SUNSET SOFTBALL: Oxford all smiles as Panthers blank Bulldogs for region title

Palo Verde softball coach Kelly Glass is quick to describe Lauren Oxford as someone who always smiles.

She had plenty of reasons to smile on Saturday.

The senior third baseman had three of her team’s six hits and drove in the game’s only run as the defending state champion Panthers topped archrival Centennial, 1-0 to win the Division I Sunset Region tournament at Foothill.

“She’s just always positive,” said Glass, whose team advances to the state tournament, which begins Thursday at UNLV. “She smiles no matter what. Not to say that they all didn’t want it, but she just wanted it today.”

On a day when hits were at a premium, Oxford had three quality at-bats. She singled to right field after fouling off two 1-and-2 pitches in the second inning, then ripped doubles on the first pitch of her next two at-bats.

“I just wanted to swing at the first good pitch I saw,” said Oxford.

Oxford’s double into the left-field corner in the fourth inning came one pitch after Dejanae Gage doubled into the gap in right center, and it plated Gage with the only run Palo Verde needed.

“I didn’t think that it would be (the only run),” Oxford said. “Our plan was to score as many as possible.”

Palo Verde (31-8) had only six hits, a walk and a hit batsman against Centennial pitcher Cheyenne Cudahy.

Panthers senior Kelsea Sweeney spun a two-hitter and hit one batter.

It was a sharp contrast to the last time the teams played — on April 17 — when Palo Verde outlasted the Bulldogs 13-10 in eight innings and the teams combined for 30 hits and 12 errors.

“Both teams just got better,” Glass said. “They played cleaner softball, and we played cleaner softball.”

Sweeney made sure the Bulldogs (25-14) never really threatened to score.

She struck out seven and allowed only one runner to reach second base.

“It was just her determination,” Glass said. “She was just determined to win this game.”

Sonja Lawrence led off the top of the sixth with a single for Centennial and moved to second on Kiana Tate’s bunt but was stranded there when Sweeney got a fly out and a strikeout to end the threat.

“Kelsea did an amazing job,” Oxford said.

Centennial will get the chance to win its way into the state tournament when it faces Rancho in a play-in game at 3:30 p.m. Monday at Bishop Gorman.