I’m no softball expert, but conventional wisdom seemed to say it would be Scottsdale Chaparral and Tucson Canyon del Oro duking it out for the 4A-I title this season. Both teams returned their ace pitchers, and the Firebirds lost just one position player.
Both teams, though, have struggled some. Chaparral has lost six of its last seven games, albeit against some of the top competition not only in this state, but the West Coast. Canyon Del Oro is 12-3, the same number of losses it had all of last year.
Meanwhile, Glendale Cactus and Paradise Valley are making a charge. The Cobras are on a five-game winning streak. Paradise Valley began the year 14-0 and is currently ranked No. 1 in the Tribune’s top-5. Its lone loss this year came to Cactus.
If these four teams all make the state semifinals, it would be an incredible couple days of softball, and the winner of it all would be a most deserving state champion.
