Serra Padres win ‘Battle for Atherton’

Sophomore slugger William Walbridge delivered the biggest swing of the tournament, breaking a 1-1 tie in the top of the eighth with an RBI double to left-center to drive home senior Evan Bradshaw. The Padres went on to score five runs in the inning to break it open before senior relief pitcher Ian Josephson closed it out with his third inning of work in the bottom of the inning.

“It was really fun to open the season with a tournament and then get matched up with a Los Gatos team that is a very, very quality program,” Padres manager Mat Keplinger said. “From an intensity standpoint, it felt like it was a playoff game.”

Los Gatos (2-1) struck first in the bottom of the third when junior Will Temple connected for his first varsity home run, a solo shot to make it 1-0. It was the only blemish for Serra starter Richie Calderon, who was tasked with working one time through the Los Gatos batting order, this after the Wildcats scored 23 runs through the first two games of the tourney against M-A and Menlo.

After throwing three perfect innings of relief in the tournament opener against Menlo School, Calderon worked three innings Saturday, allowing one run on two hits while striking out three.

“He did a really good job of pitching backwards” Keplinger said. “Pitched inside a lot, and his changeup was great. ... Solo homers won’t beat you, and he got right back in there.”

The Padres answered right back, with senior Jack Armstrong producing a two-out RBI single to tie it 1-all.

Junior right-hander Nate Hui followed with two shutout innings, dancing through fire after the first two batters he faced reached via a hit batsman and a walk. Armstrong, his catcher, then helped bail him out of trouble when an ensuing bunt attempt was popped into foul territory. Armstrong pounced to make a diving catch for the inning’s first out.

“That was a big momentum shifter,” Keplinger said.

Hui escaped the jam by striking out the next two batters. In the fifth, he surrendered back-to-back two-out singles, but left them stranded after his fifth strikeout of the day.

Josephson went three scoreless frames to close it out and earn the victory, his first win since April 21, 2023 of his sophomore season. The right-hander allowed one hit and one walk while striking out five.

Josephson nearly broke the 1-1 tie in the seventh, coming to the plate with a runner on third and two outs. The Padres’ leadoff hitter smoked a line drive to right, but directly at the Los Gatos right fielder to end the inning.

Bradshaw led off the top of the eighth inning with a walk and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by No. 3 hitter Davis Minton. Then Walbridge stepped up for his “I am William Wallace!” moment and delivered an RBI single to left-center, that saw two Los Gatos outfielders collide on the play. The two outfielders remained in the game.

From there, the Padres broke it open with their biggest inning of the season to date.

Serra pitchers allowed just two runs in the tournament, opening with a 4-1 win at Menlo last Tuesday, and traveling to Sacred Heart Prep last Thursday for a 6-0 win, with starting pitcher Riley Lim and relievers Hui and Danny Dinelli combining on a no-hitter. It is the first of two three-game weeks to start the season for the Padres, who host Capuchino, Lincoln-Stockton and St. Mary’s-Stockton over a four-day stretch starting Wednesday.

“Having a three-game week last week and we have another three game-week this week, so it’s really good opportunity for us to learn about our pitching staff,” Keplinger said.

The Padres currently have nine available pitchers, with a 10th working his way back. While Lim and opening-day starter Kelley Crawford figure into the starting rotation going forward, they are projected to be joined by Minton by the start of West Catholic Athletic League play, opening March 18.

“It’s somewhat uncharted waters with [Crawford and Lim],” Keplinger said, “but again, we felt really good about their development as sophomores leading into this season as juniors.”

Serra pitchers currently tout a 0.32 ERA, allowing six hits through 22 innings of work.

In the tournament’s consolation games — all Saturday at Menlo School — Scotts Valley (1-2) won 7-0 over Sacred Heart Prep (1-2), while M-A (2-1) won 4-0 over Menlo (0-3).

Josephson was named the tournament MVP.

All-tournament team selections were: Josephson, Minton, Lim and Tyler Harrison from Serra; Temple, Brady Simon, and Rowen Smith from Los Gatos; Merrick Lee from M-A; Monte Jordan from Scotts Valley; and Thomas Moldow of Sacred Heart Prep.