CCS Div. III Baseball Champions 2026

Menlo School baseball has gone three for three in landing CCS championships the past three years.

The Knights won the CCS Div. VI title in 2024, the Div. V title last season and jumped two levels to secure the latest jewel in ther crown. Menlo (20-10) defeated Wilcox 2-0 for the CCS Div. III Championship on Thursday at Excite Ballpark. Menlo returns to the NorCals, which begin Tuesday.

Knights sophomore Reid Plamondon delivered a six-inning shutout while striking out nine in the CCS ChampionshipIn the CCS final, it was a pitching duel save for the bottom of the first.That’s when senior shortstop Jack Freehill was hit by a pitch with one out. Senior catcher Chuck Wynn followed with a walk, then they executed a double-steal. Junior first baseman Matthew Majalya sent the first pitch to left center to drive them home for a 2-0 lead that would stand.

Sophomore Reid Plamondon was brilliant on the mound, allowing just two hits in six innings while walking two and striking out nine.

Plamondon got behind in the count only twice, one ending in a strikeout. He gave a small hop and he broke into an ear-to-ear grin after each out.

“This was the most fun game I’ve every had,” Plamondon said. “(Wilcox’s) crowd really showed out - they were loud, and I fed off that energy. I was a little nervous in the beginning but I knew I had to just go out and do my thing.”

Fellow sophomore Liam Widner faced four batters in the seventh, struck out two, and closed the game again when the Chargers lined out to Freehill.

“Baseball’s a volatile game. Anything can happen at ay moment,” Majalya said. “Our pitchers did a great job of bearing down and staying consistent.”

Majalya made the most of an outside fastball that he hit just over short.

“(Elias Laureles) is a really good pitcher,” Majalya said. “As the pitch was moving away, I topped it a little bit, but was able to poke it and find ground.”