With the dust settled on the spring sports season, in which, the St. Joseph Notre Dame men’s team was crowned a state champion, the attention of the Alameda sports scene has now moved to the diamond.

All six Alameda high school baseball/softball teams are underway in their 2016 season. 

Baseball
The Alameda baseball team is picking up where they left off in 2015. The reigning West Alameda County Conference (WACC) Foothill League champions are 8-4 in the season so far including an impressive 3-0 showing at the Willie Stargell Easter Classic.

The Hornets were crowned champions of the annual spring tournament, in commemoration of the former MLB player and Encinal alum, after a 3-0 victory over Sacred Heart Cathedral of San Francisco. Sophomore pitcher Tristen Wiley took the mound for the Hornets and pitched a complete-game shutout with four strikeouts and just one walk. Wiley also was stellar from the plate with two hits on three attempts and one run scored. 

Senior Kyle Averitt went 2-for-3 from the plate for the Hornets and drove in a run. The Fightin’ Irish brought Eric Casillas to the mound. He pitched five innings and gave up two runs. 

The Hornets also beat El Cerrito (8-5 on March 26) and Concord (6-4 on March 29) in the tournament.

The Hornets also sport early season victories over Antioch (10-1 on March 10) and East Union of Manteca (10-7 on March 12) in the Tracy Boosters Tournament and two victories over Encinal (3-1 on March 16 and 3-1 on March 18). The Hornets next contest is against Piedmont tomorrow.

The Encinal Jets baseball team is off to a slow start sporting a 5-7 overall record. They, too, took part in the Stargell Classic, which was played on their home field. The Hornets went 1-2 in its three games, including losing the third-place game 3-2 in a walk off to Concord on March 30. Minutemen senior Aaron Byrd drove in the winning run in the bottom of the seventh. Concord sophomore Nick Nunez’s RBI in the seventh tied the game at 2. 

The loss marred an impressive performance by Jet pitcher Sandeep Mahl who pitched the entire game and struck out eight batters with no walks. He also went 2-for-4 from the plate. The Jets will take on Hayward tomorrow in its next game.

The St. Joseph Notre Dame baseball team has posted 10 wins on the young season compared to just two losses. The Pilots went a perfect 4-0 in the Jerry Manuel Atwater Easter Tournament including a 4-0 victory over San Leandro in the championship game. Sophomore Carson Bridges came up big for the Pilots. He went 2-for-3 from the plate and drove in three runs. Junior Vincent Republicano drove in the other run.

The Pilots also beat Douglas of Midven, Nev., (2-1 on a walk off on March 28) and Redwood Christian (5-2 on March 30). The Pilots will play Head-Royce of Oakland today.

Softball
The Alameda Hornets softball team is also the reigning WACC champions — in the Shoreline League. They started the season 4-3. They have obtained three huge victories in the season. They beat California of San Ramon 18-8 on March 15, Mt. Eden of Hayward 13-2 on March 16 and Hayward 16-0 on March 18. The Hornets have returned from their two-week spring break. They will next face Piedmont today.

The Encinal softball team holds a 3-3 record. They too had a win by a wide margin of victory. They beat San Lorenzo 13-0 on March 23, before their spring break. They also beat Arroyo 8-6 on March 18, in a WACC league contest. The two Island City rivals played one another for the first time yesterday at Alameda High.

The SJND softball team has accumulated four wins to three losses. Last year the team made a run to the North Coast Section Div. V championship where they were knocked off by Clear Lake of Larkspur 5-1. 

This year’s team is looking to make it all the way and has started the season with some impressive victories.

They beat Salesian of Richmond 16-3 on March 2, then beat El Cerrito 13-0 two days later. The Pilots then defeated Redwood Christian 16-5 on March 17 and then took down Del Notre of Cresent City 17-2 the next day. Sophomore Tyesen Gordon leads the team with 11 RBIs on the young season. They will take on Albany tomorrow.