Series Preview: Citrus at Mt. SAC – Regional Round

The Citrus College Softball team was seeded #11 in the California Community College Athletic Association Softball Southern California Playoffs. The Owls will head just a little over eight miles up Grande Avenue to take on #6 seeded Mt. San Antonio College for a best two out of three series. Game one of the series is set for 7:00 PM on Saturday evening.

About the Match-Up
Friday night's game will be the seventh meeting overall between Citrus College and Mt. San Antonio College since the 2007 season and the second this year. In that stretch the Owls are 3-4 against the Mounties, including a 9-2 loss at Mt. SAC earlier in the season. In that contest, the Mounties poured it on late, scoring six runs in the bottom of the fifth, breaking open what was a close game up to that point. Sophomore Raeleen Tellez was the only Owl with multiple hits on the game, as she was 2 for 3.

About the Mounties
Mt. San Antonio College heads into the 2014 post-season as the #6 seeded team in Southern California. The Mounties went 32-8 on the season, and finished third in the tough South Coast Conference with a 17-4 record. All eight of their losses came to teams currently in the playoffs. The Mounties finished the season 6-4 in their last ten.

At the plate, Mt. SAC was led by South Coast Conference Player of the Year and All-State selection, Celina Felix. Felix hit .545 and slugged 1.074. Felix drove in 57 RBI's, and scored 44 runs, smashing 15 home runs, 15 doubles, and a pair of triples. First baseman Charlotte Foster also proved to be a prodigious power hitter at the plate. Foster drove in 49 runs and led the State with 19 home runs. In the circle, freshman Sabrina Garcia carried the load for Mt. SAC down the stretch. Garcia was 15-3 on the year, with a 2.57 ERA and 98 K's.

Last Time Out
Citrus heads into the 2014 post-season as winners of six straight, seven of it's last ten, and 11 of it's last 14 contests. The Owls claimed their first conference title since 2007 with a sweep of Santa Monica College on the 22nd. Sophomore Sara Moore was named the WSC Blue Player of the Year, while freshman Miranda Gil claimed the WSC Blue Pitcher of the Year nod. Both were named All-State, and freshman Erinn Jaramillo was named a 1st team All-WSC Blue Selection, and All-Southern California Selection. The 11th seed Citrus earned this year is the second highest since 2007, tying the 11th seed they earned back in 2008, and below the #5 seed the Owls earned in 2007.

Citrus In the Playoffs
Since 2007, Citrus is just 6-12 in the post-season. Things have taken a turn for the Owls over the last couple of years, including last year's impressive run, when Citrus knocked off #3 Cypress in a sweep of the Chargers in the Regional Round. It was the Owls' first playoff series win in program history. When it comes to the regional round, Citrus' record is 6-10. In the five series it has lost, the Owls have forced a third and decided game in four series.

Owls Against the South Coast Conference
This weekend's playoff series with Mt. San Antonio College will be the first playoff series for Citrus against a member of the South Coast Conference. It will however be at least the fifth and sixth meeting with a South Coast Conference school this season, and the 33rd and 34th since the 2007 season. This year, the Owls were 2-2 against the South Coast Conference, but are 19-13 overall against schools that hail from the SCC. Citrus has twice gone undefeated against SCC schools, going 4-0 in 2013 and 2007.

How to Follow
There are three ways to follow Saturday and Sunday's action this weekend. The first is to follow the Official Citrus College Athletics Twitter Page @ccfightingowls which will be updated throughout the event. In addition, the scoreboard on the front page of CitrusOwls.com will be updated in between each inning. Lastly, you can join the Owls live in person at Mt. San Antonio College. General Admission is $10. Students, faculty, staff, senior citizens 60+, and children less than 12 with valid ID are $7.