St. Francis and starter Jared Lansford prove to be too much
While the San Benito High baseball team couldn’t seem to find its offensive rhythm in Wednesday’s game against St. Francis in the first round of the CCS Playoffs, the Lancers seemingly could do no wrong at the plate.
The result: a 7-0 St. Francis win and the end of a very successful season for the Haybalers.
“I was proud of the way we battled,” said Hollister’s first-year head coach Michael Luna. “They could have easily just rolled over but they battled to the very last pitch. I’m proud of the season they had . We went 22-9 overall and anytime you can win 20 games in a season, you’ve done a good job. It just wasn’t meant to be this year.”
The hits that made the difference for St. Francis in this game were simply impossible to defend. The Lancers seemed to be able to hit the ball to precisely the spot where there was no chance of a ‘Baler defender making a play.
St. Francis got its first score of the game in the bottom of the second. Brady Fuerst led off by cranking a shot right into the center field gap for a double. Fuerst reached third on a Chris Coleman grounder moments later before being brought across on a shallow fly ball from Alex Dreyfuss, just out of a running Gabe Gaitan’s reach.
Hollister starter Breyon Canez was much more in control than the final score would indicate. The ‘Baler left-hander had the St. Francis hitters off balance for most of the game and Fuerst’s blast to lead off the second was about the only powerful hit put into play by the Lancers on Wednesday.
But the fourth saw St. Francis go on a six-run scoring tear with more hits that proved to be just out of Hollister’s defensive reach.
The ‘Balers didn’t give up though. They fought through every at-bat against St. Francis ace Jared Lansford. And Hollister’s persistence did give the team a chance at putting some runs on the board late.
Seth Hudson, led off the seventh by taking the first pitch he saw from Lansford into the outfield for a single. Later in the inning with one out, Canez waited patiently as four straight Lansford pitches missed their mark and took first on a walk. But the ‘Balers couldn’t break through as the next batter up hit into a double play to end the game.
“In my first year here, I had a lot of fun with these guys,” Luna said. “They bring a passion to the game that I love to see. It just makes coaching that much more enjoyable. Good things happen when you have these types of players. Next year’s juniors and upcoming sophomores have a big challenge in front of them to try and match what this team did this year.”
