Central Catholic’s MVPs, McHenry, Perino are Bee Baseball co-Players of the Year
Rivalries bring the best out of competitors.
The ability to perform in the team’s most important moments makes role players stars and turns stars into heroes.
Kayden McHenry and Chase Perino were heroes for the Central Catholic baseball team in an April 17 matchup against their Valley Oak League rival Oakdale. The two sides were locked in a heavyweight battle in the rubber game of a three-game series, the final regular season tune-up before the postseason.
The Raiders took an 8-3 lead but the Mustangs stormed back in the late innings to take a 10-8 lead. By the end of the sixth inning, it was an 11-11 game.
Perino led off in the top of the seventh and with a 2-2 count, sent a towering solo home run over the right field fence, giving his team the lead and momentum. By the end of the frame, the Raiders held a 13-11 lead.
McHenry entered the game to pitch in the sixth after missing more than two weeks worth of starts, with his last outing coming a month prior. But he said there was no way he would miss the Oakdale game. He gave up just one run and had three strikeouts. He sealed the inning with two strikeouts and forced a groundout for the final out of the game.
“We had a lot of great pieces and players on our team, but it felt like when it came down to the wire, me and Chase would (say), ‘Me and you, me and you,’” McHenry said. “He was hitting first, I would hit second a lot. We just bonded together in such a strong way to where I knew if someone got a barrel off of me, I knew my centerfielder would run through a wall to track it down.”
The Raiders’ dynamic duo, Perino and McHenry are The Bee’s Stanislaus District co-Players of the Year.
McHenry was one of California’s best despite injury
Despite missing a handful of pitching starts and at bats in the middle of the season with his injury, McHenry rebounded after the Oakdale heroics, he continued to be a reliable first baseman and had a pair of five-inning outings on the mound in Central Catholic’s run to the Sac-Joaquin Section championship game.
He had seven strikeouts in 5.2 innings in a 7-6 win over Twelve Bridges, gave up just one run in an 11-1 must-win semifinals series victory over Del Campo and struck out 10 in five innings during the section title game, a 4-1 loss to Roseville.
“I had never been hurt before. I didn’t expect it, it was kind of mind blowing for me,” McHenry said. “I was trying to not bounce back too quickly and not try to come back too late (in the season). There was a bunch of stuff running through my head. I didn’t want anything more than to win a section championship for this team. And I wanted to be a part of it.”
McHenry credits his family, friends, teammates and coaches for keeping him encouraged through the rehab process.
When he returned, the Sacramento State-bound pitcher finished the season with the 11th-best earned run average in California (0.46). Offensively, he tallied two home runs, 21 hits, 14 RBI and scored 15 runs.
In a marathon 10-inning SJS D-IV quarterfinal, McHenry kept the team’s playoff hopes alive. In the bottom of the eighth, he hit the game-tying solo home run, and then in the bottom of the 10th, walked it off with a single.
“I think our team knew that when it came down to those situations, it was either (Chase) or me or someone else on the team that we’re gonna pick each other up. That’s what was so awesome about our team,” McHenry said.
McHenry pitched on the section’s biggest stage in back-to-back years. In addition to this year’s title game, he pitched in the 2025 championship, pitching 5.2 innings and allowing just one run through 5.2 innings.
Perino’s season started off hot
Perino took off during a career senior year.
He tallied at least two hits in five of his first seven games and had three or more RBI in three games during that span.
As the season progressed, his athleticism showed in the outfield, where he chased down fly balls in center, and on the basepaths, where he stole a career-high 28 bases. He also tallied career highs in batting average (.407), runs scored (29), triples (3) and home runs (4). He added 37 hits, 18 RBI and four doubles.
He recorded a hit in all but four games this season.
“It just felt like everything came together this year,” Perino said. “I was seeing the ball so well from the start, and the team chemistry made me play better, to be honest. Knowing my dugout had my back, especially in games. The dugout was live and electric. Having that support and being able to add onto that and play for that type of team is super special to play for.”
The team followed its seniors.
