Greatest stories of 2021 (7-10)
Saddleback athletics celebrated one of the more entertaining years in history in 2021, with a number of programs reaching all-time highs and records being broken in many sports. This is the list of the Top-10 stories in Saddleback athletics for 2021.
Saddleback athletics celebrated one of the more entertaining years in history in 2021, with a number of programs reaching all-time highs and records being broken in many sports. This is the list of the Top-10 stories in Saddleback athletics for 2021.
10. Softball beats Mt. SAC in opener
The Saddleback softball program opened the season with a 2-1 victory over perennial power Mt. San Antonio College, a program that regularly contends for the state championship. The Bobcats scored twice in the top half of the sixth inning while pitcher Veronica Belleza threw a two-hitter in starting the season 1-0. Belleza had a no hitter going into the sixth inning before the Mounties broke through for two hits and a run to cut the Bobcat lead to 2-1. She then silenced Mt. San Antonio with three straight pop-ups to finish the game in the seventh, thus preserving the win against a program that had won the two previous state championships.
9. Pizano-Pintor guides Bobcats to 10th at state
Saddleback's men's cross country team has a great finish to the season when they finished 10th at the California Community College Athletic Association (CCCAA) State Championships in November. For the Bobcats, it was the third best finish in program history. Brandon Pizano-Pintor was exceptional down the stretch for Saddleback, finishing 11th at the state meet to qualify for All-America status. Pizano-Pintor finished the course in 20:30.6, which was the fourth fastest time in program history on the course in Fresno.
8. Baseball rallies against inter-district rivals
Almost any time a team wins it feels better than losing. It feels immeasurably better when it happens against a big rival. The ultimate topper is a comeback win against a rival when it seemed as if the odds of winning were almost none. The Saddleback baseball team rallied for a 5-4 win against Irvine Valley in early May by scoring four runs in the final three innings to beat the Lasers. With two outs in the top of the ninth inning, Nation Wood doubled to left-center field to score the go-ahead run. Ethan Holt then came in and slammed the door shut in the bottom half of the ninth inning, striking out two Lasers in the process.
7. Women's volleyball stuns IVC
The 2021 women's indoor volleyball team was as entertaining as any other in recent memory and had its top moment against rival Irvine Valley College in the final week of the season. The Bobcats entered the match needing a win to stay in the playoff hunt, facing the perennial power Lasers. Saddleback stunned the IVC crowd when it took the Lasers to a fifth set, and then did the unthinkable when they scored the final five points of the match for a 15-11 win in the fifth and final set. The 25-22, 12-25, 25-18, 14-25, 15-11 stunner over the Lasers gave Saddleback a 13-8 overall record at the time and it was the eighth win in Orange Empire Conference play, the most since 2017.