The Chronicle's regional baseball players of the year
SAN FRANCISCO
Archer Horn (St. Ignatius): One of three Wildcats to earn first-team All-West Catholic Athletic League selection, the left-handed-hitting shortstop and relief pitcher led the Chronicle's No. 8 team in batting average (.352), runs (30), hits (31) and home runs (seven) and committed just three errors in 88 total chances. He also had a 2-0 pitching record with a save and 2.02 ERA, and stole 16 bases in 17 attempts. The 10th-ranked 2026 prospect in California according to Prep Baseball Report committed to Stanford when he was a freshman.
Quinten Marsh (Valley Christian): Another Stanford commit, Marsh, a senior outfielder and pitcher, was named the WCAL Player of the Year for the Chronicle's No. 3 team after hitting .505 with 46 hits, 30 RBIs and 15 doubles, all team highs. The 6-foot-1, 190-pounder, ranked the No. 57 senior in the state by Prep Baseball Report, also went 7-2 on the mound with a 1.16 ERA and 76 strikeouts in 54⅓ innings.
EAST BAY
Bo Smith (St. Patrick-St. Vincent-Vallejo): The 5-foot-8, 160-pound middle infielder and center fielder for the Bruins (20-5) led the team with a .581 average (43 hits) with six doubles, three triples and four home runs and scored 46 runs. The four-year starter also stole 38 bases to finish with 100 in his career. He had three hits in a game seven times — including his final two games — and struck out just four times in 92 plate appearances. In his four-year career, Smith had 132 hits, 133 runs, 25 doubles and 12 triples.
Arlo Pendleton (Petaluma): The Valley Vine Athletic League Co-Most Valuable Player not only ranked tied for sixth in the NCS with nine wins (against one loss, 1.37 ERA, 74 strikeouts, 56⅓ innings) but he also led the Trojans (20-7) with four home runs and batted .391. The Cal Poly signee had 25 hits and 22 RBIs. He was the winning pitcher in an opening-round NCS Division 1 game at Castro Valley.
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SAN FRANCISCO Gianna Galarza (St. Ignatius): The junior catcher earned first-team All-West Catholic Athletic League honors by hitting .515 (35-for-68) with 24 RBIs, seven doubles and four home runs, all team bests. In 84 plate appearances, Galarza struck out just twice and drew 15 walks as she posted a .607 on-base percentage with a 1.401 OPS. The third-year starter also threw out nine runners trying to steal and had just two errors in 183 total chances. A model of consistency, Galarza had hits in 22 of 23 games, starting the season on a 16-game hitting streak. Ava Bulanti (St. Francis): The senior pitcher and slugger was Co-WCAL Pitcher of the Year for the Chronicle's No. 1 team, going 14-1 with a 1.96 ERA. A Stanford commit, Bulanti struck out 112 in 93 innings with 29 walks. She also blasted a team-best eight home runs and hit .398 with eight doubles to help the Lancers win WCAL and Central Coast Section Open Division titles. The Livermore Stampede Tournament MVP had 64 hits, 60 RBIs and 27 extra-base hits during her three-year varsity career. EAST BAY Andrea Tall (Newark Memorial): The San Diego State-bound infielder had a monster senior season, hitting .607 with 17 home runs and 49 RBIs for the Cougars (18-5). Tall's home run total bettered the previous North Coast Section single-season record of 15 but was surpassed this season by Metro overall Player of the Year Delaney Aumua's 19. Tall finished with 51 hits in 84 at-bats with 13 additional extra base hits (seven doubles, six triples). In a 9-0 win over Redwood-Larkspur in a North Coast Section Division 2 playoff game, she went 4-for-4 with a double, triple and home run. Her biggest power surge was blasting two home runs, driving in eight and going 4-for-4 in a 30-4 win over Irvington. She had at least three hits eight times. Callie Howard (Cardinal Newman-Santa Rosa): The UC San Diego signee earned North Bay League Oak Division Player of the Year/Pitcher of the Year honors by going 21-6 with a 1.37 ERA and leading the Cardinals to their fourth straight NCS championship. Howard struck out a career-high 260 batters in 163 innings. In the NorCal Division 2 playoffs, she pitched complete-game wins over Calaveras (5-1) and Pinole Valley (1-0) — allowing just seven hits and striking out 19 against zero walks — before losing a 1-0 to Hillsdale-San Mateo in the title game. She also hit .367 with 33 hits on the season.
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SAN FRANCISCO Archer Horn (St. Ignatius): One of three Wildcats to earn first-team All-West Catholic Athletic League selection, the left-handed-hitting shortstop and relief pitcher led the Chronicle's No. 8 team in batting average (.352), runs (30), hits (31) and home runs (seven) and committed just three errors in 88 total chances. He also had a 2-0 pitching record with a save and 2.02 ERA, and stole 16 bases in 17 attempts. The 10th-ranked 2026 prospect in California according to Prep Baseball Report committed to Stanford when he was a freshman. Quinten Marsh (Valley Christian): Another Stanford commit, Marsh, a senior outfielder and pitcher, was named the WCAL Player of the Year for the Chronicle's No. 3 team after hitting .505 with 46 hits, 30 RBIs and 15 doubles, all team highs. The 6-foot-1, 190-pounder, ranked the No. 57 senior in the state by Prep Baseball Report, also went 7-2 on the mound with a 1.16 ERA and 76 strikeouts in 54⅓ innings. EAST BAY Bo Smith (St. Patrick-St. Vincent-Vallejo): The 5-foot-8, 160-pound middle infielder and center fielder for the Bruins (20-5) led the team with a .581 average (43 hits) with six doubles, three triples and four home runs and scored 46 runs. The four-year starter also stole 38 bases to finish with 100 in his career. He had three hits in a game seven times — including his final two games — and struck out just four times in 92 plate appearances. In his four-year career, Smith had 132 hits, 133 runs, 25 doubles and 12 triples. Arlo Pendleton (Petaluma): The Valley Vine Athletic League Co-Most Valuable Player not only ranked tied for sixth in the NCS with nine wins (against one loss, 1.37 ERA, 74 strikeouts, 56⅓ innings) but he also led the Trojans (20-7) with four home runs and batted .391. The Cal Poly signee had 25 hits and 22 RBIs. He was the winning pitcher in an opening-round NCS Division 1 game at Castro Valley.
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