EastCountySports.com staff report
EL CAJON - Grossmont College outfielder
Travis Udvarhelyi has been named to
the All-State Team in voting conducted by the California Community
College
Baseball Coaches Association.
The Long Beach State-bound Udvarhelyi, who
earned Pacific Coast Conference
Player of the Year honors with a .463 average, is the third Grossmont
College
player to receive All-State recognition in the last two years.
Third baseman Fernando Cortez, now in the
Tampa Bay Devil Rays minor league
system, was a first-team All-State pick last year, while pitcher
Jared Hemus
- a Minnesota Twins farmhand - got a second team nod.
After leading the conference with an overall
average of .431 (85-for-197),
Udvarhelyi was awarded an automatic All-State first-team berth
and also
received All-American recognition. He was Grossmont's sixth PCC
Player of the
Year in the last seven seasons.
Granite Hills alum and Palomar College sophomore
Kyle Floquet was named to
the All-State second team and to the All-Southern California first
team for
the second consecutive year. Floquet, who batted .404 against
PCC pitching
and .390 overall, gained his honors as a shortstop this season
after doing so
as an outfielder his freshman year. Floquet has signed with Sacramento
State.
GRIFFIN GALLERY
Four more members of Grossmont College's
PCC championship cast have been
awarded scholarships to four-year colleges. Relief pitcher Brian
Jones is
headed for USD, outfielder Rocky Gracio signed with Sacramento
State, pitcher
Nate Staggs is ticketed to Mesa (Colo.) State and outfielder Brian
Hipps has
landed a deal with Chico State.
(05-28-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
FULLERTON - Disbelief was a fitting word
to describe the emotional conclusion
to Grossmont College's baseball season. The wobbly Griffins failed
to provide
a positive finish in their fourth consecutive SoCal Regional one-run
setback
Saturday (May 11) when they blew a 7-1 lead in losing to Cerritos
9-8.
"All we needed was six outs,"
Grossmont coach Ed Olsen said of the Griffins'
latest disaster. "But it's nobody's fault by mine. Coaches
lose games,
players win them."
Accepting blame is a noble gesture on Olsen's
part, but there is no other way
to label what occurred in the final two innings of Saturday's
game than
"Blown Save."
Grossmont's Jeff Karstens was spinning a
4-hitter as he took a 7-1 lead into
the 8th inning. He tired with two outs and was tagged for four
straight hits.
"He was doing a great job, like he
has all season for us," Olsen said of the
Texas Tech-bound right-hander. "He got out of a couple of
early jams, picked
a couple guys off, but we had to make a change because he'd thrown
127
pitches."
Reliever Carlos Torres got the final out
in the 8th, and Izzy Barron belted a
leadoff home run to give Grossmont an 8-4 lead heading into the
bottom of the
9th.
Torres, however, hit the Falcons' leadoff
batter and walked the next two to
load the bases with nobody out. Olsen replaced Torres with Nate
Staggs, who
served up an opposite field grand slam to Rene Rodriguez on a
1-2 pitch to
tie the game 8-8.
The Falcons (28-16) continued their comeback
surge and eventually pulled out
a victory on Alex Rios' RBI single with one out in the 9th.
Grossmont appeared to have the victory wrapped
up after scoring 3 runs with
two outs in the 8th inning. Nick Guerra singled, but was doubled
up on a
hit-n-run play when Brian Hipps flied to right.
The rally, however, continued when Noel
Strane, who stroked a solo homer in
the 4th inning, doubled. Ryan Reed then doubled off the right-center
field
fence to score Strane. David Jolliff followed with his 14th home
run, giving
Grossmont a 7-1 bulge.
"I really thought that solidified our
lead," Olsen said. "But our bullpen
threw too many fat pitches, and it cost us."
Grossmont failed to hold a 7-4 lead in Friday's
opening round 8-7 loss to
Citrus. That setback, coupled with one-run losses to Cuesta and
Orange Coast
last year, has made post-season more of nightmare than a reward
for the
Griffins.
Overall, however, it was a solid season
for the Griffins, who captured a
second straight Pacific Coast Conference pennant.
"We won a few in the 9th inning,"
Olsen noted. "But of our 16 losses, 9 came
in the final three innings after we had a lead. That's frustrating."
None more than Saturday's loss to Cerritos.
ELSEWHERE:
PALOMAR 15, L.A. HARBOR 14 - Granite Hills alum Kyle Floquet went 2-for-4
with a pair of doubles, one RBI, a walk and a sacrifice as the
Comets
outlasted the Seahawks in a 4-hour, 5-minute SoCal Regional slugfest
Saturday's (May 11) at Glendale.
GLENDALE 14, PALOMAR 5 - The Comets took a 4-1 lead into the 7th inning
and
then saw the bottom fall out of their pitching as they were eliminated
by
host Glendale in a SoCal Regional on Saturday night (May 11).
Fernando
Valenzuela, Jr. belted a 3-run homer to help key the Vaqueros'
comeback. Kyle
Floquet was 1-for-4 with an RBI single for Palomar, which concluded
the
season 24-20.
(05-11-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
SANTA ANA - Some might call it déjà
vu. Grossmont College coach Ed Olsen
called it a nightmare. The Southern California Regionals have
not been kind
to Olsen's club, which suffered a numbing 8-7 loss to Citrus in
Friday's (May
10) opening round of the post-season tournament at Santa Ana College.
Fortunately for the Griffins (29-15-1), this is a double-elimination
affair
as they play Cerritos (27-16) in a game for survival Saturday
(May 11) at
Fullerton College.
The ugly conclusion to Friday's game was
all-too-familiar for the Griffins,
who led 7-4 after five innings. Citrus (31-10) tied the game 7-7
in the 8th
and then beat Grossmont's All-Pacific Coast Conference reliever
Carlos Torres
on Anthony Ross' RBI double in the 9th inning.
"That's three straight state (regional)
playoff games that we've lost like
that," Olsen fumed.
In the 2001 SoCal Regionals, the Griffins
suffered similar bitter defeats in
games two and three. They crumbled against Cuesta 7-6 when the
Cougars scored
2 in the bottom of the 9th, and then were eliminated by Orange
Coast 8-7 when
the Pirates pushed across a pair of markers in the bottom of the
10th.
Even after Citrus squeezed in front in the
top of the 9th, Grossmont was in
position to have the last word in the bottom of the inning. Frank
Lopez, who
was 4-for-5 in the game, doubled off the left-center field wall
to start the
inning. Noel Strane walked, but Dave Jolliff failed to execute
a sacrifice
bunt and ended up striking out.
Travis Udvarhelyi, the PCC Player of the
Year, hit a high infield chopper to
advance the runners as he was thrown out at first.
"That would have scored the tying run
right there if we get down the
sacrifice bunt," Olsen said.
Izzy Barron then drilled a line drive to
center field that was caught for the
game-ending out.
Grossmont did come from behind earlier in
the game, erasing a 3-0 deficit
with 5 runs in the 4th. Rocky Gracio was hit by a pitch and Brian
Hipps
doubled him to third one out later. After Ryan Reed walked to
load the bases,
Lopez singled in Gracio. Strane kept the rally in full swing with
an RBI
single. Jolliff tapped into a fielder' choice for the second out,
but drove
in a run to tie it. Grossmont forged in front 5-3 on run-scoring
singles by
Udvarhelyi and Barron.
Hipps finished 2-for-4, with 2 RBI and a
pair of runs scored. Gracio was also
2-for-4 with a double.
"We couldn't do the little things,
like get a sacrifice bunt down," Olsen
said. "We left 13 runners on base. Thirteen! You can't win
at this level
doing things like that."
Grossmont's woes started with right-hander
Scott Shoemaker (5-4), who was
slapped around for 7 runs and 10 hits in eight innings. He struck
out 5 and
walked 1.
If the Griffins can get past Cerritos -
a 7-6 loser to Santa Ana in Friday's
other regional game in the C bracket - they'll play again Saturday
(May 11)
at 3 p.m. at Fullerton College.
For Grossmont to advance to the next level,
the Griffins must win four
straight in a tournament that concludes on Sunday.
ELSEWHERE:
Glendale 14, Palomar 6: The Comets (23-19)
fell behind 8-0 and never
recovered as they dropped their regional opener to the Vaqueros
Friday (May
10) in Glendale. Granite Hills alum Kyle Floquet was 2-for-5 with
a double
and one run scored for Palomar. The Comets meet Los Angeles Harbor
on
Saturday (May 11) at 3 p.m. The loser of that one goes home.
(05-10-02)
ECS.com staff report
EL CAJON - Two-time Pacific Coast Conference-champion
Grossmont College will
make its sixth consecutive appearance in the Southern California
Regional
playoffs this weekend when the Griffins take on Citrus College
Friday (May
10) at 11 a.m. as part of a four-team, double-elimination tournament
at Santa
Ana College.
Cerritos (27-15) faces host Santa Ana (30-14)
in Friday's second game of the
opening round at 3 p.m.
While the Griffins (29-14-1) finished four
games ahead of the pack in the PCC
race, they are by no means considered among the favorites despite
their No. 6
seeding position in the 16-team SoCal Regionals.
For the first half of the season Citrus
(30-14) ranked among the state's
elite. The Owls opened the campaign with 14 consecutive victories
and stood
19-1 at the midway point. The appeared to peak when they rolled
their record
to 24-2, before closing the regular season by losing 8 of their
final 14.
One thing is certain about Citrus - the
Owls can hit, Their .349 team batting
average is the eighth-best in the state. Five of the top 10 hitters
in the
Western States Conference hail from Citrus, including league leader
Brandon
Medrano (.473) and Geoff Wagner (.371, 14 HRs, 44 RBI).
Jose Cardenas (8-0, 2.62) and Renecke Stelzriede
(4-1, 2.36) are Citrus' top
starting pitchers.
Yet, Santa Ana is the favorite to win the
four-team bracket. The Dons, ranked
No. 3 in Southern California, finished second in the rugged Orange
Empire
Conference. Jamar Hill (.368, 11 HRs, 39 RBI) and Carlos Pasillas
(.331, 14
HRs, 43 RBI) are the top sticks, while Pedro Parra (7-3, 3.15
ERA), and Ivan
Ramirez (8-3, 4.93) are the Dons' leading pitchers.
Cerritos is not a team loaded with big number
guys, but the Falcons know how
to win. Pitching is this club's greatest asset, with Sal Aguilar
(8-3, 2.58)
and Danny Cardenas (5-0, 2.19) the mainstays of the staff.
Grossmont and Citrus - runner-up in the
Western State Conference's Southern
Division this year - were first-round foes in last year's SoCal
Regionals,
and the Griffins prevailed 11-5.
The Griffins suffered bitter defeats in
games two and three of that regional
foursome. They lost to Cuesta 7-6 when the Cougars scored 2 in
the bottom of
the 9th, and then to Orange Coast 8-7 when the Pirates pushed
across a pair
in the bottom of the 10th.
GRIFFIN GALLERY: Grossmont was 6-5 against
teams that made the playoffs this
year. Half of those wins came against PCC rival Palomar, which
opens SoCal
Regional activity at Glendale (32-11) on Friday. The Griffs also
routed No. 8
seed Los Angeles City College 15-2 and 10-0, and beat Merced,
seeded #9 in
the NoCal bracket, 6-3 ... Grossmont currently ranks No. 8 in
the state with
56 home runs. . . Citrus has clubbed 52 homers.
(05-06-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
SAN DIEGO - Pacific Coast Conference-champion
Grossmont College concluded
the regular-season on a sour note as visiting San Diego Mesa rallied
from a
6-run deficit in the final two innings to stun the Griffins 14-11
Thursday
(May 2) at Noel Mickelsen Field.
Trailing 11-5 entering the 8th, the Olympians
roughed up relievers Brian
Jones and Kevin Rasmussen for 9 runs in the final two innings
to keep their
hopes for a SoCal Regional berth alive. Furthermore, it was Mesa's
first PCC
victory over Grossmont in 28 games dating back to 1996.
Santana High alum Brian Matsumoto keyed
Mesa's 6-run eighth with a 3-run
homer.
The Olympians snapped an 11-11 tie in the
9th on an RBI double by Jerad
Allen, a RBI single by Mike Parks (Monte Vista HS) and an error
on the
Grossmont first baseman.
Justin Paige (West Hills HS) was 3-for-5
with 2 RBI for Mesa, which must
beat Imperial Valley on Saturday (May 4) to stand any chance of
making the
post-season playoffs. Mesa originally won that game, but IVC filed
a protest
- accusing Mesa of using an illegal bat. The protest was upheld
by the PCC
Commissioner's office and the game will be resumed at Mesa in
the bottom of
the 6th inning with IVC leading 5-2.
No highlights or boxscore were reported
by the Grossmont College coaching
staff.
Grossmont, which concluded the season 29-14-1
overall and 18-7 against
conference competition, will find out its playoff seeding next
week.
