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© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (5-1-07) — With a little more than two weeks left in the regular season, Granite Hills solidified its hold on the Grossmont South League lead, while Grossmont pushed El Capitan a full game back in the Grossmont North during Monday’s (Apr. 30) East County baseball action.

The Eagles (17-4, 7-0 GSL) can thank senior right-hander DARREN GAY for giving his strongest pitching outing of the season in a 4-0 win over last place Mount Miguel. Grossmont (17-6, 6-0 GNL) meanwhile, rode the 4-hit shutout pitching of sophomore southpaw LEVI STEVENS to turn back host El Capitan 5-1 in Lakeside.

GRANITE HILLS 4, MOUNT MIGUEL 0 – Apparently DAVID WYNN isn’t impressed by all the press clippings garnered by No. 2 ranked Granite Hills, which has won seven straight and 12 of its last 13.

Grossmont's Levi Stevens delivers a pitch against El Capitan (top), while Bryan Haar slides past Vaqueros catcher Nathan Kirby to score in the Foothillers' 4-1 triumph. (Photos by Greg Eichelberger)

Valhalla pitchers Trevor Frank (top) and Matt Gonzales beat Monte Vista, 7-3. (Photos by Mark Gonzales)

All of Granite Hills runs, and half of the Eagles’ 4 hits, came in the 3rd inning against Wynn. It was during that frame that Wynn suffered one brief wild spell, issuing his only 2 walks and hitting a batter.

With one out BRIAN HUMPHRIES singled and then LOUIS CAZARES and TRAVIS TAIJERON walked to load the bases. Wynn then plunked slump-ridden clean-up hitter AUSTIN COLEMAN to force in a run. ERIC KRAUSE followed with a back-breaking 2-run single.

Wynn then uncorked his only wild pitch of the day to give Granite Hills a 4-0 lead. Outside of that one rocky inning, Wynn (3-4) blanked the Eagles on 2 hits over 5 innings and finished with 10 strikeouts.

Wynn ranks among the San Diego CIF strikeout leaders with 71 whiffs in 49 1/3 innings.

“Their guy pitched a good game,” said Davis . “We struggled making contact with him today. He did a nice job of keeping the ball away from us.”

It was the best of days for Gay, who smothered the Matadors (5-16, 1-8 GSL) with a nifty 2-hit shutout while allowing only one walk and striking out nine. The 6-foot, 165-pound Gay is a sometimes forgotten member of a deep Granite Hills pitching staff.

On this particular day – a Monday – where strange things seem to happen to favored teams, Gay gave the Granite Hills bullpen a timely day off.

“Gay pitched really well for us today,” Davis noted.

As well as he pitched, Wynn also accounted for half of Mount Miguel ’s offensive output with a triple.

Granite Hills’ Krause, who was the only player in the game with more than one hit, going 2-for-3, extended his hitting streak to 6 games. During his current streak Krause is batting at a .579 clip (11-for-19) with 12 RBI.

GROSSMONT 5, EL CAPITAN 1 – It’s hard to imagine that the Grossmont Foothillers have 17 wins and lead the Grossmont North – and are not included among the San Diego CIF’s Top 10.

The question concerning the Foothillers is pitching. Grossmont’s staff does own a respectable 3.37 ERA, which coupled with its .342 batting average makes the Hillers a bona fide contender in anyone’s league.

Grossmont took a 2-0 lead after three innings on the strength of a pair of KYLE SECCIANI singles.

El Capitan (13-10, 6-2 GNL) cut that lead in half and might have had more in the 5th inning.

Catcher NATHAN KIRBY signaled to left but was cut down trying to stretch his hit into a double for the first out. MARCO MARISCAL then singled to right. MATT EICHELBERGER ran for him and scooted to second on JAMES LONG’s groundout. Eichelberger scored on a Grossmont error to make it 2-0.

Grossmont put the game away with 3 runs in the top of the 7th.

“We made three errors in the 7th inning and let in three runs,” said El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY.

JOSH SIMMS’ RBI single up the middle gave Grossmont a 3-1 advantage.

El Capitan’s second error of the inning presented the Hillers with a fourth run. To make matters worse for the Vaqueros, the El Capitan outfield played a towering fly ball into an RBI triple for BRYAN HAAR.

LEVI STEVENS earned his 5th win in 6 decisions with a complete game effort.

Despite striking out 11, El Capitan ’s KEVIN MORTON was tagged with his third loss in 8 decisions.

“Morton was masterful on the mound,” Vickery said. “But as good as Morton threw today - only gave up 5 hits, El Capitan only had three batters advance as far as second base. Stevens was dominant today.”

