NorCal Baseball Playoffs Recap I First Round

Elk Grove overcame an 8-0 deficit, Valley Christian posted a third straight shutout and Franklin-Los Gatos are set for a semifinal showdown in Division II. Also the road teams went 3-17 in the first round.

Division I

#1 De La Salle beat #8 St. Francis 3-2: Senior Roman Bartosh gave up two runs over six innings with three strikeouts to send the Spartans into the semifinals. Junior Ben Hayden had three hits and a RBI and freshman Brandon Manivong had a double, single and RBI. St. Francis senior Henry Dommer had a double and RBI and junior Kyle McMillan gave up seven hits and three runs in 4.1 innings. 

#4 Valley Christian beat #5 Bullard 4-0: Senior Rahul Patel and junior Alex Kim combined for the Warriors’ third straight shutout win and six total strikeouts.. Valley Christian scored three runs in the first two innings including two on bunts. 

#3 Elk Grove beat #6 Soquel 9-8: Elk Grove trailed 8-0 going into the bottom of the sixth, but the Thundering Herd scored five in the sixth and four in the seventh for the improbable opening round win. Elk Grove scored runs on a wild pitch, walk and error before senior Brayden Ford had a walk-off, bases clearing triple. Soquel senior Dylan Hull threw five shutout innings of one hit ball. 

#7 Granada beat #2 St. Mary’s-Stockton 5-4: Sophomore Austin Sheldon had a line drive single with the bases loaded in the top of the seventh and a misplay in the outfield led to all three runners to score as Granada earned the lone road win in Division I. Senior Jeff Badger had a double, RBI, run scored and got the final five outs on the mound to earn the win. St. Mary’s senior Nico Bavaro gave up three runs over six innings with six strikeouts in getting a no-decision. 

Division II

#8 Mitty beat #1 Clayton Valley Charter 7-2: The Monarchs continued their postseason run as junior Ethan Chase had a home run and three RBI and senior Felix Chang added three hits and two runs scored. Senior Jonah Ferrell threw a complete game in working out eight hits allowed. Clayton Valley Charter senior Josiah Morris had a home run, two runs scored and a RBI in the loss. 

#4 Rodriguez beat #5 Northgate 14-4: Rodriguez scored 10 runs in the second inning in coasting to a five inning win. Junior Benjamin Smith went 3-for-3 with a triple, four RBI and two runs scored. Northgate junior Andres Zaragoza Roberts had a home run and two RBI. 

#3 Los Gatos beat #6 Rio Americano 8-3: Senior Gavin Seiler threw a complete game with five strikeouts and the Wildcats got hits from eight different players. Rio Americano got out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning, but then gave up four runs in the bottom of the second innings. 

#2 Franklin beat #7 Chico 8-1: Junior Ryan Cody tossed a complete game, three hitter and junior David Hernandez went 3-for-3 with two RBI to set up a Top 20 matchup against Los Gatos. Chico sophomore Myls Fortune had a RBI double to drive in the Panthers’ lone run. 

Division III

#1 Roseville beat #8 Santa Cruz 5-0

#5 Wheatland beat #4 Foothill 5-3

#3 Alameda beat #6 El Capitan 5-4

#2 Menlo beat #7 Logan 6-4

Division IV

#1 Half Moon Bay beat #8 Sonoma Valley 3-0

#4 West Valley beat #5 Amador 12-1

#3 Immanuel beat #6 Lowell 7-6

#2 Livermore beat #7 University Prep 15-8

Division V

#1 Minarets beat #8 Maxwell 13-9

#4 Roosevelt beat #5 Turlock Christian 1-0

#3 Pacific Grove beat #6 Urban 10-3

#2 Skyline beat #7 Los Molinos 5-1