(05-02-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
SAN DIEGO - Grossmont raised its Pacific
Coast Conference-leading home run
total to 55 with four circuit clouts on Tuesday (April 30) and
needed every
one of them to hold off host San Diego Mesa 10-8.
Rocky Gracio, Ryan Reed, Izzy Barron and
Brian Hipps hammered homers for the
Pacific Coast Conference-champion Griffins, who captured the league
home run
crown for the ninth time in the last 10 years.
The Griffins were cruising 7-0 behind the
pitching of Jeff Karstens through
five innings. Mesa joined the long-ball parade with a pair of
fence-clearing
shots in the 6th, cutting Grossmont's edge to 7-3.
The Olympians (20-17, 12-12) clawed back
to within 8-7 after eight innings.
But Hipps, a Mesa transfer, took the wind out of his former teammates
sails
with a long two-run home run in the 9th to seal Grossmont's 27th
consecutive
conference win over Mesa.
Karstens made it through 7 innings to record
his 9th win in 11 decisions.
Carlos Torres worked the final two frames to earn his second save.
Dave Jolliff's two-run single capped a three-run
second inning as Grossmont
grabbed an early 3-0 lead. Gracio led off the third inning with
his second
home run of the year and Ryan Reed banged his eighth round-tripper
- a 2-run
shot off the scoreboard - to up the count to 6-0. Barron's solo
shot made it
7-0 in the 4th.
But Mesa, which got a 3-for-4 effort from
former Santana High standout Brian
Matsumoto, scrambled back to make a game of it. The results, however,
were
all-too-familiar to the Olympians.
Winner of six of its last seven, Grossmont
hosts the Olympians in the regular
season finale on Thursday (May 2) at 2 p.m. The Southern California
Regionals
begin on Friday, May 10 at sites yet to be determined.
ELSEWHERE:
PALOMAR 10, SOUTHWESTERN 3 - The Comets (22-18, 13-11) climbed into sole
possession of second place Tuesday (April 30), a game ahead of
San Diego City
and San Diego Mesa with one to play. Granite Hills alum Kyle Floquet
was
2-for-4 with a triple and 2 RBI for Palomar.
(04-30-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
EL CAJON - With the Southern California
Regional playoffs right around the
corner, the Pacific Coast Conference-champion Grossmont College
Griffins are
pleased to note that sophomore right-hander Scott Shoemaker is
pitching his
best baseball of the season. The 6-foot-3 Shoemaker turned in
his second
straight complete-game masterpiece Monday (April 29) as the Griffins
edged
visiting Southwestern 3-1 at Noel Mickelsen Field.
"He's just been awesome in his last
two starts," said Grossmont coach Ed
Olsen of the Long Beach State-bound Shoemaker, who beat Palomar
2-1 in his
previous start.
Shoemaker (5-3) needed just 94 pitches to
silence the Jaguars (15-27, 10-13),
as he limited the South Bay ballclub to 4 singles while walking
2 and
striking out 4.
"He's been mixing his pitches well
and working both sides of the plate,"
Olsen added.
Southwestern's only run (unearned) came
in the first inning on a walk, a
dropped pop-up and a base hit by John Jaso.
Other than that, Shoemaker threw a blanket
over the Jaguars' lineup. Even
Scott Deen (El Capitan HS), who had 10 hits in 11 at-bats in his
two previous
starts against Grossmont, was rationed to one hit in four at-bats.
The firing pin in Grossmont's arsenal was
once again lead-off man Travis
Udvarhelyi, who garnered 3 hits in 4 at-bats. His biggest charge
came in the
7th inning when he launched a rocket over the right-center field
fence to
break a 1-1 deadlock.
Udvarhelyi provided the spark for Grossmont's
first run when he opened the
3rd frame with a single. He moved up 90 feet on Izzy Barron's
sacrifice bunt
and scored on Rocky Gracio's bloop single down the right field
line.
Brian Hipps supplied the insurance run when
he laced a solo homer in the 8th
inning. That blast gave Grossmont (28-13-1, 17-6) a total of 51
home runs in
42 games.
Randy Aguiar (El Capitan HS) turned in six
strong innings as the Southwestern
starter before reliever Tre Morrow surrendered the decisive home
runs.
The Griffins conclude the regular season
with a pair of games against San
Diego Mesa, which is fighting for a second-place finish and a
playoff berth.
The Griffins, who have won the season series from each of their
PCC rivals,
travel to Mesa on Tuesday (April 30) before returning home to
host the
Olympians on Thursday (May 2). Both games start at 2 p.m.
(04-29-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
CHULA VISTA - Grossmont College was dealt
a critical blow in its quest for 30
victories when Scott Deen scored on a wild pitch in the bottom
of the 9th
inning Thursday (April 25) giving host Southwestern a 5-4 Pacific
Coast
Conference victory. Despite the loss, however, the Griffins claimed
exclusive
rights to their second straight PCC championship when Palomar
lost to San
Diego City 10-7.
The Jaguars (15-26, 10-12) in general -
and Deen in particular - have been
tough on the Griffins of late. Not only has Southwestern squared
the season
series at 2-2 by sweeping the last two games, Deen has collected
10 hits in
his last 11 at-bats against Grossmont pitching. The 6-foot-5 freshman
out of
El Capitan High was 5-for-5 with a double and a triple in Thursday's
game,
and is 11 for 14 in three starts against Grossmont.
Deen had a hand in all four of Southwestern's
scoring innings. He launched
the 9th inning rally with a single to right. Sergio Flores followed
with a
basehit and John Jaso's bunt loaded the bases with nobody out.
Reliever Nate
Staggs unleashed a wild pitch permitting Deen to scoot home with
the winning
marker.
Grossmont took a 1-0 lead in the second
inning when Dave Jolliff doubled and
Ryan Reed singled him in. The Jaguars tied it in the third on
Deen's RBI
triple. Deen carried across the go-ahead run on Jaso's sacrifice
fly later in
that inning.
After the Griffins knotted the game 2-2
on Ryan Buckley's infield out in the
top of the 5th, Deen put Southwestern back in business with a
clutch double
in the bottom of the 5th. Armando Lara, who advanced on Deen's
hit, scored
from third when Andy Martin uncorked a wild pitch.
Grossmont caught the Jags again in the 6th
when Nick Guerra tripled and
scored on Jolliff's sacrifice fly.
Then it was Deen's turn to be mean - again.
The lanky first baseman ripped an
RBI single up the middle, shoving Southwestern in front 4-3.
Jolliff pulled the Griffins even in the
8th with his second sacrifice fly of
the game, scoring Izzy Barron (single).
But Deen and the Jaguars had the last word in the bottom of the 9th.
Grossmont hosts Southwestern for the final
time on Saturday (April 27) at
noon. The Griffins wrap up the regular season next week with a
pair of games
against Mesa.
ELSEWHERE:
Mesa 9, Imperial Valley 8 - Third baseman Justin Paige (West Hills) slugged
his third home run - a two-run shot - to help the Olympians (19-16,
11-11)
outlast the visiting Arabs in a PCC contest on Thursday (April
25). Paige
came into the game with an overall batting average of .391 - fourth
highest
in the conference.
GRIFFIN GALLERY
· A sixth Grossmont player has landed
a scholarship. Sophomore reliever BRIAN
JONES has committed to USD for the 2003 season. A transfer from
Palomar via
USDHS, Jones has appeared in nine games for the Griffins.
(04-25-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
EL CAJON - Big innings and major comebacks
have been trademarks of this
Grossmont College baseball season. Tuesday's (April 23) title
bout with
Palomar was no exception. Coach Ed Olsen's Griffins used an 8-run
6th inning
to erase an 8-4 deficit and went on to defeat the visiting Comets
13-10 to
clinch at least a share of their second straight Pacific Coast
Conference
championship and third in six years.
Ranked No. 9 in Southern California, the
Griffins (27-12-1, 16-5) don't plan
to coast to the finish line. They have four games remaining -
two apiece
against Southwestern and Mesa. They need at least one victory
to claim the
PCC pennant outright. More than that, though, is they need to
reach the
30-victory mark to land a higher seeding. The momentum factor
speaks for
itself.
"We're going after that No. 4 seed,"
said Grossmont pitching coach Randy
Abshier, who inherited the Griffins' reins when Olsen was ejected
in the
third inning for arguing a hit batsman call with the plate umpire.
Most
observers reported Olsen's beef was warranted, but the man in
blue exercised
his authority to excuse Olsen from the premises with the Griffins
trailing
4-3.
Despite committing 4 errors that handed
the Comets (21-16, 12-9) four
unearned runs, the Griffins were able to win the season series
3-2 from
Palomar with their 4th straight victory overall. The significance
of that
advantage is Grossmont will be the PCC No.1 representative to
the playoffs,
even if the Comets win their final four and Grossmont drops four
straight to
create a co-championship.
"We're not going to let that happen,"
Abshier said. "We want to have this
thing all to ourselves. We're not going to back into anything."
On a day when ace Jeff Karstens struggled
for one of the few times all
season, the Griffins once again relied on their bats to claim
victory.
Ironically, they did not include a single home run in their offensive
onslaught.
"Karstens couldn't hit his locations
at all," Abshier said. "He struggled to
make it through three innings (and lasted a total of 5 1/3 innings)."
Grossmont went to bat in the 6th inning
to rescue Karstens, much as he's done
for the Griffins all season.
Walks to Nick Guerra and Dave Jolliff coupled
with a Brian Hipps single
loaded the bases with nobody out in the 6th. Frank Lopez doubled
into the
left field corner to drive in two runs. Noel Strane added an RBI
single and
Rocky Gracio blasted a two-run double. Batting for the second
time in the
inning, the San Jose State-bound Guerra gave Grossmont a 12-8
bulge with a
two-run single.
Carlos Torres picked up for Karstens in
the top of the 6th, and held the
Comets to one earned run and 4 hits over the final 3 2/3 innings
for his 4th
win in five decisions. It was his second victory over Palomar.
The Griffins travel to Southwestern on Thursday (April 25) at 2 p.m.
ELSEWHERE:
SAN DIEGO CITY 9, SAN DIEGO MESA 6 - Monte Vista High alum Aaron Detty
continued to wield a hot bat, driving in 3 runs with a home run
and a double
Tuesday as the Knights lanced the Olympians in the battle for
third place in
the PCC. Brian Matsumoto (Santana) hit a home run for Mesa.
GRIFFIN GALLERY:
· Sophomore right-hander JEFF KARSTENS
contemplated accepting a paltry
partial scholarship offer from San Diego State following the 2001
season, but
elected to return to Grossmont for his sophomore year. Smart move.
A
pitcher-catcher at Mount Miguel High, Karstens has been among
the Griffins'
most consistent and widely recruited players this season. He accepted
a
scholarship to Texas Tech on Monday night (April 22) after considering
offers
from Washington State, Gonzaga, UC Riverside, and Point Loma Nazarene
University. Karstens has sparkling career stats, including a 15-4
record and
2.99 ERA over 162 2/3 innings. He will join teammate ANDY MARTIN
in hurling
for the Red Raiders of the Big 12 Conference in Lubbock, Texas
next season.
· MARK KIGER, a hard-nosed senior
infielder at the University of Florida,
has been named the Southeastern Conference Player of the Week.
Kiger, who put
together a 44-game hitting streak for the 1999 Griffins, went
8-for-15
(.533), including 8-for-10 in SEC play, as the Gators kept pace
in the SEC
East with a sweep of Vanderbilt. Kiger's on-base percentage for
the week was
.647 and he led the Gators with 7 runs scored. His totals included
his 9th
home run, a triple and a pair of steals. . . For the season Kiger
leads the
Gators (30-12) in batting average (.414), hits (67), runs (62)
and walks
(41). The La Jolla High graduate needs one more home run to become
just the
seventh player in Florida history to surpass 20-plus home runs,
100-plus RBI
and 30-plus steals in a career.
· JAIME BORRUEL, a junior at William
Penn University in Iowa, has established
a record for most hits (66) and doubles (18) in a season for the
Statesmen
(35-13). . . Ex-Griffin OSKAR DIAZ is 7-1 for the Statesmen.
(04-23-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
SAN MARCOS - Supported by an uncommonly
air-tight defense, Grossmont College
right-hander Scott Shoemaker turned in his finest pitching performance
in
three years Saturday (April 20) as the Griffins edged Palomar
2-1 to take a
three-game lead over the Comets in the Pacific Coast Conference
race with
five remaining.
Noel Strane's RBI single in the 7th inning
broke a 1-1 tie and that would be
all the offense Shoemaker needed.
"Shoe was focused and showed that he
can pitch at the next level," Grossmont
pitching coach Randy Abshier said. "His mental maturity was
really evident.
He showed no emotion out there. He realized going in that this
would be one
of the biggest starts of his career and pitched accordingly."
