Two heavy hitters who made the cut are Jake Holton of Los Gatos and Destini Bullock from Helix of La Mesa. Photos: Mark Van Belleghem & Tony Bordine/EastCountySports.com.
Going up against Wonderful College Prep Academy or Realm Charter pays off for two of our softball honor roll members as they each went 5-for-5 with seven RBI. It usually doesn’t produce a stat star-worthy outing when facing a foe that was No. 1 in the state from the previous season, but it did for Ian Villers, a sophomore pitcher from Northgate of Walnut Creek.
Note: Writeups this week mostly for games played through April 30 also by Paul Muyskens & CIF Central Section historian Bob Barnett. We also will collect totals from MaxPreps, newspapers, tweets and from those sent in to us. We also will compile single-game highs from this post throughout the season and of course we use our weekly State Stat Stars collection as an aid for the Cal-Hi Sports State Record Book. That is the only state record book anyone has ever done and we have published it seven times with full copyright protection. To report totals to us for this feature and for the record book, email markjtennis@gmail.com or call 209-608-1317. You can also text to 209-608-1317.
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BASEBALL
Zack Bushling (Kern Valley, Lake Isabella)
An outstanding three-sport athlete, Bushling smacked a
grand slam and scored three times to lead the Broncos past Bishop Union 15-4. Bushling also raised his season total to eight home runs.
Look for details soon on exciting, new way for every stat star and all-state player to be able to order their own highlight video.
Trenton Denholm & Jake Cross (Oak Ridge, El Dorado Hills)
Unlike one no-hitter streak that has been getting attention at a small school, the Trojans got two in a row against much tougher competition. Denholm and Cross, both juniors, pitched their back-to-back no-hitters against Del Oro of Loomis. Denholm was one walk away from a perfect game when he pitched the first no-hitter with eight strikeouts in a 2-0 win before Cross followed with a no-hitter of his own with 10 strikeouts in a 4-0 win.
Kellen Gerig (Big Valley, Bieber)
A CIF Northern Section player to watch, Gerig went 3-for-3 with three runs scored, a triple and five RBI in a 23-0 victory over Happy Camp. That was part of a doubleheader and in the second game Gerig went 2-for-2 with two doubles.
Jake Holton (Los Gatos)
In a 20-7 victory by the Wildcats over their arch-rivals from Saratoga, Holton homered in the first and third innings and finished 3-for-5 with two runs scored and four RBI. Holton also was the winning pitcher. Last year as a junior, he hit .340 with 26 RBI and went 9-2 with a 1.68 ERA for a team that made it into the CIF Central Coast Section title round.
Albert Hsiao (Leland, San Jose)
While his numbers aren’t huge, it’s when Hsiao came through that was key. First, he hit a two-run walk-off double in a 2-1 win over Lincoln of San Jose and later in the week he hit a go-ahead two-run homer in the top of the 11th inning of a 3-1 win over Westmont of Campbell.
Kevin Jacobs (San Mateo)
Not only did he hit a home run in three straight games, but Jacobs also pitched a complete-game one-hitter in a win over Jefferson of Daly City.
Ryan Kearney (Trabuco Hills, Mission Viejo)
In a game that featured 21 runs, Kearney led the way with two home runs and seven runs batted in when the Mustangs defeated Dana Hills of Dana Point 11-10.
Nolan Martinez (Culver City)
Getting the start against Santa Monica in Ocean League play, he allowed just one hit while striking out seven during a 3-0 win by the Centaurs.
JSerra’s Collin Quinn delivers a pitch at Angels Stadium earlier this season. Photo: ProspectPipeline.
Brendon Nelson (Sutter)
It’s been a great couple of weeks for Nelson and the Huskies, who clinched their sixth straight Butte View League title. On the mound, Nelson tossed a pair of shutouts in wins of 11-0 over Las Plumas of Oroville and 9-0 over Orland. He gave up just two hits in both games and struck out 10 and 12, respectively. At the plate, Nelson went 4-for-5 with a homer and six RBI in a 20-9 win vs. Valley Christian of Roseville and this week in the shutout of Orland he also went 3-for-3 with a double, triple and four RBI.
Alex Neustaedtar (Beverly Hills)
The senior outfielder had gotten hits in every game for the Normans this season except two and was hitting .591 for the season midway through this week. In last week’s game, Neustaedtar went 2-for-3 in a 3-2 win vs. Lawndale and then 2-for-2 with two runs scored and a double in a 9-6 victory over Lawndale.
Elijah Pascual (Garces, Bakersfield)
In a 12-6 triumph by the Rams over Liberty of Bakersfield, Pascual collected three hits in three at-bats and had a career high total of six RBI.
Collin Quinn (JSerra Catholic, San Juan Capistrano)
No stranger to being listed here, Quinn improved to 8-0 with a 0.90 ERA after he allowed just two hits and struck six in a 1-0 win over Orange Lutheran. Heading into last week, the Lancers were ranked No. 2 overall in the state.
A.J. Real (Sunnyside, Fresno)
Obviously, A.J. was the Real Deal when he threw the first no-hitter of his career in a 3-0 victory last week vs. Hoover of Fresno. Real pitched all seven inning and had 10 strikeouts.
