The Benicia and American Canyon high school volleyball teams were given the No. 12 and 14 seeds in their respective playoff brackets, but each team has proven so far that it likes to pull off an upset.
Fans of local volleyball have plenty to look forward to this week, with both teams playing in the semifinals of the North Coast Section playoffs on Tuesday. At stake is a chance to win a section title on Thursday.
With the Golden State Warriors in a tight series against Minnesota and the NHL playoffs in the quarterfinals, it can be a lot to gauge on where to be and when to sit in front of a television. That’s why this week’s Thomas Guide will direct you just where to be and when.
Local volleyball
Benicia and American Canyon are one step away from playing in a championship match. American Canyon, the No. 14 seed in Division II, is at International High — just a short distance away from the Van Ness stop on a MUNI trip in San Francisco.
American Canyon is coming off an epic, five-set win over San Leandro last week. The Wolves were led by Hector Valencia, who had 20 kills and 10 digs. Patrick Gamboa had 14 kills in the same match.
Meanwhile, although Benicia is the No. 12 seed and Quarry Lane is the No. 9 seed, the match will be played Tuesday night at Benicia High. The Warriors are off Tuesday night, so no reason to miss a chance to miss a great local volleyball matchup. Nobody really expected a No. 9 seed to play a No. 12, but here we are.
Local baseball
The Vallejo High baseball team beat Bethel on Friday, the second win in three games between the two rivals. This latest win was in the first round of the Tri-County Athletic League playoffs, so the Redhawks will travel to Hercules on Wednesday for the semifinals.
Meanwhile, St. Pat’s, which defeated John Swett two weeks ago, finally plays another game on Wednesday against John Swett at home. First pitch in the semifinal game is slated for 4 p.m.
American Canyon begins the Vine Valley Athletic League playoffs on the road on Tuesday, with a game against Petaluma. The Wolves finished 6-6 in league play this year and are 11-13 overall.
Benicia is 14-8 overall, but just 4-4 in the the Diablo Valley Athletic League. The Panthers will likely need a sweep this week over Alhambra to get in the playoffs. The Panthers are at home on Tuesday and Thursday.
Local softball
The Benicia High softball team is 5-3 in the Diablo Valley Athletic League and still in search of a league title. The Panthers play at home on Tuesday against College Park and then travel to Northgate in their regular season finale on Thursday. The Panthers need to win both games and then need Clayton Valley Charter to lose two games this week for any chance to share a championship.
American Canyon plays Casa Grande on the road in the Vine Valley Athletic League tournament on Wednesday. The Wolves are 12-11 overall and 7-5 in league play, so they may need to win at least one game to guarantee themselves a shot in the North Coast Section playoffs next week.
Vallejo plays at El Cerrito in the Tri-County Athletic League playoffs on Wednesday. Vallejo will need to win at least one game in the tournament to have any kind of chance in the North Coast Section playoffs with the Redhawks being under .500 in league play so far. They are 8-7 overall.
NBA playoffs
It wasn’t the greatest week overall for Bay Area teams playing in Minnesota. The San Francisco Giants were swept by the Twins and the Warriors have lost two in a row at the time of this writing to the Timberwolves.
But despite Steph Curry not being able to play in the playoffs and Draymond Green acting like he doesn’t want to play and instead be fined, the Warriors are somehow still alive.
Golden State played Monday night at home against Minnesota, but even if it lost, Game 5 is still set in the Twin Cities on Wednesday. If a Game 6 is necessary it would be played at the Chase Center on Saturday, although a game time hasn’t been determined yet.
If Curry isn’t able to come back from his injury, the Warriors are likely to lose this series. If he does come back, it’s anyone’s series.
New York shocked everyone by winning the first two games in Boston, but then the Celtics rebounded to take Game 3 over the weekend. Game 4 was Monday and if the Celtics tied up the series up then Wednesday’s Game 5 will be huge. If the Celtics lost on Monday, then a Wednesday win may just be delaying the inevitable for the Celtics.
Indiana is up 3-1 over top-seeded Cleveland, but the Cavaliers can gain some life in the series with a Tuesday win. However, Indiana has looked like the better team in this series.
If Indiana and New York each win their series, then the two will play each other in the semifinals. Whether or not Spike Lee would sit next to Reggie Miller is another question.
Despite Denver getting a new coach recently, the Nuggets are still alive while playing top-seeded Oklahoma City, with the series tied at 2-all. Game 5 is Tuesday.
NHL playoffs
The Dallas Stars and Winnipeg Jets continue their series on Tuesday, with Dallas looking to gain a 3-1 advantage and the Jets trying to tie it up and get back home-ice advantage. The two teams would play Game 5 on Thursday and if necessary, Game 6 on Saturday.
The Edmonton Oilers’ series against the Las Vegas Knights has been epic so far, with Edmonton stealing two games on the road, only to see Vegas win Game 3 with under a second left in regulation. Yes, less than a second. The squads faced off in Game 4 on Monday night, but will continue the series in Las Vegas for Game 5 on Wednesday.
Carolina and Washington played Monday night, but no matter what happens the squads will face off in the nation’s capitol on Thursday.
Florida is looking to become the first team to repeat since 2021, when the Tampa Bay Lightning won two years in a row. The Panthers have a lot of work in front of them, as they look to break Canada’s heart by beating the Maple Leafs. The series is tied at 2-2, with Toronto hosting Game 5 on Wednesday. This is can’t-miss action. Game 6 is scheduled for Friday, with a possible Game 7 on Sunday. Game 7s in the NHL playoffs are about as good as it gets in sports, so don’t make big plans this Sunday.
MLB
The Giants come back home starting Monday to play an important series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Or the Serpientes, with the team having a half dozen uniforms each week. Look, can we just put to rest the City Connect uniforms? Has anyone in the history of ever purchased one of these uniforms and said, “Hell yeah, I’m connected! To my city!”
No, but there is a 50/50 chance they are blind.
None of these uniforms, sans the White Sox or Angels, are decent. The Giants look like a creamsicle. The Dodgers look like pajamas. The Padres ones look they just got back from playing paintball … and lost. The Astros look like they’re trying to sell advertisements for Space Mountain. The Guardians just say the land, like it’s a freaking baseball team in the film, “Waterworld.” Half the other city connect jerseys are just abbreviations. Has anyone actually said, “Let’s go PGH” in the history of the Pittsburgh? Probably not.
The A’s are in Los Angeles this week so you can remember the 1988 World Series. Later in the week you can relive the 1989 World Series when the A’s play in San Francisco. Actually on second thought, let’s not do that. Something about a big earthquake doesn’t give me great nostalgia.
The weekend is part of what MLB is trying to do label as rivalry week. But come on, let’s just call it “Nearest City Week.” Any week in baseball that calls itself a rivalry week that doesn’t have Boston play the Yankees, the Dodgers play the Giants or the Cardinals and Cubs meet is just fooling itself.
However, it will be interesting to see the Mariners and Padres play, as well as the Royals and Cardinals meeting up 40 years after their great World Series in 1985. Plus, the Yankees and Mets play this week. I’m sure Juan Soto will make a lot of new friends.
Read
“Interstate ’85: The Royals, The Cardinals, and the Show-Me World Series” by Marshall Garvey
“Doc, Donnie, the Kid, and Billy Brawl” by Chris Donnelly