Palomar tested Shoemaker's mettle early,
as Ralphie Marin - the second batter
of the game - doubled and scored on Sean Richardson's two-out
single.
That was all the offensive noise the Comets
made as Shoemaker allowed only 4
singles and 2 walks while striking out 7 over the final 8 1/3
innings.
"I went out there to prove a point,"
said Shoemaker, who had not beaten the
Comets in two previous starts. "It was a personal goal of
mine to beat
Palomar. They got me twice before, so it was my turn today."
The 6-foot-3, 205-pound right-hander, who
recently signed with Long Beach
State, needed 119 pitches to secure his fourth victory.
"This is the best I've felt all year,"
Shoemaker said. "Walks have killed me
this year, but I was determined not to let that happen again this
time."
Shoemaker drilled first-pitch strikes to 19 of the 35 batters he faced.
"His fastball was solid, and he was
just blowing it by some guys," Abshier
said. "His slider was effective, and he used a change-up
for timing."
The defensive difference in this game was
completely the opposite of what
it's been. Grossmont (261-2-1, 15-5) did not commit a single error,
and the
Comets (21-15, 12-8) made a pair of miscues that led to two unearned
runs for
the Griffins, who were limited to 4 hits.
Shoemaker singled out shortstop Izzy Barron for his slick fielding job.
"He made a couple of real big plays,
and made all the routine ones, too,"
Shoemaker praised. "Our defense was as good as I've seen
it."
The Griffins tied the game in the 4th inning
when Rocky Gracio led off with a
double to right center. He advanced to third on Carlos Torres'
ground out.
Dave Jolliff, the PCC's leading home run hitter, appeared to be
out No. 2
when he lifted a high pop up in foul territory. The Palomar first
baseman
dropped the ball. Given a reprieve, Jolliff drove a ball to deep
center field
allowing Gracio to tag and score.
Grossmont scored the winning marker in the
7th after two outs and nobody on.
Palomar starter Kyle Thompson hit Brian Hipps with a pitch. Ryan
Reed tapped
a what appeared to be an inning-ending ground ball. But Palomar
second
baseman Cliff Hinkle dropped a throw to extend the inning.
Then Strane made the Comets pay as he stroked a game-winning single.
These same teams will conclude their season
series on Tuesday (April 23) at
Grossmont at 2 p.m. The clubs have divided the previous four meetings.
If the
Griffins win, they'll clinch at least a share of a second straight
PCC title
and their third in the last six seasons.
ELSEWHERE:
SAN DIEGO MESA 11, SAN DIEGO CITY 8 - Former West Hills High third baseman
Justin Paige was 3-for-5 with a double, 3 RBI and a run scored
while Santana
High alum Brian Matsumoto had two hits and scored twice for Mesa
(18-15,
10-10). Sophomore Aaron Detty (Monte Vista) was 4-for-5 with a
HR and 3 RBI
for the Knights (14-20, 8-12).
IMPERIAL VALLEY 4, SOUTHWESTERN 2 - El Capitan High alum Scott Deen made a
rare pitching start for the Jaguars on Saturday, and pitched well
enough to
win most games. Not this one. A couple fielding miscues and a
lack of support
at the plate probably eliminated Southwestern from any playoff
hopes.
(04-20-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
EL CAJON - It's boiled down to two games
- Grossmont vs. Palomar. A familiar
scenario with plenty at stake. While the Pacific Coast Conference
calendar
actually shows six games remaining in the regular season, the
circuit
championship rides on the games of Saturday (April 20) in San
Marcos at noon
and Tuesday (April 22) at the Griffins' Noel Mickelsen Field at
2 p.m.
A Grossmont sweep of the two games guarantees
the Griffins (25-12-1, 14-5)
their second straight conference crown. Even a split would all
but assure
coach Ed Olsen's club of the title.
On the other side of the coin, a Palomar
sweep would leave the Comets (21-14,
11-7) and Griffins knotted at the top of the PCC standings with
four to play.
Mathematically, the Comets need only to
divide their final two meetings with
Grossmont to assure themselves of gaining the tie-breaking nod
for a higher
playoff seeding should the clubs finish tied for first place.
Palomar has won
two of the previous three meetings in this series.
The Griffins warmed up for the pending Palomar
showdown by dumping Imperial
Valley 7-1 on Thursday (April 18) in the desert. Sophomore right-hander
Jeff
Karstens, who has become the Griffins' stopper, limited the Arabs
(12-23,
5-14) to five hits during an 8-inning stint as he improved his
season slate
to 8-2. The Mount Miguel grad walked one and struck out 5 before
Kevin
Rasmussen pitched a scoreless 9th.
Third baseman Dave Jolliff (El Capitan)
led the Grossmont offense, driving in
three runs with his conference-leading 13th home run and a 2-run
double.
Red-hot Rocky Gracio (.467), who moved two
points ahead of teammate Travis
Udvarhelyi in the PCC batting race, was 3-for-4 with a double,
one run and an
RBI. Udvarhelyi's only hit was a solo home run - his 6th of the
season - in
the sixth inning.
Grossmont catcher Nick Guerra - batting
.416 on the season - was 3-for-4,
including his sixth game-winning hit.
ELSEWHERE:
PALOMAR 9, SAN DIEGO MESA 6 - Comets' shortstop Kyle Floquet (Granite
Hills HS) was 3-for-4 with a walk and a stolen base, and Bryan
Lee drove in 5
runs with a double, triple and a home run as Palomar kept pace
with the
Griffins. Brian Matusmoto (Santana) was 3-for-4 with a double
and 2 RBI for
Mesa (17-15, 9-10). Third baseman Justin Paige (West Hills) went
2-for-4 with
a pair of RBI, and second baseman Mike Parks (Monte Vista) was
2-for-5 for
the Olympians.
SAN DIEGO CITY 7, SOUTHWESTERN 6 - A belated charge by the Knights (14-19,
8-11) could land them a third-place finish and a playoff berth.
Coach Chris
Brown's club moved within one game of third - a position presently
shared by
Southwestern and Mesa.
GRIFFIN GALLERY: The
focus here is DIVISION I SCHOLARSHIPS, of which the
Griffins have landed four so far:
· Center fielder Travis Udvarhelyi
will join pitcher Scott Shoemaker at
nationally-ranked Long Beach State. Batting at a .443 clip, and
a PCC PoY
candidate, the Patrick Henry High graduate selected the 49ers
over a flock of
interested parties that included Gonzaga, Washington State, San
Jose State
and Texas Tech.
"All of Long Beach's starting outfielders
are graduating," Udvarhelyi noted.
"They have a big field and they want somebody who has the
speed to cover a
lot of territory."
Udvarhelyi believes he will also be considered
for hitting in the leadoff
position at CSULB.
· Nick Guerra, a bounce-back
from the University of San Francisco, has signed on
with San Jose State, a WAC power rated among the nation's elite
25 teams. The
versatile USDHS product is being penciled in as the No. 1 receiver
for the
Spartans, who have posted six consecutive 30-plus winning seasons.
"I'd never talked to or had any contact
with them until they called me about
a week ago," Guerra said of the Spartans' coaching staff.
"They made me an
offer right there over the telephone. I'm really excited, because
college
seems like a better deal (than hanging his future) on the pro
draft."
Guerra admits "I wasn't ready to play"
when he arrived as a freshman at USF
fresh out of high school. "Things just didn't work out."
He sat out the 2001
season with a nagging shoulder injury, but has been a major contributor
to
the Griffins' success - a fact not lost on the SJSU coaching staff.
· Meanwhile, Jeff Karstens,
a possible candidate for PCC Player of the Year
honors, will visit the town that the late rock-and-roll star Buddy
Holly made
famous when he embarks on a recruiting trip to Texas Tech this
weekend. The
gritty right-hander is also being heavily pursued by Washington
State. The
Red Raiders already have a commitment from Grossmont left-hander
Andy Martin.
· Nevada-Reno is wooing Griffins
pitcher Carlos Torres, and a deal appears
near.
(04-18-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
EL CAJON - Championship teams find ways
to win, even when they're not playing
well. Take Grossmont College's latest Pacific Coast Conference
outing, for
example. The Griffins committed 7 errors, handed out 8 unearned
runs, and
still managed to come out on top 11-10 over Imperial Valley on
Tuesday (April
16). And they did it the hard way.
The Griffins (24-12-1, 13-5) scored 7 runs
in the bottom of the 9th inning
without making an out, as they overcame a 10-4 deficit to stun
the visiting
Arabs (10-23, 5-13).
"I've never had a team come from that
far behind to win in the last inning,"
said Grossmont coach Ed Olsen, whose Griffins used a 6-run bottom
of the 9th
to defeat Palomar 10-8 on March 21st.
Both dramatic comebacks featured walk-off blows by freshman Kevin McGhen.
Making a rare start, McGhen capped a 3-for-5
performance with a game-winning
2-run double off the right-field fence. The Santana High alum
hit the first
pitch from reliever Balois Marquez.
"He hit a hanging curve off the 343-foot marker," Olsen said.
McGhen's blast over the right fielder's
head drove in Nick Guerra with the
tying run and Ryan Martin with the winning run. Both runners reached
base on
walks.
Grossmont, which increased its lead to two
games over second-place Palomar,
loaded the bases in the 7th and 8th innings, but had only one
run to show for
the effort.
Noel Strane singled to start the bottom
of the 9th. IVC pitcher George Rapp,
who threw 150 pitches in the game, then issued free passes to
Travis
Udvarhelyi and Izzy Barron to load the bases. Obviously tiring,
Rapp hit
David Jolliff to force in a run. Ryan Buckley beat out a chopper
up the
first-base line to score Udvarhelyi.
Guerra then doubled, unloading a shot to
the left center field wall, clearing
the bases and pulling the Griffins to within 10-9. That spelled
the end of
the day for Rapp.
Reliever Brett Cochran didn't fare much
better, as he served up back-to-back
walks to Ryan Martin and Carlos Torres, once again filling the
bases. IVC
coach Dave Drury removed Cochran and summoned Marquez to the mound.
McGhen put an end to things one pitch later.
It brought back memories of his
game-winning 2-run homer that capped the 6-run uprising in the
9th inning
against Palomar last month.
Guerra finished with 4 hits and 5 RBI, including
his 6th home run of the
season. McGhen and Strane were a combined 6-for-9 batting in the
Nos. 8 and 9
spots in the order.
Grossmont will meet IVC again in the Arabs'
desert oasis on Thursday (April
18) at 2 p.m.
(04-16-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
EL CAJON - Pitcher Scott Shoemaker may establish
a major league record
without throwing a single pitch as a professional. That is, the
Grossmont
College sophomore right-hander could be drafted as many as six
times before
finalizing a course for his future. For now, however, the 6-foot-3,
205-pound
Shoemaker has made an oral commitment to Long Beach State.
Shoemaker, who was previously drafted by
the San Francisco Giants, New York
Mets and Toronto Blue Jays, decided to cast his fate with the
49ers of Long
Beach State from a field of colleges that included San Jose State,
Arizona,
UC Santa Barbara, LSU and Pepperdine.
"I've had a lot of talks with (Long
Beach State pitching coach) Troy
Buckley," Shoemaker said. "They are looking for me to
come and pitch in a
starting role. Of course, I realize that nothing like that is
guaranteed.
It's up to me to earn the job."
Shoemaker was 8-4 as a freshman at Grossmont
College after a successful high
school career at Granite Hills, which has produced such celebrity
professionals as Brian Giles, Shane Spencer, Tommy Vardell and
Marcus Giles.
Following his freshman season at Grossmont,
Shoemaker underwent shoulder
surgery to remove bone chips from his elbow.
"I could have come back after four
months of rehab," he said. "But I went 15
months without picking up a baseball. I think that will turnout
to be a plus."
Shoemaker's statistical count has been so-so
this season. He is 3-3 with a
5.02 ERA in 10 starts and 52 innings.
"Those numbers are misleading,"
Grossmont coach Ed Olsen said. "He hasn't had
a lot of defensive support. Too many fly balls that should have
been caught
have dropped in for hits. He hasn't had much luck at all.
"As far as his mechanics and velocity
go, he's made steady improvement,"
Olsen added. "I think Long Beach State is a perfect fit for
him."
While he seems to be perfectly contended
with Long Beach State's offer,
Shoemaker figures to be drafted for the fourth time in June.
"I really haven't given a whole lot
of thought to the draft," Shoemaker said.
"I'm really excited about going to Long Beach State."
Nevertheless, Olsen believes Shoemaker's
name will be called in the latter
rounds of the draft.
"If I get drafted in the early rounds,
I'll just have to weigh which of the
two situations is best for me," he said.
In the meantime, Shoemaker hopes to help
the Griffins capture their second
straight Pacific Coast Conference championship.
