For all their hard work put forth, and all the wins they’ve
compiled, Hollister National has been here before.
By Andrew Matheson sports editor
Hollister – For all their hard work put forth, and all the wins they’ve compiled, Hollister National has been here before.
The 9- and 10-year-old All-Stars, who entered Tuesday’s championship round game undefeated in the double-elimination Section 5 All-Star Tournament, lost 9-0 to Saratoga at Veterans Memorial Park.
The loss evens the records of the two squads, who will now face-off tonight for the Section 5 championship.
Of course, Hollister National entered the championship round of the District 9 All-Star Tournament undefeated as well. They fell in their first game to Hollister American, only to rebound in the second game and advance to the Section 5 tournament.
After the game on Tuesday, National Manager Adam Breen said he reminded his players that they’ve been in this spot before.
“It’s just like in district when we lost our first opportunity to a championship, and we came back the next day, forgot about that ugly loss, and got it done,” Breen said. “We told the kids forget it. This game doesn’t matter. If we win (today), we’re still the champions of the section.”
While Hollister National most likely did not enjoy seeing Saratoga celebrate on the field after the win, a win that kept the San Jose-based team alive for at least one more day, Breen said his players weren’t down, and they haven’t given up.
“It’s easy to win…True character is shown when you bounce back from a loss,” Breen said. “I think one of our best traits has been resiliency.”
The squad’s resiliency was shown last weekend, when the local All-Stars defeated Santa Clara Westside 4-3. The game, which started on Saturday night, lasted 13 innings and five hours, and wasn’t concluded until Sunday morning after being suspended on Saturday night.
After their game to Westside, National then went on to defeat Saratoga in the semifinals 6-5 on Sunday, and advanced to the championship round.
On Tuesday against Saratoga, however, it was a different story for National.
Saratoga starting pitcher Tyler Plesse didn’t allow a hit until the final batter he saw. With one out in the sixth inning, National’s Andrew Breen broke up Plesse’s no-hitter with a single into right field. Plesse, having reached his maximum pitch count, was then relieved by Andrew Harter for the final two batters.
“The good news is that we put the ball in play all game,” said Breen, whose team only struck out twice.
At the plate, Plesse grounded out into a fielder’s choice in the first inning, which scored Andrew Carter and put Saratoga up 1-0.
Saratoga would plate two more runs in the second inning after a throwing error and an RBI single by Andrew Harter.
In the fifth, though, Saratoga scored six runs on four hits, including an RBI double by Andrew Ferguson.
“We just have to remember that this is double elimination for a reason,” Breen said. “We’ll be no less of a champion if we win with one loss. It’s hard to go through any tournament undefeated, particularly when its all section champions.”
Tonight, the two teams will meet up again at Veterans Memorial Park at 7pm, with the winner advancing to the Northern California Divisional Tournament. Breen said that pitcher Hunter Haworth will start on the mound against Saratoga.
“We have to put it behind us and consider it a new day,” Breen said. “(Today) is the only game in our entire season that matters. If we win that, we go on to state. And that’s all we’re thinking about right now.”
