CCS Baseball Playoff Preview (Divisions 1-3)
Division 1
All games Saturday 5/18
No. 8 Saint Francis at No. 1 Valley Christian (12:00 pm)
No. 5 Archbishop Mitty at No. 4 Burlingame (11:00 am)
No. 6 Carmel at No. 3 Los Gatos (11:00 am)
No. 7 St. Ignatius at No. 2 Serra (12:00 pm)
Best first-round matchup: Carmel-Los Gatos. The Padres are ranked No. 4 in the Prep2Prep rankings with Los Gatos one spot ahead at No. 3. Los Gatos edged Palo Alto and Los Altos in a tight three-team race for the SCVAL-De Anza championship. Carmel, which is led by senior Justin LeMaster (.471 AVG, .535 OBP, .597 SLG, 1.133 OPS) and top two starting pitchers Zander Lunt (5-2, 1.59 ERA) and JJ Sanchez (6-0, 1.68 ERA) won the PCAL-Gabilan with a 19-2 mark.
The two teams met March 2 with the host Wildcats edging the Padres 4-3.
Projected champ: Serra over Valley Christian
Division 2
All games Saturday 5/18
No. 8 Menlo-Atherton at No. 1 Leigh (1:00 pm)
No. 5 Los Altos at No. 4 Westmont (11:00 am)
No. 6 Palo Alto at No. 3 Sacred Heart Cathedral, Marchbank Park (11:00 am)
No. 7 The King’s Academy at No. 2 St. Francis SCP (3:00 pm)
Best first-round matchup: Los Altos-Westmont. The Eagles come in as one of the most intriguing teams in the playoff field, having nearly won the highly competitive SCVAL-De Anza Division despite going just 4-8 in non-league play, including a 13-3 loss to Westmont February 27. But after a 1-6 start, Los Altos righted the ship winning its next five games including a sweep of league contender Palo Alto and was in the title race all the way until the final week. The Eagles are led by senior Channing Hautop (.467/.548/.786, 1.335 OPS) and junior Kai MacQuiddy (.508/.548/.786, 1.155)
Meanwhile, Westmont comes in as the runner-up in the tight BVAL-Mount Hamilton race, finishing just a game back of league champ Leigh. The Warriors are led by senior ace Mason Pound (8-3, 1.36 ERA).
Projected champ: Sacred Heart Cathedral over Westmont
Division 3
All games Saturday 5/18
No. 8 Hollister at No. 1 Aptos (1:00 pm)
No. 5 Pioneer at No. 4 Wilcox (11:00 am)
No. 6 Woodside at No. 3 Palma (11:00 am)
No. 7 Hillsdale at No. 2 Christopher, Gavilan College (1:00 pm)
Best first-round matchup: Pioneer-Wilcox. With a 13-13 overall record (9-9, 6th BVAL-MH), Pioneer doesn’t look that imposing on paper, but remarkably 10 of the Mustangs’ 13 losses came by one or two runs with two more by just runs. Pioneer has a dynamic No. 1 starter in senior Nate Tichy (6-3, 1.28 ERA, 105 Ks in 76.1 IP). Wilcox showed its mettle in the tough SCVAL-De Anza, splitting the season series with both Los Gatos and Palo Alto.
Projected champ: Palma over Pioneer