(04-13-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
EL CAJON - Pitching and defense helped Grossmont
College sweep three straight
games from San Diego City College. In the final two meetings between
these
squads, the Griffins' defense disintegrated and the pitching vanished
as the
Knights lanced the Griffins by a composite score of 31-11. That
includes
Thursday's (April 11) 13-4 Pacific Coast Conference loss at Noel
Mickelsen
Field.
One of the biggest turnarounds was the Griffins
inability to silence San
Diego City third baseman, John Paluck. In Grossmont victories
of 7-4, 3-2,
and 5-1, Paluck was a quiet 2-for-12. In the last two contests,
Paluck was
9-for-12 with 9 RBI and 4 runs scored.
Paluck broke a 1-1 tie with a 3-run homer
in the 5th inning off Grossmont's
Scott Shoemaker. The Knights extended their lead to 12-2 before
the Griffins
would score again.
Chris Mendonsa, who was 2-for-10 in SDCC's
losses to Grossmont, was 5-for-9
with 7 runs, 5 RBI and 2 triples in the Knights' two victories
over the
Griffins.
Monte Vista alum Aaron Detty was 3-for-3
with 3 runs scored for the Knights.
Detty singled and scored in the 6th, 7th and 9th innings.
All the blame for Grossmont's lackluster
performance of late cannot rest with
the pitchers. Of the 10 runs Shoemaker allowed in his 6 innings,
6 were
unearned. The Griffins committed five errors that - for all intents
and
purposes - handed the Knights (12-19, 6-11) their second win over
Grossmont
this week.
Despite their recent shoddy play, the Griffins
(23-12-1, 12-5) continue to
lead the PCC by one game over equally inconsistent Palomar (20-13,
11-6).
Eight games remain in the regular season.
Even Southwestern (14-22, 9-8) and San Diego
Mesa (16-14, 8-9) can't be
counted out, as they trail the front-running Griffins by three
and four
games, respectively.
One of the few bright spots for Grossmont
Thursday was the return of
shortstop Izzy Barron to the lineup. Barron, who has missed the
past couple
of games with a head injury, tied the game 1-1 in the 3rd inning
with an RBI
single. He also had a sacrifice fly in the 5th.
The Griffins have four days off before they
host Imperial Valley on Tuesday
(April 16) at 2 p.m.
ELSEWHERE:
PALOMAR 4, IMPERIAL VALLEY 0;
IMPERIAL VALLEY 8, PALOMAR 7 (10):
The second-place Comets missed an opportunity
to catch the Griffins when they
blew a 7-3 lead in the final two innings of a 10-inning loss in
the nightcap
of Thursday's (April 11) PCC double-header against visiting Imperial
Valley
College.
Palomar shortstop Kyle Floquet (Granite
Hills) was 6-for-9 with a double and
2 RBI in the two games.
(04-11-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
EL CAJON - Grossmont College rediscovered
its offense, and Jeff Karstens
restored order to a crumbling pitching staff with six innings
of relief, as
the Griffins out-slugged visiting San Diego Mesa College 17-10
in a Pacific
Coast Conference contest Wednesday (April 10) at Noel Mickelsen
Field.
Third baseman Dave Jolliff belted his 12th
home run of the season, and Travis
Udvarhelyi and Frank Lopez each deposited their 5th round-tripper
as the
Griffins (23-11-1, 12-4) extended their PCC lead to 1 1/2 games
over idle
Palomar.
Jolliff, who was 4-for-5 with 4 RBI, leads
the circuit in home runs. He, in
fact, has hit as many or more home runs as San Diego City has
as a team.
Grossmont has clubbed 46 home runs in 35 games.
Trailing 6-5, the Griffins scored 6 runs
in the bottom of the 3rd inning to
take a lead they wouldn't lose. Carlos Torres sparked the rally
with a
leadoff single, and Brian Hipps walked. That set the stage for
Lopez' 3-run
homer to left center.
The inning continued as an error and two
hit batters loaded the bases.
Jolliff singled in Noel Strane and then Nick Guerra walked to
force in
Udvarhelyi, giving the Griffins an 10-5 edge. Torres' sacrifice
fly capped
the big inning.
Normally a starter, Karstens made a rare
relief appearance, taking over in
the 4th inning. Although he gave up 4 runs and 9 hits during a
six-inning
stint, Karstens earned his PCC-leading 7th victory. The sophomore
right-hander also struck out 7, giving him a league-high 71 whiffs
in 79 1/3
innings.
Udvarhelyi went 4-for-6, while Strane and
Torres generated 3 hits apiece for
Grossmont, which finished with 22.
Four Olympians enjoyed a 3-hit game, including
third baseman Justin Paige, a
product of West Hills High. Second baseman Mike Parks (Monte Vista)
was
2-for-6 for the Olympians (16-13, 8-8).
Grossmont hosts San Diego City College on
Thursday (April 11) at 2 p.m.
(04-10-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
SAN DIEGO - Grossmont College fell behind
7-0 in the first three innings in
Tuesday's (April 9) game against San Diego City College and never
recovered
as the Knights nailed down an 18-7 Pacific Coast Conference victory
at Morley
Field. The loss cut the Griffins' PCC lead to one game.
For the second time in three games the Grossmont
pitching staff gave up
20-plus hits in a losing effort. Southwestern hammered out 25
hits in a 19-10
win on April 2, and San Diego City clubbed a trio of Griffin hurlers
for 23
hits in Tuesday's disaster.
J.P. Paluck paced the SDCC attack with 5
hits, including a pair of doubles to
drive in 4 runs. Chris Mendonsa ripped 2 triples to drive in 4
and score 4
for the Knights (11-19, 5-11).
Highlights were few for the Griffins (22-11-1,
11-4). Grossmont's Dave
Jolliff belted his league-high 11th home run, leading off the
5th inning,
which pulled the Griffins to within 8-3. An infield single by
Brian Hipps in
the same inning cut the deficit to 8-4. But that's as close as
the Griffins
would get.
The game was all San Diego City until the
Griffins pushed across 3 runs in
the 9th inning. Kevin McGhen's 2-run triple was the key blow in
the final
frame.
Grossmont hosts San Diego Mesa on Wednesday
(April 10), and San Diego City on
Thursday (April 11). Both games start at 2 p.m.
(04-09-02)
ELSEWHERE:
PALOMAR 2, IMPERIAL VALLEY 0 - Kyle
Floquet's leadoff single sparked a 2-run
8th inning rally for the visiting Comets (19-12, 10-5), who closed
to within
one game of the Griffins by beating the Arabs Tuesday (April 9).
Floquet
(Granite Hills) scored on a 2-run double by Brian Robinson. Floquet
was
2-for-5.
(04-09-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
EL CAJON - The San Diego Mesa-at-Grossmont
Pacific Coast Conference game,
scheduled for Monday (April 8), was postponed when the Griffins
discovered
unexplained flooding of their field. Vandalism was suspected,
although no
arrests were made.
Grossmont takes on San Diego City College
on Tuesday (April 9) at Morley
Field. The same two teams will meet at Grossmont's Noel Mickelsen
Field on
Thursday (April 11).
Monday's postponed game with Mesa has been
rescheduled for Wednesday (April
10).
All three games will begin at 2 p.m.
ELSEWHERE:
PALOMAR 5, SOUTHWESTERN 3 - A leadoff double by Granite Hills alum Kyle
Floquet ignited a 4-run 1st inning as the visiting Comets cooled
off the
Jaguars in a make-up game on Monday (April 8) in Chula Vista.
Floquet finished the game 2-for-5 with a
run scored. The slick-fielding
shortstop also had a combined 10 putouts/assists as the Comets
(18-12, 9-5)
pulled to within two games of first-place Grossmont (22-10-1,
11-3).
Southwestern's Scott Deen (El Capitan) had
garnered 10 hits in 11 at-bats in
his previous two games, but went 0-for-4 on Monday.
(04-08-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
SAN DIEGO - Travis Udvarhelyi put together
a game's worth of highlights in
one inning on Thursday (April 4) as he helped lead Grossmont College
to a
12-4 Pacific Coast Conference victory over host San Diego Mesa.
The Griffins' sophomore center fielder started
the 9th inning with a triple
and then capped the 8-run uprising with a three-run home run.
Udvarhelyi
finished the day 3-for-6, hiking his PCC-leading batting average
to .489
(67-for-137).
"Instead of a first-ball hitter like
he was last year, (Udvarhelyi) is being
more selective at the plate," Grossmont coach Ed Olsen said.
"He's hitting
the ball to all fields, and he's so much more patient. He hits
the triple to
left and then just ropes a 2-1 pitch (for a home run) to right."
Udvarhelyi's timing was superb, as scouts
from Long Beach State were in the
stands for his latest performance. The 49ers are "very interested"
in the
former Patrick Henry High quarterback.
The victory - Grossmont's 7th in eight games
and 13th in its last 15 starts -
gave the first-place Griffins a 2 1/2-game lead over second-place
Palomar, a
17-12 loser to Southwestern on Thursday.
Sophomore right-hander Jeff Karstens enjoyed
another outstanding outing,
striking out 11 in 8 1/3 innings as he posted his sixth win in
eight
decisions. He owns the PCC's lowest ERA of 1.84 and leads the
circuit in
victories and strikeouts (64 in 73 1/3 innings).
Grossmont (22-10-1, 1-3) came from behind
to nail the Olympians, who led 2-0
after three innings. Ironically, it was Mesa transfer Brian Hipps
who gave
the Griffins a 3-2 edge when he launched a three-run home run
in the 4th
inning.
"He hit the ball on top of the roof
(of the football locker room) in
right-center field," Olsen noted.
But the Olympians refused to fold, as the
game was tied 3-3 heading into the
8th inning. Rocky Gracio gave the Griffins a start as he doubled
to right
field in the top of the 8th. Kevin McGhen ran for Gracio and eventually
advanced to third after a walk and an error filled the bases.
Noel Strane
plated McGhen with a sacrifice fly to right field.
Grossmont broke the game open in the 9th.
"I can't say enough about my assistant
coaches," Olsen said. "(Third base
coach) Mickey (Deutschman) has done an ideal job in a tough situation.
I can
be rough on my players, and Mickey is so good at explaining what
I want to
the players - only in a milder manner. And Randy Abshier has done
a great job
with our pitchers.
"We wouldn't be where we are without those two guys and the job they've done."
Second baseman Mike Parks (Monte Vista)
was 3-for-4 for the Olympians (15-12,
7-7). He tripled and scored in the second inning.
Grossmont hosts Mesa Saturday (April 6) at noon.
ELSEWHERE:
SOUTHWESTERN 17, PALOMAR 12 - El Capitan alum Scott Deen continued to wield
a hot bat, as he went 5-for-5 with a triple, a walk, 4 runs and
3 RBI to lead
the visiting Jaguars. Deen is 10-for-11 with 8 runs and 5 RBI
in his last two
games.
GRIFFIN GOSSIP: Shortstop
Izzy Barron wasn't feeling well and left
Thursday's game in the 9th inning. "He was hit in the eye
with a pick-off
throw on Tuesday, and suffered a mild concussion," Olsen
said. "He was
cleared to play today (Thursday), but said he started feeling
dizzy so we got
him right out of there." Barron was taken to a nearby hospital
for
precautionary reasons . . .
17 of the starters in Thursday's Grossmont-Mesa game had hits.
. . Brandon
Hundt, who was 10-1 with a 1.88 ERA for the 2001 PCC champion
Griffins, is
holding his own at Washington State this spring. The junior right-hander
is
4-2 with a 3.83 ERA and 2 saves. He's struck out 48 in 42 1/3
innings for the
Pac-10 Cougars . . . Washington State is also attempting to convince
Karstens to go north . . . PLNU is wooing Grossmont catcher Ryan
Reed while
Azusa Pacific is interested in Nick Guerra . . . Josh Thomas,
a junior
second baseman at William Penn University in Oskaloosa (Iowa),
hit a 2-run
homer in his first game back after being sidelined three weeks
with a
hamstring injury as the Statesmen edged Grand View College 4-3
on Wednesday
(April 3). A two-year starter for the Griffins following a successful
career
at Grossmont High, Thomas also doubled and scored in the second
game of that
double-header. The Statesmen are ranked No. 11 in the NAIA with
a 28-4 record.
(04-04-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
EL CAJON - For a team that had outscored
its previous four opponents by a
composite 34-4 score, 10 runs in a single 9-inning outing should
be
sufficient to post a victory. It wasn't even close to a perfect
10 for
Grossmont College on Tuesday (April 2) however, as the Griffins
were swamped
by the Southwestern College Jaguars 19-10 at Mickelsen Field.
The Jaguars raked four Grossmont pitchers
for 25 hits, snapping the Griffins'
6-game winning streak. El Capitan High alum Scott Deen was 5-for-6
with 4
runs scored and two RBI for Southwestern (12-20, 7-6), as Grossmont
(21-10-1,
10-3) lost for only the second time in 14 games.
