Tigers continue to find a way

CUPERTINO — It wasn't always pretty – no style points were awarded – but Terra Nova's 4-1 victory, its fifth straight win, is a microcosm of the first three weeks of its season.

They had a slow start. They kept it close. And when they got their chance, the Tigers pounced.

Now they head into their PAL Ocean Division opener at Half Moon Bay on Tuesday with a bevy of momentum and the confidence that they can win on those days when they aren't at their best.

"That's the one thing I love about this team," said Terra Nova coach Jared Milch. "They're playing hard, no matter what the mistakes are. I told them, play 100 percent. I can't get mad at them."

Terra Nova (5-2-1) kept its winning streak intact by scoring three times in the top of the fifth inning to break a 1-1 tie and then riding the bullpen arms of Evan Wilson and Jesse Martinez to secure the victory.

For Wilson, it was his first outing of the season after plenty of bullpen sessions. He went through the Cupertino lineup one time and allowed just a hit and two walks. But it was his debut inning – the fifth on Saturday – that may have opened Milch's eyes to the prospects of finding more innings for the junior right-hander.

He struck out the side in order – Cupertino's three, four and five hitters – on two called third strikes and a swinging strike in the dirt that catcher Joey Donati smothered.

"That felt good," Wilson said. "We've got a team full of arms. We've got all kinds of pitching. I had to stay ready, be ready for my time."

Wilson finished with five strikeouts before giving way to Martinez, who got the final two outs for the save. Fittingly, the final out came on a diving stop by Wilson at third base. He fielded the ball cleanly, got to his feet and tagged the bag to end the game.

Terra Nova's fifth-inning rally came when Donati led off with a double down the left-field line. JT Snead then delivered an infield single that put runners on first and third.

Brody Finale doubled down the line in right-field to score Donati, but Snead was caught in a rundown and tagged out at third, one of the aforementioned blunders. Aiden James and Wilson followed with singles and the final run of the inning scored on Martinez's infield grounder.

Three Things We Liked

• Brody Finale. The sophomore shortstop had two doubles, a stolen base and a pair of RBI. The ball he hit hardest – a first inning line drive on the infield – was turned into a double play. His infield grounder in the third tied the game at one and his fifth inning double gave the Tigers the lead for good.
• Pitching efficiency. Cooper Santamato struggled with his control much of the game. He walked five in four innings, but his fourth inning – a six-pitch frame – was clean and easy. Wilson had the same kind of efficiency, while Martinez quickly got the last two outs.
• Saturday morning baseball. It's hard to argue with 11 a.m. start times. The game usually ends on time for a reasonably timed lunch and a to-do list for the rest of the day.

He Said It

"I love how we're playing right now. We're practicing like hell, and it's paying off. It's great to be a part of all of this." – Evan Wilson, Terra Nova third baseman.

Up Next

The Tigers travel to Half Moon Bay (3-5) Tuesday and Thursday for their PAL Ocean Division opening series. Because their field is under renovation, both games will be played in Half Moon Bay. Aiden James will get the start on Tuesday, most likely against Cougars ace Kai Kung, while Martinez will likely get the start on Thursday, Milch said.

W: Santamato, L: Lin. S: Martinez. 2 hits- Finale (TN), Wilson (TN), Hattori (C). 2 RBI- Finale (TN). 2B- Finale (TN).

St. Ignatius Prep 6, Sacred Heart Cathedral 3

Chase Gordon's bases-loaded double in the top of the seventh cleared the bases, snapped a 3-3 tie and gave St. Ignatius Prep a 6-3 victory over Sacred Heart Cathedral in the annual Bruce Mahoney game at Oracle Park.

"It's everything you dream of as a little kid," Gordon said of making a play in a major-league ballpark. "It feels awesome. You put yourself in that situation all the time in your dreams and I'm so happy to come through. It's a great team win and I'm proud of the guys."

Gordon's two-out heroics came Atticus Gibson singled up the middle to lead off the inning. After Archer Horn flied out, Emmett Johnson doubled to put runners on second and third. The Irish intentionally walked DJ Delaney to load the bases.

After PJ Vigo struck out AJ Wineinger for the second out of the inning, Gordon drove one into the area of the ballpark known as Triples Alley, allowing Gibson, Johnson and Delaney to score.

The Wildcats (4-2-2) took a 3-0 lead in the fourth on when Gordon and Beau Shaffer singled and Ryan Rosenthal was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Gibson doubled in two runs and Johnson singled to score the third. Gibson was thrown out trying to score to end the inning.

Sacred Heart Cathedral (5-4) tied the game at three in the bottom of the fifth when Chasin Deninger walked, moved to second on a passed ball and scored on a Santino Baisman single.

Following walks to Jacob Vines and Tedford Lewis, Quinn Middleton delivered a two-run single to tie the game.

Horn came on in relief of Gordon in the fifth inning to pick up the victory.

