SAN JOSE – Mountain View outfielder Liam Barrett flashed an ear-to-ear smile after his Spartans closed out a 10-3 Central Coast Section Division IV championship victory over Homestead on Friday afternoon.
The UC-Santa Barbara commit drove in a team-high three RBIs as he went 2 for 4, and the senior also threw an inning of scoreless relief. Though this was the first time Barrett had won the section in baseball, he was no stranger to lifting CCS hardware.
“It is a perfect, almost indescribable, feeling being on that field and throwing up your glove and winning a trophy,” Barrett said, before adding, “I did it in soccer last year when we won a CCS (Open) championship, and it’s great to bring it to baseball.”
Mountain View’s Liam Barrett (9) celebrates after winning against Homestead in the CCS Division IV championship at the Excite Ballpark in San Jose, Calif., Friday, May 24, 2024. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
Mountain View’s Chase Caringella also had three RBIs, and Christian Wenks was 2 for 2 with two RBIs. Mountain View scored five runs in the second inning to jump out to a big lead, and after Homestead snagged two runs off errors, the Spartans responded with four in the fourth inning to pull away again.
Austin Xu and Luke Orrock each got on base twice, with Xu also catching at least half a dozen difficult catches at first base for outs.
Starting pitcher Wes Harwell threw a solid five innings and allowed just two hits, while Barrett and Brennan Dooley combined to throw two innings of hitless relief as catcher Clay White also made a number of great saves behind the plate.
“Once we got into CCS, we knew that any game could be our last together,” said team captain White. “No one wanted the season to end, so we put our brotherhood together.”
The road to the title was not an easy one.
In order to join his older brother Gabe, who won the CCS Division I title in 2019, as Mountain View baseball champs, Barrett’s Spartans had to defeat a familiar foe in the Mustangs.
Mountain View’s Christian Wenks (6) hits the ball in the fourth inning against Homestead in the CCS Division IV championship at the Excite Ballpark in San Jose, Calif., Friday, May 24, 2024. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
The Santa Clara Valley Athletic League De Anza Division rivals met twice in the regular season, with Mountain View winning both matchups. Those two victories helped the Spartans finish 8-6 in league play and give Mountain View the No. 6 seed, while Homestead was No. 8.
But that still meant Mountain View had to win two road games to reach the title game.
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Mountain View won a couple of high-scoring games, 10-7 against Leland and 9-6 over Sequoia, to set up the showdown of Cinderella stories.
Homestead pulled off the 5-2 upset over No. 1 Salinas in the first round, and then blanked Scotts Valley 3-0 to reach the section title game at Excite Ballpark.
“We had a shaky first half of the season, and we really didn’t even expect to be in CCS,” Justin Gladfelter, who had a hit for Homestead and walked twice, said as he reflected on the season, “So for us to take out a one seed and then win another game, that was huge.”
Mountain View improved to 17-13, and Homestead ended its season 16-10-2.
White believed Friday’s victory was just a sign of things to come in NorCal.
“I think we’re gonna win it all,” White said.
Mountain View celebrates after winning against Homestead in the CCS Division IV championship at the Excite Ballpark in San Jose, Calif., Friday, May 24, 2024. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