Sergio Flores drove in 4 runs with a home
run and two doubles for the
Jaguars, who, despite a poor overall record, are still very much
in the
Pacific Coast Conference race. They are tied with Mesa for third
place, three
games back with 12 to play.
The first-place Griffins saw their lead
chopped to 1 1/2 games by
second-place Palomar, which edged San Diego City College, 3-0.
David Jolliff's 10th home run - a 3-run
drive - helped the Griffins take a
7-3 edge in the second inning. But by the time Grossmont's Ryan
Reed ripped
his 7th homer - a solo shot in the 7th inning - the Jags were
in control 14-9.
And then it got worse. Southwestern piled
on 5 runs in the 8th inning to end
any comeback aspirations the Griffins might have had.
Helix High alum Chris Nickeson gave Southwestern
quick start when he hammered
a Scott Shoemaker pitch for a 3-run homer in the top of the first.
Grossmont travels to San Diego Mesa on Thursday (April 4) at 2 p.m.
GRIFFIN GOSSIP -- Grossmont pitchers Jeff
Karstens and Diego Lopez were named
the PCC Male Athletes of the Week for victories they posted in
last week's
Mickelsen Tournament . . . Junior 1B Jaime Borruel (.453) continues
his
torrid hitting for Iowa's William Penn University, which is 27-3
and ranked
No. 12 in the NAIA. Borruel leads the Midwest Classic Conference
with 40 RBI
and 15 doubles . . . Junior RHP Oskar Diaz is 5-0 for the Statesmen,
while
2B Josh Thomas has been hampered by a hamstring injury.
(04-02-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
EL CAJON - Pitching rather than long-ball
hitting was Grossmont College's
ticket to a double-header sweep in Wednesday's (March 27) final
round of the
Noel Mickelsen Tournament. Six Griffins shared the pitching chores
as
Grossmont defeated Los Angeles Pierce 6-3 and Long Beach City
8-0.
The Griffins (21-9-1), who have won six
in a row and 12 of their last 13, had
hit 38 home runs in 29 games. Although they did not hit a homer
in 17 innings
on Wednesday, Grossmont outscored its four opponents in the three-day
Mickelsen Tournament by a 34-4 count.
The absence of the home run ball didn't
matter. In Wednesday's first game,
Diego Lopez and Carlos Torres shackled Pierce, spinning eight
shutout innings
before the Brahmas broke through for 3 runs (2 unearned) in the
final frame.
Lopez struck out 10 in 8 2/3 innings as he logged his 4th win
in 5 decisions.
Torres came on to record a game-ending strikeout to earn the save.
All six of Grossmont's hits against Pierce
(15-14) were singles, with Ismael
Barron and Brian Hipps garnering two apiece. David Jolliff, Frank
Lopez, Ryan
Reed and Travis Udvarhelyi each had an RBI.
The win over Pierce assured Grossmont of
its 9th straight season of winning
20 or more games.
Andy Martin blanked Long Beach for the first
six innings of the tournament
finale, allowing only 1 hit while striking out 6. Relievers Nate
Staggs,
Kevin Rasmussen, and Brian Jones pitched one inning each to complete
the
shutout.
Udvarhelyi, who saw his 16 game hitting
streak end in the opener, rebounded
to go 3-for-3 with a triple and 2 RBI against Long Beach. Rocky
Gracio was
2-for-2 with a pair of RBI, while Hipps was 3-for-3 with a run
and an RBI.
Nick Guerra chipped in with 3 hits and scored once, and Reed was
2-for-4 with
an RBI.
Jolliff singled his first time up, but apparently
the Vikings had seen enough
of him as they threw him one strike in his next four at-bats.
Thus, Jolliff
walked four times.
Grossmont resumes Pacific Coast Conference
play on Tuesday (April 2) when
Southwestern College visits Mickelsen field at 2 p.m.
(03-27-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
EL CAJON - Coaches from Washington State,
Texas Tech, San Diego State and
Gonzaga came to Noel Mickelsen Field Tuesday (March 26) to see
Grossmont
College's Jeff Karstens pitch. The sophomore right-hander did
not disappoint,
striking out 10, walking none and allowing only 6 hits as the
Griffins
leveled Los Angeles City College 10-0.
Karstens, who won 7 games as a freshman,
raised his season record to 5-2
while lowering his ERA to 1.71.
The scouts were impressed. Sources close
to the club say the former Mount
Miguel High standout has already received scholarship offers from
WSU and
Texas Tech. Karstens will visit Pullman, Wash. next week.
Meanwhile, Grossmont rocketed 5 home runs
in support of Karstens as the
Griffins (19-9-1) won for the 10th time in their last 11 starts.
David
Jolliff hit a pair of solo shots to balloon his club-leading total
to nine.
Nick Guerra gave Grossmont a sterling send
off when he followed a one-out
double by Ismael Barron with his 5th home run giving the Griffins
a 2-0 lead
in the first inning. Travis Udvarhelyi's RBI single helped make
it 4-0 in the
second inning, and Brian Hipps' two-run double swelled the advantage
to 6-0
in the third.
Back-to-back home runs by Ryan Reed and
Jolliff increased the lead to 8-0 in
the 5th inning. That finished LACC starter Kurt Bertrand, but
not the
Griffins as Udvarhelyi hit the first pitch from reliever Kent
Turley out of
the ballpark.
Turley gave up only 2 hits in 4 innings.
Both were home runs, including
Jolliff's homer in the 9th inning. The Griffins have hit 38 home
runs in 29
games.
Grossmont closes the Mickelsen Tournament
Wednesday (March 27) with home
games against Los Angeles Pierce (10 a.m.) and Long Beach City
College (2
p.m.)
GRIFFIN GOSSIP:
Two former Griffins are carrying a major share of the weight
for William Penn University of Oskaloosa, Iowa. Junior first baseman
JAIME
BORRUEL ranks fifth in the NAIA Midwest Classic Conference with
a .457
average and leads the circuit with 36 RBI and 13 doubles. He also
has 7 home
runs for the 23-2 Statesmen. Junior right-hander OSKAR DIAZ is
4-0 with a
2.16 ERA . . . Second baseman JOSH THOMAS is batting .400, but
has only 25
at-bats in 7 games . . . Senior KYLE SLEETH of Cal State Stanislaus
ranks
fifth in the Division II CCAA batting race with a .410 mark.
(03-26-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
EL CAJON - The top third of the Grossmont
College batting order continues to
pay pricey dividends for the Griffins, who vanquished Ventura
10-1 in
Monday's (March 25) opening round of the annual Noel Mickelsen
Tournament.
The trio of Travis Udvarhelyi, Ismael Barron and Nick Guerra was
a combined
6-for-12 with 4 runs scored and 3 RBI as the Griffins (18-9-1)
won for the
9th time in their last 10 games.
Udvarhelyi had a double and a single in
four at-bats to extend his hitting
streak to 15 games. The Pacific Coast Conference batting leader,
who has hit
safely in 21 of 22 games, maintained his average at .459 (56-for-122).
He
scored twice and whacked an RBI double as Grossmont defeated Ventura
for the
third time in three meetings.
Barron was 3-for-5, while Guerra logged
2 RBI. Brian Hipps was 2-for-4 for
the Griffins, who drove in four runs via sacrifice flies.
While Grossmont was raking five Ventura
pitchers for 11 hits, Scott Shoemaker
was authoring one of his top pitching performances of the season.
The
sophomore right-hander rationed the Pirates (12-15) to 4 hits
and one run
while striking out 5 and walking none over 7 innings. Ryan Jones
spun two
innings of hitless relief while striking out 4.
Grossmont hosts Los Angeles City College
on Tuesday (March 26) in the second
round of the Mickelsen Tournament at 10 a.m. On Wednesday, the
Griffs host
L.A. Pierce at 10 and Long Beach City at 2.
DIAMOND DIGGINGS -
After succumbing to the Griffins, Ventura rolled over for
Long Beach City 12-2 later that afternoon. One might wonder how
the Pirates
have won 12 games this season.
Make no mistake about it, this club is reeling.
Ventura suffered a
devastating loss on Saturday (March 23) when it blew a 14-3 lead
in the
bottom of the 9th. With two outs and nobody on base, College of
the Canyons
erupted for 12 runs to push the Pirates off the plank, 15-14.
(03-25-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
CHULA VISTA - With the 2002 Pacific Coast
Conference pennant race nearing the
halfway mark, the defending-champion Grossmont College Griffins
are enjoying
a 2 1/2-game lead over their nearest challenger. Coach Ed Olsen's
ballclub
won for the 8th time in nine starts Saturday (March 23), rolling
over host
Southwestern 9-1 as Ismael Barron and Nick Guerra drove in 4 runs
apiece.
PCC batting leader Travis Udvarhelyi led
Grossmont's 11-hit attack with a
double and a pair of singles, while scoring 4 runs at the top
of the
Griffins' batting order. A two-year starter, Udvarhelyi is making
noises that
he may be the next in a long line of Grossmont standouts to earn
PCC Player
of the Year honors. The Patrick Henry High product is batting
at a .459 clip
(54-for-118) with 37 runs in 27 games.
Udvarhelyi had a hand in all four of Grossmont's
scoring frames at
Southwestern. He walked and scored on Barron's two-run double
into the right
field corner that gave the Griffins (17-9-1, 10-2) a 2-0 edge
in the 3rd
inning.
In the 5th inning, Udvarhelyi reached base
on a bunt single, advanced to
second on Barron's base hit and scored on Guerra's sacrifice fly
to extend
Grossmont's advantage to 3-1.
The Jaguars (11-16, 6-6) threw in a wild pitch and an error to
fuel the fire,
and Udvarhelyi chipped in with a single and scored in the 7th
as Grossmont
upped its lead to 6-1.
Two innings later, Udvarhelyi doubled and
scored on Barron's base hit. Then
Guerra (batting .430) stamped an exclamation point on the final
verdict as he
hoisted a two-run home run over the right field fence. The "moon
shot" was
Guerra's 4th round-tripper and the 33rd home run for Grossmont
this season.
Guerra has 26 RBI, which ties him with Barron and David Jolliff
for the team
lead.
Left-hander Andy Martin was the beneficiary
of Grossmont's latest offensive
show, as he scattered 7 hits and allowed one run over 8 innings
to earn his
4th win in 5 decisions.
Randy Aguiar, an El Capitan High alum, was
tagged with the loss. The
Southwestern southpaw gave up 5 runs and 6 hits in 6 innings as
his record
dipped to 3-2. On a positive note, Aguiar averaged a strikeout
per inning.
The Griffins boast a team batting average
of .313 and a team ERA of 3.74. But
their most impressive statistic comes on defense. The club has
committed only
18 errors in 12 PCC games.
Grossmont takes a break from the 25-game
PCC schedule to host the annual Noel
Mickelsen Tournament March 25-27. The Griffins' first-round contest
is
against Ventura on Monday (March 25) at 10 a.m. They host Los
Angeles City
College on Tuesday (March 26) at 10 and then close out the three-day
event
with a double-header on Wednesday. The Griffs face Los Angeles
Pierce College
of Woodland Hills at 10 a.m. and Long Beach City at 2 p.m.
ELSEWHERE
PALOMAR 8, SDCC 7 -
Shortstop Kyle Floquet, a Granite Hills High grad,
keyed a 5-run Palomar rally in the bottom of the 8th inning Saturday
(March
23) as the second-place Comets edged the visiting Knights. Floquet,
batting
at a .381 clip, has hit safely in 9 straight games, 22 of his
last 23 and 46
of his last 49 the past two seasons.
SD MESA 22, IMPERIAL VALLEY 5 - Former Monte Vista second baseman Mike Parks
went 5-for-5 and scored 4 runs as the visiting Olympians routed
Imperial
Valley on Saturday (March 23).
(03-23-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
EL CAJON - When you've coached baseball
for as long as Ed Olsen has, there
aren't many things you haven't experienced. But Olsen, who has
been on the
coaching lines for nearly four decades, was treated to a rare
first in
Grossmont's come-from-behind 10-8 victory over Palomar on Thursday
(March 21)
at Noel Mickelsen Field.
The Pacific Coast Conference-leading Griffins
erupted for 6 runs in the
bottom of the 9th inning to stun the second-place Comets and extend
their
lead to 2 1/2 games over their nearest challenger.
"That's the first time I've ever had
a team score that many runs in the 9th
inning to win," Olsen said. "I've had team score 3,
maybe 4 runs to pull one
out in the last inning, but nothing like this."
Kevin McGhen, who was plugged into the lineup
as a defensive replacement,
capped the Grossmont uprising with a game-winning, two-run home
run.
"We told him to look for the breaking
ball," Olsen said of McGhen, who lined
a 1-1 pitch from Brian Girgenti - Palomar's fifth pitcher of the
day - over
the right field fence. "It was a hanging curveball and (McGhen)
jumped all
over it."
Olsen said McGhen's shot was a "no doubter."