W: Horn. L: Lewis-Rogers. 2 hits- Baisman (SHC), Gordon (SI), Gibson (SI), Johnson (SI). 3 RBI- Gordon (SI). 2 RBI- Gibson, Middleton (SHC). 2B- Gordon (SI), Gibson (SI), Johnson (SI).

Menlo-Atherton 7, Carmel 1

The Bears scored four times in the third inning and added three more in the fourth to win their seventh game of the season.

After two runs scored on a bases-loaded infield error in the third, Will Roberts drove home another pair with double to right field to make it 4-0.

Menlo-Atherton scored another run in the fourth on four straight walks to make it 5-0 and added to the lead with a Ryder Kelly single and a sacrifice fly off the bat of Jimmy Zaharias.

Flame-throwing junior Wes Peterson had his most efficient outing of the season to earn the victory. He went four innings, allowing just one hit and no walks while striking out two in a 42-pitch effort.

Tyler Rosenthal went the final three innings to earn the save.

W: Peterson. L: Lloyd. S- Rosenthal. 2 hits- Lee (MA). 2 RBI- Roberts (MA). 2B- Roberts (MA).

Sacred Heart Prep 4, San Lorenzo Valley 3

Daniel Gee's eighth inning sacrifice fly scored Nelson Harris with the winning run as the Gators got back to the .500 mark at 5-5.

Harris and Thomas Barton led off with walks. They were moved into scoring position on a sacrifice bunt from Devin Saltzgaber. Following a hit batter, Gee launched a fly ball to medium deep centerfield to give Sacred Heart Prep the victory.

Gee added two hits, including a double, while Alex Daheb had two hits, and Connor Schmalzle added a double.

Nico Pollioni pitched a scoreless top of the eighth to pick up the win, but the real pitching gem came from Kyle Sweeney, who threw four innings out of the bullpen, a performance that included eight strikeouts.

W: Pollioni L: Mitchell. 3 hits- Shabry (SLV). 2 hits- Gee (SHP), Dahab (SHP). 2 RBI- Shabry (SLV). 2B- Gee (SHP), Schmalzle (SHP).

Mountain View 4, Sequoia 1

The Trojans avenged an opening-night loss to Sequoia and improved to 7-2 with the victory.

Kyle Shachall had two hits to lead Mountain View, while Ishan Deverapalli drove in two runs. That was enough offense for winning pitcher Jaeden Pietrofeso.

Drew Ostrander had two hits for the Ravens (4-4), while Mario Fausto added a double.

W: Pietrofeso L: Hymer. S: McDonald. 2 hits- Shachall (MV), Ostrander (S). 2 RBI- Deverapalli (MV). 2B- Fausto (S).

Aragon 6, Lowell 1

Just when their PAL Ocean Division season is about to begin, the Dons got a boost on Saturday when Josh Jacobs made his first pitching appearance of the season.

And though he didn't factor in the decision, his presence was huge for Aragon. Jacobs threw 44 pitches. He went 2 1/3 innings. He walked three and struck out two.

Aragon scored four in the first and two more in the third to post the win against San Francisco's top public-school team.

W: Kane. L: Reed. 2B- Lucia (A), Kiaaina (A).

Half Moon Bay 5, Rancho San Juan 0

Maverick Johnson became the first Cougar other than Kai Kung to pick up a victory this season. He allowed one hit over four innings, while striking out one.

Gio Ormando pitched three innings to earn the save.

Connor Heath had two hits, including a triple, and drove in two runs for Half Moon Bay.

W: M. Johnson. L: Short. S: Ormando. 2 hits- Heath (HMB). 2 RBI- Heath (HMB).3B- Heath.

Palma 9, Menlo School 0

Rocco Razzeca had three hits, including a triple, while Johnny Carnazzo had a home run and drove in three runs for Palma, which won its first game of the season.

W: Harris. L: Salama. 3 hits- Razzeca (P). 2 hits- Bakker (P), Carnazzo (P). 3 RBI- Carnazzo (P), Gonzalez (P). HR- Carnazzo (P). 3B- Razzeca (P).

San Mateo 3, Northgate 2

Jesus Olivas got the pitching victory and helped himself with a two-run homer in the bottom of the fifth inning that rallied the Bearcats from a 2-1 deficit to win their fourth game of the year.

W: Olivas. L: Shum. S: Copus. 2 RBI- Olivas (SM). HR- Olivas (SM).

Bellarmine 2, Homestead 1, 8 innings

The Bells played extra innings for the second straight day. This time they walked off Homestead to improve to 6-4.

Hudson Reid and Sam Mendoza led off with walks. Homestead tried and failed to get an out at third base on Evan Tavarez's sacrifice bunt. That loaded the bases for catcher Nate Bateman, who walked off the game – literally – with a walk.

W: Kim. L: Christenson.