Capuchino leans on San Bruno community for softball success

When Capuchino softball coaches Tanya and Steve Borghello got infected with COVID, it kept them out of the dugout for the Central Coast Section opener May 21.

Tanya Borghello said the couple was at the end of the 10-day recovery cycle when the second-seeded Mustangs cruised past No. 7 Gunn, 7-1.

“We were just waiting to test negative,” Borghello said. “We relied heavily on our San Bruno community (to help out in the dugout).”

Longtime Capuchino assistant Buddy Wolf moved into the head coach’s role and he was assisted by Bryan Verna, a longtime member of the San Bruno youth sports community.

The Borghellos were back in the dugout Wednesday as the Mustangs defeated Peninsula Athletic League rival Hillsdale 1-0 to return to the CCS championship game for the first time since winning it all in 2011.

The Mustangs (19-9) will take on No. 8 Monterey (20-8-1) at 12:30 p.m. Saturday at PAL Stadium in San Jose.

It’s the spirit of community within San Bruno that has helped push Capuchino’s softball success over the years. The Mustangs were a Central Coast Section super power in the 1990s, winning Division III titles from 1993 to 1997 under Kyle Brumbaugh. The program added a sixth title under Todd Grammatico in 2011 and the Mustangs have made finals appearances three other times: 1999, 2002 and 2010.

Only Carlmont has a longer and more distinguished CCS resume in the Peninsula Athletic League.

Borghello is part of that San Bruno fabric with her family’s involvement in San Bruno youth softball. So the paths of the Capuchino coaching staff and their players connected at a young age so there was no surprise to see the emergence of Nohemi Livingston as one of the best two-way players in the CCS.

“Having been in San Bruno my whole adult life, I’ve helped run San Bruno softball. Most of the girls we’ve had come through the (Capuchino) program, we’ve crossed paths with (at the youth level),” said Borghello, who has been with the Capuchino program for the last 11 season, the last five as head coach.

“Nohemi was one of those kids. … We’ve known the family a long time.”

Livingston was, essentially, the Capuchino pitching staff this season, pitching 154 1/3 of 184 total innings played by the Mustangs this year. She went 17-6 with a 2.18 ERA, with 149 strikeouts and just 32 walks.

“Being a pitcher takes a special personality. Some days, your team shows up, plays good defense, scores a lot of runs. But there are some games your team won’t show up and you can’t score any runs and the pressure of the game goes crazy,” Borghello said. “She seemed to get calmer as the game went on Wednesday (against Hillsdale). … I never felt one ounce of nerves … and [Livingston] is the leader of that.

“If your pitcher can maintain that calm in the circle, I think it casts out to the rest of the players.”

Livingston’s dominance in the circle extends to the plate as well, where she is among the team leaders in all offensive categories. She is batting .372, has a team-leading seven home runs and has an OPS of 1.192.

Monterey presents a similar two-way threat in freshman Ella Myers, who is a big reason the Toreadores are in the CCS championship game for the first time since 1996 — when they lost 5-4 to Capuchino.

More recently, the two faced off in a tournament game April 2, with Monterey coming away with a 2-1 win.

Borghello doesn’t put that much stock in that game from nearly two months ago.

“We’re a different team. They’re a different team,” Borghello said.

Myers didn’t pitch in that game but did have a double offensively. A week later, Myers took the circle in a 4-1 win over Hillsdale, striking out 11.

Overall, Myers has pitched a little more than half the innings for the ’Dores this season, compiling an 11-5 record, with a 3.25 ERA, 128 strikeouts and 16 walks.

She has been on a roll in CCS. In a 10-0, first-round, mercy-rule win over top-seeded Watsonville, Myers went the distance, allowing three hits and striking out five.

In a 4-1 semifinal win over No. 4 Valley Christian, Myers allowed only four hits, striking out six more.

Offensively, Myers is one of the top home run hitters in the section with 11. She is third on the team in batting average at .422 and leads the team with 36 RBIs.

None of which really concerns Borghello.

“I haven’t really even taken a look (at what Monterey has done),” Borghello said. “At this point, it’s on the girls. It’s who shows up. We’ve come has far as whatever team we’re playing.”

Division I

No. 4 Notre Dame-Belmont (19-1) vs. No. 3 Alvarez (23-3)

The Tigers and Eagles meet at 12:30 p.m. Saturday at West Valley College. … NDB beat No. 5 Branham 7-2 and No. 8 Silver Creek 2-1 to advance to the finals. … The Tigers are looking for the fourth title in program history. They won it in 1977, 2007 and 2009. Current NDB head coach Kelly McDonald played on the 2007 championship team. … Alvarez got past No. 6 Sequoia 5-4 in the first round and beat No. 7 Westmont 2-0 in the semis. … The Eagles’ two CCS wins this season surpass the previous school total. Since 1995, the school’s inception, the Eagles were 1-4 in CCS coming into the 2022 playoffs. … This is Alvarez’s first-ever championship softball game appearance.

Division III

No. 1 Carlmont (15-11) vs. No. 2 Salinas (18-7)

The Scots and Cowboys meet at 3 p.m. Saturday at PAL Stadium in San Jose. … Carlmont beat No. 8 Gonzalez 7-5 and No. 5 Soquel 1-0 to reach the championship game. … This is the Scots’ first title game appearance since 2016. … Carlmont has won eight CCS titles, the last coming in 2014. The Scots have appeared in a total of 13 CCS finals since 1976. … Salinas beat No. 7 North Monterey County 5-4 and No. 6 Live Oak 8-1 in the semifinals. … Salinas’ lone CCS championship came in 1998. The Cowboys made the playoffs in 2017, 2018 and 2019, going 1-3 in that span.