History on the line for local baseball, softball teams in championship games this week

More than 30 North Bay-area high school baseball and softball teams began their playoff quests for North Coast Section titles last week. Now, only five remain, all of which are on the cusp of making history for their programs.

In baseball, Montgomery and Sonoma Valley will face off in the Division 5 championship game on Saturday. The Vikings, playing in their first title game since 2005, have never won a section banner in their long and decorated program history. Sonoma Valley has won one before, in 2008, but hasn't been back in this situation since.

In softball, Petaluma will be playing for the Division 3 crown, looking to add its sixth title to its impressive collection and first since 2011.

And in Division 6, Healdsburg and Justin-Siena will square off in a battle of two programs that have rarely played at this level. The Greyhounds have never won a section title and are playing in their first title game since 1993, while the Braves are looking to win their third title - but first since 2011.

Here's a closer look at this weekend's title games.

Baseball

Division 5: No. 1 Montgomery (17-10-1) vs. No. 7 Sonoma Valley (15-12), at Cardinal Newman, 1 p.m. Saturday

For all the critiques of the competitive-equity playoff system used by the NCS, one result of the switch that could be viewed positively is that it's given some new teams a chance to win section titles. The Vikings and Dragons are two such examples. Both are based in Division 3 by enrollment but dropped down to Division 5 based on their MaxPreps computer rankings, and neither team has had much success in the postseason over the decade prior to this season.

Since winning its only section title in Redwood Empire Division 3A in 2008, Sonoma Valley has made the playoffs in 14 of 16 years (the NCS didn't hold playoffs in the pandemic-affected 2020 and 2021 seasons) but has only advanced out of the first round three times since making three straight semifinals from 2011-2013.

Based on their performance this season, it's hard to argue that the Dragons, despite their seeding, won't be the favored team in this matchup. They finished 6-6 in a competitive Vine Valley Athletic League that included a sweep of Justin-Siena, a win over a Vintage team that beat Montgomery 17-1 early in the year and played Petaluma and Casa Grande extremely close in losses.

Their pitching staff is spearheaded by juniors Max Trexler and Jack Johnson, who each boast earned run averages around 2.00 in more than 60 innings pitched. Seniors Colin Buckley (.425 average, 13 RBIs), Cayden Waldrop (.432 average, two home runs, 25 RBIs) and Chris Murphy (.393 average, 13 RBIs) lead an offense that's batting over .300 on the year and has outscored opponents 26-5 this postseason.

On the other side, Montgomery comes in chasing its own history. The Vikings are making their first appearance in an NCS title game in 21 years and have turned things around after a rough start to the season. They were winless in their first eight games with a scoring differential of 40-104 but came back to win 15 of their final 18 games of the regular season to finish as co-champs of the North Bay League Redwood division.

Justin Howard and Adam Cramer have emerged as their top hitters, both batting well over .400 on the year with a combined seven home runs and 51 RBIs. Benny Olivarez, Salvador "Bug" Pedroza, Joel Silva, Chace Russell and Rocco Fazio are other core pieces of a lineup that's batting .323 on the year and averaging nearly 10 runs per game.

The Vikings' bats will need to stay hot, and their defense - which has caused some issues this year - will need to be sharp if they want to bring home their first section title in program history this weekend.

Softball

Division 3: No. 9 Petaluma (16-11-1) vs. No. 6 Alhambra (14-12-1), Diablo Valley College, 3 p.m. Saturday

Based on division seeding, the Trojans are the highest-ranked local team left in the postseason and face a tough matchup in their title game in Pleasant Hill this weekend.

Alhambra is the defending Division 3 champion and has won five section titles since 2011, including three straight from 2014-2016. The Bulldogs play in the ultracompetitive Diablo Valley-Foothill League, which also has teams playing in the Division 1, Division 2 and Division 5 championship games this weekend.

Alhambra is an extraordinary young group, with underclassmen as four of its top five hitters. The Bulldogs have also had recent success over Petaluma, having defeated the Trojans 17-7 in a tournament game in late March.

Petaluma, meanwhile, hopes to change its fortunes with one final dose of postseason magic. The Trojans have pulled off three road upsets in a row these playoffs, including a 7-1 victory over top-seeded McKinleyville in the quarterfinals. The hero so far has been sophomore pitcher Taylor Cook, who has thrown three complete games and allowed just three runs this postseason.

The Trojans have a chance this weekend to return to hallowed ground that the program hasn't seen in well over a decade. Under legendary coach Kurt Jastrow, who passed away last fall, Petaluma won four NCS titles from 2003-2011 and finished as the vDivision 2 runner-up in 2012. Since then it's been a mix of first- and second-round exits, but the opportunity is now here to recapture that glory.

Division 6: No. 5 Justin-Siena (13-12) at No. 2 Healdsburg (14-12), 5 p.m. Friday

It's been quite a turnaround for Justin-Siena this year. The Braves won just seven games combined over their last five seasons, and this is the first year they've even made the playoffs since 2019.

Justin performed well enough against small-school teams in nonleague play to secure a spot in the postseason after going 7-13 in the regular season and finishing sixth in a competitive VVAL that sent four teams into the playoffs in Division 3 and higher. The Braves have won two section titles in program history but are making their first return to a title game since 2011, when they won the Division 4 title.

Despite what may not look like an overly impressive resume, the Braves have some stellar offensive players who helped them score more than 15 runs a game in their seven victories. Freshman Makeda Koford is their leading bat with a .532 average and 27 RBIs. Seniors Caiden Grimmer and Ale Guerrero are both batting over .400, with 54 RBIs and 16 doubles between them.

Healdsburg, on the other side, is making its first foray into a section title game in over 30 years as it tries to capture its first title in program history.

The Greyhounds tied for fourth in the NBL-Redwood standings and also had success against similar-sized schools in the regular season. This will be the second time they've played Justin-Siena this year, the first ending in a 30-12 victory in early March.

Sophomore Mia Halvorsen was fantastic in the circle in their 5-2 win over Willits in the semifinals on Wednesday, going the distance with just five hits and a walk allowed while striking out five.

While they don't have any hitter batting over .400, Halvorsen is one of five Greyhounds batting well over .300 on the year and leads the team with 28 RBIs. Senior Claire Berry is their leading power hitter with a pair of home runs and 27 RBIs, while sophomore Lily Farrer (.355 average, 41 runs, 11 RBIs), senior Izzy Osborn (.362 average, 18 RBIs) and freshman Destiny Pace (.333 average, 17 RBIs) make up the core of a solid lineup that can keep up in a shootout.

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