Drew Rodriguez (Yuba City)
He helped the Honkers earn three wins last week, mostly on the mound but also at the plate. In a 9-1 victory vs. Rio Linda, Rodriguez went 2-for-3 with one run and one RBI. He also had two RBI in a 5-1 triumph vs. River City of West Sacramento and went 2-for-3 in a 11-1 win vs. River City. On the mound, Rodriguez gave up three hits and struck out eight in the 9-1 win. In he previous start, he had a three-hitter with eight strikeouts in a seven-inning 1-0 shutout of Sacramento Inderkum.
Brennan Rubin (San Diego Jewish Academy)
In a game from two weeks ago, Rubin struck out 18 batters and gave up just one hit in seven innings, but it came in a 1-0 loss to Calipatria. In his next start against Maranatha Christian, Rubin pitched a two-hitter and had 14 strikeouts as the Lions won 5-0.
Nick Scheidler (La Costa Canyon, Carlsbad)
Getting the start in game one of the Mavericks’ three games against Rancho Buena Vista of Vista, he had no room for error in a 1-0 win as he allowed just three hits while striking out eight during a complete-game shutout performance.
Ian Villers (Northgate, Walnut Creek)
We don’t recall hearing that the State Team of the Year from a previous season has been no-hit. That happened to College Park of Pleasant Hill last week and Villers, just a sophomore, was the one to do it. In the 7-0 win, Villers walked two and struck out four in his no-hitter. He also had a home run and three RBI at the plate.
SOFTBALL
Hailey Arteaga (Webb, Claremont)
Senior captain just had her stats pop up on MaxPreps, which probably got sparked by what she did in a 37-0 romp that lasted five innings against La Verne Lutheran. Arteaga went 3-for-4 in that game with one homer, one triple and eight RBI. She’s already had two 4-for-4 outings on the season and already has a 3-for-3 showing from earlier this week.
Look for details soon on exciting, new way for every stat star and all-state player to be able to order their own highlight video.
Holly Azevedo (Pioneer, San Jose)
A big reason the Mustangs are moved back inside our Cal-Hi Sports Top 20 state rankings is the pitching of this standout. Azevedo had two games last week that saw her strike out 15 batters and 17 batters, respectively, in leading the Mustangs past Mt. Pleasant of San Jose (3-2 in 10 innings) and San Benito of Hollister (2-1).
Linda Brown (La Jolla)
The junior infielder banged out a pair of homers and added a triple in a 6-5 win over San Diego Mission Bay. This game one week after she went 4-for-4 in a game. Heading into this week, Brown was batting .526 on the season.
Destini Bullock (Helix, La Mesa)
With teammate Victoria Cyman also starring in a five-inning no-hitter, Bullock was the Highlanders’ star at the plate in their 17-0 romp vs. El Cajon Valley. She went 3-for-3 in the game with a grand slam homer and five RBI. It was the junior’s second grand slam of the season and her eighth homer in all.
Maddy Byrd (Cypress)
She pitched her second no-hitter this season as the Tabor College-bound standout allowed just two walks while striking out eight in a 1-0 win over Kennedy of La Palma.
Alexis Cervantes (Arleta)
She’s won 20 games in the circle for the Mustangs, including 18-0 and 20-0 five-inning shutouts last week vs. Grant of Van Nuys and Monroe of Sepulveda. Cervantes gave up one hit in the first game and had a two-hitter with 10 strikeouts in the second. She also had five RBI at the plate in the two outings.
Maddy Dwyer (Lutheran, Orange)
Not only did this Stanford-bound contender for State Player of the Year pitch another shutout but she also drove in two runs in a 7-0 win over Rosary Academy of Fullerton.
Kristina Garcia & Linnay Wilson (Coalinga)
Garcia went 2-for-3 at the plate, one of those hits going for a triple, and had a game high five RBI in a 20-0 win over Avenal. Wilson threw a no-hitter with 11 strikeouts and was 2-for-3 on hits with four RBI.
Kristina Inouye of Huntington Beach will play next at Stanford. Photo: Nadia Martinez/OCSidelines.com.
Kristina Inouye (Huntington Beach)
Another Stanford-bound state stat star performer, Inouye blasted two home runs in a 6-5 win over Fountain Valley.
Irieanne Naea (Pacifica, Garden Grove)
Committed to Cal State Fullerton, she also hit two home runs to lead the Mariners past Valencia of Placentia 9-0.
Ashlyn Rempp (Laton)
She had a career day at the plate as she went 5-for-5 with seven RBI in a 21-0 win over Wonderful College Prep Academy. Three of Rempp’s hits were doubles and she also scored four times.
Paige Sellick (Valley Christian, Dublin)
Not sure what Realm Charter of Berkeley is, but Valley Christian (a school we have heard of) beat Realm Charter 24-8 last week in a game in which Sellick went 5-for-5 with four runs scored and seven RBI. She also a homer and double. She also had seven RBI in a game earlier this season vs. Oakland Military Institute.
Vanessa Taukeiaho (Etiwanda)
Among the state leaders in home runs, Taukeiaho extended her home run streak to four games when she hit two home runs and drove in six in a 20-3 win over Los Osos of Rancho Cucamonga. During her home run hitting streak, she also has hit six home runs and drove in 15 runs in all. For the season after the Los Osos game, Taukeiaho had 17 home runs and 51 runs batted in.
Mark Tennis is the co-founder and publisher of CalHiSports.com. He can be reached at markjtennis@gmail.com. Don’t forget to follow Mark on the Cal-Hi Sports Twitter handle: @CalHiSports
