Briones powers Helix nto first place in GHL

By Nick Pellegrino
Updated: April 25, 2026

2026 EAST COUNTY PREP BASEBALL

East County Sports.com

Helix 9,El Capitan 1
LA MESA — The Helix Highlanders took over sole possession of the Grossmont Hills League by completing a three-game season series sweep of El Capitan, winning 9-1 on Saturday (Apr. 25).

Helix (12-10 ovverall, 4-1 GHL) takes a half-game lead over idle Granite Hills (4-2).

Scotties pitcher Romeo Briones captured his fourth straight start in his second win over El Cap in eight days. Briones, a sophomore, was touched for an unearned run in the first inning, then proceeded to fire 5.1 frames of shutout ball. He struck out five Vaqueros batters, moving his season record to 5-1.

Despite El Cap’s early advantage, Helix immediately answered with five runs in the home-half of the first to put thevictory away early.

Helix needed just two batters to pull even. Josh Rivera accepted a lead walk, steals a pair of bases, then ca,e home ona Kei Smith s basehit.

Two additionalwalks loaded the bases, then Bryan Herman grounded a single throughthe left side for two runs and the game-winin RBI.

Helix saw the firstsix batter rech base, followed by a strikeout, a sacrifice fly from Rory Kleiner , then a walk,hen anRBI single by Rivera in his second at-bat of the rally.

El Capitan’s early run was a touxh unusual.

With runners on the corners, Briones picked off the runner at first base, who was eventually tagged out at second base. Howeveer, the runner at third, Kasen Baker, trotted home.

The run was unearned because Bker reacxhed base on a dropped third atrike, which is considered a type of defnesive mistake/error.

In the fifth, another Helix run saw Smith (reached on RBI single) steal second base, with Rivera racing home when the throw went after Smith.

— Nick Pellegrino