VALHALLA 7, MONTE VISTA 3 – The Norsemen climbed back into the Grossmont South League race by breaking a 2-2 tie with 5 runs in the 7th inning to upend upset-minded Monte Vista in Monday’s (Apr. 30) contest in Spring Valley.

Valhalla’s RYAN O’SULLIVAN keyed the last inning rally with a 2-run single and CHRIS THOMAS followed suit with a shot down the left-field line to plate two more runs.

That was enough to make a winner of sophomore pitcher TREVOR FRANK, who scattered 7 hits and allowed 2 earned runs over 6 innings to balance his season ledger at 2-2.

It was a bitter defeat for Monte Vista (7-11-1, 3-3-1 GSL) and starting pitcher JOSH KELLY. The lanky senior right-hander pitched 6 1/3 sterling innings against the Norsemen, allowing only 3 hits while striking out 9.

Kelly, however, was victimized by four Monte Vista errors, which gave Valhalla four unearned runs. Monte Vista ’s beleaguered bullpen could not produce any magic, which left Kelly with his 3rd loss in five decisions.

After suffering back-to-back shutout losses to Granite Hills, Valhalla took an early 2-0 lead over the Monarchs. The first run for the Norsemen (12-8, 4-2 GSL) scored on a single up the middle by TYLER KEATON.

Monte Vista ’s second error of the inning on a dropped 3rd strike gave the Norsemen their second run of the opening frame.

A two-out single by the Monarchs’ ANTHONY LOPEZ and CORY COOPER’s 4th home run of the year – a blast to center field – with two outs in the 5th tied the score at 2-2. Lopez accounted for 3 of the Monarchs 8 hits.

Monte Vista did not go quietly in the bottom of the 7th, but the only serious blow was supplied by Lopez, who smashed an RBI single to right.

HELIX 3, STEELE CANYON 0 – The staggering Highlanders, who had won only 3 of their previous 9, proved that they are not out of the Grossmont South League race by posting a key road victory Monday (Apr. 30) at Steele Canyon.

The focal point of the Highlanders’ victory was MAHI LaBASTIDA.

“We know we can count on Mahi every time out,” Helix coach COLE HOLLAND said of LaBastida, who spun a 4-hit shutout with 7 strikeouts to earn his 5th win against one loss.

Not that Holland is ready to throw a party, but Helix has posted back-to-back victories and appears ready for a rebound.

The Highlanders took a 1-0 lead in the 2nd inning. AARON DODD-WADDINGTON led off with a single and stole second base. He moved to third on MATT COBB’s groundout and scored on a sacrifice fly by JEREMY PETERSON.

In the 3rd Helix advanced its lead. Consecutive singles by DERRIC MILLER and MATT ELLIOT put the pressure on the Steele Canyon defense. Miller raced home on an infield groundout and Elliot scored on an error.

Steele Canyon ’s ANDREW BRUDER pitched arguably his finest game. Only one of Helix’ runs were earned in Bruder’s complete game effort, which included 3 strikeouts and no walks.

“Mahi threw a good game, jumped ahead of almost every hitter,” said Steele Canyon coach PHIL MITTRY. “They made the plays and we didn’t.”

Congratulations are in order to Helix assistant coach MIKE MILLER and his wife SHAUNA, who welcomed a brand new baby girl – 3 lb., 13 oz. McKENNA RAE LEE – to their family on Monday (Apr. 30).

WEST HILLS 19, EL CAJON VALLEY 1 – The visiting Wolf Pack erupted for season highs for scoring – beating its previous high mark by seven – and hits, with 24 in Monday’s (Apr. 30) drubbing against the outmanned Braves.

After a scoreless first inning, West Hills (8-11, 3-2 GNL) turned on the offense. ERIC McKNIGHT drove in a career-high 6 runs by going 4-for-6 with a grand slam, 2 doubles and a single.

“It was a poke,” said West Hills coach CHRIS BAUM of McKnight’s granny. “He hit it about 430 feet.”

Thirteen members of the Pack contributed to the school record hit total. BRENNAN TAYLOR went 3-for-3 with 2 RBI and 3 runs scored. MARK HANDY also drove in 3 runs, while BRET SKINNER was 2-for-3 with 2 RBI, 2 runs and 4 innings of shutout pitching to notch the win.

Skinner, a senior southpaw, blanked the Braves (3-18, 0-6 GNL) over 4 innings, allowing just 2 hits while striking out 9.

“We hit the ball hard and the defense played good,” said Baum. “When the game gets lopsided, you have to work to stay focused.”

The Wolf Pack scored all the runs it needed in the 2nd inning. Taylor singled and advanced to third on BRIAN RITAYIK’s double. One out later Handy singled up the middle to make it 2-0.

McKnight’s 2-run double was the key blow in a 5-run 3rd inning. The Wolf Pack’s leader of the pack laced his grand slam during a 7-run 6th inning.

