Sutter routs Bret Harte, advances into second straight semifinal with Hughson
May 9—Jagger Beck struck out nine over five innings while allowing just two hits and Rylan Giovannoni, Jonny Munger and Brady Wickum each had a multi-hit games to lead the third-seeded Sutter Union High baseball team to its first 2024 postseason win, 10-0 (5 innings) over No. 6 Bret Harte, out of Angels Camp, Wednesday on the campus of SUHS.
Sutter (22-6-1) advances into the Sac-Joaquin Section Division V semifinals to take on No. 2 Hughson (26-2) in a 2023 rematch starting Monday in Hughson. Game two is set for Wednesday at the lower seed while a winner-take-all game three will be played (if necessary) on Thursday at the higher seed.
Sutter's offense exploded in the fifth with a five-spot that pushed the lead to 10 and ignited the run-rule. Giovannoni and Trevor Watson each drove home two, while Carson Bishop, Logan Yacavace, Bode Mills and Wickum each added an RBI. Wickum and Ezra Hilleary each doubled, while Yacavace came up with a triple against the Bullfrogs (11-10).
Up next is Hughson, a team Sutter swept in the best-of-three a year ago, 4-1 and 5-3, en route to the SJS D-V final. In game one against the Hughson Huskies, Beck, a junior then, came up big with a complete-game two-hitter with 11 strikeouts to give Sutter the series lead. Jordan Lee and Bishop, just a sophomore last year, each had two hits to spur the attack.
In game two, it was Matt Lorentz and Kasey Combo holding Hughson at bay for six innings while the offense was aided by Wickum's four RBI day on a single-hit. Landon Sable, last year's starting catcher, scored three times in the clincher over Hughson.
This year's Hughson squad is 26-2 and fresh off a 10-0 win over Ben Holt College Prep Academy. The Huskies got four innings from Caleb Wison, a strikeout king with 89 in just over 60 innings. Wison and Max Mankins have been a productive one-two on the hill all year for the Stanislaus County club, with each arm with an under one ERA to lead Hughson.
The other semifinal features No. 1 Bradshaw Christian in a series with No. 4 Summerville starting Monday in Sacramento.
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