Winning with Dad every step of way
Jessica Oakland of St. Francis is Chronicle Metro player of the year
St. Francis junior shortstop Jessica Oakland was groomed for a season like this.
She began playing softball as a 6yearold, sat in the dugout of her dad Mike’s three Central Coast Section baseball title teams, and practiced with the varsity as a seventhgrader when he switched over to coach the Lancers’ softball program.
As an eighthgrader, she rejoiced with her dad and the Lancers when they won their first CCS title with a 51 win over perennial power Mitty.
But this — the 2021 championship, on the heels of a pandemic — was sweeter than anything Oakland or the Lancers could have imagined.
They went 260, outscored opponents 26730 — including 261 in three playoff games — rolled to a CCS Open Division title and finished No. 9 in MaxPreps’ national rankings.
Every step along the way, every lopsided win and seemingly every tapemeasure home run involved Jessica Oakland. She launched a statebest 19 home runs to go along with a .612 batting average, 50 runs, 52 hits and 55 RBI. Her runs and RBI totals each ranked fifth in the state.
The University of Minnesota commit and team cocaptain was a model of consistency, homering in 16 of the 26 games, including each of her last six (seven total). She struck out five times in 95 plate appearances and made just two errors at shortstop.
For it all, she was named The Chronicle’s 2021 Metro Player of the Year.
“Regardless of her individual stats and awards, I know that she is more excited about winning CCS,” Mike Oakland said. “Don’t get me wrong, she is thrilled to be recognized for her season, but at the end of the day it’s about competing and doing your part to help your team be successful.”
And what a success. She was surrounded by teammates having huge seasons, including AllMetro catcher Sydney Stewart (12 HRs, .559 average), infielder Jaz Hsiao (five of her nine HRs coming in three playoff games) and sophomore pitcher Chloe Cummings (120, 0.86 ERA). Another sophomore Lexi O’Gorman (.446, 17 stolen bases, 37 runs) was one of many constantly on base for Oakland to drive home.
Mike Oakland said so many players had outstanding seasons that his daughter’s work caught him a little off guard. “It didn’t hit me until the end when we saw the final numbers that I realized how well she did,” he said. “So many performed at a really high level.”
Other Regional Players of the Year
San Francisco: Leila Hennessy (St. Ignatius) — The senior catcher, third and second baseman finished off an excellent fouryear career by hitting .482 (27 of 56) with 23 RBI, four doubles and six home runs. The Wildcats (97) got off to a 17 start but finished with a flurry, eight straight wins thanks to five home runs — all against rival Sacred Heart Cathedral — and 19 RBI from Hennessy.
East Bay: Kailano Tatro (Pinole Valley) — The sophomore pitcher and first baseman led the North Coast Section with 208 strikeouts in 143 innings while going 167 with a 2.01 ERA. At the plate, she hit a teambest .535 with 46 hits, 29 RBI and 18 doubles.
Contra Costa/TriValley: Tianna Bell (HeritageBrentwood) — The junior third baseman and Cal commit had a monster season at the plate — .581 average, 10 home runs, 45 RBI, 36 hits and 32 runs — leading the Patriots to a 230 season. She led NCS in both home runs and RBI.
North Bay: Annabel Teperson (Marin CatholicKentfield) — The senior pitcher and Cal commit finished a decorated fouryear career in style, tossing a 20 victory over sixthranked RedwoodLarkspur while hitting the gamewinning tworun homer. That same week, she fired 12 perfect frames with 26 strikeouts in two more wins, finishing 111 with a 0.40 ERA and 125 strikeouts in 70 innings. She also hit .571 with five homers and 30 RBI for the fifthranked Wildcats (151).