Five days after falling one run short in a high-scoring, back and forth matchup in Fairfield, the Pioneer High School varsity baseball team had a shot at redemption to begin the Division III CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Playoffs.
Last Friday, Vanden scored 5 unanswered runs to conclude the regular season with a 10-9 victory against the Patriots. That game decided home field advantage as the Vikings (13-11) earned the No. 8 seed in D3 while Pioneer was ranked ninth. Tuesday afternoon’s postseason opener being in Fairfield ultimately didn’t matter as the Patriots (22-6) prevailed 5-1.
“I think we came out with a lot of energy. We started off a little slow in the first inning but once we got the bats rolling, that’s when we clicked. (Matias Michel) shoved, that’s classic Mayo, he usually does that. Once we get rolling though on the mound, hitting and with defense, nobody can stop us,” recalled senior outfielder Christian Reyes. “Mayo just throws strikes and doesn’t let anything get into his head, he just stays confident throughout.
“The main difference is we were a lot more confident and better with the bats. Today we said, ‘We’re a way better team than them,’ and we came back way better.”
Senior right-handed pitcher Matias “Mayo” Michel put the team on his back at Vanden.
“It was a dominant performance by Mayo out on the mound, throwing strikes left and right, spotting all three pitches again. The defense played behind him and we took advantage of a couple innings to come out with the win,” said coach Craig Marquez. “He’s a bulldog out there. Anytime he’s in a little jam, he gets out of it and gets us in a good situation to continue adding on runs or finishing games. It was an excellent job on his part.”
The Sacramento State commit tossed a complete game and remained cool, calm and collected the entire time.
“It was not so great. I feel like me personally executing my pitches wasn’t as good as I wanted them to be. The fastball was right and locating but there are some pitches I just beat myself up on. But I have to have a short term memory,” Michel explained. “It’s not always perfect. Baseball is a game of failure.”
Pioneer plated its first 2 runs in the top of the second inning with two outs. Junior first baseman Luke Ferreira doubled down the right field line to score junior shortstop Jack Cullison from second base. After Ferreira advanced to third on a passed ball, senior catcher Kiki Martinez doubled to deep right center field and Ferriera trotted into home. Michel shut down the Vikings in the bottom half of the frame, striking out the side.
The Patriots scored 1 in the third but could’ve had much more. Reyes tripled to deep right field and Michel hit an RBI single down the left field line to plate Reyes. Pioneer then drew two walks to load the bases with one out. However, the next two Patriots struck out to leave the bags juiced.
“The only thing that I told the guys we needed to capitalize on is when we had bases loaded and one out. We needed to score a couple runs there,” Marquez recalled. “But all in all, being on the road, all you want to do is be up at least four in the last inning, that’s where we were at and we got it done.”
In the top of the sixth, the Patriots tallied 2 insurance runs. Senior second baseman Damian Garcia and Reyes singled to put runners on the corners with one out.
“I think I did pretty good. I was coming off a slump but once I got that triple, I got back into it and felt way more confident at the plate and on the bases. I just went up there and said ‘I’m up, I don’t care, I want to destroy this inning,’ and I did that,” said Reyes, who transferred to Pioneer this year from Davis. “I love the team, energy and coaching. It’s definitely much different than Davis and I enjoy it a lot more for sure.”
Michel contributed another RBI with a sacrifice fly to deep left field, scoring Garcia. Then TCU commit, junior RHP Drew Van Court, hit an RBI single to right and Reyes scored. Vanden plated its lone run in the bottom of the sixth, five days after scoring 10 versus Pioneer.
“I’d like to shout out Reyes for a few knocks and getting some runs on the board. Van Court and Luke both got good barrels too,” Michel recalled. “(Being on the road) is nothing different, just excitement. I like all the pressure and love executing through it.”
The Patriots will remain on the road for the quarterfinals in Roseville at No. 1 seed Oakmont, who is the reigning D4 champion. The Vikings beat Woodland 10-0 in the 2023 section title game at Sacramento City College.
“We’re use to being the underdog and if we have to be on the road, we will, and hope good things happen. When you’re on the road you want to score first, so let’s hope that we do to put pressure on everyone else,” Marquez said. “For some of these kids, this is their third year of playoff ball so they’re very seasoned. We went up against the No. 1 last season in a three-game set. You just hope that they don’t think the moment is too big, play Pioneer baseball and come out on top.
“I know (Oakmont) is really good. They have quality arms and bats that can swing it, so we’re going to have to be on our A-game, that’s the playoffs anyways. You have to come out and play your best game to beat good teams.”
First pitch Thursday is at 4 p.m.
“I like being on the road, personally. I always feel like I hit better on the road,” Reyes proclaimed. “I like beating good teams at their home and showing out.”
