Five Stanislaus District baseball teams earn No. 2 seeds in section playoffs

In the hunt to be No. 1, five Stanislaus District teams will start their postseason journey as a No. 2 seed.

Beyer (D-I), El Capitan (D-IV), Ripon (D-V), Ripon Christian (D-VI) and Big Valley Christian (D-VII) were made No. 2s when the Sac-Joaquin Section seeding committee released brackets for seven divisions on Thursday.

Here’s a closer look at each bracket, including The Modesto Bee’s predicted champion:

Division I

Story line: Can anybody knock off seven-time defending South champion St. Mary’s? Modesto Metro Conference champion Beyer, the No. 2 seed, could very well be the team. The Patriots (21-4) won’t play until Thursday, when they take on the winner of Monday’s No. 10 Pitman vs. No. 7 McNair matchup at Klein Family Field at Pacific in Stockton. Beyer has a talented pitching staff – MMC Pitcher of the Year Josh Escobar, hard-throwing Kevin Duffy and junior Chase Fetzer – and a heavy-hitting lineup that features five batters – Jordan Walls, Jack Large, Trevor Ravelli, Fetzer and Ryan Frakes – with averages of .388 or higher (minimum 50 at-bats).

Also: Turlock was awarded the third seed and will take on the winner of No. 11 Enochs vs. No. 6 Tracy on Thursday. No. 8 Gregori entertains No. 9 Buhach Colony on Monday. After Monday, the tournament shifts to Klein Family Field.

Prediction: Beyer.

Division III

Story line: The Valley Oak League is well represented here, with half its teams in the field. VOL champ Manteca, the 2014 Division IV champion, is seeded fourth and will play No. 5 River Valley at McAuliffe Memorial Ballparks at Sacramento State. But the VOL will be hard-pressed to bring home a blue banner with No. 1 Vista del Lago, No. 2 Yuba City and No. 3 Christian Brothers – three of the Top 10 teams in the section, regardless of division, as ranked by MaxPreps.com – looming.

Also: No. 6 Central Catholic, No. 8 Oakdale and No. 10 East Union all have play-in games on Monday at home sites. The Raiders host No. 11 Woodland, the Mustangs entertain No. 9 Pioneer and the Lancers visit No. 7 Rio Americano.

Prediction: Yuba City.

Division IV

Storyline: This is El Capitan’s last year as a Western Athletic Conference team; it moves up to the Central California Conference, a Division I league, in 2017. The second-seeded Gauchos are battle tested, with games against Beyer and Enochs in the last two weeks. El Cap will play Thursday against the winner of Monday’s El Dorado-Placer contest at Tony Zupo Field in Lodi.

Also: No. 4 Patterson draws No. 5 Union Mine, while No. 6 Los Banos faces No. 3 Bear River.

Prediction: El Capitan.

Division V

Storyline: Ripon, the No. 1 small school in The Bee’s Stanislaus District rankings, draws the No. 2 seed and awaits the winner of Monday’s matchup between No. 10 Marysville and No. 7 Summerville. Three-time reigning champ Capital Christian is the bracket’s top seed.

Also: No. 9 Hilmar hits the road to face No. 8 West Campus in an out-of-bracket game on Monday. No. 5 Escalon will face No. 4 Argonaut on Thursday at Billy Hebert Field in Stockton, while No. 6 Linden tangles with No. 3 Dixon.

Prediction: Capital Christian.

Division VI

Storyline: Second-seeded Ripon Christian, third in The Bee’s small school rankings, is led by Travis Vander Molen, a power pitcher who also leads the team with a .627 batting average. Three-time reigning champ Bradshaw Christian looms on the other side of the bracket.

Also: No. 8 Gustine hosts No. 9 San Juan in an out-of-bracket game on Monday. No. 4 Mariposa, the D-VI runner-up last year and in 2013, takes on No. 5 Delta on Thursday as the tournament shifts to Stagg High in Stockton.

Prediction: Bradshaw Christian.

Division VII

Storyline: James Parker is stepping down as Big Valley Christian coach at the conclusion of the postseason. What better way to go out than as a section champion? The No. 2 Lions will play Thursday against the winner of Hughes Academy-Western Sierra at McAuliffe Memorial Ballparks. No. 1 Valley Christian has reached the final for eight consecutive years, winning it all in 2008-09 and 2011-2014.

Also: No other district teams in the field.

Prediction: Valley Christian.

This story was originally published May 12, 2016 at 6:01 PM with the headline "Five Stanislaus District baseball teams earn No. 2 seeds in section playoffs."