PREP SOFTBALL
Top four seeds win Metro Softball quarterfinals
Semifinals on Friday, Championship on Saturday
Lainey Alcaraz went 3-for-4, including a home run and triple, and drove in three runs Thursday afternoon as La Cueva defeated No. 10 seed Eldorado 14-4 in the quarterfinals of the Albuquerque Metro Softball Championships.
La Cueva, the No. 2 seed, joined No. 1 Cibola, No. 3 Rio Rancho and No. 4 Volcano Vista in Friday’s semifinals. Rio Rancho will visit La Cueva, and Volcano Visa is at Cibola, both at 3:30 p.m. Friday.
Brooklyn Eardley also homered for the Bears (4-3) in their victory.
At Cibola, the Cougars (5-4) downed eighth-seeded St. Pius 9-4 in the quarters, and Cibola blew it open with four runs in the bottom of the sixth. Maci Melvin had a three-run homer in the sixth and drove in four runs overall in the victory for the Cougars.
A seven-run second inning by Volcano Vista sparked the Hawks past No. 5 Sandia 11-0. Audrianna Jim got the victory in the circle and she also hit a two-run home run to center in the first inning for Volcano. Jewel Candelaria’s two-run double keyed the second inning outburst.
Rio Rancho advanced with a 5-0 shutout over No. 6 Cleveland.
James Yodice covers prep sports for the Journal. You can reach him at jyodice@abqjournal.com or via X at @JamesDYodice.
