San Joaquin County baseball playoffs: CIF SJS semifinal recap, results

[ASFN Admin]

Nineteen San Joaquin County teams entered the 2026 Sac-Joaquin Section baseball playoffs dreaming of a deep postseason run.

By the end of the single-elimination first round on May 6, more than half were already out, leaving just seven teams alive. The quarterfinals on May 8 trimmed that number to five.

Now, after the best-of-three semifinal series played May 12, 14, and 15, only two remain.

Who made those postseason dreams a reality? Who saw their dreams end, and in what fashion?

Here’s the full breakdown from all five county semifinal series:

Division I​

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No. 1 St. Mary's (26-6) vs. No. 4 Granite Bay (19-14); St. Mary’s wins series 2-1

The blueprint was already there. These two met in the Boras Classic Northern California title game just over a month earlier, when St. Mary’s escaped with an 8-7 win. So yes, another tight three-game series was expected. Maybe not one this tense.

Game 1 | St. Mary’s 3, Granite Bay 2

• The opener felt exactly like everyone expected. Hawaii commit Ethan Silva wasted no time setting the tone, launching a solo home run before adding another RBI in the second. Granite Bay answered, but catcher Maddox Rabara came through with the go-ahead run in the third, while Cal State Northridge signee Tyler Spangler slammed the door with a six-hit, nine-strikeout performance.

Game 2 | Granite Bay 5, St. Mary's 4

• St. Mary’s was one half-inning away. Mississippi State signee Dax Hardcastle had just delivered what looked like the winning hit, singling home the go-ahead run in the ninth as part of a 4-for-5, two-RBI performance. UCLA signee Nico Bavaro had already done his part, giving the Rams seven innings while allowing just five hits and three earned runs. Then everything unraveled. With two outs in the bottom half, a walk put runners on first and second before Granite Bay’s Isaac Schroeder sent a single to right. The tying run was already scoring, but when right fielder Dawson Labarthe couldn’t field the bounce cleanly, the winning run scored too.

Game 3 | St. Mary's 7, Granite Bay 1

• Plenty could have changed everything. A first-pitch homer. A missed balk call that should have brought home a run. A triple erased that could have done the same. None of it mattered. St. Mary’s responded exactly how the No. 1 seed should, with Hardcastle taking over. He struck out 12 across 6 2/3 innings while allowing just three hits and one earned run, then added an RBI at the plate as six different Rams contributed offensively.

Division III​

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No. 7 El Capitan (25-7) vs. No. 3 Manteca (22-10); El Capitan wins series 2-0

Game 1 | El Capitan 3, Manteca 0

• At the time, it felt like an anomaly. It was the first time all season Manteca had been held scoreless. “Jeremy (Cross) threw well,” coach Mark Ruiz said. “He kept us in the game the entire time, which is what he does. We just didn’t have any timely hitting.” Cross gave the Buffaloes six innings, allowing seven hits and three earned runs, but seven hits, 12 baserunners and five chances with runners in scoring position still produced nothing.

Game 2 | El Capitan 11, Manteca 0

• So much for calling it a one-off. One game after being shut out for the first time all season, Manteca found itself in the same spot again. El Capitan turned a 5-0 game into a mercy-rule finish with six runs in the fifth, while limiting the Buffaloes to just one hit — their fewest of the season.

Division IV​

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No. 1 Roseville (26-4) vs. No. 4 East Union (21-10);Roseville wins series 2-0

Game 1 | Roseville 8, East Union 0

• If anyone needed a reminder of why Roseville took over the No. 1 spot in the entire Sac-Joaquin Section, this was it. UC Davis commit Tyler Ritter took over Game 1, throwing a complete-game gem with 10 strikeouts while allowing just two hits.

Game 2 | Roseville 11, East Union 1

• Here was the other reminder. Vanderbilt commit and Baseball America Top 100 national prospect in the Class of 2027, Ethan Gustaus, took over, allowing just three hits and one earned run across six innings while striking out 10. The loss closed the book on East Union’s first 20-win season in program history and what may go down as the best team the Lancers have ever had.

Division V​

No. 5 Wheatland (23-8) vs. No. 8 Escalon (20-10); Wheatland wins series 2-0

Game 1 | Wheatland 3, Escalon 1

• Fresh off its stunning upset of the No. 1 seed, Escalon looked ready to keep rolling when Lorenzo Texeira delivered a two-out RBI in the opening inning. That was about all Wheatland allowed. Zach Wells kept the Cougars in it with five innings of four-hit, three-earned-run ball, but Escalon managed just one hit all game.

Game 2 | Wheatland 10, Escalon 0

• The magic finally ran out. Escalon’s bats never got going again, managing just three hits as Wheatland rolled to a five-inning mercy-rule win on the Cougars’ home field.

Division VI​

No. 1 Ripon Christian (28-3) vs. No. 5 Colfax (13-16-1); Ripon Christian wins series 2-1

Game 1 | Colfax 10, Ripon Christian 4

• Forty-eight days without a loss ended in a nightmare start. Everything that could go wrong for Ripon Christian seemed to, as Colfax built a seven-run lead through three innings. The Knights showed some life with three runs in the bottom half, but the hole was simply too deep.

Game 2 | Ripon Christian 6, Colfax 1

• A team that had already rewritten the school record book in wins was not going quietly. Sophomore Trenton Cloward gave Ripon Christian exactly what it needed with a complete-game gem, allowing just six hits and one earned run. Then came the fireworks, as Stadtler Postma homered during a perfect 3-for-3 day, senior Maxx Anderson crushed a solo shot, and junior Noah De Bruyn added another blast.

Game 3 | Ripon Christian 10, Colfax 2

• If there was a statement to make, Ripon Christian made it. After falling behind 1-0 in the opening inning, the Knights erupted their way to a fifth Section final appearance — and first since 2024 — behind senior Jackson Howell’s three-RBI day and contributions from five other run producers.

This article originally appeared on The Record: San Joaquin County baseball playoffs | Semifinal recap and results

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