The Raiders’ outright Valley Oak League title was their fifth straight league championship. They have won at least a share of the Valley Oak League each year since 2022, but this year’s outright title was the first since 2023. They finished with a 15-3 record against league teams, the Raiders’ first time with at least 15 league wins since 2008.
In the postseason, their journey to a fourth straight title game came with ups and downs. They were dominant in the Division IV opener against Los Banos but needed extra innings to beat Twelve Bridges in the quarterfinals. They dropped Game 1 of the semifinals series against Del Campo 9-2 but bounced back winning the next two by 10-run rule, 11-1 and 13-3 in games two and three, respectively.
In Game 2 McHenry pitched the complete game, allowing just four hits and a run and striking out four. Across the final two games, Perino tallied four RBI and a double. He had two hits and drove in three runs in the second game alone.
The two had a bond on the gridiron as well as a quarterback (McHenry) and receiver (Perino) duo, they combined for 1,184 yards and 15 touchdowns. Perino caught 76 of McHenry’s 102 completions.
Both will play in college
Perino’s baseball career seems to be finished.
He is already at Fresno State suiting up for the football team, where he will likely play defensive back on scholarship.
Perino says baseball was the first sport he loved. He started as early as2 or 3, advanced to T-ball and moved through the ranks. Though he never played elite-level travel ball, he always improved. He admits that as a freshman, he felt “behind,” but as the years continued, he gained more confidence and it translated on the field.
After playing six games as a sophomore junior varsity call-up, he started as a junior, finishing with a .381 batting average with career highs in hits (40), RBI (26) and doubles (5).
The summer between his junior and senior years, he was invited to the Area Code Games with the White Sox, and during the stellar senior campaign had scouts from the White Sox and Chicago Cubs talk to him at practice. He said the interest for baseball was “truly special.”
But football is ultimately in his immediate future.
“Honestly, playing the sport was so much fun, even though it’s over now,” he said.
McHenry’s baseball career started as a catcher.
He did not start pitching until his junior year of high school, but even then he relied heavily on natural ability.
“I was kind of like I just want to get on the mound and throw hard,” he said. “It was a big transition.”
He worked at it the summer before his senior year after conversations with college coaches and turned it into a career-best .800 win percentage (4-1) in seven appearances and 48 strikeouts.
He once thought he would be a college quarterback. But along the way, plans changed and he adjusted.
Now, he’s focused on taking this baseball thing as far as he can.
“I’m only in my third year of pitching so I still have so much to learn,” McHenry said. “But I love learning, I love watching videos, seeing how the pros do it. I love learning new things. Pitching is about learning new things and everybody does it differently. That’s the cool thing.”
Fan Vote Player of the Year
MASON HACKLER, TURLOCK
Mason Hackler pitched just 10 varsity innings for Turlock High last season as a sophomore. So in the offseason, he got to work. In the offseason, he hit the weight room, increased the velocity on his fastball, honed his offspeed and continued to tune up his offensive approach. He played water polo in the fall, which he credits for helping increase his arm strength.
The offseason work showed. In his junior season, Hackler had a career year and was named the Central California Athletic League MVP.
At the plate, he hit a career-best .357 and scored a career-high 27 runs. He had 25 hits, 12 RBI, five doubles and a pair of home runs. He walked 32 times and struck out a career-low seven times. On the mound, he went 7-2 with a 2.35 earned run average and 88 strikeouts in 11 appearances and 62.2 innings pitched. All are career highs.
“My mindset is to try to make it as far as I can while being efficient,” Hackler said after a game earlier this season. “I don’t want to go as far as I can and throw the most pitches. It’s trying to make sure I can go the full seven innings while still being able to produce in other areas as well.”
During a stretch in the regular season, he pitched six or more innings in eight straight starts, struck out at least 10 batters in five straight games and had three straight starts without giving up an earned run. He helped lead the Bulldogs to a CCAL three-peat (14-1) and a 22-7 overall record.
“He’s been on all year for us,” Turlock head coach Michael Souza said after Hackler struck out 10 in a CCAL win over Pitman. “It’s nice to have because I know he can come out, throw strikes and just dominate. When he gets into that mindset where he comes out and dominates, no one can touch him. He’s been our dude all year.”
