The 2025-26 Central Section high school sports spring postseason is underway.
Coaches, please submit your results/stats after each game or match to sports reporter Vongni Yang at vyang2@gannett.com to have players highlighted in our local roundup (team records are as of May 29).
May 29
Softball
Redwood 1, Garces Memorial 0: Starting pitcher Jackie Ramirez tossed a complete-game shutout in eight innings to lead the Rangers to the 2026 Central Section Division II championship at Fresno State’s Margie Wright Diamond.
Ramirez fired 12 strikeouts and allowed just five hits, four of them singles, as Redwood (25-7) won its first section title since the 2018 season.
In four playoff wins, the Rangers allowed just one run. Ramirez started all four postseason games, going the distance in every one, and combined for 47 strikeouts as the Rangers defeated Paso Robles 10-0, Selma 3-0 and Kingsburg 5-1 to set the stage for their star hurler.
“She just pitched an amazing game,” Redwood head coach Stevi Johnson said. “She’s someone that we can absolutely put our trust in and count on. Even when she gets in pressured situations and runners get in scoring position, she definitely has the mentality of, ‘Give me the ball. I’m going to get this next girl out.’ To see her with that fire and passion in the circle is one of the biggest things that we counted on her these past four playoff games. You couldn’t really ask for a better performance during this playoff run.”
Redwood scored the game-winning run in the top of the eighth.
Freshman Kyrie Rodriguez reached first on an infield single, beating the throw from shortstop. In the very next at-bat, Kenzie Cantu drew a walk to move Rodriguez into scoring position.
That set the table for Jaden Lopez, who was hitting next in the order. But before she went to bat, Johnson called a timeout.
Why?
To remind Lopez to seize the opportunity.
“You’re going to come up and get this hit,” Johnson said. “I believe in you. You were put in this moment for a reason.”
And Lopez delivered, dropping an RBI single to shallow centerfield.
Rodriguez rounded home, and the Rangers took a 1-0 lead.
Ramirez sealed the championship victory, getting the final three outs in the bottom of the eighth.
“It was super special,” Johnson said. “We really had confidence going into that last inning after we were able to get the run secured. I felt like Jackie knew she was going to go out there no matter what, that she was going to get the three outs without them scoring. We put all of our confidence in her. She also has confidence in herself, which helps make her unbeatable.”
Redwood totaled seven hits, receiving two singles from Lopez, and a single each from Ava Gonzalez, Rayah Rodriguez and Kyrie Rodriguez. Aubrie Jenkins and Kenzie Cantu each had a double.
The Rangers concluded section play on a nine-game winning streak.
Redwood’s 25 wins this season are the most since the Rangers also won 25 games in 2014.
During its postseason run, Redwood outscored their four opponents a combined 19-1.
“This was a really special team,” Johnson said. “The past couple of weeks, seeing them come together, chemistry-wise, and really say that they’re going to play for each other. They were really determined, talking about getting this championship win. They were really confident in it, so to see them actually talk about it and it actually come to fruition is extremely special.”
Woodlake 11, California City 1: The Tigers (28-4) won the 2026 Central Section Division V championship game by the 10-run mercy rule in five innings.
Woodlake has now won three straight section titles.
May 23
Track and field
Central Section Masters Championships: Five Tulare County track and field student-athletes brought home an individual gold medal at the 2026 Central Section Masters Championships:
Ruby topped the competition at 13.86 seconds.
Alcantara posted a career-best launch of 48 feet and 7 inches, more than 3 feet better than Buchanan’s Kypton Gonzalez, who finished second at 45-10.75.
Villavicencio also had a career day, running a personal-best 10:33.88 for first place. She beat the second-place finisher, Buchanan’s Molly Sundgren, by more than 3 seconds.
Powell edged Tulare Western’s Paola Bejarano with a toss of 38-9.25 to win gold. Bejarano finished second with a throw of 38-2.5.
Stewart repeated as the section’s Masters triple jump champion with a mark of 38-9.
For full results, visit athletic.net.
This article originally appeared on Visalia Times-Delta: Redwood, Woodlake win Central Section softball championships, Tulare shines on track
Reporting by Vongni Yang, Visalia Times-Delta / Visalia Times-Delta
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
