In first career start, Serra closer Nate Hui pitches complete-game shutout as Padres reach NorCal championship ...Middle East

SAN MATEO — Nate Hui had never before started a baseball game at the high school level.

On Thursday, you never would have known it. For the first time as a starting pitcher, Hui took his home mound in San Mateo as Serra welcomed in Los Gatos for a trip to the CIF NorCal Division I championship game. 

This time, Hui, normally the Padres’ closer, simply decided to close out the entire game in one fell swoop. The junior pitched a complete-game shutout in the Division I semifinal, backstopping Serra to a 3-0 win and the Padres’ first-ever trip to the regional championship.

“Honestly, I don’t really feel pressure,” Hui said. “I know my team is gonna make plays behind me. I had a couple double plays, couple good plays in the outfield. And I know if I do my job, I throw strikes and execute the pitches when I need to, I know my teammates are gonna back me up, no matter what. Like, I balked in the CCS championship, I balked earlier in this game. I never have a doubt. I’m gonna keep making pitches, and I know my boys are gonna make plays for me.”

Though Hui didn’t allow any runs, that wasn’t always a certainty. Los Gatos (25-6) applied pressure in almost every inning and got started right away. 

The Wildcats put two runners on in the first, two in the second – advanced to scoring position by Hui’s balk – two in the fourth, one in the fifth, one in the sixth and one in the seventh. 

Every single time, Hui came through and stranded them all. And on a day where the whipping Peninsula wind made every fly ball a challenge, the Padres played a clean and error-free game in the field to ensure Hui could put the finishing touches on his masterpiece. 

“You walk in, you see 290 and 285 (feet),” Serra coach Mat Keplinger said of the short outfield fences. “But then when the wind’s howling like this, it’s a different ball game. You have to run. You have to bunt. You have to execute the small game when it’s like this.”

Serra (28-6) was the beneficiary of some home cooking from Mother Nature in the fourth inning. With one out and Davis Minton at third, Tyler Harrison hit a soaring pop fly to medium depth in right field. 

The wind got a hold of the ball, which hung up for an eternity, and dropped it near first base, where Los Gatos was unable to make a play. Minton scored on the play, and the Padres, with the aid of the elements, had already pushed across enough run support for Hui.

“Anything up in the air is definitely a gamble, right?” Keplinger said. “Hold your breath.”

After getting a run on the board, Hui navigated a two-out single by Zach Biller and a walk to Rowen Smith in the fifth, getting Will Temple to pop out to left to end the inning. He did some of his best work down the stretch, facing just one batter over the minimum in his final two innings on the mound.

“Attack the zone,” Hui said of his mindset. “They’re a good team, I know, but we have a great defense, so just let them put the ball in play and trust in my teammates. They’re gonna make plays for me, and go make the right pitches when I need to.”

Serra took some more pressure off Hui with a pair of insurance runs in the sixth inning. Jack Armstrong and Tyler Harrison got the Padres started with back-to-back walks.

Then with one out, pinch-runner Jack Wessell took off for third on a double steal. The throw to the base went down the line, scoring Wessell and enabling Harrison to reach third.

Two batters later, William Walbridge singled to left, giving Hui three runs to work with in the seventh. 

Justin Mazzaferro singled to start the final frame, but that would be all from the Wildcats. Hui induced a double-play ball to clear the bases, then grounded out the final hitter to end the game.

“It was a little bit of everything,” Hui said of his formula for success. “Honestly, nothing felt too good today. I was missing a lot of my fastballs in the middle of the game. So I got back to what I do best. Throw a little slider, breaker, just try to get weak contact, get ground balls. Huge double play in the last inning, I think that was on a breaker too. It’s not a certain pitch. It’s pitching with what feels right in that certain moment.”

For the second time in three games, Los Gatos starter Matt Ludeman got a bit of a raw deal. As he was in the Wildcats’ CCS semifinal loss to Valley Christian, Ludeman was largely excellent on the mound, pitching 5 ⅓ innings with two earned runs allowed on four hits. 

Hui was just a little bit better, and with the aid of some defensive mistakes, his teammates came through with the runs he needed late. 

“He’s been throwing like that all year,” Los Gatos coach Mike Minkel said of Ludeman. “He’s been an absolute force.” 

But Hui was the one on the mound at the end of the game, much as he has often been for Serra this season. After Thursday’s performance, he might get a few more chances to toe the rubber from the beginning next year. 

“He’s pitched some very high-leverage moments all year,” Keplinger said. “His stuff has developed. He’s added a couple pitches to his repertoire throughout this season. We just wanted to get off to a good start. No way did I think he was going to go complete game today, but that’s just a heck of an effort. And I can’t say enough about him leaving it out on the field today for us.”

Since the NorCal tournament was introduced in 2022, Serra had never reached the final day of the prep baseball season. But this year, the Padres will play in the last possible game the high school schedule has to offer.

It’s the dream of every team that convenes in the fall to prepare for a long spring season ahead. For those who max out and lengthen it all the way into June by reaching the NorCal championship game, it’s an unforgettable achievement.

“It means the world to me, because I love playing with these guys,” Hui said. “Every game, every practice more I get, I’m just so grateful, because I never knew when it was gonna end with these guys. I’m so grateful I get to keep playing. And I’m gonna miss the seniors, but I know we’re gonna do our best next game.”

Serra, the No. 3 seed in Division I, will travel to Concord on Saturday to face top seed De La Salle for the NorCal championship. First pitch is currently scheduled for 4 p.m.

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