Playoffs

The Sunbirds, winners of the Western Division, played the second-place Santa Ana Lionettes in a best 3 out of 5 games playoff series. The winner then played the Eastern Division playoff winner for the first World Series title.

The following are excerpts from newspaper articles about the playoffs.

Sunbirds Host Playoff Opener

The calm before the storm has ended, Bonnie Johnson figures. When the Women’s Professional Softball playoffs start tonight at Municipal Stadium, the San Jose Sunbirds, rested at last, will stop their coasting and take off.

Johnson is the probable starting pitcher for the ‘Birds against Santa Ana’s Cathy Benedetto in tonight’s 7:30, nine-inning game. The second game will be played on the same diamond Friday, starting at the same time. The best-of-five series moves to Santa Ana for a game Saturday and, if necessary, Sunday and Monday.

Johnson discounts the Sunbirds’ season-ending slump in which they were 3-7 in the final week. “I’ve played with this team for three years now (two as the amateur Santa Clara Laurels) and every year we went into a slump right at the end,” Johnson said. “But then we really fired up when the regionals started. We knew we had the playoffs clinched, but that was the calm before the storm. Nobody has a better defense than we do. And our offense really gets excited in big games.”

Johnson, 2-2 against Santa Ana, has dueled long innings against Benedetto and does not expect the nine inning games to make things more difficult. “I went 18 innings against Benedetto and then nine innings. And one of my first games this year was 20 innings. The rest of our players are used to 14 innings a night. I don’t think nine innings will make a difference to anybody.”

Charlotte Graham, meanwhile has been given the okay to pitch in the series. “The doctor said I could pitch which is what I expected him to say,” Graham said. “He wasn’t sure if it (right knee) was cracked so I have to go back Tuesday after the playoffs are over. I’ll have to tape it, wrap over that and the pad it.”

Sunbirds Capture Duel in 18th, 1-0

Brenda Gamblin lined a single to right field in the 18th inning to score Cyndi Lillock with the only run of the game to give San Jose a 1-0 win over the Santa Ana Lionettes in the first game of the Women’s Professional Softball Western Division playoffs before 943 fans at Municipal Stadium Thursday night.

Lillock had gone hitless in five previous trips to the plate before leading of the 18th with a single to left. Dianne Kalliam sacrificed her to second, and she went to third on an infield out by Allie Henderson. Gamblin, the Sunbirds’ leading RBI producer, followed with the single on a 0-1 pitch.

Bonnie Johnson, who struck out six Lionettes in a row between the second and fourth innings, pitched the entire 18 innings to get the win for the Sunbirds. She yielded seven hits and struck out 12 batters.

Cathy Benedetto, who was 38-21 overall and 5-5 against San Jose during the regular season, allowed eight hits in also going the distance for the losers.

Dian Iversen, playing second base for the Sunbirds, had three singles.

Sunbirds Take 2-0 Lead

What Brenda Gamblin has mainly done in the Women’s Professional Softball West playoffs is give the San Jose Sunbirds a 2-0 lead in games over the Santa Ana Lionettes.

Gamblin drove in both runs in the Sunbirds 2-1 win Friday night before an estimated 1,244 fans at Municipal Stadium. Gamblin also made three spectacular plays at third base for the Birds. In the sixth, she leaped high to spear a line drive by Cathy Benedetto. With the bases-loaded in the seventh inning, Gamblin jumped to grab a high hopping ball and tagged Donna Maga from behind for the third out.

Charlotte Graham, who suffered what may yet be diagnosed as a fractured right knee a week ago, went the full nine innings, allowed eight hits and struck out seven. Graham allowed three singles in the ninth inning, including Carol Spanks’ RBI hit. Penny Higdon, who had singled, tried to go to third on the play, but Diane Kalliam’s throw from center started a run down from Gamblin to Mary Flint, who made the tag for the final out of the game.

San Jose Reaches Finals Without Loss

Bonnie Johnson continued her mastery over Santa Ana last night with a four-hit shutout. The Lionettes’ biggest threat came in the ninth inning when losing pitcher Cathy Benedetto opened by getting on through San Jose’s only error of the game. But Shirley Topley flied deep to center, and after Mickey Davis’ sacrifice moved Benedetto to second and a wild pitch sent her to third, Donna Maga popped out to end the series.

Opening with some first-inning jitters, the Lionettes allowed Diane Kalliam to reach first on an error. A wild pitch and two passed balls allowed Kalliam to score the only run of the game. Benedetto had a no-hitter going through four innings, broken up by Carol Salsbury’s bloop single. After the damaging first inning, San Jose threatened only in the fifth inning, when it had two hits.

The Lionettes may have run themselves out of a run in the second inning. With one out, Maga walked and Debbie Allen sacrificed. Gail Hamilton then singled sharply to left, Maga going to third. But Hamilton was doubled off first in an attempted double steal to end the inning, and Penny Higdon opened the following frame with a single. In the sixth, Shirley Topley doubled for the game’s only extra base hit, but there were two out at the time.

To read news articles about the 1976 Western Division Playoffs, see below.