Central Valley’s baseball program had plenty of motivation heading into the Sac-Joaquin Section Division-I playoffs.

The Western Athletic Conference-champion Hawks set out to prove the section wrong after being forced to play a Play-In Game as the No. 16 seed.

Head coach Brad Bussard felt his team deserved a much-higher seed based on its regular-season résumé.

“We were all shocked,” he said. “I got at least 20 calls from coaches from our area. They couldn’t believe it. We felt we were disrespected.”

Central Valley accomplished its goal in the playoffs earlier this month by battling top-seeded St. Mary’s and besting 17th-seeded Franklin.

“We can compete with the best of the best,” Bussard said.

The Hawks put up a fight in losing 4-2 at St. Mary’s in the first round on May 7 in Stockton.

The Tri-City Athletic League-champion Rams (25-7, 13-2) advanced to the section finals.

“We shocked the baseball community,” Bussard said. “The score surprised everyone. People thought we were going to get 10-ranned. We gave the best team in Northern California a run for their money. We went toe-to-toe with them.”

Central Valley led 2-1 heading into the bottom of the fourth inning.

The Rams accounted for the game’s final three runs to prevent the upset victory.

The Hawks contributed to their own downfall by committing two errors.

“We could have won the game,” Bussard said. “We made a couple mistakes that cost us.”

Central Valley starting pitcher Nicholas Dominguez surrendered just one earned run and four hits with three strikeouts and two walks in 41/3 innings.

“It was a super, gutty performance,” Bussard said. “He was facing a bunch of Division-I commits.”

Hawk reliever Ezequiel Verduzco allowed one earned run and one hit with two strikeouts and two walks in 12/3 innings.

Central Valley struggled on offense versus St. Mary’s.

Ram Nico Bravo gave up two earned runs and two hits with 11 strikeouts and two walks while pitching a complete game.

Verduzco batted 1-for-3 from the plate with one double and one RBI.

Carter Hernandez batted 1-for-3 with one RBI.

Mason Whitworth and Julien Perez both scored one run.

Central Valley topped Franklin 8-3 in a Play-In Game on May 5 in Ceres.

“The guys executed well,” Bussard said.

Hawk ace pitcher Chris Garcia totaled 11 strikeouts and one walk in seven innings.

He yielded two earned runs and four hits.

“Our bats were hot,” Bussard said. “We had Chris on the mound. He did what we expected him to do. He threw well. He shut them down for four innings of the game.”

Central Valley collected seven hits against Franklin, which finished 16-12 and third in the San Joaquin Athletic Association (10-4).

Caden Mendonca batted 1-for-4 with one triple, two RBIs and one run.

Andre Flores batted 1-for-2 with one double, one RBI and one run.

Garcia batted 1-for-2 with one triple and two runs.

Verduzco and Fernando Dominguez both batted 1-for-3 with one double, one RBI and one run.

Hernandez batted 1-for-3 with one double and one RBI.

Isaias Valdovinos batted 1-for-3 with one RBI.

Whitworth batted 0-for-4 with one run.

Edgar Peralta batted 0-for-2 with one run and one walk.

The Hawks outscored the Yellowjackets 7-0 through the first five innings of play.

Central Valley made history in 2025 by setting a program record for wins in a single season and claiming its first league title.

The Hawks also hosted their first playoff game.

Central Valley amassed a 21-9 overall record and annexed the WAC crown with a perfect 14-0 mark.

“It was a historic season,” Bussard said. “We broke a bunch of records. This is the most talented team we’ve had. We had MLB scouts and Division-I colleges at our games this year because we played elite competition. We made a name for ourselves.”

“To me, it’s just the start,” he added. “We’re building a program that can be successful for a long time.”

The Hawks will lose eight players to graduation, including Garcia, Dominguez, Flores, Peralta, Aiden Prudhel, Gabriel Reyes, Hunter Shaw and Angel Calderon.

“It’s going to hurt losing them,” Bussard said. “Chris and Nick have been the staple of our pitching staff.”

Garcia posted a 7-2 record at pitcher with a 0.55 earned-run average, 94 strikeouts, 13 walks, one shutout and one save in 502/3 innings.

He batted .306 from the plate on the year with one triple, one double, 14 RBIs, 26 runs and eight stolen bases.

Dominguez compiled a 7-1 record on the mound with a 1.03 ERA, 62 strikeouts and 26 walks in 541/3 innings.

Flores batted .343 with one triple, two doubles, 11 RBIs, 18 runs and 14 stolen bases.

Peralta batted .312 with two homers, one triple, one double, 19 RBIs, 19 runs and eight stolen bases.

Prudhel batted .250 with five RBIs and four runs.

Reyes batted .200 with one double and three runs.

Shaw amassed a 3-0 record with a 1.15 ERA, 28 strikeouts and 10 walks while contributing at pitcher.

He had one RBI and one run on offense.

Calderon scored three runs.

The Hawks could return as many as seven players during the 2026 season, including Hernandez (Jr.), Mendonca (Jr.), Valdovinos (Jr.), Whitworth (Jr.), Verduzco (So.), Fernando Dominguez (Jr.) and Tyson Hunt (So.).

Whitworth batted .382 with three doubles, 10 RBIs, 33 runs and 17 stolen bases.

Hernandez batted .347 with three doubles, 24 RBIs, nine runs and seven stolen bases.

Mendonca batted .338 with two triples, four doubles, 14 RBIs, 16 runs and 18 stolen bases.

Fernando Dominguez batted .307 with two homers, three doubles, 21 RBIs and 22 runs.

Verduzco batted .294 with three triples, five doubles, 11 RBIs and 13 runs.

Valdovinos batted .274 with one double, 14 RBIs and 12 runs.

Hunt had two RBIs and two runs.

Talent from Central Valley’s WAC-championship junior-varsity team (20-7, 14-0) will also be added to the roster. 

Perez, Nathan Cazares, Adrian Delahoya, Dominic Delatorre, Xavier Felix, Noah Maldonado, Marcus Olivas and Adrian Vega will vie for roster spots.

They were promoted to varsity during the latter part of this season.

Vega had three RBIs and two runs in eight games.

Olivas had one run and one hit in three games.

He also totaled nine strikeouts while making three appearances at pitcher.

Perez had one run in one game.

“Now, it’s about next year,” Bussard said. “It’s time to turn the page. We bring a lot of guys back next season. Our juniors are super hungry.”