Turlock bows out of Sac-Joaquin Section D-I baseball playoffs

Turlock High School resides in the South half of the Sac-Joaquin Section Division I playoff bracket, long the exclusive playground of St. Mary’s of Stockton, the seven-time defending champion.

But other than St. Mary’s, no team has enjoyed as much recent success in the South as Turlock.

Usually a sure bet to make a deep playoff run and challenge for the South title, Turlock made a rare first-round exit, falling to Tracy 5-2 Wednesday at Pacific. Turlock committed three costly errors, and a couple of mental mistakes, in a game that was tight until the final inning, when Tracy tacked on two insurance runs.

“You know what, we’ve got no excuses,” Turlock coach Mark de la Motte said. “We just didn’t play very well. You can blame whatever you want, but it wasn’t for a lack of effort that’s for sure.”

Turlock got a one-out double from Mitch Pryschuk in the first inning, followed by Brandon Booz’s RBI single, and appeared to have Michigan recruit Cody Bolton on the ropes.

But Turlock (17-11) didn’t get another hit until a two-out single to the opposite field by right-handed-hitting Chris Steeley in the seventh.

“Their guy threw well,” de la Motte said. “He just reached back and flat-out threw it by us. Part of that was we haven’t played in a week. But I can’t replicate that in batting practices. The guys hit me all over the yard.”

On Monday, Tracy will face the winner of Wednesday’s late game between No. 7 McNair-Stockton and No. 2 Beyer, when Bolton will be ready on five days’ rest.

Eight of Turlock’s starting 10 – nine position players and the designated hitter– will be lost to graduation. Only third baseman Steeley and first baseman Tate Soderstrom, both juniors, return. Damon Treadwell (junior), who relieved starter Landon Curtis on Wednesday, also returns. Soderstrom has committed to Arizona, and Treadwell has committed to Pacific.

“I’m really proud of this team,” de la Motte said. “They overachieved all year. The years our seniors had were not really expected. They came in, really, as role players and stepped up into starting roles.

“(Jon) Temple and Booz and Soderstrom we knew, but Cody Justus, Blaine Weber and Landon Curtis, for sure, came out and pitched great. And Peyton Dunseth, the quarterback on our football team, had a heck of a year.”

Tracy went ahead 2-1 in the third when Thomas Greely singled, was sacrificed to second and stole third base and home.

Turlock tied the score in the fifth when Temple, who signed a letter of intent with Utah barely 24 hours before the first pitch, escaped a rundown and raced home when the throw to third was wild. But Turlock couldn’t string together hits to start or sustain rallies.

“They did what you need to do in the first round,” de la Motte said. “Their No. 1 guy came out and dominated, and now they’re ready for Monday.”

Last season, Tracy eliminated Beyer and Pitman before falling to St. Mary’s in the “if necessary” game at Pacific. Tracy is coached by Vic Alkire, who turned 72 on Wednesday. Alkire is the father of former Modesto High football coach Richie Alkire.

This story was originally published May 18, 2016 at 8:20 PM with the headline "Turlock bows out of Sac-Joaquin Section D-I baseball playoffs."