On May 5, the Foothill Technology High School (Foothill Tech) baseball team geared up for their first round CIF matchup against Mary Star of the Sea High School (Mary Star). Both sides were evenly matched throughout, but in the end, Mary Star got the job done for a 3-2 win over the Dragons.
Mary Star took command of the game early in the first inning with two hard hits to center field. Those two runners would eventually score to bring their lead 2-0.
Despite the early problems for Foothill Tech, starting pitcher Jack Pankratz ‘24 seemed to find his groove and get through the next three innings scoreless.
Scoring stagnated on both sides until the bottom of the third, when Aidan Gomez ‘25 reached base for Foothill Tech on a single to left field. With two outs, Hayden Villa ‘24 hit an electric line drive to center to bring Gomez to the plate. Villa’s hit gave Foothill Tech their first run to make the score 2-1 leaving the third inning.
In response to Foothill Tech’s efforts, Mary Star responded in the top of the fifth with a two out single to center field to tally one more run to their 3-1 lead. Shane White ‘26 was able to contain the scoring and get out of the inning, but Foothill Tech needed a big response in the clutch to keep their playoff hopes alive.
In the bottom of the fifth, Foothill Tech looked to even the score. Hudson Donaldson ’24 singled off of an error, and Christian Bondy ‘26 soon took his place as the pinch runner. Villa brought Bondy to the plate on a sacrifice fly to left field, taking the score to 3-2. Shortly after, Davin Arth ‘27 singled to left field to score Gomez, tying the game. However, a controversial call was made at the plate to rule Gomez out and end the inning.
Foothill Tech’s push in the fifth marked the end of scoring for the rest of the game. The Dragons looked to rally late in the final inning, however, their bats went cold with two runners on second and third. Mary Star was able to close the game out with a foul-out.
White commented, “There was definitely a lot of nervousness but a lot of energy … It wasn’t the right outcome, but we put our hearts to it.”
Foothill Tech’s CIF run was cut short to end their 2024 season. The Dragons finished with a 14-12-1 record overall, and went undefeated in league 6-0. The Dragons look to come back strong next season.
