FINAL SOFTBALL RANKINGS
Masuk lost only once this season, 2-0 to St. Joseph on May 4, but ran the table after that, all the way to its second straight Class L title. The Panthers are the top team in The Courant’s final rankings. Southington, which lost to Bristol Eastern, Cheshire and South Windsor, pushed its way through the Class LL tournament and hung on to beat NFA 7-6 to win the program’s 18th title and finish No. 2 in the state and No. 1 in the area.
State
1. MASUK (26-1): Senior pitcher Sam Schiebe struck out 15 and allowed two hits as the Panthers defeated East Haven 2-0 to win their second straight Class L title. LW: 2
2. SOUTHINGTON (22-3): Went on a run in the Class LL tournament, beating Newington, Manchester, Ridgefield, Trumbull and NFA for the Blue Knights’ 18th title. LW: 8
3. NFA (21-5): Defeated Danbury, t op- s eeded South Windsor, Cheshire and finished as the Class LL runner-up to Southington. LW: 9
4. WATERFORD(22-4): After losing to Seymour 10-1 on April 4, Waterford beat Seymour in the game that mattered, the state final, to win Class M. LW: NR
5. EAST HAVEN (15-10): Ended St. Joseph’s 35-game winning streak with a 2-0 win in the Class L second round and advanced to the final, losing to Masuk, 2-0. LW: NR
6. ST. JOSEPH (23-1): Was perfect through the regular season and FCIAC tournament but was tripped up by East Haven in the second round of Class L. LW: 1
7. TRUMBULL (23-3): Last year’s Class LL runnerup lost to Southington in the Class LL semifinals 5-1, two years after Southington lost to Trumbull in the final. LW: 3
8. CHESHIRE (23-4): Lost to runner-up NFA 4-2 in the Class LL semifinals. LW: 5
9. SOUTH WINDSOR (21-1): After going unbeaten in the regular season, the Bobcats lost to NFA 2-1 in the Class LL quarterfinals. LW: 4
10. SOMERS (17-5): The Spartans won their first state softball title with a 3-2 come-from-behind victory over Coginchaug. LW: NR
Area
1. SOUTHINGTON (22-3): LW: 4
2. CHESHIRE (23-4): LW: 2
3. SOUTH WINDSOR (21-1): LW: 1
4. SOMERS (17-5): LW: NR
5. BRISTOL EASTERN (17-6): Lost in the Class L quarterfinals to eventual champion Masuk, 5-2. LW: 8
6. E.O. SMITH (19-4): Lost to Cheshire 4-2 in the Class LL quarterfinals. LW: 3
7. COGINCHAUG(20-7): Class S runner-up to Somers. LW: NR
8. GRANBY (19-7): The No. 18- seeded Bears knocked off No. 15 Ledyard 6-4, No. 2 Northwestern 5-3 and No. 10 Lauralton Hall 5-1, but lost to Waterford11-2 in the Class M semis. LW: NR
9. BERLIN (15-8): The No. 21 seed upset No. 12 Plainfield 8-6, No. 5 Lewis Mills 5-2, before losing to Notre Dame-Fairfield 5-2 in the Class M quarterfinals. LW: NR
10. WINDSOR (18-5): Lost to Brookfield 8-1 in the Class L quarterfinals. LW: 6
Lori Riley can be reached at lriley@courant.com.