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Fresno City, Sequoias share CVC championship; Reedley, Merced also qualify for NorCal Playoffs

Fresno City, Sequoias share CVC championship; Reedley, Merced also qualify for NorCal Playoffs
Posted: Apr 29, 2024

New Fresno City College softball coach Linda Garza continued the Rams' tradition of winning as she led her squad to a share of the 2024 Central Valley Conference championship. For FCC, it was the program's fourth straight conference title.

College of the Sequoias captured its first CVC championship since 2019 after the two squads closed the conference schedule with identical 15-3 records.

Merced College was third at 12-6, followed by Reedley College in fourth place with an 11-7. Coalinga College (formerly West Hills Coalinga, 5-13), Porterville College (4-14), and Taft College (1-17) rounded out the final CVC standings.

Fresno City won the season series over Sequoias, 2-1, to earn the conference's top seed for the upcoming Northern California Regional Playoffs that get underway this weekend. The Rams, 28-10 overall, received the No. 6 seed for the tourney and will host No. 11 American River College. | REGIONAL BRACKET

Sequoias (30-8) racked up 30 wins in the regular season and is the No. 7 seed. The Giants are set to host No. 10 Ohlone College. No. 12 Reedley travels to No. 5 San Jose City College and No. 15 Merced is at No. 2 College of San Mateo.

The squads will compete in a best-of-three-game series starting on Friday (May 3) with Game 2 and Game 3, if necessary, scheduled for Saturday. The winners of the opening series will advance to the Super Regionals on May 10-12. The 3C2A State Championships are scheduled for May 16-19 at West Valley College in Saratoga.

GARZA NAMED COACH OF THE YEAR; COS' IBARRA, BUSTOS EARN TOP HONORS | ALL-CVC POSTSEASON AWARDS

Garza was named the Central Valley Conference Coach of the Year after leading Fresno City to a share of the conference title in her first season as head coach. Sequoias' Emily Ibarra took home CVC Player of the Year honors while teammate Bailey Bustos was selected Pitcher of the Year.

Ibarra led the conference with a .469 batting average, .862 slugging percentage, 31 hits, 23 runs, and 9 doubles. Bustos led the CVC with 17 wins and 171 strikeouts while compiling the second-best earned run average at 1.16.