"As soon as he made contact everybody
(in the Grossmont dugout) went nuts,"
Olsen said. "He hit a rocket."
It was only the third hit in 17 at-bats
for McGhen, who has made the most of
his limited blows with 7 RBI. His first hit as a college player
was an
inside-the-park grand slam.
"It's nice to see a couple of the guys
who don't get a lot of playing time
contribute in a big game," Olsen said.
The Griffins' skipper was talking about
Ryan Buckley as well as McGhen. It
was Buckley's base hit on an 0-2 pitch that scored Carlos Torres
with the
tying run.
Grossmont, which clubbed four homers in
the game, started the 9th inning
rally with Ismael Barron's third home run of season.
The inning continued as Nick Guerra, who
was 3-for-5, reached base on an
error and raced to second on Torres' double. Ryan Reed smacked
a ground ball
to the Palomar shortstop, who "air-mailed" his throw
over the first baseman's
head. That allowed two runs to score and set up the late-inning
heroics by
Buckley and McGhen.
All 11 Griffins who batted contributed to
Grossmont's 16-hit attack. Nine
Griffins scored.
"This was a must-win for us,"
said Olsen, whose club blew a 5-0 lead in
losing at Palomar on Tuesday (March 19). "If they beat us
twice this week,
they'd have all the momentum."
Olsen figures 21 wins will secure the PCC
pennant. No question, that number
would earn the Griffins - who have won 7 of their last 8 - a second
straight
PCC title.
(03-21-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
SAN MARCOS - Front-running Grossmont College
blew a 5-0 lead and saw its
six-game Pacific Coast Conference winning streak come to an end
Tuesday
(March 19) at Palomar, as the second-place Comets rallied for
a 7-5 victory.
Palomar, which chopped Grossmont's PCC advantage to 1 1/2 games,
is 2-0
against the Griffins this season.
Palomar broke a 5-5 tie with two runs in the 6th inning.
With one out and Comets at first and second
base, reliever Kevin Rasmussen,
who picked up for Grossmont starter and loser Scott Shoemaker,
wild pitched
the runners into scoring position.
Bryan Lee, the brother of former Padre and
now Florida Marlins' first baseman
Derrick Lee, blooped a single to right field to score Brian Robinson
with
what proved to be the winning run. An insurance run scored on
an error later
in the inning.
What had to irk Grossmont coach Ed Olsen
was that six of Palomar's runs were
driven in by the Nos. 8 and 9 hitters in the batting order. The
seventh tally
crossed the plate with the aid of a Grossmont fielding miscue.
Although the Griffins wilted down the stretch,
the game should have been
decided by the middle innings. Grossmont had a golden opportunity
to break
the game open before the Comets touched the plate for the first
time.
Ismael Barron's RBI single capped a two-run
3rd inning that gave Grossmont a
2-0 lead.
The Griffins made it 5-0 in the 4th . Nick
Guerra, who was 4-for-5 in the
game - raising his average to .442 (42 for 95) - ignited the rally
with a
single to right. He scored on Rocky Gracio's double down the left
field line.
Ryan Reed ripped a double over the center fielder's head scoring
Gracio to
make it 4-0. Brian Hipps singled in Reed to extend the Griffins'
advantage to
5-0.
Grossmont (15-9-1, 8-2) was in position
to break the game open with the bases
loaded and one out in the 4th inning. But Barron popped out to
right field
and No. 3 hitter David Jolliff struck out to end the inning.
That escape seemed to revitalize Palomar
(13-9, 6-3) in the bottom of the
4th. The Comets jumped on Grossmont starter Scott Shoemaker (2-2)
for five
runs to tie - the key blow being Cliff Hinkle's grand slam.
Shoemaker (2-2) threw 43 pitches in the
fourth inning alone. Of course, the 8
strikeouts he recorded had much to do with the great volume of
pitches he
delivered during his 5 1/3 innings. He also walked 5 and surrendered
5 hits.
These same two teams meet again on Thursday
(March 22) at Grossmont's Noel
Mickelsen Field at 2 p.m.
(03-19-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
IMPERIAL - When a Pacific Coast Conference
team travels to the desert on a
windy day anything can happen. As wind gusts were swirling up
to 40 mph,
thoughts of pending disaster no doubt crossed the mind of Grossmont
College
coach Ed Olsen.
The wind, however, was not a factor in Thursday's
(March 14) PCC encounter as
the Griffins blew into town and grabbed a 9-3 victory over Imperial
Valley
College to maintain their grip on the conference lead.
Diego Lopez, a pleasant surprise for Olsen
and the Griffins, made the start
in his old stomping grounds. The freshman right-hander out of
Calexico High
had been smooth as silk in his previous five outings with a 3.04
ERA in 26
2/3 innings. The excitement of starting in front of the home folks
obviously
had an impact as Lopez labored through the first five innings.
Lopez gave up 2 runs and 4 hits while striking
out 6 and walking 3. However,
those numbers were good enough to land Lopez his third win in
four decisions
as Grossmont pounded out 11 hits - four of the extra-base variety.
The Griffins (15-8-1, 8-1), who have won
six in a row, snapped a 1-1 tie with
four runs in the fourth inning. Singles by David Jolliff, Nick
Guerra and
Carlos Torres produced the go-ahead run. Two outs later, Frank
Lopez launched
his third home run over the scoreboard to give Grossmont a 5-1
edge.
Ismael Barron's RBI triple made it 6-1 in the 5th inning.
Grossmont, which is about to begin a four-day
break in the schedule, received
excellent relief pitching from Kevin Rasmussen and Andy Martin
to secure the
victory.
A major challenge awaits these Griffins.
If they are serious about locking up
a second straight PCC title, they'll get a chance to turn back
their most
serious challenger when they take on second-place Palomar Tuesday
(March 19)
in San Marcos and Thursday (March 21) at Noel Mickelsen Field.
First pitch
both days is 2 p.m.
ELSEWHERE:
PALOMAR 7, SAN DIEGO MESA 5 - The Comets clubbed three home runs and Granite
Hills High alum Kyle Floquet went 2-for-4 with a double as second-place
Palomar remained 21/2 games behind first-place Grossmont.
(03-14-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
EL CAJON - Power-hitting has been a Grossmont
College trademark during coach
Ed Olsen's 20 seasons at the Griffins' helm. The home run pyrotechnics
continue this year, as the Griffins are driving toward a second
straight
Pacific Coast Conference pennant.
Grossmont blasted six home runs as part
of a 21-hit assault on five Imperial
Valley pitchers Tuesday (March 12) and continued on for an 18-4
victory over
the visiting Arabs at Noel Mickelsen Field.
David Jolliff led the Griffins' home run
galaxy with his 6th and 7th circuit
clouts - a pair of two-run shots - while Frank Lopez smashed a
grand slam
during a 10-run third inning. Nine Griffins reached base before
IVC could get
an out in the third.
Kevin McGhen rifled an inside-the-park grand
slam in the seventh. It was the
Grossmont freshman's first college hit.
Ismael Barron belted a two-run homer in
the 5th for the Griffins (14-8-1,
7-1), who have won five straight and hold a 2 1/2-game lead over
second place
Palomar (11-9, 4-3). Mesa and Southwestern are tied for third
place, three
games back.
Grossmont leadoff man Travis Udvarhelyi
went 3-for-5 to hoist his PCC-leading
batting average to .455 (45 for 99).
Nearly lost in the offensive onslaught was
another fine outing by the
Grossmont pitching staff. Starter Jeff Karstens (4-2) scattered
6 hits and
allowed only 2 earned runs in six innings. Arizona transfer Nate
Staggs
pitched 2-hit ball over the final three innings to notch his first
save.
Grossmont travels to Imperial Valley on Thursday (March 14) at 2 p.m.
ELSEWHERE:
PALOMAR 10, SAN DIEGO MESA 8 - Granite Hills High alum Kyle Floquet went
3-for-6, stole a base and scored 3 runs to lead the Comets past
Mesa.
(03-12-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
SAN DIEGO - Pssst. The Grossmont Griffins
are starting to pull away from the
Pacific Coast Conference pack. Granted, the Griffins are the PCC
defending
champions, but even coach Ed Olsen has to be pleasantly surprised
to see his
first-place ballclub two games ahead of second-place San Diego
Mesa and
Southwestern, with Palomar 2? games back in fourth.
Grossmont (13-8-1, 6-1) had to come from
behind to defeat San Diego City
College 7-4 on Saturday (March 9) at Morley Field. It was the
Griffins third
win in as many meetings with SDCC this year and their fourth straight
victory
overall.
After Billy Newbery belted a two-run home
run to give the Knights a 3-1 edge
in the second inning, the Griffins fought back with three runs
in the fourth.
Carlos Torres tripled to right-center and scored on Travis Udvarhelyi's
single, shaving SDCC's lead to 3-2. After David Jolliff was hit
by a pitch
and Knights' pitcher Juan Razo balked the runners into scoring
position,
Rocky Gracio delivered a two-run single putting Grossmont on top,
4-3.
SDCC (5-12, 1-6) tied the game on Uriel
Alvarez's RBI single in the bottom of
the 4th.
Grossmont forged back in front with a pair
of runs in the fifth as
Udvarhelyi's groundball out drove in the tie-breaker and Ishmael
Barron's RBI
single gave the Griffins a 6-4 cushion.
It was a rocky outing for Grossmont starter
Scott Shoemaker, who was knocked
around for 4 runs and 7 hits in four innings. But freshman right-hander
Diego
Lopez out of Calexico High quickly restored order, blanking the
Knights on 3
hits over the final 5 innings to earn his third win in four starts.
Next up for the Griffins is a 2 p.m. home
game against Imperial Valley on
Tuesday (March 12).
(03-09-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
EL CAJON - David Jolliff hit what will probably
be the longest single of his
career in the bottom of the 9th inning Friday (March 8) to drive
in Travis
Udvarhelyi with the winning run in Grossmont College's 3-2 Pacific
Coast
Conference victory over visiting San Diego City College (5-11,
1-5).
Jolliff's game-winning RBI allowed Grossmont
(12-8-1, 5-1) to maintain a
one-game lead over San Diego Mesa College in the PCC race. It
was the
Griffins' third straight win.
The Griffins were facing hard-throwing lefthander
Billy Zbacnik, who took a
2-1 lead into the bottom of the 7th inning. But Nick Guerra pulled
the
Griffins even when he knocked a 2-1 pitch over the right-center
field fence
to tie it at 2-2. It was Guerra's fourth home run of the season.
Udvarhelyi tripled to lead off the bottom
of the 9th. After Ismael Barron
lined to right, Jolliff hit the first pitch from Zbacnik to deep
center over
a drawn-in SDCC defense.
Andy Martin worked 8 2/3 innings, scattering
9 hits and allowing 2 earned
runs for the Griffins.
Carlos Torres snuffed out a budding SDCC
rally with an inning-ending
strikeout in the top of the 9th and was rewarded with his first
victory of
the season.
Udvarhelyi was 4-for-4, accounting for half of Grossmont's hits in the game.
These same two teams will meet again on
Saturday (March 9) at Morley Field at
noon.
(03-08-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
EL CAJON - The Pacific Coast Conference
roulette wheel continues to spin, and
where she stops, nobody can predict. Grossmont College was alone
at the top
on Tuesday (Mar. 5) after the Griffins pounded 10 extra-base hits
in a 15-4
romp over host San Diego Mesa.
The Griffins (11-8-1, 4-1) hold a one-game
lead over Palomar, Southwestern
and Mesa, all of which stand at 3-2.
Jeff Karstens (3-2) rationed the Olympians
to four hits and one earned run
while striking out 5 over 8 innings. That effort lowered his ERA
to 1.07.
Grossmont enjoyed an offensive bonanza,
battering four Mesa pitchers for 18
hits, including Rocky Gracio's grand slam in a 6-run eighth inning.
Ryan Reed just missed hitting for the cycle.
His RBI single in the second
inning gave Grossmont a 1-0 lead it never lost. He ripped a run-scoring
double in the 8th inning after belting a monstrous two-run home
run in the
5th.
"That was a gargantuan shot,"
Grossmont coach Ed Olsen said of Reed's fifth
home run of the season. "That ball had to travel 450 feet
(to straight-away)
left."
The Griffins' offensive totals included
5 doubles (2 by David Jolliff) and 3
triples. At one stretch in the eighth, the Griffins got Gracio's
slam, a
triple by Carlos Torres, and doubles by Reed and Anthony Fisher.
Mesa's Justin Paige (West Hills High alum)
belted a solo home run in the
second inning to cut the Griffins' early lead to 2-1. Brian Matusmoto
(Santana) was 2-for-4 with a double for Mesa.
ELSEWHERE:
Southwestern 11, Palomar 6 - Comets' shortstop Kyle Floquet (Granite Hills)
went 4-for-4 with a double and one RBI in a losing cause. He's
6-for-8 in his
last two games.
