While Santa Barbara High’s season came to a close on Tuesday, there was still an air of optimism that lingered around Eddie Mathews Field long after the game was over.
The Dons (14-14) dropped their CIF Division II second-round playoff game 4-3 to the San Luis Obispo Tigers (22-5) on Tuesday, but gained valuable playoff experience in the process.
“I’m excited for the future,” head coach Fred Warrecker said. “They’re great kids and I can’t wait to start all over again next year.”
“This year could have been a disaster, but we really bounced back,” Warrecker added. “The best that we played has been the last two weeks.”
Santa Barbara looked poised to upset the senior-laden Tigers early on. The Dons lone senior starter Will Allison led off with an infield single and Joey Gonzales followed by crushing a triple over the center fielder’s head, scoring Allison.
Jack Crummer ripped a single up the middle, plating Gonzales and putting the Dons up 2-0.
But starting pitcher Danny Zandona faltered in the third, after a walk and an error, Tigers shortstop Scott Shields punished the first pitch he saw, blasting it well over the left field fence for a three-run homer to give San Luis Obispo the lead.
The Dons rallied to tie the score in the third before Shields again boosted the Tigers in the fourth by doubling and later scoring to give them the lead for good.
Santa Barbara was unable to make any legitimate attempts at a comeback, as they didn’t collect a single hit after the third inning.
Sophomore standout Danny Zandona provided the Dons with another solid start, allowing four runs, three earned, in seven innings of work. He finishes his first full varsity season with a 7-3 record.
“Danny was great for us again today,” Warrecker said. “He’s showed great poise all season.”
Warrecker also praised the play of Gonzales, who battled an early season injury and stepped up to fill a vacancy at shortstop after playing catcher his first two years in high school.
“He struggled at first, but he played spectacularly today and he’s now a good, good shortstop.”
The Dons will return eight of their starting nine next season and hope to contend in the Channel League once again.
And while they have made great strides this season and the prospect for next season is encouraging, the sting of the defeat was still very fresh for many players.
“It’s a bitter taste,” center fielder Collin Dewell said. “I think if we played the same team in a couple years we’d take ’em down.”
The youthful Dons will look to make a drive into the CIF playoffs past the second round, where they have been knocked out each of the previous three seasons.
SAN LUIS OBISPO 4, SANTA BARBARA 3
San Luis Obispo…030 100 0 — 4 5 0
Santa Barbara…201 000 0 — 3 4 1
Levin, Murillo (5) and Duval; Zandona and Fraker
2B — SLO: Shields. 3B — SB: Gonzales HR — SLO: Shields (2nd inn., two on)
Team records — SLO 22-5, SB 14-14
