SACRAMENTO -- West Valley softball opened its 2026 season in strong fashion, taking down Sacramento City College in a six-inning blowout, 9-0.

The season opener was anything but an easy game on paper for the Vikings (1-0) as they had to travel up to the Sacramento Valley and take on a Panthers' (0-1) team that won 28 games and was just three runs away from a Super Regional appearance last season.

"I was happy to see that the work that we've put in to get to this point all come together," said head coach Vicky Piatt. "It's fun to watch our freshmen, really a big group of freshmen, go through the process. Because you see the lightbulbs go off, and the demeanors change. It's really fun."

Though the pitching and offense ended up being the story for West Valley, the Vikings' defense set the tone in the bottom half of the first inning. Following a 1-2-3 offensive half of the first inning, Viking opening day starter Ana Marquez walked a batter and hit the next two to load the bases with one out and Naiomi Garcia, the Panthers' cleanup hitter, at the plate. Instead of giving in, Marquez got Garcia to fly out to right where sophomore Alexis Bojorquez-Nava was camped. Bojorquez-Nava fielded the fly ball and, all in one motion, fired a strike to freshman catcher Destiny Solis at the plate to nab the tagging runner and end Sac City's threat.

"It does set a tone," said Piatt of the momentum-setting play. "Since day one, January 2, [we've been working on] cuts and relays, long hops to home. All of the things we've been working on, it just becomes instinct."

West Valley scored its first run of the season, and the game-deciding run, in the top of the second. Sophomore first baseman Raylene Cruz opened the inning with a double and Bojorquez-Nava followed with an infield single that kept Cruz at second. The two pulled off a double-steal with sophomore Sadie Heming at the dish before Heming singled to bring home both.

Perhaps bigger than the early defensive play by itself was the groove it got Marquez in. Through two innings, she had stranded five runners on base. After the Panthers got the bases loaded with one out again in the second inning, Marquez induced a shallow fly out and picked up her first strikeout of the season to end the frame.

"I saw good stuff," Piatt said of Marquez. "She's so hard on herself, she's a big-time perfectionist, and all good players are that way. The shining moment, for me, going from freshman to sophomore year: [she had] bases loaded and [was] able to get out of a jam two times. And that says a lot. Because last year, if that would have happened, we might have had to pull her, or we would have given up runs, and now, she was able to shut it down."

West Valley's biggest inning game when it put a three-spot on the board in the third, with Taylor Hanshaw scoring the innings' first run before Bojorquez-Nava and Heming each drove in one more. Together, those two combined to go 4-for-6 and drive in six runs.

"The experience from last year," said Piatt, "you can see it playing off in just the calmness and the 'been there, done that' mentality. It's really fun to watch. As a coach, you feel really good because you build them up. When they're freshmen, they don't have that confidence typically. And to see them start off from day one of their sophomore season and have that demeanor, it's a good feeling. They looked good. They're so composed."

Marquez's day ended after four innings, allowing just two hits and three walks while striking out three. She was replaced by Katy Lambert, who returned to the circle after taking a year off and was very strong, showing a lot of swing-and-miss stuff while allowing three baserunners and striking out three in her two scoreless frames.

"She took a whole year off," said Piatt. "The growth from fall to the end of fall and then jumping into spring, she looked so good. She just looks fantastic. Her pitches are moving like they should and beyond. She's bringing it all together."

With West Valley leading by six in the sixth inning and needing more to push to the run-rule ledger, Solis doubled home a run before Bojorquez-Nava singled home two more. The Vikings were able to get there because of the table setting from freshman Miranda Temple and a big sacrifice bunt from Taylor Hanshaw in what was overall a very good day for the Vikings' new class.

"The main goal was to just get people in so they could get that first game out of the way," said Piatt. "To be able to see the depth we have and the players that we do put in not back down… it shows our team that we do have depth, and that goes a long way."

But Solis may have impressed the most, fielding the one-hopper from Bojorquez-Nava in the first inning and mashing a double late in the game to completely put the nail in the coffin. It's also big to note it's not every day you see a freshman hitting third in the order and playing behind the plate. But Piatt has seen the signs in more than just the numbers Solis puts up on the scoresheet.

"When you bring in freshmen," said Piatt, "and you start picking out your leaders for the future, and even for the present, she's someone that I'm going to look towards. Even at practice, she's the type of player that pumps you up. If she has to get a ball, she hustles. If she misses a pitch, she goes and sprints and gets it. She makes you want to work hard."

The Vikings now continue facing Big 8 schools, taking on American River in a doubleheader on Thursday, with first pitch scheduled at noon.