El Cajon Valley, which suffered its state-record 116th consecutive league defeat over the last 10 years, dodged a shutout thanks to TREVOR SINES’ RBI single with two outs in the 6th inning.

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (4-29-07) — JAMES DAVIS’ greatest fears nearly came to fruition in Saturday’s (Apr. 28) Grossmont South League game against visiting Steele Canyon.

“I knew we were ripe for an upset, so I tried to impress that upon my kids,” said the Granite Hills head coach of his pre-game speech.

For the first five innings, the No. 3 ranked Eagles (16-4, 6-0 GSL) seemed to heed the warning.

Apparently Steele Canyon (7-10-1, 2-3-1 GSL) didn’t get the memo.

The Cougars forced a 3-3 tie in the top of the 6th to put a scare into the Granite Hills dugout. But the Eagles showed why they’ve won 7 in a row and 12 of 13 as they countered with 2 runs in the bottom of the 6th to pull out a 5-3 victory.

“Our kids were pretty tight the whole game, had trouble getting an even flow,” said Davis . “But give Steele Canyon credit. They didn’t just come in here and roll over.”

For one of the few times this season, the Eagles showed a somewhat balanced attack, as in the bottom part of the order made major contributions.

Granite Hills’ number 9 hitter, JOHNNY OMAHEN, known more for his glove than his bat, broke the 3-3 deadlock with an RBI single – his second hit in three at-bats. BRIAN HUMPHRIES followed with a second run-scoring single.

“I knew this was going to be a tough game – a big challenge for us,” Davis said.

Things started out simple enough for Granite Hills, which scored 3 runs in the 2nd inning. Five of the Eagles’ 8 hits in the game came during that frame, with singles by Humphries and LOUIS CAZARES driving in runs.

Steele Canyon, bolstered by a strong pitching effort by ANDREW BELLATTI, surged back to tie the game with 3 runs in the top of the 6th.

ANDREW BRUDER belted an RBI double off reliever DEAN MILLER to foil the Eagles’ shutout bid. Then with two outs, JORDAN HINDI slashed a game-tying 2-run single.

“We didn’t play poorly, but you have to play 100 per cent to beat a team like Granite Hills,” said Steele Canyon coach PHIL MITTRY. “It came down to execution. We couldn’t get a bunt down, and they did. It’s things like that that costs you ballgames.”

Granite Hills’ Davis wanted to point out a couple of key factors in the Eagles’ stratospheric flight of late.

The focus of his credit was to the defensive work of catcher TRAVIS TAIJERON and Eagles pitching coach MIKE WILSON.

“One thing is we’ve eliminated our opponents’ running game. That’s not by coincidence, it’s something we work on,” said Davis. “If you shut that down, it changes the complexion of their offense.”

Davis rates Wilson, a former professional baseball pitcher and Granite Hills alum, as “aces.”

“He’s done an awesome job with our pitchers. Normally I have handled the pitchers, but since he came on board two years ago, he’s taken over and done a great job,” Davis said. “Mike is always talking pitching. Probably the key to it all is that he’s much calmer than I am.”

“How well our pitchers have performed is a tribute to him,” Davis said of the 6-foot-5 Wilson.

EL CAPITAN 14, EL CAJON VALLEY 4 – El Capitan’s STEVE VICKERY is one of the winningest baseball coaches in San Diego CIF history with 413 victories under his cap. Yet the veteran Vickery finds facing off against troubled teams such as El Cajon Valley truly disturbing.

“I lose more sleep when we play El Cajon Valley than I do when we play Grossmont,” he said.

Vickery’s concern does not focus on whether his Vaqueros with win or not. It’s about being labeled bullies or accused or running up scores. The basic problem here is El Cajon Valley is totally overmatched in the Grossmont North League.

Prior to Saturday’s (Apr. 28) GNL game in El Cajon, all parties agreed that the 10-run mercy rule would be in effect. That is, if either team owned a 10-run lead after five innings, the game would be considered over.

As expected, the Vaqueros blazed out to a 12-0 lead after 2½ innings.

But the Braves came battling back with a 3-spot in the bottom of the 3rd. DOMINIC BAILEY sparked the rally with a leadoff single and scored when KEVIN CARREON tripled down the left-field line. Two hit batters and a throwing error plated 2 additional runs for the Braves.

El Capitan (13-9, 6-1) answered back with a two-out, 2-run single by MARCO MARISCAL, making it a 12-3 margin.

An RBI double by Carreon cut the El Capitan margin to 14-4 in the 4th, but a scoreless 5th ended the game.

For El Capitan, this was a chance to empty the bench. Eighteen Vaqueros participated in this 5-inning contest, and some players who have not had a lot of playing time made major contributions.

