowhere to win an NCS and NorCal Division I title last season, but did not have a .500 record overall, in league play or in their base division this spring. They needed to be .500 in just one of those categories to qualify … Under this year’s new format, the committee relied on the MaxPreps rankings to determine much of the seeding for each division. But since there is no Open Division, teams were only allowed to move up two brackets higher than their base enrollment divisions. … Like the baseball playoffs, nine teams will make the regional playoffs. The winners and runners-up in Division I and II, all champions in Divisions III through VI and the winner of the Division I third-place game will punch their ticket to the NorCal playoffs.
WHO CAN MAKE A SURPRISE RUN?
Alameda is getting hot at the right time. The Hornets stunned Castro Valley in the West Alameda County Conference Foothill Division final and finished the regular season winning five of its final six games. Sophomore standout Mia Wong and senior captain Aaliyah Soderlund lead a talented lineup that totaled 56 extra-base hits. Alameda will host Granada on Wednesday. … Benicia made it to the Division II semifinals last year and received the fifth seed in the same division this year. The Panthers finished third in the DAL Foothill, but notched impressive wins over Granada, Carondelet, San Ramon Valley and Alhambra. Benicia will host Fortuna on Wednesday. … Piedmont won the WACC Shoreline Division regular-season crown, but a loss to Mt. Eden in the league tournament final bumped the Highlanders down to the 11th seed in Division V. Still, Piedmont has the talent to make a run. Miya Fujimoto leads Piedmont in almost every offensive stat category and will likely be the driving force behind a deep playoff run. Piedmont travels to Fremont to play the California School for the Deaf in its first round game on Tuesday.
