Matchups analysis: Championship weekend for City, Southern Section baseball, softball

It’s championship weekend for baseball and softball teams. The Southern Section baseball finals will be held Friday and Saturday at Blair Field in Long Beach. The softball finals will be Friday and Saturday at Barber Park in Irvine. The City Section softball finals will be Friday at Birmingham and Saturday at Cal State Dominguez Hills.

Let’s take a look at some of the matchups.

Baseball

Division 1: Santa Margarita vs. JSerra, Friday at 7:30 p.m. — Santa Margarita won the Trinity League title. JSerra finished second. The two teams will be meeting for the fifth time. Santa Margarita will have its ace, Collin Clarke (9-1). JSerra has a staff of 18 pitchers. Both teams have potent hitting attacks. JSerra’s Trent Caraway has 49 hits and used to play for the Eagles. JSerra’s Lou Fujiwara has nine hits in four playoff games.

Division 2: Crespi vs. South Hills, Saturday at 1 p.m. — There’s no better pitching matchup. Isaiah Magdaleno of Crespi was the Mission League’s most valuable player last season and has come on strong after a late start on the mound. Sterling Patick of South Hills is 10-1 with an 0.30 ERA. Crespi prepared with a tough Mission League schedule, having faced Division 1 playoff teams Sherman Oaks Notre Dame, Harvard-Westlake and Sierra Canyon. Runs will be at a premium, but Junior Paul Vazquez has four home runs for South Hills.

Division 3: Aliso Niguel vs. San Marcos, Saturday at 4 p.m. — Two teams that won their semifinals by shutouts will face off. Aliso Niguel is on a seven-game win streak and eliminated No. 1 seed La Serna. San Marcos is led by catcher Owen Eastabrook, a Columbia commit who hit a two-run home run in a 2-0 win over Westlake.

Softball

Division 1: Norco vs. Garden Grove Pacifica, Friday at 6:30 p.m. at Barber Park — Top seed Norco has one of its best hitting teams, led by third baseman Alyssa Hovermale, a Florida commit with nine home runs. Junior pitcher Brynne Nally gives Pacifica hope. She has been been enjoying an impressive playoff run. “I’ve seen them play a few times,” Norco coach Rick Robinson said. “They’re solid. It’s going to be a battle.”

City Open Division: Carson vs. Granada Hills, Saturday at 3 p.m. at Cal State Dominguez Hills — The top seed Highlanders are led by sophomore pitcher Addison Moorman. Carson won its semifinal game over Birmingham 12-2 in five innings and will need a strong performance from pitcher Giselle Pantoja.