Calvary Chapel extends postseason streak to 18 seasons
DOWNEY – An incredible streak was kept alive for the Calvary Chapel (Downey) Softball team once the CIF-Southern Section D8 playoffs opened last week.
For 18 consecutive years (excluding COVID), the Grizzlies have qualified for the post season dating back to 2007.
The 2025 playoffs began as Calvary opened with a first-round 17-1 blowout win over host Compton Early College Thursday (May 15). That was followed by another double digit run output with a 10-8 win over visiting St. Genevieve Saturday (May 17) in a second-round game.
Unfortunately, it all came to an end Wednesday (May 20), as the Grizzlies were defeated by visiting Hueneme, 12-2, in a quarterfinal game.
This year’s quarterfinal was the first appearance since the 2016 season when they defeated Pasadena Poly but fell in the semifinal to Paraclete.
From 2010 to 2013, Calvary advanced to the quarters four consecutive years, losing three of those but in 2011 they captured the programs’ only CIF Championship, with a close, 6-5 win over Citrus Valley.
In that 18-year stretch, they captured 10 league titles, appeared in one play-in, 12 first-round matches, eight second-rounders, six quarterfinals, two semifinals and a championship match.
Calvary coach Sarah Alvarez, who is in her second stint as coach (fifth overall), talked of this years’ team.
“This team is very different than years past,” she said. “This has been a year pushing the girls to play beyond what they thought they were capable of doing. They have also learned the value of discipline and how it plays a role in the game and how they play. “We are now seeing the results of this and seeing the girls play at a higher level compared to the beginning of the season. Since the start of playoffs, we have seen the desire to win. They showed this desire greatly with our second game vs St. Genevieve with a 10-8 win.”
Th Grizzlies opened the playoffs with that lopsided win over Compton, which was highlighted by four stolen bases and a double by junior pitcher Julianna Parra and senior shortstop Sarah Ochoa going 3 for 4 at the plate. Parra pitched five innings and picked up the win.
Four players – freshman first baseman Leila Kakuta, senior third baseman Arianna Duran (.333 season avg., 21 hits), senior catcher Naomi Lopez (.295, 18 hits) and junior right fielder Chelsea Lopez (.353, 18 hits) – all had two hits in the game. The team had seven steals.
The close second-round win over St. Genevieve was highlighted by a nice double play by Parra and a home run by Kakuta.
Kakuta, who leads the team with 33 hits, nine doubles and three triples, is also a pitcher and has had a strong bat this season with a .524 average, while Parra has stepped up big time this season along with her hitting.
Parra who has five doubles, one triple, two home runs and 19 hits this season, spoke of this season saying, “It took a lot of hard work, but I think us coming together as a unit and all of us wanting it at the same time in the playoffs. We just wanted it more than the other team.”
She also spoke of their young coach: “She’s definitely made an impact and helped shape and pushed us to be what we are now.”
In Wednesday’s game, Hueneme jumped on the Grizzlies with six runs in the top of the first inning. That was all after the first two outs of the game.
The Vikings had four hits in the inning, which was highlighted by a solo home run and a three-run home run.
Parra led off the bottom of the inning with a solo home run to trail, 6-1 She also had a single in the third inning.
Hueneme added a solo run in the third to lead, 7-1 and Calvary scored its only other run in the fourth after Ochoa led off with a triple and came in on a single to right field by Kakuta.
The Vikings added five more runs in the top of the fifth inning and the shortened game to end in the bottom half of the inning. With two outs in the inning, Ochoa had her second hit of the game with a single to left.
“We were just in a funk (Wednesday),” Parra said. “We could have played a lot better, but it is what it is.”
Ochoa (.406, 18 runs, 4 dbls., 3 tpls.), who is second on the team with 26 hits, has had her share of numerous coaches in her four years.
“I’ve seen four different coaches,” Ochoa said. “I’ve seen all different kinds of things throughout my four years. Every year we basically had to work from the bottom and work to the top.
“This year it was my first year actually making it further in the playoffs, so I was really proud of my team for us to continue to push.”
Alvarez, who was a CIF Champion with La Serna High School, said of this years run in the playoffs, “I think they came into the CIF playoffs just really pumped and ready to go. I was super excited and there was that jump to begin with, and they kept it going in our last game (10-8 win over St. Genevieve) and it was a fight back and forth.
“It was a super tight game and coming up to bat they were really aggressive and pushing and making it close. I don’t think I’ve been that fired up in a long time.”