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Petaluma dropped its first game in the double-elimination tournament to North Oakland Sunday afternoon, losing, 17-2. San Francisco lost Sunday’s tournament-opening game to Benecia, 8-0. Tonight’s loser is finished. The winner will paly again Tuesday at 5:30.

Petaluma earned advancement to the Section Tournament by defeating Healdsburg, 8-3, in the championship game of the District 35 Tournament.

After a disappointing 5-3 loss to Healdsburg Thursday, Petaluma methodically took care of business Friday, combining solid pitching with timely hitting and clutch defense to win the tournament title.

Kevin Balke handled the pitching, baffling Healdsburg hitters with a good fastball and a better curve.

He allowed only one base runner through the first three innings and just three hits in the game. He walked one and struck out seven, including three in a row in the first inning.

Blake was forced by his pitch count to leave the game an out short of a complete game.

He was replaced by Brett Creamer, who hit the first two batters he faced, but was saved further trouble by second baseman Scott Mayer, who made a spectacular leaping catch of a line drive off the bat of Healdsburg’s Elliot North to end the game and the tournament.

Mayer’s snare was one of several outstanding defensive plays made by the Petalumans, including an excellent grab of a high pop foul down the right-field line by Mayer. Erik Nadell in center field and Brian Repp in right had extra-effort catches.

Offensively, the Petalumans kept a steady stream of runners parading around the bases.

A lead-off single by Dax Cargill, Mayer’s sacrifice bunt, a single by Nadell and Chris McDaniel’s sacrifice fly produced a run in classic fashion in the first inning.

A two-out double by Cargill, and a follow-up single by Mayer made the score 2-0 in the second.

Four runs scored for the Petalumans in the third, with Conner Bihn, Cargill and Mayer providing consecutive hits.

Healdsburg might have escaped the inning with minimal damage, had it not botched a first-and-third run-down play, allowing a run to score and the inning to continue.

A walk, wild pitch and an error made it four innings in a row with a run for the Petalumans, who failed to score in the fifth, but added a final insurance tally in the sixth on McDaniel’s single and Creamer’s double.

Cargill had three hits and scored twice for the Petalumans. Mayer had two hits and his sacrifice bunt.

Nine different batters produced hits for the District 35 champions.

Source: petaluma360