STOCKTON — Playing from behind is nothing new for Tyler Graves-Kelso and his two Manteca teammates who were also selected to compete for the South team Friday in the 26th annual All-Star Baseball Classic at Delta College’s Nick Cecchetti Field.
The Buffaloes routinely battled through dire situations en route to their Valley Oak League and Sac-Joaquin Section Division III championships. So when the North jumped out to early leads of 4-0 and 8-2, Graves-Kelso and Co. were far from discouraged.
“We’ve come back from deficits all year at Manteca,” Graves-Kelso said. “I didn’t lose faith or anything like that — I mean, we’re all all-stars for a reason. I didn’t think we were going to go down that easily.”
Once ahead, they made the rest look easy in a 15-8 victory.
Graves-Kelso was the winning pitcher after logging scoreless innings in the fifth and sixth. He struck out two of the seven batters he faced, with one reaching on an error. Five different hurlers shut out the North in the final six innings.
“My last outing was pretty rough in the (section) championship game,” Graves-Kelso said. “To at least come back and pitch well tonight was a pretty good feeling.”
All 15 Manteca-area athletes contributed to the win. Ripon High had the largest contingent with head coach Jon Manrique and members of his staff leading the South. Shortstop Travis Waara went 2 for 2 with an RBI and a run, third baseman Nick Price was 1 for 2, outfielder Sammy Souza finished 1 for 1 with a walk and a run and catcher Angelo Baciocco chipped in an RBI.
The Indians are coming off their first Trans-Valley League championship run since 2001, and Manrique was glad to see his players show well in their last game representing the school.
“We have Manteca here, who won sections this year,” Manrique said. “You also have Tracy, which won the Division I (South) title. My guys are playing with and against some top players in higher divisions, but they showed up and were able to contribute.
“As a coach you’re just proud that they’ve taken a little bit of your teaching and excel at it. I give them all the credit in the world; they’re the ones who go out there and execute and I couldn’t be more proud.”
Michael Cummins came from the smallest school in Ripon Christian, which reached the Sac-Joaquin Section Division VI finals for the first time in program history. Teammates Connor McGovern and Travis Vander Molen were also invited to the all-star event but did not participate.
Cummins produced a hit and three RBIs while pitching a scoreless eighth inning.
“No one else came from my school, so that was a little uncomfortable at first, but we’re all here for one goal — have fun and win,” Cummins said. “There are some amazing athletes out here and I had a great time.”
Sierra’s Anthony Arredondo helped spark the South out of its early slump. He stroked a one-out triple in the top of the third for the club’s first hit of the game and later scored on Waara’s base hit. Keenan Donatelli (2 for 2, two RBIs) of Lathrop drove in Waara with a single to right.
The South rallied for six runs in the fourth to tie it at 8-8. Cummins knocked in both Souza (leadoff walk) and Manteca’s Jake Menasco (single), then Lathrop’s Albert Flores drilled a two-run double and finished with three RBIs for the day. Flores plated the tying run on a triple to deep left from Kimball’s Nate Ambriz.
Weston Ranch’s Josh Dilg made his only at-bat count in the sixth. He led off with a single, advanced on fellow Cougar Jordan Severin’s groundout and later scored the go-ahead run. Sierra’s Steven Rios chipped in an RBI single in the inning.
“You just have to stay ready at all times, have fun and cheer on my teammates and stay involved somehow,” Dilg said of his long wait before making his contributions.
Lathrop’s Santiago Kantun allowed two runs in the second inning. Valley Oak League MVP Marco Gonzales of East Union gave up two earned runs on four hits in the third inning but bounced back well with a perfect fourth. Manteca’s Mitch Balmut was 0 for 2 at the plate but played well in right field.
Rivals during the spring, the all-stars from the VOL enjoyed their short time together as teammates. They often whooped “VOL!” from the dugout throughout the contest.
“It was pretty fun,” Graves-Kelso said. “I grew up with a lot of these guys, from Marco from East Union, to Rios and Arredondo from Sierra, and  I’ve known Keenan for a while. I feel like the VOL, we’re like a family. We all cared about each other and not just what we did individually. We wanted to win as a team. We played together really well.”