SAN JOSE, CA - Branham sophomore Arman Sabouri was as nervous as an expectant father before Saturday's 1-0 section title victory against St. Francis CCC.
Funny, because that's exactly what Branham coach Landon Jacobs was -- a father-to-be, that is -- about eight months ago.
Joyously for Jacobs and his Bruins, both situations turned out well, with Jacobs now the dad of a bouncing baby boy (Ryan) and the coach of a team that won the third section baseball title in school history -- thanks largely to the three-hit pitching of his cool-as-ice sophomore Sabouri.
Jacobs got a far-off look and became visibly choked up when his twin blessings were mentioned.
"It's hard to put into words," he said. "There's been a lot of time away from the house, but my wife (Lisa) has been great about it and I love her and I love our boy and it's been a great year."
Yeah, it has.
St. Francis (19-10) threatened in the bottom of the seventh when pinch hitter Marc Gugale walked. But Branham fielded a strong bunt and got an out on a close play at second base, then the unflappable Sabouri induced the next Shark into a double-play grounder turned by post-season hero Ryan Williams. Williams pumped his fist and sprinted toward the middle of the diamond after his game-ending play.
Just like that, St. Francis' season was over and Branham players were dissolving into a happy, sweaty mound of blue.
"I can't really explain it; it's unexplainable," Sabouri said of his emotions. "I've never felt that feeling before."
Said Williams: "That was incredible; that was crazy."
Branham (20-14) scored the game's only run in the first when leadoff hitter Michael Walls -- who had drawn a walk and wound his way to third -- sprinted for the plate as Williams attempted to steal second after a base hit. Williams was out at second, but the fleet Walls scored the all-important run.
"Once Ryan Williams got that base hit to right and they gave him the steal sign, I knew what I had to do," Walls said. "I took off as soon as I saw the catcher throw it over the pitcher's head."
St. Francis started a junior (Josh Rodriguez) on the mound and Branham a 15-year-old (Sabouri), so nobody could have predicted a 1-0 game. But that's exactly what the sun-baked fans at San Jose Municipal Stadium got.
Sabouri, a 5-foot-9, 160-pound strike-thrower, agreed he was wound tight before his gem.
"I was very nervous -- I was shaking from the moment I got up this morning," he said.
And when St. Francis put the potential tying run on first base with nobody out in the seventh?
"It was like 'Don't mess this up,'" he said. "Don't mess this up; you've got a one-run lead -- just keep chucking the baseball."
Sabouri, the son of a Persian immigrant from Iran, described the outcome as "beyond my dreams right now. It hasn't sunk in yet."
Maybe not for St. Francis CCC either. The gutsy team from the tiny Catholic school was seeking its first section baseball title. It hoped to do so on a day its seniors graduated at 10 a.m. -- just six hours before the first pitch. Sadly for for the Sharks, it didn't happen.
"It was a Cinderella ending, but the clock struck midnight and we didn't get home I guess," Sharks coach Ken Nakagawa said with a laugh. "You couldn't write the script any better than to graduate at 10 in the morning and then go play in the CCS finals at 4 o'clock in the afternoon and hopefully celebrate at a party with your CCS banner and a graduation. But obviously it didn't work out that way."
The good news for St. Francis is it had only one senior starter.
As for Branham, which went just 7-7 in league but finished with a flourish, the revelry from this victory may not subside any time soon.
Once again Williams led the way, getting the hit in the first that led to Walls' dash for the plate.
"He makes a ton of plays and he got hot with the bat at just the right time in the post-season," Jacobs said of his senior leader.
Walls did his job as lead-off man, getting on base three out of four times, including hustling his way into a third-inning double on what should have been a single.
Overall it was a stellar effort by the Bruins who won one of two section titles for a BVAL-Mt. Hamilton team on the day -- with Leland getting the other one, 3-2 against Bellarmine in the Open Division.
"It's just such a great accomplishment for all of the guys and the families and the school," Jacobs said. "We have graduation next week and I can't think of a better way to send the seniors out."
