By Pete Borello
High School Baseball Report
Lancers take tourney
Jimmy Buckley’s bloop single in the seventh inning drove in the decisive run Thursday as St. Francis edged rival Bellarmine 4-3 in the West Catholic Athletic League championship game at Santa Clara University.
Ben Lundquist picked up the victory for the Lancers (25-8), pitching a seven-hitter.
The win allowed St. Francis, which finished fourth in round-robin play, to seize the league’s highest CCS seed. The Lancers, seeded third in Division I, host No. 14 Gilroy (11-14) at 4 p.m., today.
Spartans let one slip away
Unfazed by a 1-8 start, the Los Altos High baseball team went on to win 14 of its final 21 games to finish the regular season with a .500 record.
The Eagles’ perseverance has paid off, as the team learned Saturday that it’s landed a spot in the Central Coast Section Division II playoffs.
Eleventh-seeded Los Altos begins postseason play at 4 p.m., Thursday, vs. No. 6 Gunn at Baylands Park in Palo Alto.
“The guys stuck with it after a slow start and they came on strong,” Eagles coach Sandy Wihtol said.
Los Altos started last season in similar fashion and rallied to earn a playoff berth.
“To go in two years back-to-back after not getting in the CCS playoffs for about 18 years is a huge accomplishment for us,” said Wihtol, whose team placed fourth in the SCVAL El Camino Division this season.
The next thing on the coach’s to-do list: win his first playoff game.
Although Los Altos beat SCVAL De Anza Division runner-up Gunn on April 22, repeating this feat won’t be easy.
“Gunn has a really good team and I’m sure they’ll throw their top pitcher at us, (Greg) Matson,” Wihtol said. “It will be a big challenge for us.”
Los Altos concluded its regular season last Thursday with a 7-5 win at Santa Clara.
Thomas Roux had a triple and three singles for the Eagles (10-8, 15-15). John Lerch also hit a triple and Donnie Ecker slugged a homer. David Martinez earned the win.
Despite building a 7-0 lead after three innings, Mountain View closed its season with an 8-7 El Camino Division loss to Monta Vista Thursday.
Steven Crang took the loss for the host Spartans (9-9, 14-12), surrendering three runs in the seventh.
Kevin Hsu produced three hits for Mountain View and Will Norton hit a triple.
