Canyon Softball Tournament : Oakley Leads Ocean View to Title, 2-1 : Pitcher Strikes Out 19 in 13-Inning Victory Over Westminster

Jackie Oakley has been nursing a finger injury, but you certainly couldn’t tell by the way she pitched Ocean View High School to the championship of the Canyon Invitational Softball tournament Saturday night.

Oakley, the CIF Southern Section player of the year in 1985, had 19 strikeouts in a 13-inning, 2-1 victory over Sunset League rival Westminster in the title game at Peralta Park in Yorba Linda.

“My hands are fine, my arm’s fine,” said Oakley, who earlier in the day had struck out 11 batters in five innings of relief work in a 2-1 victory over Sunny Hills in the semifinals.

The championship game was the third meeting this season between Westminster and Ocean View, the finalists in last year’s CIF Southern Section 4-A championship. Ocean View won that title game. Westminster had won both prior meetings this season, but Oakley didn’t pitch in either.

The winning run Saturday came on a 13th inning error by Westminster pitcher Debbie DeJohn, who had battled Oakley on even terms through the first 12 innings. Under the international tiebreaker rules, Ocean View began the inning with a runner--Chrysta Lawson--on second base. A pass ball advanced Lawson to third, and two outs later, Heather Smittle hit a smash up the middle which handcuffed DeJohn. DeJohn picked up the ball but threw late to first base, allowing Lawson to score.

Oakley recorded 14 of her 19 strikeouts in the first six innings, and struck out seven straight at one point.

In other Canyon Tournament action:

Sunny Hills 4, Savanna 3--Sandy Alvarino hit a three-run homer in the fourth inning to lead Savanna to the third-place title. Nadine Ditto got the win, her fourth of the tournament, as Savanna (11-4) overcame a 3-0 deficit.

Edison 1, Cypress 0--Joyce Lyman ran her pitching record to 9-0 with a three-hitter to lead Edison to a victory in the fifth-place game. The Chargers (14-2) scored the winning run in the bottom of the sixth inning when Terry Carpenter reached on an error, stole second and scored on Dena Baker’s single. Nicky Luce struck out 10 and allowed just three hits for Cypress (13-4).