MOUNTAIN VIEW — St. Francis was all the way down to its final strike. Sophomore Jaime Oakland, two-time West Catholic Athletic League MVP, 0-for-3 on the day, was on the plate with the Lancers on the verge of being upset at house within the opening spherical of NorCals for the second yr in a row.
The depend went 2-and-2 and Oakland fouled off a pitch. Then she fouled off one other, barely getting a bit of it and topping it within the filth by house plate. However on the subsequent pitch she noticed one up within the zone and obtained a maintain of it. She drove it to deep middle for a run-scoring double as Might Meltz scampered round with the tying run.
Getting ready to despair, St. Francis was nonetheless alive.
That introduced shortstop Peyton Tsao to the plate, the No. 3 gap batter. Tsao went into the sport with a .404 batting common and 19 extra-base hits. She labored the depend to 3-and-2 earlier than hitting a pitch on the skin nook to proper subject. The Rocklin proper fielder dove for the ball and got here up with it.
Oakland streaked house with the obvious go-ahead run whereas the Rocklin facet screamed that the catch had been made for the third out. The umpires conferred and got here out of their huddle making the ruling that it was a entice.
Recreation over. Walkoff 3-2 win for St. Francis.
“I really felt she was at least going to hit the ball hard at somebody,” St. Francis coach MIke Oakland mentioned of Tsao. “And she did. I just had a good feeling about that one. Once (Jaime) got the double it kind of popped the bubble a little bit. I think we were a little more relaxed in that last at-bat.”
No. 3 seed St. Francis (28-3) advances to play at No. 2 Del Oro on Thursday in a Division I semifinal.
“That was awesome, this group of seniors doesn’t want to stop playing together,” Oakland mentioned. “They know this is their last week and they want to extend it as long as they can.”
No. 6 seed Rocklin jumped out to the lead within the high of the primary when Katie Wetteland, the third batter of the sport, hit one over the center-field fence for her twelfth homer of the season.
The Lancers tied it within the third. Catcher Malianna Liongitau led off with a single. Pinch runner Aryka Gunsager took second on Meltz’s sacrifice bunt and scored on Maya Yumiba’s line-drive single to left-center.
The rating stayed 1-1 till the sixth when Rocklin scored a run that appeared prefer it would possibly finish St. Francis’ season. Addie Titlow hit a one-out single and Wetteland was deliberately walked. Savannah Lorenzini singled house Titlow and beginning pitcher Ava Bulanti was changed by freshman Blanka Fisher, who managed to pitch out of the jam with no further runs scoring.
St. Francis got here up for what may have been its final at-bats of the season within the backside of the seventh, Meltz hit a one-out single and stole second. Rocklin pitcher Payton Prior struck out Yumiba for the second out, bringing Oakland to the plate.
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“I’d never seen her before those first three at-bats, but I felt confident knowing that one base hit could change the game,” Jaime Oakland mentioned. “I fouled off a couple and then got that one pitch down the middle.”
That introduced Tsao up in a tie sport.
“Once she got on I had a lot more confidence that I was going to do it, do it for the team,” Tsao mentioned. “It means so much to win this game because I get another day to play with my seniors and see how far we can go.”
And to get the game-winning hit within the backside of the seventh …
“It’s absolutely a dream,” Tsao mentioned.
A dream come true.
