Justin-Siena prevails in extra inning thriller over Napa to pick up first win in league play
By Kyle Foster
Twitter: @NapaKyle @NapaSportsNews
You truly never know what’s going to happen in a baseball game. It can be filled with so many different plot twists and turns, which means an emotional roller coaster of a ride.
The thing is this is how it goes in the Vine Valley Athletic League where games are hard to win. All of this was true on Friday afternoon at Mount Field as Justin-Siena edged host Napa, 6-4, in an eight-inning thriller.
With the game tied in the top of the eighth, the Braves (5-2 overall, 1-0 VVAL) took the lead that won the game where they scored twice. Everet Johnson walked before going to second on a wild pitch and moving to third on a wild pitch and then scoring on a sacrifice fly by Jason Gray. Luke Giusto was hit by a pitch and also got to second on the sacrifice bunt before scoring on Sam Denkin’s single.
“I wouldn’t say so much is adjustments. It might be the opposite,” Justin-Siena manager Jeremy Tayson said of the tough at-bats his team gave in the game. “We just stay the course, guys grind out at-bats, and we know that good things are going to happen if we continue to go deep into counts and foul off tough pitches and force them to come back to our barrel.”
Justin-Siena also scored twice in the fourth. Johnson and Jake Fletcher reached by way of a single and a walk. Johnson got to third after a passed ball and a balk while Fletcher swiped second. Both came in on a Denkin’s single into the left-center gap.
“I feel like those first few runs really helped us gain that confidence to just keep our energy where it is and just go from there, and just play the game,” Justin-Siena junior utility player Sam Denkin said. “Having confidence I think is a big key for our team and if we have that we’re playing well.”
They also scored once in the first when Giusto brought in Dalen Tinsley who had singled and advanced on a wild pitch and a stolen base.
Justin-Siena scored one other time in the seventh when Drew Sangiacomo singled and was pinch ran for by Emrys Davies who got to third after a pair of bad pickoff attempts before scoring on a single by Henry Meyers.
Leading the Braves’ effort at the plate were Denkin (2-for-4 3 RBIs), Johnson (1-for-3 2 runs), Giusto (1-for-3 RBI), and Tinsley (1-for-4 run).
Napa (1-5, 0-2 VVAL) roared back to tie it up in the seventh by scoring four times. Graham Chapuris doubled to left-center before getting to third on a wild pitch and then scoring on yet another wild pitch. Noah Massey walked and then got to third on a pair of wild pitches and scored on a single by Collin Taylor. Taylor scored along with pinch runner Carson Goodrich who ran for Drew Herbeter after he walked on a Mason Bartlett single.
“So here’s the thing, I thought their pitcher did a really good job of throwing strikes. We know that. Everybody in the lineup, everybody on both teams, everybody in the stands knew that guy was throwing strikes. He was throwing very well,” Napa skipper Jason Chatham explained. “What I’m proud of our guys for is that they didn’t let that moment when you’re down for runs are getting no hit. They didn’t let that moment just become the end of the game. They said there’s more to it. There’s another chapter to this book.”
The Grizzlies were led at the plate by Chapouris (2-for-4 double, run), Collin Taylor (1-for-3 RBI, run), Cameron Taylor (1-for-3), Logan Draper (1-for-3), and Bartlett (1-for-4 2 RBIs).
Getting the win in the game was junior righty of Giusto. In 1 ⅓ innings of work, he struck out 2 with no walks in 22 pitches.
Starting and getting a no-decision was Johnson who was marvelous. The junior right-hander worked 6 ⅔ innings throwing 100 pitches while striking out 8 and walking just 2. He gave up four earned runs after carrying a no-hit bid into the seventh.
“He was just doing his thing, and he was just working,” Denkin said of Johnson’s effort. “He works every day and I can clearly see that out on the field today. He was super dominant just showing how confident he is and how he’s been working in the offseason.”
Taking the loss in the game was Trent Adams. He worked 4 ⅔ inning while throwing 62 pitches in this one striking out 3 and walking 2. He also gave up three runs, with two of them being earned.
Cameron Taylor started the game for Napa and left with a no-decision. He struck out 5 and walked just two over 3 ⅓ innings throwing 71 pitches. The senior right-handed pitcher allowed three earned runs as well.
“Cam Taylor does not like to identify as a pitcher,” Chatham said. “He keeps letting me know because ‘I’m not a pitcher coach. I’m not a pitcher.’ But when you throw (in the) upper 80s with two nasty off-speed pitches, you’re a pitcher. So we put him out there and we tried to get him into a better routine, a pitcher routine. He’s going to hate that, but we forced him into a pitcher routine. We had them throw the first inning down in the bullpen. We scripted the first inning. Everything he threw in the first inning was scripted in the bullpen.”
Both teams will now continue VVAL play next week as they try to maneuver around the weather. Justin-Siena will host Casa Grande on Monday at 4:30 pm. As for Naoa, they’re scheduled to visit Vintage for the first Big Game on Tuesday at 4 pm, weather pending.
In other VVAL games on Friday, Vintage beat Sonoma Valley 3-0 and Casa Grande beat American Canyon 6-4. You can view the league standings here.
Braves continue VVAL success at Mount Field
Baseball can be bizarre in so many ways and yet you can find so many interesting stats that make no sense no matter how you see them.
One of those is the fact that the teams have now played four league games at Mount Field, which has seen Justin-Siena win every single game there.
“I think that our guys know that Napa does a good job over there and they’re not going to go away,” Tayson said of the rivalry. “So we’re ready to compete and let baseball have the last say so.”
However, the catch to this is that the majority of the time Napa has won when they’ve visited Justin-Siena. The lone time this didn’t happen was during the Spring 2021 season. These teams always play interesting games. The Braves now lead the VVAL series 6-3 with another meeting coming on April 18th.
