CONCORD — De La Salle is back in familiar territory after routing Foothill in the North Coast Section Division I semifinals.
The second-seeded Spartans rolled past No. 3 Foothill 10-1 at home on Tuesday behind a two-home run game from senior second baseman Antonio Castro to advance to the NCS Division I finals, where they will play No. 5 College Park at St. Mary’s College on Saturday.
De La Salle will be making its 13th consecutive NCS Division I title game appearance, in which the playoffs have been contested. The Concord school has won 30 of its last 31 NCS title games, falling only to Granada in last year’s Division I finals.
“It’s about a lot of hard work,” De La Salle coach David Jeans said. “This team this year, this was their own journey. They were trying to figure it out in the beginning, and sometimes I wondered if they were passionate about it. But they are just quietly competitive, and they’re just figuring it out right now.”
De La Salle’s Antonio Castro #10 is all smiles after hitting his second home run against Foothill in the North Coast Section Division I semifinal playoffs, Tuesday, May 27, 2025, in Concord, Calif. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)De La Salle pitcher Graham Schlicht pitched a complete game, striking out six and giving up six hits and a run.
“We’re one step away,” Castro, a Cal Poly commit, said. “College Park is going to be a tough one, but if we keep working hard like we do, we’ll come out with that.”
Foothill got off to a strong start and looked poised to upset the Spartans.
De La Salle starting pitcher Graham Schlicht #17 throws a complete game in a 10-1 victory over Foothill in the North Coast Section Division I semifinal playoffs, Tuesday, May 27, 2025, in Concord, Calif. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)Leadoff hitter Jack Fowler hit a solo home run to right field in the first inning, drawing Foothill’s dugout to burst with loud energy as he crossed home plate.
But that would turn out to be the only run the Falcons would put on the board all day.
De La Salle tied the game in the home half of the first on a sacrifice fly from designated hitter Bubba Vargas.
After Schlicht retired three straight batters in the second inning, De La Salle broke the game open.
With one out, Foothill committed a costly error on a deep fly ball to center field that put two runners in scoring position. After center fielder Alec Blair was walked, Castro blasted a line drive past the right field wall with the bases loaded to put the Spartans up 5-1.
“I just kept fighting,” Castro said of his grand slam. “I got two strikes and I was just worried about being on time, seeing a pitch I can handle and letting my hands fly.”
From there, it was all De La Salle.
Schlicht continued his dominance on the mound as he kept Foothill’s power hitters in check. After giving up the home run, the Stanford commit would not see more than four batters in an inning.
He finished Tuesday’s game throwing 85 pitches, 57 of which were strikes.
In the fifth inning, Castro and shortstop Tyler Spangler each had a homer as the Spartans put up five more runs to take a commanding 10-1 lead and shut the door on any Foothill comeback.
“Hitters did a great job,” Spangler said. “We were seeing the ball well, communicating what the other pitcher was throwing and I think our defense was solid today.”
De La Salle’s Tyler Spanger #22 catches a pop up while left fielder Ethan Sullivan crashes into him during the North Coast Section Division I semifinal playoffs against Foothill, Tuesday, May 27, 2025, in Concord, Calif. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)For Foothill coach Zeke Palma, the game was lost early. Palma said the error before Castro’s grand slam shifted the game’s momentum.
“That was the turning point right there,” Palma said. “It was one big pitch and then we just couldn’t grab the momentum. It was tough.”
Related Articles
NCS roundup: College Park reaches first NCS D-I baseball final in a decade NCS roundup: Las Lomas’ pitching dominates again as Knights reach baseball semis NCS baseball, softball playoffs: Saturday’s scores, updated schedule CCS baseball, softball playoffs: First-round scores in all divisions CCS roundup: Los Gatos cools off Bellarmine to reach D-I baseball semisFoothill’s season isn’t over though as the Falcons will play Casa Grande, which fell to College Park on Tuesday, in a third-place game on Saturday. The winner will receive the section’s final CIF NorCal playoff bid.
“The quicker we turn the page and forget about what happened today, the better off we’ll be,” Palma said. “We just got to get back to what made us good. There’s a reason why we won 21 games with the tough slate that we had. We’re a good team, you know, so we’ve just got to turn the page and get back to basics.”
De La Salle will be seeking its 15th NCS title and ninth in Division I.
De La Salle starting pitcher Graham Schlicht #17 throws a complete game in a 10-1 victory over Foothill in the North Coast Section Division I semifinal playoffs, Tuesday, May 27, 2025, in Concord, Calif. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group) De La Salle’s Antonio Castro #10 hits a grand slam home run against Foothill in the second inning of the North Coast Section Division I semifinal playoffs, Tuesday, May 27, 2025, in Concord, Calif. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group) Foothill’s Jack Fowler #17 hits a lead off home run against De La Salle in the North Coast Section Division I semifinal playoffs, Tuesday, May 27, 2025, in Concord, Calif. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group) De La Salle starting pitcher Graham Schlicht #17 is congratulated by catcher Zach Tchejeyan after throwing a complete game, 10-1 victory over Foothill in the North Coast Section Division I semifinal playoffs, Tuesday, May 27, 2025, in Concord, Calif. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group) De La Salle’s Antonio Castro #10 hits a grand slam home run against Foothill in the second inning of the North Coast Section Division I semifinal playoffs, Tuesday, May 27, 2025, in Concord, Calif. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group) De La Salle’s Antonio Castro #10 celebrates a grand slam home run against Foothill in the second inning of the North Coast Section Division I semifinal playoffs, Tuesday, May 27, 2025, in Concord, Calif. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group) Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Antonio Castro crushes two homers as De La Salle beats Foothill to reach NCS D1 title game )
Also on site :