Mission and Lowell reach baseball final
The Mission baseball team seized its season-long dream to play at AT&T Park swiftly on Thursday.
The Bears earned that right by jumping on one of the Academic Athletic Association’s top pitchers, A.J. Adewusi, for seven runs in the first inning en route to a 12-2 AAA semifinal playoff win over Lincoln at Nealon Field on the grounds of Big Rec Park.
The game was stopped after five innings due to the mercy rule.
Mission (17-8) plays for its first San Francisco Section title since 1990 at 3:30 p.m. Monday, when it faces five-time defending champion Lowell at the Giants’ home park.
On adjacent Graham Field on Thursday, top-seeded Lowell (21-9) eked out a 1-0 win over Washington behind a combined three-hitter from Alex Bradshaw and Owen Mahoney.
“The thought of playing for a championship on one of the greatest baseball venues in the world brings butterflies to my stomach,” Mission coach Chris Ayag said. “Trying to stay focused for such a formidable opponent like Lowell will be a great challenge. We’ve known all along that winning the title (would mean) that we’d have to go through Lowell.”
Mission has faced Lowell
three times this season and lost three times, 5-4, 8-3 and 7-3.
But the Bears had to take some inspiration from Washington, which had lost to Lowell 4-0, 10-7 and 9-3 this season but stayed in the game to the end Thursday.
“It was definitely nerveracking,” Lowell assistant Romeo Aurelio said. “We told the guys before the game that no one works harder than them and to fall short would be a shame. … They found a way. I’m proud of them.”
Franklin Pilarte had a nohitter for Washington (10-17) into the fifth, when Cameron Tang singled and moved to third on a ground out and passed ball before scoring on a single by Jordy Bach.
That’s all Bradshaw (41⁄3 innings, three hits, no walks) and Mahoney (22⁄3 innings, no hits, three strikeouts) would need.
Mahoney walked two with one out in the seventh, but
struck out the final two batters to send the Cardinals back to AT&T.
“Never gets old,” Aurelio said. “We’ll be playing the up-and-coming team in the league. We beat them three times, but they were all tough games.”
Thursday wasn’t tough for the Bears, who got three hits apiece from Azaan Lewis and Carl Muraco, and two hits each by Will Cohen and Artus Tran, who made a spectacular diving catch in center field.
That helped out winning pitcher C.J. Pino (5-1), who allowed five hits, struck out five and walked none. Mission has won six straight after losing two in a row to Lowell, April 11 and 12.
“Scoring seven runs in one inning against a pitcher like (Adewusi) definitely gives us confidence heading into Monday,” Ayag said. “Hopefully we can complete this Cinderella story. Hopefully the slipper fits.”
Diamond notes: FreedomOakley (15-1, 5-1 Bay Valley Athletic League), The Chronicle’s No. 1 softball team, surrendered five runs in the bottom of the first in a 7-0 loss at Heritage-Brentwood (12-3, 5-1). Delia Scott fired a five-hitter for the Patriots. The teams have shared the past three BVAL titles. … In West Catholic Athletic League baseball, Ryan Belluomini blasted a two-run homer to lead No. 3 Valley Christian (24-3-1, 12-3) to a 4-2 win at No. 5 Bellarmine (20-7, 8-7). … For the second time in two weeks, Sacred Heart Cathedral’s baseball team (12-13, 5-9) beat St. Ignatius (9-16-1, 1-12), this time 5-1 at Fairmont Field. Marty Cole and Uday Narottam combined on a four-hitter and Jack McDowell went 3-for-3 with a run and an RBI.