Nothing went right for Benicia’s Senior League all-star team in the Section 1 Tournament at Fitzgerald Field last weekend.

Benicia got pummeled by District 4 champion Oakland on Saturday, losing 17-1 to quickly drop into the loser’s bracket. A lethargic 9-4 loss to District 35 champion Healdsburg on Sunday eliminated Benicia early.

“I wish I could understand it,” said befuddled Benicia manager Jon Wood. “I don’t know how we lost those two games so badly. There’s no excuse. We just played like crap.”

Four singles and four walks led to a six-run first inning for Oakland in the opener. Oakland tacked on eight runs in the fourth and won in five innings. Jon Lee accounted for Benicia’s only run.

Things looked promising for Benicia against Healdsburg when Lee and Clayton Farmer each scored in the first inning for a 2-0 lead. Back-to-back doubles by Farmer and Kobe Hogan made it 3-0 in the third inning, but Healdsburg batted around in the bottom half and scored five runs to take the lead for good.

Benicia pulled to within 5-4 in the fourth when Josh Ramirez scored, but Healdsburg tacked on four more runs in the fifth to put the game away.

“Our pitchers struggled finding the umpire’s strike zone and we left too many runners on base,” Wood said. “We didn’t cash in on our opportunities.”

Healdsburg takes on Oakland in Tuesday’s Section 1 championship round. A Healdsburg victory would force a decisive championship game Wednesday  night at Fitzgerald Field. The Section 1 winner advances to the Division II Tournament.

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