Baseball
Valley Christian 6, Sacred Heart Cathedral 2
Hunter Fujimoto’s line drive into center wasn’t just a double that cleared the bases on Friday afternoon.
It was Valley Christian’s only hit of the day.
One hit was enough for the Bay Area News Group’s No. 1 team, which avenged its loss at Sacred Heart Cathedral earlier in the week with the team’s 10th victory in 11 games this season.
Brock Ketelsen got plunked by a pitch with the bases loaded to get Valley Christian’s first run across in the fourth inning, and then Nathan Choi endured a similar fate to drive in a second run.
Luke Osuna-Summers took four consecutive out-of-the-zone pitches to walk in Valley’s third run, and then Fujimoto made it 6-1 with his double.
Valley Christian drew seven walks and was hit by three pitches in its West Catholic Athletic League victory.
Longtime Valley Christian coach John Diatte said that, while remarkable, this victory is not unprecedented.
“We have thrown a no-hitter and lost, and been no-hit and won,” Diatte told the Bay Area News Group via text. “Baseball is a crazy game.”
Joey Valencia put SHC up 1-0 in the second inning, but the Fightin’ Irish got very little offense after that, one Aaron Louis home run notwithstanding.
Valley Christian pitcher Rohan Kasanagotu was a big reason why, pitching a complete game, striking out seven and walking none.
Sacred Heart Cathedral fell to 7-5, 1-3.
No. 8 Serra 12, Archbishop Riordan 0
Serra senior Ian Armstrong had a day to remember at the plate in the Padres’ rout of Archbishop Riordan. He hit two home runs and drove in five as Serra improved to 9-1.
Ian Josephson had two RBIs, and Jake Downing scored three runs for the San Mateo program. Sam Kretsch pitched five innings and allowed just two hits while striking out six.
No. 6 Bellarmine 2, No. 9 Archbishop Mitty 1
Sawyer Stout’s seventh-inning double gave Bellarmine a dramatic walk-off victory over its San Jose rival.
Mitty took a 1-0 lead in the fourth inning when Makoa Sniffen doubled into right field. Bellarmine’s Nolan Randol answered in the bottom of the frame with a double to left.
Arkansas commit Wade Mountz pitched 2 2/3 innings of scoreless relief, striking out four and not allowing a hit for the Bells. On the other side, Mitty’s Lukas Pintar struck out six in five innings.
Bellarmine improved to 7-1, 3-1 and Mitty dropped to 6-5-1, 1-2-1.
No. 15 Amador Valley 1, Monte Vista 0
Amador Valley pitchers Jason Alonso and Brennan Baptist won a pitching duel with Monte Vista’s Rohan French in a hard-fought East Bay Athletic League matchup.
Alonso and French combined to allow two hits and just three walks, while French gave up two hits and struck out five in a complete game.
Kyle Barbera scored the only run of the game when he reached home safely after a Monte Vista error on a ground ball. Amador Valley improved to 6-4, 2-2.
Monte Vista fell to 4-5, 1-3.
Foothill 20, Dougherty Valley 4
Foothill had as many hits as it did runs in a run-rule victory over EBAL opponent Dougherty Valley. Senior Nate Novitske hit a home run and had six RBIs for the Falcons, who also got home runs from Austin Harris and Tanner Tarpley. Foothill improved to 7-4, 3-1.
Dougherty Valley dropped to 3-8, 1-3.
Irvington 5, American 2
Brayden Jaksa was 3 for 3 with one walk and one RBI as the Vikings made it three wins in their last four games. Shortstop Ryan Johnson was 2 for 4 with two RBIs and Benjamin Walkup also had an RBI. Eric Keesis and Carson Rice each had two hits for American.
Silver Creek 4, Del Mar 3
Giovanni Mejia and Michael Fonseca each drove in one run as Silver Creek slipped past Del Mar. Keith Truong and Iverson Alvernaz also had two hits apiece for the Raiders. Del Mar’s Kyle McClements went 2 for 3 with two RBIs. Silver Creek improved to 5-6 and Del Mar dropped to 2-5.
Softball
Los Gatos 2, Mountain View 1
Los Gatos rallied from an early deficit by pushing a run across the plate in the fourth and fifth innings to come through with the victory.
Mili Patel placed a single into right field to drive in Elia Grisanti and put Mountain View up 1-0 in the top of the third.
Tessa Lilienstein took advantage of a dropped third strike and scored to tie the game for Los Gatos in the bottom of the fourth inning, and then Annika Norquist crushed a double into right to take the lead in the fifth.
Norquist, just a freshman, was exceptional in the circle. She pitched a complete game and allowed just four hits with zero walks. Los Gatos improved to 7-2 while Mountain View dropped to 4-5.
Leigh 4, Westmont 1
Elliana Snyder was 2 for 3 with two RBIs and one double as Leigh took care of business against Westmont. Junior Sophia Gandara also had an RBI for the Longhorns improved to 5-4, and Camryn Manning-Alarcon swiped two of Leigh’s seven stolen bases. Gandara struck out 12 in a complete game as Westmont fell to 1-10.
Mt. Eden 15, Tennyson 0
Jasmine Cruz was 3 for 3 with four runs scored and two RBIs as Mt. Eden run-ruled Tennyson. Teammate Andrea Toledo was 2 for 3 with three RBIs, and Kealani Temoche, Daniella Montes and Shelby Anne Newcomb all had two hits. Toledo struck out 10 and allowed just two hits.