Softball: Esperanza is outside Simi Valley’s comfort zone

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I’m really looking forward to seeing how Simi Valley does Thursday when it plays Esperanza in the quarterfinals of the Southern Section-Toyota Division I softball playoffs.

Today, more than any thus far, is where the full weight of Simi Valley’s unbeaten season becomes real. The Pioneers (28-0), the top-seeded team in the playoffs, are neither at home nor playing a team with which they are familiar.

This is the kind of game that great teams must win, not because Esperanza (22-6-2) is some exceptional team -- the Aztecs aren’t, unlike Hart or Norco who will be waiting in the next round -- but because Esperanza is clearly outside of Simi Valley’s comfort zone.

Esperanza is a rally machine. It has been held to three runs or fewer only six times in 30 games (compared to nine times for Simi Valley), and the Aztecs are 4-1-1 in those games. The only time they have been shut out was a 0-0 tie in the first game of the season.

This is where the envelope gets pushed and Simi Valley’s Sam Fischer, Brianna Stephan and Haley Thomas rise to the occasion and deliver a message about credibility.

By the way, the teams ranked Nos. 1 and 2 in the state, Sacramento Sheldon and Escondido, lost earlier this week. There is now a clear path to the ‘unofficial’ title of state champion for No. 3 Simi Valley.

As I said, the full weight of Simi Valley’s unbeaten season is becoming more real and greatness is being tested.

-- Martin Henderson