(03-06-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
EL CAJON - The logjam in the Pacific Coast
Conference race moved up a notch
on Saturday's (Mar. 2). Instead of a three-way tie for second
place,
Grossmont, Palomar and San Diego Mesa are now tangled up at the
top of the
6-team circuit. While the Griffins were defeating visiting Southwestern
8-5,
San Diego City was posting its first win in four PCC starts, 9-6
over Palomar
and Mesa was holding off Imperial Valley 6-5.
Rocky Gracio's three-run double capped a
four-run third inning as the
Griffins (10-8-1, 3-1) broke a 3-3 tie. David Jolliff launched
the rally with
a double and scored on Nick Guerra's single. Grossmont loaded
the bases on a
single by Ryan Reed and a walk to Carlos Torres, setting the stage
for
Gracio's heroics.
Guerra led Grossmont's 12-hit attack with
3 hits in four at-bats. Jason
Balsley blasted his second home run of the year - a solo shot
to tie the game
3-3 in the bottom of the second inning. Jolliff pounded a pair
of doubles and
drove in 2 runs.
Scott Shoemaker pitched 6 innings to pick
up his second straight PCC victory,
while Kevin Rasmussen spun 3 innings of shutout relief to log
his second save.
Grossmont travels to San Diego Mesa for
a showdown between conference leaders
on Tuesday (Mar. 5) at 2 p.m. The Olympians defeated the Griffins
in a
tournament meeting earlier this year.
(03-02-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
EL CAJON - Grossmont College's Nick Guerra
enjoyed another 4-for-5 day with
the bat, but the Griffins' pitchers weren't so fortunate. Palomar
pounded two
Comets-turned-Griffins en route to a 10-5 victory in Thursday's
(Feb. 28)
battle between Pacific Coast Conference front-runners at Noel
Mickelsen Field.
Palomar transfer Andy Martin started for
Grossmont and was pinned with his
first loss in four decisions. Brian Jones, another ex-Palomar
pitcher, was
cuffed around in relief.
Grossmont (9-8-1, 2-1), which tumbled into
a three-way tie for second place
in the PCC, started out strong against the Comets' 6-foot-6 ace
Jon Fleming.
Travis Udvarhelyi greeted Fleming with a triple and scored on
David Jolliff's
single. Guerra then doubled home Jolliff giving Grossmont a 2-0
lead after
one inning.
Palomar countered with Carlos Medina's two-run
home run off Martin in the
second inning. Sean Richardson's two-run triple helped the Comets
(10-6, 3-0)
take a 5-2 lead in the third inning.
Ryan Reed launched a two-run home run in
the fifth inning, pulling the
Griffins to within 5-4. But that would be as close as Grossmont
would get.
Singles by Reed, Guerra and Anthony Fisher
plated the Griffins final run in
the seventh.
Fisher, Reed, Udvarhelyi and Ismael Barron
each had two hits for Grossmont,
while Richardson was 3-for-4 with 4 RBI for Palomar. Granite Hills
High alum
Kyle Floquet was 1-for-4 with a walk, a run and a stolen base
for the Comets.
Grossmont hosts Southwestern Saturday (March 2) at noon.
NOTE: No box score was reported by Grossmont College.
(02-28-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
IMPERIAL - Grossmont College turned to it's
Mount Miguel High connection to
help knock off host Imperial Valley 9-1 in Tuesday's (Feb. 26)
Pacific Coast
Conference game. Sophomore Jeff Karstens dazzled the Arabs with
a nasty
assortment of breaking balls, and right fielder Jason Balsley
keyed a
four-run second inning with a two-run double as the Griffins (9-7-1,
2-0)
breezed to the victory.
Karstens (2-1), a teammate of with Balsley's
at Mount Miguel two years ago,
scattered 5 hits and allowed one run over 8 innings. The 6-foot-3,
175-pound
right-hander walked 3 and struck out 5.
"Karstens did a good job of pitching
out of jams," Grossmont coach Ed Olsen
said. "There were 18 groundouts. Only one fly ball out."
Left-hander Kevin Rasmussen pitched a scoreless ninth inning for Grossmont.
The Griffins generated all the runs they
would need in the second inning.
Nick Guerra, who finished the day 4-for-5 with 3 runs and 3 RBI,
started the
inning with a base hit. Frank Lopez doubled him to third, and
both runners
rode home on Balsley's double. The two-base hit parade continued
when Ismael
Barron doubled in Balsley to give Grossmont a 3-0 edge.
Travis Udvarhelyi, who was 4-for-5 in the
lead-off spot, capped the big
second inning with an RBI single.
Guerra sealed the Grossmont victory when
he belted a 3-run home run in the
ninth inning. Guerra's second round-tripper of the season brought
in Brian
Hipps, who reached base on an error and Ryan Reed, who was hit
by a pitch.
Grossmont and Palomar (9-6, 2-0) , the early
co-leaders in the PCC, will face
off at Noel Mickelsen Field for the first of their five conference
meetings
on Thursday (Feb. 28) at 2 p.m.
ELSEWHERE:
SOUTHWESTERN 7, SAN DIEGO CITY 5 - Former El Capitan standout Randy Aguiar
picked up the pitching win for the Jaguars in Tuesday's PCC game
at
Southwestern.
(02-26-02)
Griffins, Shoemaker off and running
in conference
Shoemaker, a 6-foot-3, 205-pound right-hander
coming off elbow surgery,
turned in his longest outing of the season, limiting the Knights
to one hit
and one run over 7 innings for his first victory.
"I'm really happy with my progress
so far," said Shoemaker, who missed all of
the 2001 season after winning eight games as a freshman. "I
feel I'm getting
closer to where I was two years ago. I think next time I'll be
able to go
nine."
Shoemaker made a season-high 92 deliveries
against the Knights, striking out
7 and walking 5. His only mistake was the first pitch he threw
to Billy
Zbacnik in the third inning. Zbacnik deposited the ball well over
the
right-center field fence for a home run.
"He threw him a change-up on the first
pitch, and you can't get away with
stuff like that," Grossmont coach Ed Olsen said. "Other
than that, I was
happy with the job he did."
Starting pitching hasn't been a problem
for the Griffins (8-7-1, 1-0). Olsen
credits pitching coach Randy Abshier for nurturing his talented
staff.
"I'm so pleased with the job Randy's
been doing," Olsen said. "Our starters
have been going 7 to 8 innings every time out. You have to be
happy with that.
"Randy is one of the best three assistant
coaches I've ever had. He ranks
right up there with Davey Johnson and Bobby Valentine. Randy does
everything
in a big league manner just like those guys do."
The latter two, of course, have gone on
to become major league managers. They
each worked under Olsen when he was a minor league manager for
the New York
Mets' Kingsport (Tenn.) Class A farm club in the early 1980s.
Grossmont's bullpen, however, has been suspect
all season. That's why
starters Andy Martin and Carlos Torres each worked an inning of
relief
against SDCC.
The Griffins finally broke through against
San Diego City ace Juan Razo for 3
runs in the fifth inning. After Frank Lopez doubled and Ismael
Barron walked,
Brian Hipps blasted a triple into the right-center field gap giving
Grossmont
a 2-1 lead.
Nick Guerra doubled down the left field
line to score Hipps for a 3-1
advantage. That would be all the Grossmont pitchers would need.
The Griffins travel to Imperial Valley on
Tuesday (Feb. 26) for a 2 p.m. PCC
encounter.
ELSEWHERE:
SD MESA 10, SOUTHWESTERN 7 -- West Hills
High alum Justin Paige went 4-for-5
with a double, scored 3 runs and drove in 3 for the Olympians.
Santana High
grad Brian Matsumoto was 3-for-5 with a double and 2 RBI for Mesa,
while
sophomore southpaw Tim Tisch (West Hills) got his second win in
as many
decisions.
PALOMAR 13, IMPERIAL VALLEY 4 - Granite
Hills alum Kyle Floquet went 2-for-5
with a double and one RBI for the Comets in Saturday's PCC opener.
(2-23-02)
ECS.com staff report
EL CAJON - Grossmont College received superb
pitching from right-handers
Diego Lopez and Jeff Karstens in Thursday's nonconference game
against
visiting East Los Angeles College. The duo, in fact, allowed only
two earned
runs over 14 innings, but all the Griffins had to show for their
effort was
a 3-3 tie. The game was halted by darkness.
Lopez permitted just 6 hits and 2 earned
runs while striking out 2 during
his eight-inning stint. Karstens was even more impressive, as
he blanked the
Huskies on 1 hit over the final 6 innings. He struck out 5 and
walked 2.
Grossmont (7-7-1), which opens the Pacific
Coast Conference season
Saturday (Feb. 23) at noon against San Diego City College at Morley
Field, blew
several scoring chances against East L.A.
The Griffins got their leadoff man on base
in four of the final five
innings, but failed to capitalize. Two times they bunted into
double plays
attempting to sacrifice.
All three of Grossmont's runs were the result
of East L.A. walks and
errors as the Griffins totaled 6 hits for the day.
EastCountySports.com staff report
CARSON - After winning five of six games,
the Grossmont Griffins (7-7) have
suddenly hit the skids with back-to-back losses to San Diego Mesa
and Los
Angeles Harbor.
On Monday (Feb. 18), the Griffins stranded
12 base-runners in a 4-1 loss to
San Diego Mesa to finish the Glendale Tournament at 2-2. It was
the third
straight tournament that Grossmont has ended with a 2-2 split.
Even more
revolting for the Griffins, it was Mesa's first victory over Grossmont
in 23
games.
The frustration continued on Tuesday (Feb.
19) when the Griffins fell 14-8 at
L.A. Harbor. Grossmont was cruising 7-0 after four innings when
the Seahawks
capitalized on two errors to score 9 unearned runs in the fifth
inning.
Harbor tacked on 5 more runs in the sixth and the Griffins' offense
stalled
down the stretch.
Travis Udvarhelyi belted a two-run home
run and finished 2-for-4 with 3 runs
scored in the loss at Harbor. David Jolliff was 2-for-4 with 2
runs for the
Griffins.
Grossmont hosts East Los Angeles College
in its final preseason tune-up on
Thursday (Feb. 21) at 2 p.m. The Griffins dropped a 9-6 decision
to the
Huskies in the opening round of the Southwestern Jaguar Classic
earlier this
month.
The Griffins open defense of their Pacific
Coast Conference championship on
Saturday (Feb. 23) against San Diego City College at Morley Field.
Game time
is noon.
(02-19-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
GLENDALE - Sophomore catcher Nick Guerra
is on batting binge. The transfer
from the University of San Diego went 6-for-6 with a double and
3 RBI to
launch Grossmont College to a 15-2 victory over Los Angeles City
College in
Saturday's (Feb. 16) third round of the Glendale Tournament.
Guerra, a USDHS product, is 9-for-10 with
four doubles and 5 RBI in his last
two games. He's batting .500 for the season with 19 hits. He was
not a solo
act on this afternoon, however.
The Griffins (7-5), who have won five of
their last six games, enjoyed a
field day at the plate against LACC pitching. David Jolliff drove
in 4 runs
with a home run and a double, while Ryan Reed plated 4 runs with
4 singles in
six at-bats.
Travis Udvarhelyi was 2-for-3 with a home
run, a double and 2 RBI. He has 7
hits in the three tournament games.
Left-hander Andy Martin was the beneficiary
of the Grossmont fireworks. He
toiled 6 2/3 innings to earn his third win without a loss. He
struck out 7
and walked 7, but scattered 6 hits to allow just 2 runs. Jeff
Hill blanked
the Cubs over the final 2 1/3 innings.
The final game of the tourney matches the
Griffins against Pacific Coast
Conference rival Mesa. That game has been moved to San Diego on
Monday (Feb.
18) at Mesa at noon.
(02-16-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
GLENDALE - Ryan Reed rocketed a two-run
home run and Nick Guerra collected
three doubles and 2 RBI to support the superb pitching of Jeff
Karstens
Friday (Feb.15) as Grossmont College vanquished Ventura 10-3 in
the Glendale
Tournament. Karstens scattered 7 hits over 8 innings while striking
out a
career-high 13.
A sophomore right-hander, Karstens walked
2 and allowed only 2 earned runs as
he balanced his record at 1-1. Brian Jones pitched the 9th inning
as the
Griffins avenged an earlier 17-15 loss to Ventura.
Reed's home run was his third of the season.
The victory gave Grossmont (6-5) a split
of Friday's two tournament games.
Host Glendale buried the Griffins 14-2 in the opener, using a
7-run seventh
inning to turn the game into a rout.
Travis Udvarhelyi was 3-for-4 and scored
a run in the lopsided loss to
Glendale. He added 2 more hits and scored twice in the win over
Ventura,
making him 5-for-8 on the day.
David Jolliff clubbed a solo home run -
his third of the season - -against
Glendale.
