EL CAJON – The Santana Sultans scored six runs over the first two innings and went on to defeat the host Christian Patriots, 8-2, in a non-league baseball game between a pair of top 15 teams on Friday.
Sultans top Patriots; Matadors fall
- Updated: May 1, 2021
Mount Miguel and Mar Vista in action on Friday. / Kelly Ritiyak
2021 EAST COUNTY PREP BASEBALL
By Nick Pellegrino
EastCountySports.com
San Diego State-bound senior Tyler Glowacki hit a two-run home run in the top of the first for the Sultans and junior pitcher Koda Alto improved to 5-0 by striking out seven over six frames, walking none, and scattering seven hits.
Sultan leadoff man Elijah Reber doubled to start the game and scored on Glowacki’s second homer of the season.
“The first inning is always important, especially on the road, and we know that,” Reber said. “My double and Glowacki going deep really set the tone. We play so well as a team and it’s just going to keep on getting better.”
Reber went 4-for-4 with two RBI and two runs scored to set the tone for 11th-ranked Santana (12-4).
“Getting four hits is great but I will take an O-fer as long as we win the game,” Reber said. “Alto had another great outing but we kind of expect that from him now. The guy shoves every time.”
Santana’s Ethan Wright singled home two in the second and also walked twice.
“Koda did a good job keeping them off balance with every pitch he threw,” said Wright, the catcher. “What worked the best for us was working away with off-speed pitches.”
Glowacki pitched the final frame, as well, in relief of Alto.
“Reber had another insane game at the dish,” Santana’s Dean Landers said. “He just keeps ob being a huge contributor to this team’s success. We understood that they had a long week of playing some really good teams, so we wanted to use that to our advantage and we pounced on it. We were well-disciplined and put the ball in play.”
Braeden Ross lifted his sixth home run of the season for the 13th-ranked Patriots, who trailed 7-2 after three innings.
“A lot of hard work has been put into my swing,” said Ross, a Cal State Northridge commit. “I take great pride in it. I’m seeing the ball well and putting good swings on it.
“As league starts, hopefully, we come out with more intensity. We came out flat and Santana capitalized and we couldn’t recover. Against good teams, we can’t come out flat.”
HR #4 on the year💣
League play starts next week #gopats@CHS___Athletics @CornejoEddie @CoachD_Mitch @CoachMitchell12 pic.twitter.com/YKYBTCtHno— Braeden Ross (@BraedenRoss5) May 1, 2021
The Pats ended up using six pitchers. Aaron Sheblowski struck out three in his one inning of work, although he scattered a pair of hits and allowed a run.
Shane Bailey pitched the sixth and went three-up-and-three-down for the Pats.
“Games like this you can’t carry with you going into your next game,” Christian High starting pitcher Josh Meekins said. “You just have to learn from it and move on.
Eric Markowicz singled and scored for CHS (9-4).
“We got down early and (Alto) did a great job mixing his pitches and all for strikes,” Christian High head coach Mike Mitchell said. “We walked five and hit four batters and nine free bases are going to cost you a lot of ballgames.”
Mar Vista 8, Mount Miguel 3
IMPERIAL BEACH —- Baseball is filled with numbers. Some are interesting; some are simply coincidence?
On Friday (Apr. 30), the “mad, mean, menacing” Mar Vista Mariners scored five early runs, then survived a 3-run Mount Miguel rally to stop the visiting Matadors, 8-3, in non-league action.
Mar Vista (10-5 overall), which lost three straight to East County schools to start the season, now owns five straight wins against the region. Five up, three down — coincidence?
Mount Miguel (5-11) caught fire in the third inning.
After the Castillo brothers — Jeremiah (walk) and JoJo (RBI double) — put the Matadors on the scoreboard, cleanup hitter Matt Acevedo buried a two-out, two-run homer with the ocean breeze and over the barrier in center field for his first varsity home run.
However, Mar Vista pitcher Diego Barquin, who is listed at (maybe) 5–foot-6, 160 pounds, allowed just three additional hits the rest of the way for a complete-game victory, including two each by Acevedo and JoJo Castillo. Barquin, a senior, registered six strikeouts.
“We didn’t play poorly, we just had an unlucky day,” Mount Miguel head coach Frank Coit said. “We hit six or seven balls right on the screws but right at fielders. Mar Vista is very good and you have to beat them because they don’t beat themselves.”
Mount Miguel pitcher Ruben Gomez worked 5 1/3 innings as the starter.
“Ruben threw a lot of strikes,” Coit said. ” He deserved a batter fate.”
