Mujica is East County home run queen
- Updated: May 25, 2021
Granite Hills freshman Sofia Mujica is the Grossmont Conference's single-season home run record holder (14). / csprophoto
2021 EAST COUNTY PREP SOFTBALL
By Adam Paul
EL CAJON (5-22-21) – In sports, it is said that records are made to be broken.
In the history of Major League Baseball, there is one date that will always be remembered. That date will be April 8, 1974, the night that Atlanta Braves slugger Hammerin’ Hank Aaron broke a record that was thought to be unbreakable in the late great Babe Ruth’s all-time career home run mark of 714.
On that fateful night, if you were listening to the Braves broadcast of Milo Hamilton, you would have heard this call of the record-breaking home run.
“Henry Aaron in the second inning walked and scored. He’s sittin’ on 714. Here’s the pitch by Downing. Swinging. There’s a drive into left-center field! That ball is gonna be … outta here! It’s gone! It’s 715! There’s a new home run champion of all time, and it’s Henry Aaron!”
Fast forward nearly a half-century. It may not be baseball nor as big as Aaron breaking the legendary record of Ruth, but Friday, May 21, is a day to remember in East County prep softball as there is a new home run queen.
Granite Hills freshman Sofia Mujica, thanks to her two-run blast over the center-field fence against Steele Canyon, became the Grossmont Conference’s and East County all-time single-season home run champion with her 14th of the season.
Early on, the home run total was only three, but lately, Mujica has been on a power surge as she has hit home runs in the last ten of eleven ball games including a streak of six consecutive games with a home run.
The previous record holders, Valhalla’s Carlee Wallace who set the record in 2014 hit home runs in 11 of her 22 games, including two games of multiple home runs, while Santana’s Madison Mendez who tied the record in 2018, hit home runs in nine of 26 games, yet had three games of multiple home runs including hitting three in a game.
Not only does Mujica lead East County but she also leads the entire CIF-San Diego Section as she is four ahead of Patrick Henry’s standout Olivia Gigante, who has ten on the season.
In addition, CalHiSports, which compiles the state record book in every sport, notes that Mujica’s total will be enough to be registered in the state record book.
The next major milestone is a Ruth-like mark, one that seems to be untouchable. Lisa Dodd, who later became a star at UCLA, the U.S. National Women’s Softball Team, and was a European champion when playing pro ball in Italy, holds the mark of 17 covering both San Diego and Imperial counties.
If you include the smaller division schools, Mujica’s next blast will equal Wallace’s mark of 15 when she was a freshman at Foothills Christian before transferring.
| EAST COUNTY SOFTBALL RECORDS | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Single Season Home Run Leaders (Through May 22, 2021) – *Not recognized due to division classification |
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UPDATE (5-24-21)
In Monday’s game against Patrick Henry, Mujica hit her 15th home run of the season.
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