MODESTO — After losing to No. 1 Central Catholic twice this year in Valley Oak League play by a combined score of 11-1, fourth-seeded Manteca met its nemesis one more time on Tuesday in the semifinals of the Sac-Joaquin Section Division III softball playoffs.

With the wind squarely on the side of the Raiders, Central Catholic eked out a 1-0 win at Ladd Softball Field and will play in the final Saturday against No. 2 Vanden.

Jocelyn Baptist cleared the left-field fence for the Buffaloes (21-9) in the third inning, but the wind helped the ball go foul. In the fifth inning with the wind even stronger, Maleiah Garza’s shot down the left-field line looked like it would stay fair, but was pushed foul at the last second.

“That’s one of the best teams in the area, and we just lost to them by one run at their place,” Manteca coach Josh Farris said. “I thought our pitcher pitched absolutely phenomenal. Riley (Ward) pitched great. She pitched her heart out, and we played defense behind her.

“We don’t do moral victories. To lose the second year in a row in the semifinals is frustrating. We want to climb that mountain, but once again it was to a league opponent. This shows a lot of respect for the VOL having to face them every year in the playoffs.”

Ward limited Central Catholic (26-5) to three hits behind four strikeouts and three walks.

The Buffaloes’ most serious threat came in the sixth inning when they loaded the bases with no outs, only to hit into 4-2-3 double play and a flyout to deep right field.

Taryn Calderon led off the game for the Raiders with a double and attempted to score on a single, but Manteca right fielder Lauren Moncada cut her down at the plate.

“Our entire outfield is nothing but athletes,” Farris said. “They go get everything. We are really confident that if we pitch to contact, they will get to anything. All three of our outfielders are center fielders that happen to play the corners.

“Lauren (Moncada) played catcher for us most of the year, and she will probably be an outfielder at the next level. It is good for us to have three center fielders out there.”

When reminded that Central Catholic handled the Buffaloes 8-0 in their last outing and asked about the difference between then and now, Raiders coach Jeff Mitchell said, “We got the same results, and that’s all that matters. We played in every single type of game this year. We played in close games all year, our pre-season prepared us for this moment.

“I am proud of the girls. They fought, they stayed with it and made the plays then they needed to and picked each other up.”