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Villa Park leads eight Orange County softball teams that have been placed in the main draw for the Dave Kops Tournament of Champions, which begins Thursday in Bullhead City, Ariz.

The Spartans, ranked No. 1 in Orange County and CIF-SS Division 1, will be joined in the bracket by No. 3 Pacifica, No. 4 and defending champion Los Alamitos, No. 6 Orange Lutheran, No. 10 Mater Dei, No. 11 Marina, No. 12 Whittier Christian and Cypress.

Villa Park coach Terry Williams said some of his players will depart Wednesday night for a trip the Spartans hope ends with their first TOC title. They made the semifinals in 2015.

“We’re fired up,” he said, “(but) it’s going to be brutal.”

Williams said there is a chance the Spartans (6-0) play Greenway of Arizona and UCLA-committed pitcher Kaitlyn Terry on Thursday night if Greenway wins two play-in games earlier in the day. Terry is the reigning Gatorade player of the year in Arizona.

Villa Park would likely counter with Sydney Somerndike, the reigning Gatorade player of the year for California. The Arizona-bound senior is off to a 4-0 start with 48 strikeouts in 23 innings. She has allowed one earned run.

Williams said the keys for the Spartans this weekend will be managing the workload of their pitchers and scoring runs early to take leads.

Freshman pitcher Auddrey Lira has eased the strain on Somerndike by not allowing an earned run in 14 innings en route to a 2-0 record.

If Villa Park wins its opener, it could face Cypress (3-4) in the second round Friday afternoon.

The tournament, canceled last year because of the pandemic, is loaded with tough games.

Pacifica (8-1) could play La Mirada, which handed the Mariners their only loss, in the second round Friday.

If No. 8 Canyon wins its play-in game Thursday night at 5:30, the Comanches and Arizona State-bound pitcher Kylee Magee will face powerhouse Norco in the first round. Magee has 99 strikeouts in 41 innings.

Even No. 5 La Habra has a play-in game. The Highlanders face Saugus on Thursday afternoon for a berth in the main draw against Willow Canyon, ranked No. 2 in Arizona by MaxPreps.

NOTES

Capistrano Valley pitcher Madi McDonnell allowed two runs on six hits and struck out eight in a 4-2 victory against previously undefeated Mission Viejo on Tuesday. Cougars coach Art Cole said McDonnell kept the No. 2 Diablos “off balance with her vast array of pitches.”

The Diablos (10-1) scored twice in the first inning and then were blanked for the next six innings. They were averaging more than 10 runs per game.

McDonnell also outdueled fellow sophomore standout Sofia Elliott of Mission Viejo, who struck out six and also hit two-run home run in the first inning. …

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