Grossmont takes on Los Angeles City College
Saturday (Feb. 16) in Glendale at
1 p.m. The final game of the tourney matches the Griffins against
Pacific
Coast Conference rival Mesa. That game has been moved to San Diego
on Monday
(Feb. 18) at Mesa at noon.
(02-15-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
LONG BEACH - It was easily Grossmont College's
most complete game of the
season. In more ways than one. Not only did Diego Lopez deliver
the club's
first route-going pitching performance on Wednesday (Feb. 13),
the Griffins
pounded out 16 hits as they routed host Long Beach CC 16-1.
Lopez, a 6-foot-4, 200-pound right-hander
out of Calexico, needed only 89
pitches to finish off the Vikings (4-6). He allowed only 3 hits,
walked none
and struck out 5. He did hit two batters.
"Our pitching has just been outstanding,"
Grossmont coach Ed Olsen said. "Our
last five starting pitchers have given up only one earned run
in 32 innings
(0.28 ERA). They've allowed only 18 hits and walked only five."
That's a major reason why the Griffins have
bounced back from a 2-4 beginning
with three straight wins.
Catcher Nick Guerra led the Grossmont offensive
onslaught at LBCC. He was
3-for-5 with 4 RBI, including a three-run homer that capped a
6-run 6th
inning.
Travis Udvarhelyi drove in three runs and
scored twice with a double and a
triple in the leadoff spot. Ismael Barron was 2-for-3 with a two-run
single
that gave Grossmont a 4-0 lead in the 3rd inning. He added a sacrifice
fly in
the 4th and walked to ignite the big 6th frame.
Brian Hipps was 2-for-5 with a double and
3 RBI. Frank Lopez and Ryan Reed
also had two hits and one RBI apiece for Grossmont.
The Griffins resume activity on Friday (Feb.
15) when they vie in the
Glendale Tournament. They'll face host Glendale College at 10
a.m. and
Ventura at 1 p.m. in a Friday doubleheader. On Saturday, Grossmont
takes on
Los Angeles City College at Glendale at 1 p.m. and then closes
the tournament
with a Sunday game at San Diego Mesa at noon.
DIAMOND CHIPS: Four members of last year's
Pacific Coast Conference
championship squad - second baseman Josh Thomas, relief pitcher
Oskar Diaz
and third baseman/catcher Jamie Borruel - are expected to make
an immediate
impact at William Penn University in Oskaloosa, Iowa this season
Kyle Dennis
is playing shortstop at Cal State Stanislaus.
(02-13-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
EL CAJON - After a disastrous start last
week in the High Desert Classic, the
Grossmont College pitching staff did a better job of locating
the strike
zone on a consistent basis in the Southwestern Jaguars Classic,
which
concluded Sunday (Feb. 10) at Noel Mickelsen Field.
It was Andy Martin's turn to slap on the
clamps for the Griffins, and the
Texas Tech-bound southpaw turned in an overpowering performance
as Grossmont
downed Merced 6-3 in Sunday's finale.
Martin, operating under a pitch count, fired
6 shutout innings while
allowing only 3 hits, striking out 10 and walking none to earn
the win.
Left-hander Kevin Rasmussen, the last of
three relievers, got the final
two outs in the 9th inning to pick up the save.
David Jolliff ripped a two-run home run
- his second of the season -
and a double to pace the Griffins (4-4). Frank Lopez and Brian
Hipps clubbed
solo home runs for Grossmont.
At the High Desert event, Grossmont pitchers
issued 33 walks and hit 9
batters in four games. The staff made dramatic turn-a-round in
its home
ballpark, as the four Grossmont starters collectively walked only
3 batters.
The Griffins hit the road again on Wednesday
(Feb. 13) when they travel
to Long Beach City College at 2 p.m.
(02-10-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
EL CAJON - Grossmont College's must ballyhooed
pitching staff came up big for
the second straight day in the Southwestern College Jaguar Classic
as the
Griffins edged visiting Fullerton 2-1 Saturday (Feb. 9) at Noel
Mickelsen
Field.
Carlos Torres and Kevin Rasmussen combined
to fire a 3-hitter at the Hornets.
Torres, a right-handed transfer from Santa Maria's Allen Hancock
JC,
surrendered only two hits and one unearned run in 7 innings. He
fanned 4 and
walked 3.
Rasmussen, a southpaw out of Eastlake High,
toiled the final 2 innings,
allowing one hit and striking out 2. He was awarded the victory
when the
Griffins (3-4) broke a 1-1 tie in the bottom of the 9th inning.
Noel Strane ignited the winning rally with
a walk and scored when Travis
Udvarhelyi tripled off the center-fielder's glove.
The tournament concludes Sunday (Feb. 10)
when Merced visits Mickelsen Field
at 10 a.m.
(2-09-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
EL CAJON - When David Jolliff was a senior
at El Capitan High he played
second base. After advancing to UC Riverside following his 2000
graduation,
he moved over to third base, but didn't get a chance to play.
Jolliff believes he has the best of both
worlds at Grossmont College where he
is the starting third baseman.
"I love it at third," the 6-foot-1,
170-pound Jolliff said. "I see a lot of
action and get a chance to show off my arm more than I did at
second base."
Jolliff also exhibited some power in Friday's
(Feb. 8) first game of the
Southwestern Jaguars Classic. Batting in the No. 9 spot, he belted
a grand
slam in the bottom of the ninth of Grossmont's 9-6 loss to visiting
East Los
Angeles College.
"You see a lot of fastballs batting
No. 9," said Jolliff, who drove a 1-0
heater over the right field fence. His bases-clearing liner followed
a
double by Brian Hipps, a Rocky Gracio single and a walk to Jason
Balsley.
The Griffins, who fell behind the Huskies
8-0, shattered the shutout in the
seventh inning when Nick Guerra doubled and Ryan Reed ripped his
second home
run of the season into the trees beyond the left field fence.
Grossmont starter Scott Shoemaker pitched
five shutout innings, allowing just
one hit while striking out 2 and walking none.
ORANGE COAST 4, GROSSMONT 0 - The Griffins (2-4) wasted a strong pitching
performance by Jeff Karstens as they lost the second game of Friday's
tournament double-header to the powerful Pirates.
Karstens, a 7-game winner a year ago, scattered
8 hits over 7 innings and
surrendered only one earned run. He struck out 5 and walked none.
The Griffins offense was limited to 6 hits, two by shortstop Ismael Barron.
Grossmont left runners at second and third
in the 2nd and 4th innings.
Barron doubled off the right field fence with two outs in the
8th , but was
stranded.
The tournament resumes Saturday (Feb. 9)
when the Griffins host Fullerton at
10 a.m., and concludes Sunday (Feb. 10) when Merced visits Noel
Mickelsen
Field at 10.
(2-08-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
VICTORVILLE - In some ways, Grossmont College
should be glad it gained a
split of its four games at the season-opening High Desert Classic,
which
concluded Saturday (Feb. 2).
The Griffins defeated Antelope Valley 16-10
in Saturday's first game before
dropping a 13-7 decision to undefeated and tournament champion
Victor Valley.
"We scored 45 runs in four games and
gave up 45 runs," Grossmont coach Ed
Olsen noted.
Balance? Hardly. By Olsen's count, the negative
factors outweighed the
positive.
"We left runners on base in 42 out
of 46 innings," he fumed. "Worse than
that, our pitchers walked 33 and hit 9 batters. In four games!
Our defense
made 16 errors (which led to 28 unearned runs). We've got a lot
of work to
do."
On a more positive note, sophomore Ryan
Reed was 6-for-10 in Saturday's
double-header. He clubbed 4 doubles and drove in 5 runs. Rocky
Gracio went
5-for-9, including two doubles and 4 RBI on Saturday.
Travis Udvarhelyi was 9-for-17 with 4 doubles,
a triple and 7 RBI in the in
the tournament.
Grossmont (2-2) rallied from a 5-0 deficit
with 8 runs in the bottom of the
third inning against Antelope Valley. Noel Strane's three-run
home run was
the key blow. Reed was 3-for-5 with a pair of doubles and 3 RBI
in the win.
Arizona transfer Nate Staggs started on the mound and allowed
only 5 hits and
one earned run while striking out 6.
"It was 34 degrees when we started playing Saturday," Olsen noted.
Grossmont resumes activity in the Jaguar
(formerly the Apache) Classic Friday
when it hosts East Los Angeles at 10 a.m. and Orange Coast at
2 p.m. at Noel
Mickelsen Field.
(2-02-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
BARSTOW - Travis Udvarhelyi opened the season
with a bang for the Grossmont
Griffins, collecting 3 doubles, a triple, a single, two runs and
7 RBI
against Ventura in Friday's (Feb. 1) season opener at the High
Desert
Classic. The Griffins totaled 18 hits, including three home runs
in the same
game, but still came up short, falling to the Pirates 17-15.
In the second game Friday, Grossmont defeated
host Barstow College 7-5. Nick
Guerra was 4-for-5 with a pair of doubles, a run and one RBI for
the Griffins
(1-1).
The tournament continues on Saturday (Feb.
2) as the Griffins face Antelope
Valley at 9 a.m., and Victor Valley at 2 p.m. in Victorville.
Ryan Reed and Ismael Barron blasted two-run
homers and Jason Balsley launched
a solo shot in the loss to Ventura. The Griffins had a chance
to pull out a
victory, loading the bases with two outs in the bottom of the
ninth. But
freshman Anthony Fisher (3-for-5, 3 runs) grounded out to end
the game.
Grossmont pitching ace Scott Shoemaker started
strong, striking out the side
in the first inning against Ventura. He gave up 8 runs in the
second inning,
but only one was earned thanks to two errors. Shoemaker threw
69 pitches in
those two innings before Jeff Karstens came on in relief in the
third.
Karstens gave up 7 runs (5 earned) and 10 hits in five innings,
while
striking out 3.
The Griffs rallied from deficits of 8-0
and 11-8 to lead 13-11 in the fifth
inning, but couldn't hang on.
In the win over Barstow, Andy Martin allowed
only 3 hits, struck out 7 and
walked 5 over five innings as he picked up the win. Brian Jones
logged the
save despite giving up 3 runs, 7 hits and 5 walks over the final
four frames.
Udvarhelyi reached base with a hit and a
walk and stole three bases against
Barstow. Dave Jolliff whacked a solo home run in the ninth as
he went 2-for-5
with a pair of RBI.
What irked Olsen most about the opening
day double-header was the Griffins
left runners on base in 17 of the 18 innings. Grossmont pitchers
gave up 28
hits and 15 walks, while the Griffins' defense committed 8 errors.
"It was 39 degrees out here when we
started that first game," Olsen noted.
"But that's no excuse because we hit the hell out of the
ball. Our pitching
was terrible - too many 'fat' pitches, too many walks. And our
defense stunk."
(02-01-02)
EastCountySports.com staff report
VICTORVILLE - Grossmont College opens the
2002 baseball season in the High
Desert Classic hosted by Victor Valley and Barstow Colleges on
Friday-Sunday
(Feb. 1-3).
Grossmont faces Ventura at 9 a.m. Friday,
and then takes on host Barstow
later that afternoon at 1 p.m. On Saturday the Griffins face Antelope
Valley
at 9 a.m., and Victor Valley at 2 p.m. in Victorville. The top
two teams in
pool play will meet in Sunday's championship game at a time to
be determined.
The Griffins, under coach Ed Olsen, who
begins his 20th season at the
Grossmont helm, are ranked No. 10 in the state in the pre-season
rankings.
Grossmont is coming off its fifth-straight
state playoff appearance and a
34-10 record, which included capturing the Pacific Coast Conference
championship a year ago. The Griffins are a team loaded with pitching,
led by
veteran starters Scott Shoemaker (Granite Hills), Jeff Karstens
(Mount
Miguel), Andy Martin (USDHS/Palomar JC) and Nate Staggs (USDHS/Arizona).
While pitching depth is the Griffins' obvious
strength, this crew is not
unlike any Olsen ballclub in terms of power punch. Grossmont has
led the PCC
in home runs eight of the last nine years, and the tradition should
continue.
Sophomore catcher Ryan Reed (Grossmont High),
right fielder Brian Hipps
(Eastlake/Mesa College), and first baseman Nick Priest (El Capitan/USC)
are
this year's top power brokers
Center fielder Travis Udvarhelyi (Patrick
Henry) is one of the top
outfielders in the PCC, and should bat in the lead-off role for
the Griffs.
Third baseman Dave Jolliff (El Capitan), shortstop Ismael Barron
(Castle
Park/Southwestern JC), and second baseman Anthony Fisher (Morse)
are also
expected to start.
Other East County high school players adorning
the Griffins' roster include
pitchers Jesse Brierly (Helix), Jeff Hill (Valhalla), Ryan McFee
(Santana)
and Alex Harris (Helix), as well as outfielders Ryan Buckley (Granite
Hills),
Jason Balsley (Mount Miguel), and Kevin McGhen (Santana).
(01-31-02)