San Jose, CA - The Cardinals incredible season came to an end at Valley Christian 2-1, in a classic battle of top ranked teams.  Newman  had won two last inning walk offs in a row to get a shot at the top seeded Warriors from San Jose.  CN seemed poised to get the 2 seed but somehow ended up as the 4th seed and had to go on the road for this semi-final Norcal Division 1 match-up.

Valley Christian scored first after a hitter batter in the bottom of the 1st, starter Mason Lerma was called for a balk, the umpire claiming he had not come to a discernable stop before delivering a pitch.  Lerma had not been called for this all season and it became critical to the game's outcome.   The next VC batter bunted to put a runner on 3rd with one out and then a sacrifice fly followed to make it 1-0 Valley Christian.

The Warriors scored again in the 3rd using the bunt once again to put a runner in scoring position followed by a run scoring base hit to make it 2-0. 

In the 4th, Brady Boyd got the Cardinals on the board with his 3rd home run of the year to cut the lead in half.  

The Cardinals had numerous chances to score more but clutch pitching by Valley Christian and some hard hit balls right at Warriors defenders kept things tight until the very end.

"It was a great opportunity to play a top ranked team like Valley Christian," Stated Head Coach Derek Debenedetti after the game.  "We were not intimidated at all despite their reputation and I am very proud of everything we accomplished this season...In a 3 game series who knows it might be a different outcome in our favor."

Unlike the amazing finishes fans have come to expect of the Cardinals, the 7th inning went 1-2-3 and the historical season was over.

A 28-2 final record, the NCS D3 Championship for the 2nd year in a row and a nail bitter loss in the CIF/Norcal D1 Semi-finals leaves a lot to be proud of as we look forward to many more great seasons to come.