Napa uses key fifth inning rally with good baserunning to beat Sonoma Valley, get first VVAL win in come-from-behind fashion

By Kyle Foster

kfost91197@gmail.com

Twitter/X: @NapaKyle @NapaSportsNews

Often, good baserunning and some timely hitting will win games. It’s one of the fundamentals that, when executed well, will help to win. 

On Thursday afternoon at Mount Field, this is what Napa High did as they beat Sonoma Valley, 5-4, in a Vine Valley Athletic League contest. 

The Grizzlies (5-9 overall, 1-2 VVAL) took their only lead in the fifth when they scored three times. It all began when Drew Herbert singled and Collin Taylor was hit by a pitch. They both came around to score when Camden Aaen sent a single to right field and brought in Herbert and Taylor. He also moved up to second on the throw and got to third when Rocco Capponi singled. 

Napa then took the lead when Capponi acted like he was stealing second and got caught in the base path, which allowed Aaen to score and take the lead. There’s a lot we could do. Earlier in the game, we did not execute a safety squeeze and we had another first and third (situation), and we put on booger this time. It was so well executed that, actually, I didn’t know if Rocco knew that that was the sign or not, because he actually looked at me like he got picked off on accident, which is the whole point.” 

“I have to say as a coach, one of my favorite things is the first and third strategy on both offense and defense,” Napa High head coach Jason Chatham explained. “I think most coaches probably feel the same way.

Before that, the Grizzlies had to get back in the game in the third, where they scored a pair of runs. The rally started when Cillian Shannon singled and then stole second before scoring when Mason Bartlett yanked a double down the right-field line. Bartlett then swiped third before scoring on an error when the backpick throw from the plate went down the left field line. 

“I think that in a 1-0 count you always expecting (a) fastball,” Bartlett said of his key at-bat to get the offense going. “You always got to take a look at the outfield and infield, seeing where they’re playing at, and I looked at right field. I didn’t see anyone covering as much ground as they should be.” 

In the game, Bartlett was 1-for-3 with a double, a run scored, a stolen base, and an RBI. He has been a rock for the Grizzlies all season as the starting shortstop and second batter in the lineup. On top of all of that, the senior is a base stealer as he is now up to 19 stolen bases on the season and has the school record of 25 steals well within sight. 

“Mason Bartlett has really come into his own,” Chatham said of Bartlett’s importance. “I’ve coached this kid since Little League, and in Little League, he used to just run rampant on the bases. And probably shouldn’t say this out loud, but I’m going to anyway. I think Bartlett stole his 19th base today. I think our school records 25 he’s on pace to break the school record for most stolen bases. He’s very good on the bases. And his double that he put down the right field line, that was clutch, man. That was a big RBI, big stolen base, and he put pressure on the defense.”  

Others helping the Napa offensive effort in the game were Capponi (3-for-3, double, stolen base), Herbert (2-for-3, double, run), Aaen (1-for-3, stolen base, run, 2 RBIs), and Shannon (1-for-4, run, 2 RBIs). 

The Grizzlies also got their first league win way earlier than last season, when it took them 9 games to get a win in league play. 

On top of that, this was yet another game where Napa showed their ability to come back from a deficit. 

“I think that when it starts with our batting,” Bartlett said of the ability to fight back in games. “We always start slow, but then the last three or four innings, we always come back. So I think starting off strong in the first two or first three brought that momentum into the last four (innings).”

Sonoma Valley (2-11, 0-3 VVAL) opened the scoring in the first when Austin Hughes walked and scored when Dylan Hudspeth walked with the bases loaded. 

They also scored a pair of runs in the third when Colin Buckley singled and scored when Cayden Waldrop reached on an error and got to second on the play. Waldrop scored when Hudspeth singled. 

The Dragons scored their final run of the game in the fourth when Henry Foster struck out and reached, and then got to second on a wild pitch. He then scored on a wild pitch.  

Getting the win on the hill for Napa was Mason Rozalski. He worked the final 2 ⅔ innings and struck out 6. He also allowed 3 hits on 39 pitches. This was the junior right-hander’s first win of the season, too. 

“The last couple (of) outings Mason Rozalski has done a really good job on the mound,” Chatham pointed out. “He has been nails. He’s been excellent on the mound. His strike percentage (in) the last couple innings is pretty high, and he was very competitive. One thing that we’ve noticed about him is that when his tempo was right, when he finds his balance point, when he takes a deep breath between pitches, some of those little things that he needs to do, if he does it consistently, he’s in the zone quite often.” 

The two teams will meet again on Monday at 6 pm at Arnold Field in Sonoma. It will be a makeup game on Tuesday, which was postponed due to rain. 

In other VVAL action Thursday, Vintage beat American Canyon 13-2 in 6 innings, and Petaluma beat Justin-Siena 7-3.