West Valley earned the #1 NorCal seed and will face defending champion and SoCal #2 Santa Ana Saturday at the 3C2A State Championships at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut.
The Vikings (37-12), the champions of the Coast-South Conference, captured three NorCal playoff rounds to advance to their first state tournament since 2008. Santa Ana (35-13-1) finished tied for second in the Orange Empire Conference with #1 SoCal seed Saddleback (31-17), who will face off against NorCal #2 San Joaquin Delta (34-13) in the other Saturday tilt.
West Valley, under first-year coach Bobby Hill, boasts arguably the most explosive offense in the state. They top the 3C2A in a state-high six offensive categories: batting average (.341), hits (603), RBI (438), runs (470), extra base hits (211), total bases (955) and doubles (133). WVC is 2nd in the state in slugging % (.540) and 3rd in OBP (.444) and home runs (63).
Jayce Dobie (.392, 65 hits, 12 HR, 57 RBI), and Logan Stelling (.357, 11 HR, 57 RBI) anchor the potent Viking attack, along with Alan Ramirez (.374, 9 HR, 53 RBI), James Bose (.380, 45 runs, 35 RBI), Ryan Lordier (.366, 58 runs, 35 RBI) and Dylan Unangst (.335 11 HR, 43 RBI). Stelling, Bose, Lordier and Ramirez each have 71 hits.
Colin Trizuto (10-3, 4.57 ERA) is the ace of the WVC pitching staff, and the Vikings have a shutdown bullpen, with Dillon Haftorson (2-2, 3 SV), Lincoln Juarez (5-2, 3 SV), Will Pires (2 SV) and Grant Selig (3-1, 2 SV) and a team-low 3.15 ERA).
Santa Ana, under 7th-year coach Tom Nilles, won the 2023 3C2A title at Folsom Lake College. Their roster is sophomore-heavy and championship-experienced.
The Dons offense is led by Matthew Dobson, who is batting .326 with 54 RBI, 60 hits and six homers. Jimmy De Anda boasts a .343 average, 68 hits, 45 RBI, seven HR and a team-high 64 runs. Michael Rocha leads the Dons with a .353 average and 71 hits, along with 51 RBI and five homers.
Seven sophomores make up the experienced Dons pitching staff. Jaxton Andeel is 8-2, with a 3.78 ERA and 83 Ks in 83 1/3 innings. Top reliever Joey Iglesias has a 4-1 mark, three saves, a 2.77 ERA, and 59 strikeouts in 52 innings.
The Vikings/Dons game gets underway Saturday at noon, followed by Saddleback/SJ Delta at 6:00pm. For ticketing, lodging, livestream information and more, visit "Tournament Central" at the 3C2A website:
https://3c2asports.org/sports/bsb/2023-24/2024_Baseball_Tourney_HQ
