Senior Days or Nights are already a special time for departing student-athletes set to graduate in June. Sometimes, however, due to late-game heroics, the day can be even more special than initially thought.
Thanks to a walk-off single in the bottom of the sixth inning from senior Nate Gutierrez, the Woodland High School varsity baseball team swept Golden Empire League rivals Mesa Verde in the league finale, clinching an all-important third-place spot and a home playoff game Tuesday.
The Wolves (12-8, 10-7 GEL ) came into Friday evening’s game three at Clark Field with one goal in mind: to take care of business and clinch a home playoff spot. Thanks to their emphatic but easy-as-you-like 11-1 win over the Mavericks (6-20, 3-14 GEL), the Wolves did just that as they bid farewell to the GEL as it was currently constructed.
“That was an awesome game,” Wolves head coach Danny Eoff said. “It was a great way to end the season, not only in front of our home crowd but also to honor our seniors and play in a thrilling, exciting win. Hopefully, it gives us some momentum for the playoffs next week.”
Before the game, in front of a bigger home crowd than usual, the Wolves honored Gutierrez and Brayden Farnham, the team’s two lone seniors.
“The seniors have brought some real consistency this year,” Eoff said. “They are great character guys and the types of players every coach would want on the team. For them to come out today after spending four years in our program busting their butt and thriving on their day is awesome.”
To make the occasion even more special, Eoff opted for Gutierrez to start his final home game and pitch to Farnham, who lined up behind the plate as catcher.
“The start of the game was very special to me because I came up through the program as a catcher,” Farnham recalled. “Being able to do it one last time with Nate, who I caught for most of my sophomore year, was amazing. It brought back a lot of memories, and it was just a great time.”
“This year has meant a lot to me,” Gutierrez said. “I try everything to help my teammates and improve the team. I want them to look up one day and say, ‘I want to go about things like he did.’”
Woodland got off to a good start early, scoring a run in the bottom of the first and the bottom of the second to take a 2-0 lead.
As a surprise, Mesa Verse finally scored the coveted and elusive run that had evaded them all series, cutting the Wolves lead in half at 2-1.
The good times, however, didnt last for the Mavericks as, in the bottom of the fourth inning, the Wolves offense broke through the Mesa Verde defense on their way to an 8-run inning to go up 10-1.
Junior Diego Bautista led off the inning with a walk and eventually willed his way to third after a few steal attempts. While stealing third base, the Mesa Verde catcher’s throw sailed into shallow left field, allowing the speedster to make it home safely, giving the Wolves a 3-1 lead.
Sophomore Dylan Johns then came to bat and singled before “JoJo” Quezada walked. Gutierrez then stepped up to bat and slapped a 2 RBI single into center field, scoring Johns and Quezada to make it 5-1.
Wolves freshman PJ Pinegar reached first base safely on a passed ball strike three at home plate. With the bases now loaded, sophomore David Tanner stepped up to the plate and reached base on an infield single hit directly to the third baseman. The hit scored Gutierrez and made it 6-1.
Farnham then stepped up. With the pressure on and two strikes, he hit a single to right field, scoring Joseph Cadotte and Pinegar to make it 8-1.
“I didnt have the best day at the plate, but I’ll look back on this game and miss the sport of baseball,” Farnham said after. “It was nice to leave it with 2 RBI and the base hit. It’s just a great way to end the season, in my opinion.”
Bautista stepped up to the plate again and reached base on a super shallow hit to right field just outside the infield. Because there were two outs, Tanner and Farnham never let up on the base paths and eventually scored on the bloop single to make it 10-1.
After a scoreless top of the sixth inning, the Wolves had a chance to end the game early via the 10-run mercy rule in the bottom half of the inning and took full advantage.
With Quezada on second base, Gutierrez stepped up with a chance to be the hero of the day on his Senior Day and did just that as he knocked a base hit to center field, easily scoring Quezada from second and giving the Wolves a cool 11-1 win, wrapping up third place in the GEL.
Gutierrez finished the evening throwing a complete six-inning game, only allowing 2 hits and striking out 7 batters. At the plate, he went 2 for 3 with 3 RBI.
“Nate was dominant today,” Eoff said. “He hasn’t had that many starts this year serving as our reliever after being a starter last year. He came out and just dominated by controlling the zone.”
“I felt dominant out there,” Gutierrez confirmed. “I trusted my teammates and coaches with the pitch calls and locations.”
Next for the Wolves will be a weekend of rest and preparation as they prepare for the opening round of the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV Playoffs, which will begin on Tuesday, May 7.
As the third-placed team in the GEL, the Wolves were rewarded with a No. 8 seed in the D4 bracket and will host No. 9 seed Union Mine at Clark Field Tuesday. A win would pit them against Casa Roble in the quarterfinals, set for Thursday, May 9.
Last season, the Wolves enjoyed home-field advantage as a No. 1 overall seed, defeating Liberty Ranch in the quarterfinals before taking two out of three against Casa Roble en route to the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section D4 Championship game, where they ultimately were overmatched by a powerful Oakmont team.
Eoff is excited about the opportunity to try and make it that far again.
“For the third year in a row, our boys will get to play in front of their home crowd as they continue their pursuit of a section championship,” Eoff said. “You always have a bit more energy and intensity when you have your fans there to cheer you on. I’m hoping we get some good experience in the playoffs, as it will be a fun reward for the guys after the season they’ve had.”
“I hope to see us go far, and I want to see a lot of these young guys mature a lot,” Farnham said. “It’s not just an individual sport; it’s a team sport, and I want to see us all win and grow together as a team. When I’m gone, I want to see them take that step to the next level.”
