San Mateo wraps up Coast Conference championship with win over MPC

The missing title has been secured.

After compiling unmatched streaks over the past full year, the College of San Mateo softball team has secured the one championship it did not obtain in 2025. Thursday's 7-2 win over visiting Monterey Peninsula College gave the Bulldogs the outright 2026 Coast Conference championship.

In 2025, CSM started an amazing 48-game winning streak that included Northern California, state, and national (ratings) titles. But West Valley College had held onto the 2025 Coast lead after giving the Bulldogs their last setback on April 3, to take the Coast crown.

San Mateo's only setback since time was a week ago, on April 7, 2-1 at Hartnell College in Salinas.

CSM (12-1 Coast, 36-1 overall) has now completed its first perfect regular season home campaign since 2015, when the Lady Bulldogs were undefeated overall until the state championships -- where they suffered a pair of setbacks to winner Palomar College.

This is also San Mateo's 11th Coast championship in 13 seasons of play. "It feels good to get the Coast title back," said CSM coach Nicole Quigley-Borg.

Remaining on the Coast slate is the finale on Tuesday (April 21) at now co-third place Cabrillo College (9-4, 29-8), which is fresh from an upset of state No. 8 Hartnell (9-4, 29-9).
State No. 1 CSM expects to be awarded the No. 1 seed for the upcoming Northern California playoffs and host a first round game at College Heights on Friday, May 1. San Mateo has won 11 consecutive NorCal crowns.

The Bulldogs struggled a bit early in Thursday's "Sophomore Day clash with MPC, which took a 2-1 lead in the top of the third inning. CSM, following single run frames in the second (RBI double by Peyton Huber to score Hannah Ames) and third (RBI single by Nia Mapa to plate Janelle Ramirez), finally erupted from the 2-2 deadlock with five runs in the sixth inning.

Lilyana Williams and Hannah Ames hit back-to-back doubles to provide the winning run.

Ames scored on a single by Alyssa Green. Ale Phillips singled home Selena Gonzales, who had reached on an error and advanced on Green's single. Maliah Castro, pinch running for Green, had advanced to third on the Phillips single and then stole home. Phillips stole third and scored the final run on a grounder by Katie Johnson.

Gaining the win on the mound was Mapa (8-0), with four strikeouts over three innings. She gave up a 2-run homer to Ky Dahle for MPC's only damage.

--CSM is seeking its third 3C2A state championship, with previous titles in 2022 and 2025.

It was an unusual hitting week for slugging CSM, which leads the state with 68 home runs but did not blast any this week.