The fans noticed his improvement and production this season, awarding him The Bee’s Fan Vote Player of the Year. Hackler collected 63% of the 1,430 votes in the multi-week poll. He finished ahead of a trio of Central Catholic teammates: Chase Perino, Kayden McHenry and Max Medina. The three came in second, third and fourth place, respectively.
2026 All-District Baseball Teams
1st Team
P: Cruz Costa — Central Catholic, Sophomore
P: Mason Hackler — Turlock, Junior
P: Landon Schutte — Oakdale, Senior
P: Ben Vilhauer — Pitman, Senior
INF: Marcus Davenport — Central Catholic, Senior
INF: Braydon Keyler — Turlock, Junior
INF: Cooper Pacheco — Turlock, Senior
INF: Nolan Walker — Pitman, Senior
INF: Mason Whitworth — Central Valley, Senior
C: Griffin Costa — Oakdale, Senior
C: Jacob Kiesel — Central Catholic, Senior
C: Aiden De Los Santos — Turlock, Junior
OF: Braiden Fuentes — Turlock, Junior
OF: Bas Stice — Oakdale, Senior
OF: Ezequiel Verduzco — Central Valley, Junior
OF: Peyton Wallace — Oakdale, Junior
OF: Jackson Way — Pitman, Senior
UTIL: Tyson Hunt — Central Valley, Junior
UTIL: Sebastian Joseph — Gregori, Junior
UTIL: Cole Kelley — Pitman, Junior
UTIL: Caine Walker — Central Catholic, Senior
2nd Team
P: Brody Abbott — Escalon, Junior
P: Trenton Cloward — Ripon Christian, Sophomore
P: Dominic Delatorre — Central Valley, Junior
P: Noah Maldonado — Central Valley, Sophomore
INF: Tanner Ehlers — Hughson, Freshman
INF: Jackson Howell — Ripon Christian, Senior
INF: Jivoni Pando-Dumolt, Sophomore, Gregori
INF: Chase Ravalin — Oakdale, Sophomore
INF: Wyatt Riesenbeck — Escalon, Senior
INF: Broden Thomas — Central Catholic, Senior
INF: Ashton Urena — Ceres, Senior
INF: Pierce Vongphakdy — Enochs, Junior
C: Fernando Dominguez — Central Valley, Senior
C: Brayden McDowell — Ripon, Junior
OF: Blake Bennett — Enochs Junior
OF: Nolan Bryant, Sophomore, Downey
OF: Caden Lozano — Patterson, Junior
OF: Dustin McLain — Gregori, Sophomore
OF: Max Medina — Central Catholic, Senior
OF: Jacob Towe — Beyer, Senior
UTIL: Isaac Lupercio — Hughson, Senior
UTIL: Anthony Trevino — Ceres, Junior
UTIL: Isaiah Valdovinos — Central Valley, Senior
UTIL: Ethan Vander Plaats — Ripon Christian, Sophomore
UTIL: Hudson Walker — Central Catholic, Senior
UTIL: Zach Wells — Escalon, Senior
Honorable Mention
Beyer: Jordan Capell, Matt Correira, Jayden Reynaga, Buzz Richards; Big Valley Christian: Alex Avila, Noah Stel; Ceres: Isaac Moreno; Davis: Alex Ceja, Izak Torres; Downey: Gus Munoz; Enochs: Jack Conner, Parker Johnson, Javin Randhawa; Escalon: Lorenzo Texeira; Hilmar: Dana Gentry, John Lopez, Xavier Silveira; Hughson: Landon Petersen; Modesto: Anthony Arrieta; Modesto Christian: Teegan Davis; Oakdale: Eric Velazquez; Orestimba: Axel Diaz; Patterson: Trevor Green; Pitman: Jesse Gutierrez; Ripon: Fabian Nuno, Jack Peters; Ripon Christian: Maxx Anderson, Stadtler Postma; Riverbank: Isaiah Deras; Turlock: Cameron Henard, Owen McCord, Adam Torres; Turlock Christian: Jakobe Gracia, Michael Miller, Blake Starn, Winston York
