Hollister American 9-10s headed to state tourney after thrilling
win over Cambrian Park
San Jose – Knocked down early, only to rise later as a champion.
Symbolic of Hollister American 9-10-year-olds’ hairy ride to the Section 5 title Monday, Robert Soto endured a pitch to the head in his first plate appearance, only to battle back with two clutch hits in the late innings. Bolstered by Soto’s heroic return and reliever Tony Diaz’s emergency fill-in performance, the Hollister American All-Stars claimed their championship with a thrilling 9-6 victory over Cambrian Park.
With the win, Hollister American advanced to the Division 2 tournament, essentially the Northern California state championship – the highest level of play for this age bracket in Little League baseball.
All smiles as Kool and the Gang’s “Celebration” played in the background after the trophy presentation, Soto said the first-inning fastball which nailed his helmet and his face just above his right cheekbone left him woozy.
“I was thinking I wasn’t going to play again – not that day,” said Soto, who collapsed in a heap at home plate and then spent several minutes being tended to with ice in the rightfield bleachers.
Soto temporarily remained in the game, taking the mound for the first inning, but Cambrian Park promptly took a 2-0 lead with a monstrous two-run home run by starting pitcher Tyler Deason. Once Hollister American manager Robert Fabing removed his starter after the first frame, the team appeared to be backed into a corner – trailing early in the title game and losing its ace one inning into the contest.
But Fabing said he looked in the dugout and saw a determined group of players.
“The kids still seemed focus,” Hollister American’s manager said. “To me, I thought there was no panic. I was worried myself. I knew when (Soto’s injury) happened, we had to do some things at the plate and on the bases to outscore them.”
Hollister American showed its resilience by immediately bouncing back in the second inning to take a 3-2 lead over an opponent that appeared to have bigger players across the board. Left fielder Dylan Yamasaki reached second on a two-base error and later surprised Cambrian Park by stealing third with two outs. When the throw sailed wide of third, Yamasaki scored.
Third baseman Austin Wahl followed with a home run to right-center that evened the contest at 2-2. And when Cody Cameron and Daniel Gonzales drew two-out walks, Hollister American unleashed another daring play on the base paths that showed its versatility.
Cameron broke for third, seemingly stunning Deason, who held the ball until he saw Gonzales break for second. When Cambrian Park’s pitcher decided to throw to second base, Cameron sprinted for home, sliding in safely to put Hollister American in front and give the team a burst of confidence.
“I knew that I could just get to third easily,” said Cameron, who scored twice. “That was just the big turning point. Everyone just started hitting and we won like we know how.”
Though Cambrian Park briefly took the lead again with a sharp two-run single by clean-up hitter John Gavin in the third, Hollister American roared back with two more runs in the top of the fourth to take the lead for good.
Pinch hitter Christopher Cook connected on an RBI single and then advanced to third on a pair of wild pitches. After Marcos Perez drew a two-out walk, pinch runner Gonzales intentionally got caught in a rundown between first and second, allowing Cook to score the go-ahead run as Cambrian Park again was flustered by Hollister American’s aggressive base-running.
“Hollister’s a baseball town. We play ‘Luna Ball’ in this town,” manager Fabing said in reference to San Benito High School’s varsity head coach Michael Luna and his emphasis on playing a complete game. “(Cambrian Park) had no clue how to defense it and we just scored off of that. They had no idea what we were doing on the bases.”
With Diaz admirably stepping in after Soto’s injury and largely keeping Cambrian Park’s hitters at bay, Hollister American played like the confident team that it is. The All-Stars scored three more in the fifth, a rally that included a first-pitch single by Soto, who also returned to the field as first baseman. Yamasaki delivered the big blow with a two-run triple.
Cambrian Park clawed back to within 8-6 with a two-run fifth, benefiting from Deason’s second homer of the game and two Hollister American errors, but Diaz was able to work out of a bases-loaded jam to preserve the lead.
“For Tony Diaz to step in, to throw five innings and keep us in the game, it was huge,” said Fabing, who couldn’t use pitchers Wahl or Jordan Lopes Monday.
Fittingly, it was Soto who put the finishing touches on the victory, delivering an RBI single in the sixth.
With Hollister American notching another feather in its cap after adding the section championship to its District 9 title, Fabing said his team still has one more goal to complete its dream season.
“It’s going to be a tough tournament,” said the manager of the eight-team Division 2 championship, “but I’m excited for the boys. We have a tough challenge, so let’s go meet it.”
Hollister American opens play Saturday in Rocklin with a 7pm contest against the Section 2 champion.
