The Grizzlies baseball team is continuing their success on the diamond as they look to return to the NCS Championship next month.
Cal (11-5 overall, 4-3 EBAL) won their first EBAL game of the season on March 20 by beating San Ramon Valley 3-2. Senior Nick Truex and junior AJ Velasquez both had a pair of hits.
Senior Nate D’Emilio was solid over six innings as the starting pitcher and only yielded two runs while striking out three. But senior Sean Jenkins recorded the win for the Grizzlies.
The Grizzlies lost their second league game to Monte Vista, 4-0, on March 27. Senior Adam Kimmel started and pitched well over 5.2 innings, but took the loss because of dominating pitching by Monte Vista.
The Grizzlies only managed four hits against the Mustangs, including two hits by junior Cameron Santos.
The big story of the game was the poor fielding by Grizzlies, which committed an astonishing five errors.
The Grizzlies were able to defeat Livermore on April 10 by a score of 9-8. Senior Sean Jenkins pitched well and allowed two runs over four innings while striking out six.
Junior Nick Allman had a big game at the plate by going 4- for-5 with two RBIs.
The Grizzlies lost their second EBAL game to Granada on April 12.
Granada, which is ranked among the top teams in the state, hammered Cal 7-0. D’Emilio pitched well, but errors were once again a problem for the team, which could muster only three hits.
The Grizzlies had another big comeback victory on April 17 against Amador Valley. The team won 6-5 after scoring two runs in the bottom the seventh to win.
Senior Travis Roberts had a solid day at the plate by getting two hits including the game-winning hit and RBI.
The Grizzlies most recently destroyed Foothill 10-4 on April 20, but they were shut out by De La Salle 4-0 on April 24.
If the Grizzlies can play solid baseball, especially on defense, they will have a great shot of having NCS success.
– Alec Bandler
Softball
The softball team is off to a perfect 7-0 start in league play and have already made headlines in NCS by upsetting nationally ranked Amador Valley.
Currently in first place, the ladies have been in a battle with Amador Valley all year for league supremacy. The two teams met in a close game on April 16, where the Grizzlies won 1-0.
The Grizzlies (14-3) struck in the bottom of the first inning when senior Kwyn Cooper scored on an RBI by senior Jessica Catson. The player of the game for the Grizzlies was junior Lindsey Chalmers who pitched a complete game shut-out and struck out seven batters.
The Grizzlies were held to just three hits, but that was enough for the win.
This is a major accomplishment for the Grizzlies who were pitted against the Dons, one of the top five softball teams in the nation.
The two teams also met on March 16 in a preseason game, where Cal lost a close 1-0 game.
Prior to the first league game of the year, the Grizzlies posted a 4-1 record and outscored their opponents 17-1.
The ladies squeaked out a 7-6 win in their first league game on March 26 at Monte Vista. Since the win, the team has held their opponents to under three runs in every game.
The cornerstone to the team has been its pitching, led by Chalmers. On April 9 at Livermore, she pitched a complete game while striking out 15 batters.
According to maxpreps.com, the team ranked 17 in the state and 25 in the nation. The team continues to look for ways to improve and knows that NCS is in clear sight.
– Eric Yee
Track and Field
The ladies side of the track team continues to dominate the competition as they have in years past.
At 4-1, these ladies aren’t messing around. Cal shattered Monte Vista with a score of 81-55 on April 4, and on April 11 they delivered a healthy whooping on Livermore, 79-57.
“So far, the team is doing great,” said Coach Karbo. “We have several athletes who are performing very well right now.”
The team’s only loss came to Granada on March 14.
“We have a really great team this year,” said senior runner Kat Hupke.
The Grizzlies also sent junior Madison Ricks to run the 800m at the Arcadia invitational on April 5-6. Ricks has had great showings in state meets since she was a freshman, and is hoping to qualify once again.
Joining Ricks in the very prestigious Arcadia Invitational was the girls 4x100m team, and 4x400m team. Ricks was able to place ninth in the 800 meter. While team 4x400m team of Ricks, sophomore Tyler Carr, sophomore Kaelin Delaney, and senior Stephanie Karbo placed seventh.
The only guy that attended the Arcadia Invitational in Los Angeles County was senior sprinter Karris Johnson. He ran in the 100m where he placed fifth.
Johnson is one of the most notable runners on a lackluster men’s team. The men’s side is 1-4.
The lone win in Cal’s season came convincingly over Foothill, 93-43, on March 21.
The Grizzlies are showing promise, and expect to rack up some more wins before the seaosn is over.
“I love our team,” said Johnson. “We mesh well and work hard to achive our goals.”
– Luke Finkel
Men’s Tennis
The tennis team closed the season on a high note after a shaky start.
League play this season was all about streaks. After begining 0-2, the team reeled off three straight wins to improve to 3-2. A string of losses spanning from March 19 to April 8 pushed the team back in league standings.
On April 9, the team began to bounce back after winning 9-0 against Livermore and then at Granada two days later.
“I think we had a great season,” said sophomore Nick Spence. “I’m proud of my teammates for the work they put in.”
The team is looking forward to NCS, where hopes of success remain high.
–Eric Yee
Men’s Golf
The men’s golf team entered today’s EBAL tournament tied for sixth after finishing league play 2-12.
After dropping their first nine matches, the Grizzlies strung together a pair of wins by defeating Livermore and Granada on the road.
Cal beat Livermore 213-224 at Wente, and topped Granada 218-227 at Poppy Ridge.
The team also posted a three top 10 finishes in tournaments late in the season, including a seventh-place finish at the Transbay Invitational at Rossmoor Country Club on April 15.
The team fired its tournament low with a score of 407. Junior Ian Rodgers led with way with a round of 4-over 76. Senior Reid Souza shot a 79.
Cal also took sixth at the Aiello Invitational at Discovery Bay Country. Rodgers shot a 77, Souza and junior Kyle Hornsby both shot an 80.
The Grizzlies placed seventh at the Ukiah Invitational with senior Michael Kelly shooting an 81.
– Californian staff
Men’s Lacrosse
The men’s lacrosse team is hovering right around .500 this season with an overall record of 8-7.
The team lost their last game against Granada by a score of 16-10. They also suffered another equally tough loss to Monte Vista by the final score of 10-3. Cal faced Amador Valley (7-7) on Friday after The Californian went to press.
“It’s just been a rough season, and we don’t have enough teamwork,” said freshman Brandon Heinzen.
Although things have been rough for the team this season they are hoping to rebound and redeem themselves with what is left this year.
–Austin Hille
Men’s Volleyball
The men’s volleyball team concluded the season in the middle of the league standings.
This year’s 6-12 overall record, was a regression from last year’s performance.
The team’s biggest win this season came against De La Salle on April 9. Senior Ryan Jensen highlighted the game with 17 kills and three blocks as the team put away the Spartans in the fourth set.
The Grizzlies are looking to improve for the upcoming season, which can include a more developed team.
–Eric Yee
Women’s Lacrosse
The women’s lacrosse team is having a great season with an overall record of 14-3 and a league record of 4-0.
The Grizzlies most recently beat Granada 15-3 on April 19. Junior Nicole Price and senior Arianna Barry both had three goals to lead the team.
If the Grizzlies can continue their success, they have a great chance of making another run at an NCS championship next month. Cal lost to Carondelet in the NCS semifinals last year.
–Alec Bandler
