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Sports

Los Alamitos Wins Sunset League Softball Title

Infinity Laufou's single in the ninth inning drives in game-winning run as Griffins top Edison, 3-2, to clinch the league championship.

Los Alamitos rallied from behind twice to eventually defeat Edison, 3-2, in nine innings and win the Sunset League title on Tuesday afternoon at Los Alamitos High. The Griffins staged a two-out rally in the ninth inning that ended with a walk-off single by freshman outfielder Infinity Laufou.

With two outs and the bases empty, senior Erika Crissman doubled down the left-field line. After a walk and infield single by sophomore second baseman Megan Geer to load the bases, Laufou pulled a 3-2 pitch through the hole between third base and shortstop to score Crissman with the game-winner.

The victory kept the Griffins perfect at 9-0 in league play and sealed the league title over Edison, which dropped to 7-2. The Griffins were the No. 2 ranked team in the CIF Southern Section Division I coaches' poll this week, while the Chargers were No. 4. The Griffins had defeated the Chargers, 3-0, in their first meeting of the season.

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“This is great for our whole team; we all worked so hard,” senior outfielder Alicia Walker said.

Edison had taken an early lead when junior first baseman Madison Hickman hit a solo home run down the left-field line to put the Chargers up 1-0 in the first inning. The score remained 1-0 through four innings as the Griffins were stymied by Edison sophomore pitcher Samantha Cordova early on.

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Los Alamitos finally got on the board in the bottom of the fifth inning when freshman catcher Rachel Sellers pulled a pitch high and deep down the left-field line for a leadoff home run that tied the score at 1-1. The Chargers had chances to break the game open, as they loaded the bases in the third and fifth innings, but a ground out ended the third inning threat and freshman pitcher Andie Formby got a strikeout to end the threat in the fifth.

The Chargers took a 2-1 lead in the top of the sixth inning on an RBI single by sophomore Karley Wester. But the Griffins came right back with an RBI double by Sellers in the bottom of the sixth that tied the score at 2-2. Edison loaded the bases with no outs in the top of the seventh, but the Griffins escaped without any damage after a ground out to second, a fly ball to center and another groundout to second.

The Griffins have won several close games this season, as well as some extra-inning battles in Sunset League play. Formby said those games helped them stay focused in the pressure situations.

“At practice we work on pressure situations, so it helps us out a lot,” Formby said.

The Griffins will finish the regular season with a game at Fountain Valley on Thursday, and will await the Division 1 playoff pairings, which will be announced Monday,  as the No. 1 team out of the Sunset League. Los Alamitos defeated Fountain Valley, 5-4, in 13 innings earlier this season.

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