SOFTBALL REWRITES THE SCRIPT

After 15 wins and 23 losses in the first year of Head Coach Michael Gross's tenure, Southwestern College softball flipped the script with a 23-16 overall record this season and a second place standing in the Pacific Coast Athletic Conference. An outstanding group of returning players combined with an impactful freshman class sprung the Jags to the most wins since 2019 and the highest finish in conference since 2017. SWC softball placed 6 members on all-conference teams and made waves with 11 victories on the road.

Pitching was key this season and SWC had 3 talented pitchers that propelled the Jaguars to success. Sophomore returnee Maddie Mendez (Santana HS) led the way with a 9-7 mark in the circle with a 3.01 ERA. Sophomore transfer Izzy Tobias (Coppin St/Westview HS) had a very solid year going 7-3 with a 2.92 ERA. Freshman Yazi Clark (Hilltop HS) stepped up and had a great season going 7-5 with a 2.65 ERA. The most impressive stat for the pitching staff was only allowing 49 walks in 245 innings while striking out 123.

Madison Mendez		Madison Mendez		Izzy Tobias		Yasmine Clark

Defensively the team was led by center fielder Dani Sandez (Otay Ranch HS), who played every game and had zero errors for the season. Catchers' Gloria "Gogo" Rodriguez (Mar Vista HS) and Laryza "Lala" Serrano (Steele Canyon HS) were outstanding behind the plate with only 4 errors between them and not having a single passed ball all season. Outfielders Madi Villaescusa (Steele Canyon HS), Ale Garcia (Eastlake HS), Victoria Flores (Montgomery HS), Caliyah Giroux (Eastlake HS) and Victoria Nunez (San Ysidro HS) also played extremely well in the outfield with only 2 errors among them. Infielders Ary Padilla and Savannah Salon held down second base all season making play after play and providing reliable support for the pitching staff.

Daniela Sandez		Gloria Rodriguez		Jordyn Beatty

Offensively, the team was paced by Maddie Mendez, Gogo Rodriguez, Jordyn Beatty (Santana HS) and Dani Sandez. Gogo Rodriguez led the team in hitting .448 on the season with 8 extra base hits. Maddie Mendez finished the season with a .388 average and 2 home runs while adding 31 RBI's. Clean up hitter Jordyn Beatty hit .262 overall with 6 doubles and several key hits including a game winning walk off double against Mesa College. Dani Sandez had a great season as leadoff hitter batting .310 and an OBP of .369.

This season was a giant step forward and the standard of performance has been re-established by the 2024 SWC Softball team. With the retuning sophomores and an excellent group of first year commits, the future is bright. Great season Jags!!