The way Hart High softball’s been playing, it probably wished the CIF-Southern Section Division 3 final was Wednesday, one day after pulling off its second straight walk-off win in a 12-inning semifinal.
The Indians (20-12) have won six elimination games in a row dating back to the regular-season finale.
They found out Wednesday their title game against Murrieta Mesa will be on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. at Deanna Manning Stadium on the grounds of Colonel Bill Barber Marine Corps Memorial Park in Irvine.
MORE: Hart softball headed to title game
It’s Hart’s first championship game since 2007.
“We are happy to be there,” said Hart coach Steve Calendo of learning the date and time of the game. “Hopefully the fans can make it down there. We are going to need them for this team!”
Murrieta Mesa (23-10) beat Fullerton 3-0 on Tuesday to reach the finals in its first-ever playoff appearance, according to a story on PE.com, the website for The Press-Enterprise.
Mesa, which opened in 2009, has won seven of its last eight games, winning its four playoff contests by a composite score of 36-1.
Junior pitcher Autumn Pease holds a 1.28 ERA with 249 strikeouts in 191 1/3 innings this year.
She struck out 14 and walked none Tuesday.
On Saturday, she’ll take the circle first as Mesa is the designated home team for a game that will be broadcast on www.foxsportsgo.com.
General admission is $10 at the gate. Students with proper school ID and children ages 5 to 13 can get in for $5.
The other finals Saturday at Deanna Manning Stadium are Poly of Riverside vs. Camarillo (Division 2) at 3:30 p.m. and Los Alamitos and Norco (Division 1) at 6:30 p.m.
Sierra Canyon and St. Anthony open the day at 9 a.m. in Division 6.
Hart has made a Southern Section final four times: in 1982, 1992 and 2007, losing each time.
In 2007, the Indians lost 1-0 to rival Valencia.
