St. Francis claims DI crown in a thriller
SAN JOSE >> After all the zeros by the starting pitchers and flawless fielding from the defenses, an epic Central Coast Section Division I baseball final ended Saturday night with the only run of the game.
Elias Duncan, a ball of fire shortstop and leadoff hitter in the St. Francis lineup, stepped into the batter's box in the bottom of the eighth inning against Palo Alto with the bases filled and nobody out.
“It just takes one play,” he said. The moment the ball left Duncan's bat, sailing to deep center field at Excite Ballpark, the junior knew the game was finally over.
Derek Gile tagged from third after star center fielder Henry Bolte chased down Duncan's flyball and crossed home plate with the winner as St. Francis prevailed 1-0 to capture its ninth section title.
A game that will be remembered for seven scoreless innings by each starting pitcher — St. Francis' Blake Rogers and Palo Alto's Sam Papp — ended with the top-seeded Lancers celebrating their third championship of the spring.
They won the West Catholic Athletic League regular-season and postseason tournament titles on their home field in Mountain View. But neither matched the highly-intense, premier-stage drama that unfolded Saturday at the venue formerly known as San Jose Municipal Stadium.
“What a game,” St. Francis coach Matt Maguire said. “Division I CCS, the two best teams, that's exactly what you would hope to get.”
Both teams brought grit, poise and talent — lots of talent — to the field.
But no scoring.
“From the first two innings, we knew it was going to be a pitchers' duel,” said Bolte, a Texas commit. “We had some hard-hit balls right at guys, some really great plays by their team. It came down to really who was going to score first. Blake Rogers threw an absolute gem, and I can't say enough about Sam Papp. That is an unbelievable performance by him.
“It was a special game to watch.”
Third-seeded Palo Alto (26-6) loaded the bases twice against the Baylor-commit Rogers, in the third inning and the seventh. Needing one out both times, Rogers got it. A flyball to left field ended the third and a groundball to first stranded three more runners in the seventh.
“We knocked on the door,”
Palo Alto coach Pete Fukuhara said. “We just couldn't bust through.”
Rogers had a plan for those tight spots.
“I was just thinking to get ahead in the counts,” he said. “With the bases loaded and two outs, the worst thing you could do is walk a guy. I just had to think to get ahead and from there keep playing.”
Papp did the same, pitch after pitch. He didn't allow a runner to get beyond second while he was on the mound. The junior retired 13 in a row during one stretch and gave up only three hits without a walk through the first seven innings.
He was removed after Gile singled to open the eighth.
“Maybe we didn't pull it out today,” Papp said. “But there is
no one I'd rather go to battle with.”
After Papp left to a standing ovation, St. Francis (29-4) went right to work. Luke DeVine worked a quick walk and Brady Choi, who was trying to bunt the runners to second and third, reached on an error to fill the bases.
Up stepped Duncan, the perfect guy for the spot.
“He is literally made for that situation,” Maguire said. “That kid is made to put balls in play. He's made to hit line drives. He's made to work the middle of the field. He just did what he has done a hundred times for us this year. I am just proud he was able to get it done. Proud we were able to get it done.”
For Palo Alto, St. Francis' winning run was the only one the
Vikings allowed in two games at Excite Ballpark. They ended Valley Christian's four-year reign atop the CCS with a 7-0 victory in the semifinals on Wednesday.
“Credit to that whole team,” Duncan said about Palo Alto. “There are some gamers there. It's an incredible team. That whole team is something else. I wouldn't want to do it against anyone else.”
Maybe there will be a rematch this week.
Both teams will move on to the inaugural California Interscholastic Federation NorCal regional. The first of three rounds is scheduled to start Tuesday.
While that will be an opportunity to play more games, it was clear during and after Saturday's battle how much winning the section meant to both sides.
“That's one of the best high school games I've been a part of,” Fukuhara said. “It was a dogfight. Both teams went back and forth. To play that way and against St. Francis is a great thing.”
CCS DIVISION II CHAMPIONSHIP >> In an up-and-down season for Archbishop Mitty, with memorable highs and a few lows, the Monarchs were all smiles as they left Excite Ballpark on Saturday.
They captured the Central Coast Section Division II championship with a 9-0 victory over Branham.
Mitty played superb defense, took advantage of Branham's mistakes, and had a few big hits.
The Monarchs also got a dominant performance from senior right-hander Antonio Cabrera, who pitched a two-hitter. He finished the game with his ninth strikeout.
“All CCS our pitchers stepped up,” coach Brian Yocke said. “AC did well in the first game, gave us a great chance against Leigh. Then (Luka) Pintar going complete game against Serra and then AC coming back and going complete game here tonight.”