PANORAMIC VIEW of the softball field at Pacifica High School in Garden Grove also shows off snow-capped mountains in the distance. Mariners are number one in the nation (GGUSD photo).

Pacifica High’s softball program has received many honors over the years, including a national championship and state honors as well as CIF-SS titles. The 2024 Mariners are back at the top again, as MaxPreps.com is ranking the Ms’s number one in the nation.

Huntington Beach is rated number 10 in the U.S. and Lutheran High of Orange is 25th.

PHS has started off the season 3-0. Ironically, enough, the initial CIF-SS poll has Pacifica in 13th place in Division 1, Lutheran in eighth and Huntington Beach in fourth. Differences of opinion are what makes horse races and sports polls as well, we guess.

Carrying the heaviest bat for the blue, black and white is senior Annika Sogsti, who is hitting .714 with an on-base percentage of .778 and two home runs. The pitching star is senior Brynne Nally with a 0.44 earned run average.

Rain has played havoc with the softball schedules, but – Mother Nature permitting – the Mariners’ next game is on Wednesday hosting Esperanza. The Aztecs are 3-3. After that, the M’s are scheduled to take on Los Alamitos on Friday. The Griffins (2-1) are ranked 28th in the nation.

Goodbye to Leslie

The nearly one-man-band of athletic leadership at Orangewood Academy in Garden Grove will soon be gone. According to published reports, Leslie Aragon is leaving his post as athletic director, boys basketball coach and girls basketball coach.

No reason has been given, but he will surely missed, as he helped the Spartans girls team become a regional power despite the small enrollment of the Seventh Day Adventist school. Aragon recently achieved the milestone of 500 career coaching victories.

And don’t forget ….

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