CHULA VISTA – Bonita Vista High School and Otay Ranch were scheduled to play a softball game Wednesday afternoon, but the Barons instead decided to stage a home run derby.
Host Bonita Vista walloped four home runs, one apiece by four players, that accounted for eight runs as the second-ranked Barons blanked ninth-ranked Otay Ranch 10-0. The game was shortened to 4½ innings because of the 10-run mercy rule.
“It did feel like a home run derby,” said Bonita Vista shortstop Leah Letuli, a New Mexico-bound prospect who smacked the first of the blasts, a three-run shot.
Added Bonita Vista coach Vanessa Kalavi: “That ball was flying off the bat today.”
Letuli’s bomb broke a scoreless tie in the third inning.
In the fourth, Bonita Vista sent 12 batters to the plate and clubbed six extra-base hits.
Junior Leila Keeran started the inning by launching a solo blast to left field. After Kianna Balajadia-Brooks and Letuli drove in runs, Saint Mary’s-bound Ariana Magdaleno crushed a two-run homer. Two batters later, Santa Clara-bound catcher Brooklyn Ringgold joined the homer-happy party with a drive to center field.
No one was keeping a distance chart on the launches, but all of them easily cleared the fence, which measures 200 feet in left field, 215 to center.
“We just passed the bat,” said Letuli, who finished 2-for-4 with a double, a homer and four RBIs. “We kept going, having fun. We didn’t pay attention to the score too much.”
Bonita Vista’s Leila Keeran #55 rounds the bases after a home run against Otay Ranch during their game at Bonita Vista High School on Wednesday, May 6, 2026 in Chula Vista, California. (Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
While Bonita Vista (18-4, 2-1 Metro Mesa League) came into the game averaging 7.7 runs per game, the game did represent a homer explosion. Coming into the game, the Barons had hit a home run about every other game, 12 in 21 games.
Kalavi said that everyone and no one on her staff is the hitting coach. With almost all the players playing travel softball, they have their personal hitting coaches.
“We just ask them, ‘What are you focusing on?’ and remind them of those phrases,” said Kalavi.
Coming into the season, there was a bit of pressure on Kalavi’s daughter, Noelle Kalavi. The Barons finished 25-8 last season, losing in the CIF San Diego Section Open Division championship game to rival Mater Dei Catholic 6-1, then falling to the Crusaders again, 5-4, in the SoCal Regional semifinals.
Two seniors who accounted for 20 wins and 190 innings pitched graduated last year.
Into the void stepped Noelle Kalavi, a junior.
“Honestly,” said Noelle, “I was just really excited. I knew I’d get more pitching time. I knew my hitters and defense would be behind me. I wouldn’t say I felt any pressure.”
Kalavi pitched four shutout innings against Otay Ranch (12-7-1, 0-2), raising her record to 10-3 and lowering her ERA to 2.03.
“She’s predominantly a drop-ball pitcher (not a strikeout specialist),” said Vanessa Kalavi. “That’s not a secret. We’re looking for ground balls. Last year, she barely pitched. Some asked why not. Well, we had two seniors and flip-flopped them. It wasn’t in the cards. I told her this year she’d be our workhorse, and I think she’s doing a great job.”