Sequoia Ravens’ CCS baseball title defies their No. 8 seed

The Ravens (23-3) went the distance — both figuratively and literally — traveling 70 miles from their Redwood City campus to No. 2 San Benito (17-10) to claim the crown Saturday with an 11-4 victory, marking the second CCS championship in program history and the first since 1994.

“It’s just phenomenal,” Sequoia junior Cole Kenyon said. “It’s the first time we’ve done it in 27 years, and I’m just so glad to be part of this team.”

Kenyon pitched in all three games in the tournament but saved his best outing for last.

The right-hander got summoned from the bullpen early when starting pitcher Dillon Goetz exited due to injury in the second inning. Entering amid a two-on, two-out jam, Kenyon energized his team by retiring the side with a three-pitch strikeout. He went on to work 5 1/3 innings to be the last man standing on the mound when the final out of the championship run was recorded.

Kenyon totaled 8 1/3 innings in the postseason and closed out all three games.

“I definitely wasn’t thinking I was going to pitch this much,” Kenyon said. “But I’m definitely glad I got to be able to do this. Just hands out to our starting pitchers (Goetz and Oliver Montclare) just dealing … and doing an amazing job.”

By the time Kenyon entered the game, Sequoia was already leading 6-2, sparked by a two-run home run in the first inning by senior J.P. Boyle. The Ravens rallied for four more in the second.

When Sequoia manager Mike Doyle had to turn to Kenyon in the bottom of the second with 16 outs left to get in the game, however, there was concern about how much length the burly reliever could give him. Kenyon had pitched more than five innings just once over the regular season.

“I did not (think he’d finish the game),” Doyle said. “And he had the benefit of a couple double plays. We thought we were going to have to pull him in the sixth … but we said let’s try to let him get one more, and he got out of it.”

Kenyon had plenty of room for error in the late innings thanks to the potent Sequoia lineup, which scored early and often. The Ravens added three runs in the fourth, and single runs in the sixth and seventh. Eight different Ravens recorded hits in the game and each of the starting nine reached base.

The Ravens, who hit .367 on the season as a team, recorded a .352 batting average through their three playoff games.

“The chemistry is definitely a big part,” Boyle said. “We’ve been playing together (for a long time). And then we work insanely hard. … Yeah, we grind.”

Senior first baseman Ben Singler had a big two-run single in the second. Sophomore third baseman Jack Lanham tabbed a clutch two-run single in the fourth, followed by an RBI single from senior left fielder Rocky Knuedler. Nick Swee chipped in with an RBI single in the sixth.

“It’s been pretty incredible,” Doyle said. “Sometimes you hit it hard, and you hit at’em balls, you get two outs, and you don’t get the key hit that enables you to break it open. And today it seemed like every time we had a chance to get a big two-out hit, we got it. Everybody on the team from top to bottom contributed today.”

Boyle set the offense in motion, though, finishing with three legs of the cycle, going 3 for 3 with a homer, a double, two walks, three RBIs and three runs scored. He closed his Sequoia career on a 10-game hitting streak and hit .500 (5 for 10) with two homers and six RBIs in the postseason.

“I was so happy for other people to see just how consistently hard he hits the ball,” Doyle said. “The exit velocity off his bat when we’re playing and when we’re practicing is just off the charts. … When you’ve got a kid that’s as tough as J.P. is behind the plate, and he hits like that, it’s such a huge difference for the team. He’s been a leader for us all year.”

When Kenyon ran into trouble in the sixth, he had some margin for error. San Benito’s Justin Cortez (3 for 3) led off with a double then Keon Texeira doubled to drive him in. But when Adrian Ruiz (3 for 3) singled home Texeira, Kenyon found himself one batter away from getting the hook.

“[Doyle] was giving me one more hitter,” Kenyon said. “He had full faith in me though, and I knew my teammates had my back. I just had to let the guy hit it and I knew we had it.”

Kenyon retired the next two hitters to escape the sixth. Then in the seventh, he navigated a one-out infield error to coax consecutive fly outs to Knuedler in left to set off Sequoia’s celebration in the middle of the infield.

“He worked so hard,” Doyle said. “I said: ‘I want you to be on the mound for us to celebrate if we get ’em in the seventh.’ … I was just super proud of his effort and his tenacity and the way he stayed after it.”

Sequoia enjoyed two impressive winning streaks this season. The Ravens opened the year on a 12-game win streak. Then after dropping three straight games in May, they closed the year with 11 consecutive victories.

While Boyle (seven home runs on the year), and Goetz and Singler (five homers each) powered the lineup this season, senior shortstop Kai Holm led the Ravens with 43 hits, tying him for second in the CCS among teams that submit statistics to MaxPreps.com.

Holm is one of 12 graduated seniors on roster, five of whom were in the starting lineup throughout the playoffs.

Oh, what a way to finish their high school careers, though, their last official act under the Sequoia banner, going the distance, raising the CCS trophy on a sun-soaked day in Hollister.

“It feels great,” Holm said. “We worked this whole season and it’s finally here.”