The Live Oak softball team ran the table in league play and competed with the best in the Central Coast Section during a landmark season. The Acorns put together a 24-3 year, the top mark in school history.
The squad was a brilliant 16-0 in Blossom Valley Athletic League, Santa Teresa Division play.
The ticket to success was a combination of two strong pitchers in Julia Altamirano and Maya Medina, solid defense and a superb offense with four hitters over .400.
Altamirano threw back-to-back perfect games against Del Mar and Pioneer in late March, and was 13-1 with a 1.20 ERA and 151 strikeouts in 93.2 innings pitched. Medina tossed 56 innings and was 10-0, with a 1.38 ERA.
In league play, the Acorns were unbeaten and scored 160 runs while allowing just 21. Live Oak also stepped up to play “A” level teams and fared well, beating Sobrato and Gilroy. The Acorns advanced to the CCS Division I playoffs and held their own against the top talent at that level.
Live Oak opened the playoffs with an 11-1 rout of Homestead, the second place finisher behind Los Gatos in the De Anza League. In the semifinals on a warm night at Los Gatos, the Acorns fell 3-0 to The King’s Academy and Northwestern-commit star pitcher Katya Nesper and her 0.33 ERA.
The semifinal loss meant that Live Oak tied for 11th best in CCS, behind only the eight Open Division teams and the Division 1 finalists.
“That was a tough one,” said coach Sarah Porras, after the loss to TKA. “Their pitcher definitely dominated. She has a lot of velocity and throws really hard. We don’t see that in our (B-level Santa Teresa Division) league.”
In the playoff-opening rout of Homestead May 24, Live Oak scored three runs in each of the first three innings for a 9-0 lead on their way to a run-rule rout. Olivia Mixco and Erin Svoboda both went 3-for-4, with Mixco belting a homer and knocking in four runs. Altamirano pitched the five innings, allowing just four hits and one run, while striking out 11 Mustangs.
On the day, Live Oak had 10 hits and stole seven bases.
In the semifinal against TKA May 27, Svododa and Altamirano collected the hits but the Acorn offense was stifled by Nesper. Live Oak pitching and defense kept the Knights within reach. One big hit did most of the damage for TKA, a Nesper triple that plated two runs in the third inning.
“We prepared hard but we haven’t seen a pitcher like that,” Medina said. “She’s D1, with velocity and spins. But this has been the best season ever, by far. The team has never been closer. Our defense really carried us. The defense saved us, like by my shortstop (Erin Svoboda). The Gilroy game in pre-season really got us going. We walked it off in the bottom of the seventh.”
The 4-3 win against the perennial power Mustangs came in the third game of the season on March 1, closing out the successful Salinas tournament. Kayla Tulowitzki, Svoboda and Quinn Hulber-Dana each had two hits as the Acorns out-hit Gilroy 10-4. Medina pitched seven innings, allowing just the four hits. A two-run last of the seventh walked it off.
A week later, Live Oak demolished a solid King City team 12-0. Altamirano and Medina allowed just one hit to a Mustangs team that later won the CCS Division V championship and reached the NorCal Division V title game. In fact, King City scored 63 runs in their six playoff games. But none against Live Oak.
Tilly Hill, Hulber-Dana, Altamirano, Ava Chapman and Medina each had two hits and the Acorns stole six bases.
Two big wins over league runner-up 13-3 Prospect were huge. A 7-2 romp on March 28 featured a 3-for-3 day for Hill and an Altamirano masterpiece with 16 strikeouts. A 1-0 win in the rematch on May 9 came via a Tulowitzki homer in the sixth inning and a four-hit, 11-K shutout by the combination of Altamirano and Medina.
Piedmont Hills, tied for second with Prospect, fell to the Acorns by counts of 6-1 on April 2 and 4-2 on May 14.
The other highlight of the season was softball’s “El Toro Bowl”, as the Acorns rallied past Sobrato before a packed standing-room-only crowd on April 10.
In a 4-3 road victory, Live Oak had knocked off another “A League” team and it came via a seventh-inning two-run rally. In that frame, Medina and Hill hit singles and Mixco ripped a clutch double down the left-field line to bring Medina around. Hill scored the winner on a sacrifice fly.
The season statistics were impressive. The offense was led by Hulber-Dana at an amazing 36-for-71 for a .507 average. She also had three homers, 19 runs scored and 21 RBIs.
Tulowitzki was 35-for-75 for .467. She also had three homers, while scoring 32 runs and knocking in 31 RBIs. Mixco was 36-for-84 for a .429 mark, with 32 runs scored, 11 stolen bases and 26 RBIs. Altamirano was 28-for-67 for .418.
Liselle Herrera hit .368, Chapman was at .340, Cc Garcia hit .333 and Svoboda was at .329 with 13 steals. Hulber-Dana, Peyton Goularte and Tulowitzki each nabbed 10 steals.
Beyond the battery, which was usually Altamirano or Medina throwing to Hulber-Dana, there was a strong infield. Herrera was at the hot corner, Svoboda and Tulowitzki were the keystone combo and Medina played first when not on the mound. The outfielders include Garcia, Mixco and Goularte. Depth came from Brooke Frausto, Hill, Sam Boyer, Chapman and Laila Salinas.
The Acorns were incredibly young, which bodes well for the future. It is rare to find a freshman such as Hulber-Dana at the crucial catcher position, especially one who hits over .500. Garcia and Goularte are also freshmen.
Altamirano, already a seasoned veteran, was just a sophomore. Hill and Boyer were also sophomores. Mixco, Svoboda, Tulowitzki, Chapman, Frausto and Salinas were juniors. Only Herrera and Medina were seniors.
“I think our Salinas tournament set the tone for the season,” coach Porras said. “We had team dinners and came together. We played well in non-league. We had a lot of success and it snowballed. This team gets along fantastic. We have a lot of fun and the camaraderie is great. And we’ll have a majority of the team coming back next year.”
