SOUTHERN SECTION 5-A SOFTBALL PLAYOFFS : Mater Dei Puts History in the Past, Beats Marina

Same place. Same teams.

When Mater Dei took the field against Marina in a first-round Southern Section 5-A softball playoff game Thursday, the players were hoping the result wouldn’t be the same as in 1990. That year, Marina shut out the Monarchs, 9-0, in the semifinals.

At Heritage Park in Irvine on Thursday, top-seeded Mater Dei defeated Marina, 4-0.

Definitely, not the same result.

Mater Dei (18-1-1) broke open the game in the bottom of the fifth inning, scoring three runs to take a 4-0 lead. Kim Fox opened the inning with a base hit and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by Bernadette Vargas.

Dawn Kobata then hit a line drive up the middle, moving Fox to third. Then Marina pitcher Marcy Crouch dropped Patty Godwin’s popup for an error, allowing Fox to score and Kobata to take second.

Kobata scored when Candace Kollen grounded out to the shortstop.

Godwin scored Mater Dei’s fourth run on a passed ball with Marie O’Beck at bat. Crouch, who allowed four hits in five innings, struck out O’Beck to end the inning.

“Like I said, that (1990) game is history,” said Mater Dei Coach Cathy Quesnell, whose Monarchs beat Marina, 2-1, this season. “This is a totally different team than in 1990. And they are too.”

Mater Dei pitcher Terri Kobata, who was a member of the 1990 team but did not pitch in the semifinal game against Marina, said the memories of that game worried her before Thursday’s game.

“It was nerve-racking before the game,” Kobata said. “They (Marina) just scare me, especially at this field.”

In other 5-A games:

Cerritos 0, Pacifica 0 (suspended after 20 1/2 innings, darkness)--Pitchers Jessica Surface of Pacifica and Karla Taggart of Cerritos have gone the distance in a game tentatively scheduled to resume Tuesday at Pacifica.

Play ended Thursday after Cerritos’ Kristy Bonwell nearly scored on a wild pitch. Pacifica catcher Susan Denny threw to Surface who tagged Bonwell out on a close play at the plate.

Cypress 1, Ventura Buena 0--Monica Jimenez threw a one-hitter, striking out 13, for visiting Cypress (22-5).

Fountain Valley 5, Rosary 0--Danny Rodriguez pitched a three-hitter, striking out nine, as Fountain Valley (19-4) advanced into the second round next Thursday against the winner of the Cypress game. Rodriguez improved to 11-1.

Kennedy 4, Cerritos Gahr 0--Nicole Paloney pitched her second no-hitter of the season, while striking out nine for visiting Kennedy (21-6).

Los Alamitos 7, Santa Barbara 0--Kandi Rehard (5-2) pitched a one-hitter, striking out 10 and Sheri Bergeron was two for three and drove in three runs for the host Griffins (16-6-1).