Offense erupts in late innings for Turlock baseball in D-I playoff opening win
Turlock’s goals at the start of the season were to win the CCAL, make the playoffs and get to the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division I semifinal series.
“We want that for the kids and the program,” Bulldogs head coach Michael Souza said. “Get to that best-of-three series and things will happen.”
After claiming a third straight league title with a 22-6 overall record and a 14-1 league record, Turlock earned a No. 5 seed in the D-I playoff bracket. The Bulldogs got one step closer to their postseason goal Wednesday with an 8-1 first-round win over Edison of Stockton.
Junior Cameron Henard recorded a complete game and allowed fewer than five hits, and the offense produced six hits, three extra-base hits, four walks and four hit-by-pitches to secure the first-round win.
Henard went the full seven innings for the Bulldogs, turning in a career outing in the biggest game ofthe season. He pitched his first complete game, had his first 10-strikeout game and improved his record to 5-0.
Henard continued a stretch of dominant outings. Multiple times, he battled from behind in counts to get strikeouts or force groundouts and flyouts. It was his ninth appearance on the season and his seventh straight game without giving up an earned run. He allowed only five Vikings baserunners all game, giving up three hits and a pair of walks. He has not given up an earned run since Feb. 28.
“He made it a little harder on himself, but he threw lights out,” Souza said. “He was in control. I told him before the seventh, ‘Don’t make me come out (to the mound),’ and he did his job.”
The offense answered Edison’s one run in the top of the first inning with a score in the bottom half, then pushed ahead in the bottom of the third. But the bats exploded in the fifth inning when the Bulldogs scored five runs on four hits, two hit-by-pitches, a sacrifice fly, an error and a fielder’s choice. Late in the inning, Aiden De Los Santos drove in a run with a double, Henard had a sacrifice fly and Braydon Kyler and Landyn Fitzgerald added RBI singles, all in consecutive at-bats. They added one more score in the bottom of the sixth on an Owen McCord RBI double.
“We got a little more comfortable, a little more relaxed,” Souza said. “Instead of chasing their pitch, we started chasing our pitch and making him throw that curveball for strikes. … I always tell the kids, put the ball in play and make things happen and that’s what we did. We had some timely hitting.”
Turlock coaches were figuring out the second-round logistics right after the team broke its postgame huddle. Would they use a bus or rental cars? Who was picking up the rental cars? What time do rentals have to be back the next morning?
They have to take a trip to Granite Bay to take on the Grizzlies in a No. 4 vs. No. 5 matchup, just one win shy of qualifying for the semifinals.
Souza will hand the ball to his ace Mason Hackler, who has pitched at least six innings and tallied at least 10 strikeouts in his last five outings.
“The preparation is the same, we don’t try to do anything different,” Souza said. “It’s our best nine vs. their best nine and whoever makes less mistakes is going to come out on top.”
More Baseball Scores
Division I
No. 8 Central Valley 3, No. 9 Lincoln-Stockton 2: Adrian Vega had two hits and a pair of RBI in three at-bats. Mason Whitworth also had two hits. The Hawks travel to the best team in the section, St. Mary’s, on Friday. First pitch is at 4 p.m.
No. 11 Enochs 4, No. 6 Folsom 3: The Eagles upset Folsom on the road. Brooks Opsahl drove in a pair of runs on his own. Enochs took a 2-0 lead before Folsom tied it in the bottom of the fifth. The Eagles scored twice in the top of the ninth and gave up just one in the bottom half. The Eagles travel to No. 3 Franklin of Elk Grove on Friday for a 4 p.m. start.
Division II
No. 4 Jesuit 9, No. 13 Pitman 0: The Pride were shut out on the road Wednesday afternoon. They end the regular season as the No. 2 team in the CCAL with a 17-11 overall record.
Division III
No. 8 Patterson 2, No. 9 Bear Creek 0: The Tigers won a competitive matchup Wednesday, scoring once in the sixth and seventh innings for the victory. They travel to the division’s top seed, Rio Americano, on Friday.
Division IV
No. 1 Roseville 6, No. 17 Beyer 1: After beating Burbank 7-5 on the road in Tuesday’s play-in game, Beyer traveled to Roseville Wednesday for a matchup against the D-VI No. 1 team. Beyer went 16-9-1 overall and 10-4 in Western Athletic Conference play.
No. 2 Central Catholic 6, No. 15 Los Banos 0: Central Catholic shut out Los Banos in the playoff opener and scored twice in the first, once in the second and three times in the fifth. Hudson Walker hit a home run and drove in three runs. Cruz Costa pitched six innings and struck out 13 batters, allowing just one hit and a walk. The Raiders will play No. 7 Twelve Bridges on Friday at home at 4 p.m.
No. 11 Del Oro 11, No. 6 Oakdale 4: The Mustangs used four pitchers but were upset Wednesday afternoon. Bas Stice went 3-for-4 with a home run, Peyton Wallace had a pair of doubles and a pair of RBI. Georgia signee Landon Schutte was the Mustangs’ third pitcher to take the mound in the game. He struck out a game-high seven batters and gave up a pair of walks, two earned runs and five hits. Oakdale finishes 2026 18-10.
Division V
No. 8 Escalon 4, No. 9 Casa Roble 1: The Cougars travel to Lincoln on Friday for a game against Lincoln High, the top team in the division. The Cougars scored three runs in the third and one in the fourth to secure the victory.
No. 10 Destiny Christian 8, No. 7 Ripon 0: The TVL runner-up Ripon was shut out in an upset Wednesday. Ripon finished the season 17-10 overall.
No. 11 Hughson 6, No. 6 Hughson 1: The battle-tested Huskies went on the road and upset themselves to a postseason win. They scored a pair of runs in each of the fourth, fifth and sixth innings. Tate Silvera and Tanner Ehlers each tallied two hits and drove in two runs. Isaac Lupercio also added a pair of hits. They travel to No. 3 Sutter on Friday.
Division VI
No. 1 Ripon Christian — BYE
No. 11 Hilmar 11, No. 6 Summerville 8: The division’s No. 11 team, Hilmar went on the road and upset Summerville. Jacob Sward went 3-for-3 with a double and Dana Gentry had three hits with a double. Alec Machado drove in a game-high four runs. Xavier Silveira struck out 13 batters in 5.2 innings and allowed eight earned runs. The Yellowjackets travel to No. 3 Bear River Friday.
Division VII
No. 2 Turlock Christian 28, No. 15 Esparto 0: The Eagles scored 12 runs in the bottom of the first and 16 in the bottom of the third as the No. 2 ranked team put up a season high in runs. Winston York and Blake Starn drove in five runs, Michael Miller and Cam Kelley drove in three, four players had two RBI and one player added one RBI. Turlock Christian hosts No. 7 Denair on Friday.
No. 4 Leroy Greene 10, No. 13 Modesto Christian 0: The Crusaders could find only one hit Wednesday as they fell in their first-round matchup. Modesto Christian finishes the season 5-18 overall.
This story was originally published May 7, 2026 at 11:49 AM.
