Cherokees bring home Birdman Bats Summer Series championship

While Sequoia head baseball coach Mike Doyle managed the Cherokees throughout the regular season, he was one of several high school-affiliated coaches disallowed from coaching over the past week due to the Central Coast Section dead period, prohibiting high school coaches from communicating with students for a two-week span. So, Doyle called upon recent Sequoia graduate Jack Lanham to helm the team through the postseason.

“It’s always good to end your season with a win,” Lanham said. “It’s the best way to go about it. And the guys were definitely fired up today. They had lost to these guys before. There’s a little bit of pride in taking one to them.”

SLU entered the day undefeated on the Birdman Bats season, while the Cherokees had lost just once — to SLU on a beleaguered Monday, following a sweltering weekend tournament in Sutter. Sunday’s title game was a different story, as the Cherokees, rallying for three runs in the top of the first, certainly came out energized.

“I think we just were rested and ready,” said Morgan Winfield, the Cherokees’ No. 3 hitter who went 4 for 4 with two doubles, two RBIs and two runs scored in the win. “It was a championship game, and our mindset was good. We just played well.”

Four pitchers, including Winfield, combined on a one-hitter. Winfield worked three shutout innings of relief, and combined with starting pitcher Dylan Karmin for six innings of no-hit ball. The Cherokees carried the no-no through 6 2/3 innings until SLU’s Aidan O’Driscoll, facing Cherokees right-hander Dylan Hymer, roped a clean single to left field in the seventh.

O’Driscoll was one of two additions to SLU’s postseason roster, having played the regular season with PenCities.

“It was a two-strike count, he threw me an inside fastball and I was just able to get a piece of it and hit it over the third baseman’s head,” O’Driscoll said. “It felt pretty good because I was struggling in the beginning of the game. And, yeah, it felt good to not be the last out.”

The Cherokees led the whole way, jumping in front 3-0 in the top of the first when cleanup hitter Cam Abrams stepped to the plate with the bases loaded and promptly drilled a three-run triple into the right-field corner.

“It was just a nice fastball inside, that’s what I’m looking for,” Abrams said. “I saw it and just exploded on the ball.”

SLU scratched out a run in the bottom of the first by virtue of a strikeout-wild pitch and three walks, with Brody Crudeli drawing the free pass with the bases loaded to make it 3-1.

But the Cherokees added on with a run in the third on an RBI double from Gavin Reynick. Then in the fifth, the Cherokees broke through, sending 12 batters to the plate amid a six-run explosion, highlighted by an RBI single from Drew Ostrander and a two-run single from Winfield. The Cherokees scored once more in the seventh on a sacrifice fly by Abrams, giving him four RBIs on the day.

Cherokees shortstop Vinnie “O-G” Olinger-Giani played a smooth game defensively, and helped keep SLU hitless into the seventh. Olinger-Giani recorded four infield assists, the most dazzling of which opened the fourth inning. A high chopper to the the left side off the bat of Crudeli saw Olinger-Giani charge hard to corral a short-hop, then complete the play with a fine running throw off his back foot.

“He’s just a unit at shortstop,” Winfield said. “You’re not expecting an error at all, so it’s just clean with him.”

The second baseman, Ostrander, also took a hit away from SLU. Julio Calderon led off the fifth with a sharp liner that looked destined for right field, but Ostrander got a quick first step and ranged left to spear it on the outfield grass.

It was a strange no-hit bid, however, as SLU had runners on base throughout. Cherokees pitchers issued 10 walks and a hit batsman, and recorded just one 1-2-3 inning in the game. SLU stranded 10 baserunners throughout.

Karmin earned the win, working three innings, while allowing one unearned run, walking six and striking out four.

Winfield’s outing was his second pitching appearance of the playoffs. He was the starting pitcher in Wednesday’s win over the SF Rascals, when he threw 45 pitches. In Saturday’s semifinals against the SF Mustangs, Abrams turned in a gem, throwing 103 pitches to earn the complete-game victory.

“Cam was on fire yesterday,” Lanham said. “Strikeout after strikeout. Lots of swings and misses. He did really well.”

SLU — helmed by manager Mitchell Swanson, who began working with the San Mateo-based baseball club as a baseball camp counselor when he was 13 — finishes the summer campaign with a 12-1 record.

“Very appreciative of the time coming out here and spending their summers,” Swanson said of his players. “I know there’s better things to be doing with their families; they could be taking vacations. But I appreciate them coming out here and working to get better.”