REDMOND — It came down to the bitter end between No. 1 Ridgeview and No. 16 North Eugene in the first round of the Class 5A softball playoffs, but the top-seeded Ravens prevailed with a 2-1 home win Tuesday to advance in the postseason for the first time in three years.

Sophomore pitcher Brezlyn Hagemeister struck out 12 batters and junior center fielder Hailey Nelson came up with the clutch hit to send the Ravens to the 5A quarterfinals, where they will host Intermountain Conference foe Bend High on Friday.

“I thought we would be a hair rusty because we didn’t play last week,” said Ridgeview coach Sandy Fischer. “The biggest piece is that they hung in there. It is not about the score, it is about surviving. I’m proud of them for hanging in.”

It marked the Ravens’ first playoff win since the 2022 season. Outside of seniors Brooklyn Lick and Kinnedy Scott, no one on this Ridgeview squad has experienced a postseason win.

“We wanted this so bad,” Nelson said. “We’ve wanted this since our freshman year. We’ve made the playoffs every year but this is the furthest we’ve gone since I’ve been here. It feels amazing knowing all the time and effort we’ve put in has been worth it.”

Despite Tuesday’s matchup being between the highest and lowest seeds, it was hardly a walk in the park for the Ravens (24-1 overall) against the Highlanders (14-13) of the Midwestern League.

The game was scoreless through the first three innings. It wasn’t until Nelson, the nine-hole hitter, stepped up to the plate with two runners on and two outs and delivered what proved to be the game-winning hit when she drove home senior third baseman Anahi Ornelas-Diaz and senior right fielder Bre Johnston with a single in the fourth inning.

“My first at bat I swung at some really high pitches,” Nelson said. “In my second at bat I wanted to prove to my teammates that I have their backs like they have mine. I saw the pitch that I wanted (low and outside) and I drove it where it needed to be.”

Once the Ravens got the lead, the Highlanders began to apply pressure. In the top of the fifth inning, North Eugene loaded the bases with one out. In the sixth inning, North Eugene had runners on the corners with two outs. And in the seventh inning, North Eugene again loaded the bases with one out.

And in each inning, Hagemeister worked out of the jam with minimal damage, allowing just the one run in the sixth. She struck out the final two batters in the seventh inning to send Ridgeview to the quarterfinals.

“I was just thinking about hitting my spots and trusting my defense,” Hagemeister said. “My defense is a big part of my success. So I know that if I hit my spots, my defense will have my back.”

In other Class 5A softball playoffs on Tuesday:

No. 13 Caldera 6, No. 4 Dallas 1

The Wolfpack pulled off the upset of the opening round by being the lowest seed to advance. Caldera jumped all over Dallas in the first two innings and never looked back.

Caldera scored four runs in the opening frame with RBIs from sophomore second baseman Elie Hall, sophomore right fielder Analeigh Miller, and senior first baseman Aliyah Gaffke. The Wolfpack added two more runs in the second inning when freshman designated player Elle Morton doubled home a run.

A six-run cushion was more than enough for freshman Elaina Santos Wagner, who went the distance, allowing one earned run and seven Dragon hits. Every out was made in the field, as Santos Wagner did not strike a batter out.
The Wolfpack will travel to face No. 3 Canby on Friday.

No. 9 Bend High 8, No. 8 La Salle Prep 6

Trailing by four runs and down to their final six outs, the defending 5A champions rallied past La Salle Prep in extra innings in Milwaukie.
Freshman pitcher Janelle Guiney drove home the two go-ahead runs with a double in the eighth inning to give the Lava Bears their first lead since the first inning. In the sixth inning the Lava Bars rallied to tie the game, scoring three runs with two outs, including a two-run double by freshman left fielder McKenna Nye.

With Bend trailing 5-1 after two innings, senior Taylor Aldrich came on in relief to throw 6 1/3 innings, striking out five batters and only giving up two unearned runs.

Bend will face No. 1 Ridgeview for the fourth time this season on Friday in Redmond.

Class 5A baseball playoffs

No. 5 Summit 3, No. 12 Hood River Valley 0

Senior pitchers Alex Via and Carter Hess combined for 11 strikeouts and surrendered only four hits in a shutout effort against Hood River.
Via got the start and threw 4 2/3 innings and struck out seven Eagle batters, while Hess came on in relief to strike out four.
The Storm got on the board in the second inning when sophomore catcher Riley Via hit a two-run double. Hess then extended the lead in the fifth inning with an RBI single.

Summit will host No. 13 Dallas on Friday.

No. 13 Dallas 11, No. 4 Ridgeview 10

The Dragons scored five runs in the sixth inning and one in the seventh inning to pull off the stunning upset over the fourth-seeded Ravens on their home field in a high-scoring affair.

Ridgeview sophomore second baseman Diego Lopez was a double shy of hitting for the cycle. He also scored two runs and drove in three more. Junior rightfielder Aiden Scott also drove in two runs for the Ravens.
Ridgeview, the champions of the IMC, held a 5-1 lead after two innings and led 9-5 after five innings, but could not hold on to the lead.

No. 8 Corvallis 7, No. 9 Bend High 4

Bend could not pull off the upset on the road Tuesday evening, falling to Corvallis.
After scoring a run in the top of the first inning, the Lava Bears quickly fell behind 6-1 after two innings. Although Bend would score runs in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings, it would not be enough to overtake the Spartans.
The Lava Bears tallied eight hits with senior second baseman Cash Hattenhauer, junior catcher Kaden Cooper, junior third baseman Cole Cooper and junior first baseman Spencer Dildine each driving in runs for the Lava Bears.