Archbishop Mitty walks off St. Francis to earn share of WCAL title, first win over Lancers since 2023
SAN JOSE - Scooch over, St. Francis.
It's time to make some room atop the West Catholic Athletic League throne.
The Lancers have lorded over the WCAL for years, but Archbishop Mitty made its own room at the top on Friday afternoon in San Jose.
For the first time since 2023, the Monarchs are league co-champions after walking off St. Francis 2-1. It is also their first win in the series in three years and their first share of the WCAL title since that season.
Pitcher Kyleigh Mace, who went the distance on Friday with seven innings pitched, one earned run allowed, two hits, six strikeouts and three walks on 102 pitches, was a freshman the last time the Monarchs (23-3, 9-1) beat the Lancers (24-3, 9-1). She's glad her Mitty career didn't end without doing it one more time.
"Last game (against them), we played very individually and we saw how that worked out for us," Mace said. "So today, we all had better at-bats, we were all swinging for each other rather than for the fences, and I think that really helped contribute to our win."
After the first matchup this year, a 5-2 St. Francis win in Mountain View, Mitty coach Megan Yocke admitted that it was “intimidating” for the Monarchs to match up with the Lancers.
It didn't look that way on Friday, and Yocke said that shift in mindset was key to Mitty's success.
"They came out and played our game," Yocke said. "And we knew if Kyleigh pitched her game and her strengths and handled herself, the rest would take care of itself. Our defense played great behind her. Our offense battled much better today than they did last time. They felt in control, they felt like them, and I’m just really proud and happy for them that they were able to pull it off."
To Mace's point, which Yocke echoed after the last matchup, a team effort in the bottom of the seventh was what got Mitty over the finish line. The Monarchs got the inning started with a leadoff single by Gianna Catalano, who advanced to second on Adelle Duncan's single to left.
Then with two outs, MJ Fikes was intentionally walked to load the bases, setting the stage for Gracie Giovacchini. And the sophomore came through with a single to right to score Catalano and send the home crowd into a frenzy.
"I was crying," Mace said of her reaction to beating the Lancers. "I haven’t done that since I was a freshman, so it felt really good. (Gracie) stayed to herself. She took a big swing on the second one, but then she brought it back together. She focused, she saw that one pitch she needed to hit, and she did."
Duncan and St. Francis' Malianna Liongitau traded solo home runs in the bottom of the third and top of the fourth to provide the rest of the offense.
St. Francis coach Mike Oakland was matter-of-fact after the game, maintaining his position that the Lancers haven't separated themselves from the other top teams in Northern California and the Central Coast Section so far this season.
With CCS seedings being released on Monday as both teams wrap up their regular seasons, Oakland understood that the final word on the section's best team is still unwritten.
And he's ready for the Lancers to give it their best shot.
"We competed," Oakland said. "We did everything we possibly could to win the game, and they made the plays when they needed to make them, and they got the hits when they needed to get them, and we didn’t. So that’s just the way it goes. It’s really nothing to be ashamed of, and I’m proud of the way that we competed."
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This story was originally published May 15, 2026 at 8:55 PM.