Aptos High was ousted from the Central Coast Section baseball playoffs in heartbreaking fashion following a walk-off 7-6 loss in nine innings to top seed Menlo School in the Division III semifinals at Santa Clara University on May 26.
James Riley, a freshman, finished with a team-best three hits, including one double, two RBIs and two runs scored in the near upset for the No. 5 Mariners.
Teammate junior Cole McGillicuddy had two hits, including one double, one RBI and two runs scored, while sophomore Damien Espinoza had one double and a pair of RBIs.
In the third, Reilly hit an RBI single that gave Aptos its first lead of the game at 3-2. Finn Cormier followed up with an RBI single that drove in Reilly, extending the lead by two.
Junior pitcher Alec Mendoza started on the mound for Aptos, which was coming off a 3-1 win against No. 4 Sacred Heart Prep in the quarterfinals on May 23. He allowed a pair of runs in the first two innings, but he seemed to settle in as the game progressed.
In the bottom of the third with one out, Mendoza got into a jam with runners on first and second base. He struck out one batter and forced another to hit into a fielder’s choice to second base for the out.
The Mariners had a 5-3 lead going into the seventh inning until the Knights chipped away, knocking in a pair of runs to tie it at 5-all to force extra innings.
Aptos retook the lead in the ninth frame but Menlo responded with two more runs for the walk-off victory.
Aptos, runner-up in the Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League, finished the 2026 spring campaign with a 14-9 overall record.
No. 1 San Mateo 8, No. 5 St. Francis 4: A late rally in the seventh inning wasn’t enough for the Sharks after they faced a large deficit against the Bearcats in the D-V semifinals at Santa Clara University on May 27.
The Sharks were coming off a 9-7 win against No. 4 Live Oak in the quarterfinals on May 23.
St. Francis, fifth place finishers in the Pacific Coast Athletic League’s Gabilan Division, finished the 2026 spring campaign with a 9-19-1 overall record.
High school softball
No. 7 Alisal 2, No. 3 Aptos 0: Abigail Walker tossed a complete game shutout for the Trojans to stun the Mariners in the D-I semifinals at Hollister High School on May 26.
Walker allowed two hits while tallying four strikeouts for Alisal, which plays No. 4 Hillsdale in the finals on Saturday at 12:30pm.
Alisal jumped ahead in the first inning following a two-run home run by Brooklyn Smith. They never looked back as both teams battled back-and-forth in a pitcher’s duel that favored the lower seed.
Aptos junior Mya Najera-White allowed two runs on two hits while recording seven strikeouts in seven innings of work in the circle. Teammates junior Kalina Healy and sophomore Gwen Vaca each had one base hit.
SCCAL champion Aptos, which went unbeaten in league play at 15-0, finished the 2026 spring campaign with a 23-5 overall record.
At No. 1 Notre Dame 3, No. 8 Watsonville 1: The Wildcatz were eliminated from the postseason following a narrow loss to the Tigers in the D-IV quarterfinals on May 23.
Watsonville, which placed fifth in the PCAL’s Gabilan Division, finished the 2026 spring campaign with a 3-18-1 overall record.
Boys swimming
MVC’s Alanis wins twice: Monte Vista Christian sophomore Easton Alanis won twice in the Para Division at the CCS Swimming and Diving Championships at Independence High on May 9.
The Mustang swimmer was victorious in the 50- and 100-yard freestyle, winning the races in 30.63 seconds and 1 minute, 10.08 seconds, respectively.
Alanis qualified for the California Interscholastic Federation State Swimming and Diving Championships at Clovis West High, but he was unable to attend.
Girls swimming
Aptos’ Friedley competes in finals: Aptos junior Adelaide Friedley was a finalist in two events at the CCS Swimming and Diving Championships at Independence High on May 9.
Friedley placed 11th overall in the 100-yard breaststroke in 1:05.36, and took 12th in the 50-yard freestyle in 24.21.
Boys volleyball
Mount Madonna shines in D-II playoffs: The No. 4 seed Hawks battled until the very end but it was No. 2 Carmel that came up victorious in five sets 25-17, 28-26, 19-25, 23-25, 15-12 in the D-II semifinals on May 14.
Mt. Madonna’s Nikowa D’Costa Hemp led the way with a team-best 31 kills and six aces, while teammate David Monclus added 25 kills.
In the fifth set, the Padres took a 7-1 lead behind their strong blocking. Yet, the Hawks clawed back to within one point at 11-10.
Mt. Madonna couldn’t stop the high hitting of Carmel, getting outscored 4-2 to end the match.
The Hawks were coming off a win against No. 5 Hillsdale in four sets 25-19, 21-25, 25-22, 25-22 in the quarterfinals on May 12. D’Costa Hemp led the Hawks with 28 kills, while Monclus added 25 kills.
Solomon Coleman finished with 48 assists and served for a team high 15 points.
Mt. Madonna defeated No. 13 University Prep in five sets 27-29, 20-25, 25-12, 25-22, 15-12 in the teams’ playoff-opener on May 11.
D’Costa Hemp led the Hawks with 33 kills, Monclus had 26 kills and Coleman tallied a team-best 60 assists.
“I’m so proud of our team for showing the resilience to come back from down two sets,” Mt. Madonna head coach PK McDonald said. “Awesome team effort against a very talented and well coached University Prep Team.”
Mt. Madonna, which placed third in the SCCAL standings, finished the 2026 spring campaign with an 18-14 overall record.
