East County Sports

Eagles fall homer short of title game

Granite Hills celebrates a home run on Wednesday.

2017 EAST COUNTY PREP BASEBALL PLAYOFFS

By Ramon Scott

EastCountySports.com

SAN DIEGO – Coming within one run of reaching the San Diego CIF Division I title game for the second-straight year, the Granite Hills Eagles showed the fine line in the quality of teams in the tournament.

The defending champions may have endured a rough-and-tumble regular season, matching up with some of the county’s top teams all spring, but once Granite Hills got into its element, they looked as if they were destined to repeat.

SEAN MCGREW at the plate on Wednesday.

Even though the Eagles opened the postseason with two straight wins on the road, including a 5-2 win at Francis Parker, they were forced to play a pair of road games on consecutive days at higher-seeded Parker in order to gain a berth in the final at USD on Friday night.

The result was back-to-back 3-2 losses to the Knights, including Wednesday’s elimination semifinal thriller, ending Granite Hills’ run.

Sophomore SEAN MCGREW hit a solo home run in the top of the fifth, as Granite Hills (15-18) broke through against Sterling Hayes.

Freshman MAX BODTKE sliced a flare to short right to drive in the game-tying run in the top of the sixth.

Ethan Risse hit the game-winning homer for Parker in the bottom of the sixth.

The Eagles weren’t without scoring chances, as Nevada-bound senior TREVOR HAZELHURST came up big at the plate in the crucial game with a 3-for-3 performance, while Granite’s SDSU-bound star SEAN ROSS had two hits, but the Eagles left the bases loaded in the second.

Hazelhurst also pitched 5 1/3 innings, allowing just four hits.

The Grossmont Foothillers will now face second-seeded Parker (22-7) Friday’s at 7 p.m. at USD.

SDCIF Playoffs – Rnd 5
DIVISION I
LANCERS 3, EAGLES 2
Granite Hills     ab r h bi Francis Parker    ab r h bi
Joslyn c           4 0 0 0  Allen ss           2 0 0 0
Ross cf            4 0 2 0  Krongard lf        3 0 1 1
Verdon 3b          4 0 0 0  Chatfield cf       2 0 0 0
Cossio 1b          3 0 0 0  Risse 1b           3 1 1 1
Hazelhurst p-ss-rf 3 0 3 0  Hayes p-lf-3b      3 1 1 1
Omahen ss          2 1 0 0  Campagne 3b-lf-c   3 0 1 0
Brooks dh          3 0 0 0  Laumakis pr        0 0 0 0
Bodtke rf          2 0 1 1  Yourg c            3 0 0 0
McGrew 2b          3 1 2 1  Stewart eh-c-dh    2 1 1 0
Anderson           - - - -  Neels rf           1 0 0 0
                            Allen              - - - -
TOTALS            28 2 8 2  TOTALS            22 3 5 3

 (7)Granite Hills  (15-18) 000 011 0 – 2 8 0
 (2)Francis Parker  (22-7) 001 101 x - 3 5 0

E-None.
LOB-GH 7, FP 4.
HR-McGrew 5th, solo; Hayes 4th, solo; Risse 6th, solo. 
SB-Omahen 2. Sac-Neels.

PITCHING SUMMARY
Granite Hills      ip  h  r er bb so
 Hazelhurst  L    5.1  4  3  3  2  5
 King             0.2  1  0  0  0  1
Francis Parker
 Hayes   W        6.0  7  2  2  1  4
 Cetale  Sv       1.0  1  0  0  0  0
HBP-Hayes.

 

 

 

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