JAMES LONG laced a bases-loaded triple in El Capitan’s 7-run 3rd inning, and then the senior right-hander pitched a scoreless 5th inning to end the contest.

Sophomore catcher TANNER RUST ripped a 2-run homer, and senior first baseman DANIEL LEAVITT launched a solo shot for the Vaqueros, who won for the 7th time in 8 games.

“It was good for us to bounce back from yesterday (a 4-1 loss to Grossmont),” said Vickery, whose team trails the Foothillers by one game in the GNL race.

El Cajon Valley (3-17, 0-5), meanwhile, suffered a state record 115th consecutive league defeat.

MONTE VISTA 14, MOUNT MIGUEL 7 – The past week has been the best six days of the season for the Monarchs, who find themselves in a virtual tie for 2nd place in the Grossmont South.

Led by MICHAEL NUSH’s 5 RBI, the Monarchs mowed down the visiting Matadors in a GSL game on Saturday (Apr. 28) to complete a 3-1 week.

With his team trailing 3-2 entering the bottom of the 2nd, Nush nailed a 3-run double to give Monte Vista lead it would not lose. The senior infielder added an RBI single in the 3rd as Monte Vista stormed out to a 10-3 lead.

“Michael is swinging the bat very well right now,” said Monte Vista coach LARRY RINEHART of Nush, the proud owner of a 9-game hitting streak – third longest of East County.

Monte Vista put the game away in 5th inning on back-to-back 2-run doubles by ERIC GENTRY and JOSH KELLY.

This was the Monarchs’ highest scoring total of the campaign. Starting pitcher ANTHONY MARCON was the beneficiary of the onslaught, picking up his 2nd win of the season.

For Mount Miguel , JAMES TREBUS launched a 3-run homer to pull that Matadors (5-15, 1-7) to within 10-6 in the 4th inning. Trebus was 2-for-4 on the day and 6-for-16 in his last four starts.

NICO CALAFATO was 3-for-4 with a double and 2 RBI for the Matadors. The junior shortstop is 7-for-11 with 2 doubles and 4 RBI in his last seven games.

“This has been a pretty good week for us,” Rinehart said. “Hopefully we can build on it for the remainder of league.”

Sat., Apr. 28 SULTANS 14-6, TORREYS 4-7 Game 1 Santana (8-12-1) LJCD (11-12) 100 005 8 - 14 19 2 011 020 0 - 04 08 3 KCulver, Bell (6) and Sica. Kennedy, Kusnir (6), Campbell (7) and McKenna. W-Bell (3-0). L-Kusnir (3-3). HR-McKenna (LJCD) 2:2nd, solo and 5th, one on. Game 2 Santana (8-13-1) LJCD (12-12) 001 203 0 - 6 13 5 011 401 x - 7 10 0 Needy, Pond (4), Martin (6) and Sica. Campbell, Wisenberg (5) and McKenna. W-Wisenberg (5-2). L-Pond (0-3). HR-Kusnir (LJCD) 3rd, solo. Grossmont Conference Boxscores HERE

Having scored more than three runs in six of the previous eight games, the Sultans erupted for 13 runs in the final two frames of the first game of a non-league double-header against the Torreys.

Santana (8-13-1) pounded out 19 hits as they produced their second highest scoring output of the season. The Sultans registered a 15-5 victory over Steele Canyon in the middle of March.

NICK SICA, who was 6-for-9 with 3 RBI in the twinbill, gave Santana a 1-0 lead in the first inning of the opener. Santana’s offense stalled after that, as LJCD pecked away at KYLE CULVER to lead 4-1 after five innings. For some reason, after that Santana found the “EASY” button, as their offense shifted into overdrive.

CHRIS RABICHAUD lined a single to left field to score the final 2 runs in a 5-run 6th.

A 2-run double by DALLAS MARTIN keyed an 8-run 7th inning for Santana. Martin, Rabichaud and Culver had 3 RBI apiece in the opener. Culver, JAMES NEEDY and Sica had 3 hits apiece.

Martin, batting in the leadoff spot, was 4-for-5 with 6 RBI and 4 runs scored in the two games. Culver was 4-for-6, RYAN STUTZ was 4-for-7, and Needy was 4-for-8.

For the two games the Sultans totaled 32 hits compared to just 18 for the Torreys (12-12). Yet a Santana throwing error on an attempted backdoor play allowed LJCD to break a 6-6 tie in the bottom of the 6th inning.

To make that loss even more stinging, Santana committed five errors to hand the Torreys five unearned runs.

The second game defeat bites deeper in that it marks Santana’s 9th one-run loss of the year.

“It’s the story of our life – we needed one more hit,” lamented Santana coach JERRY HENSON. “We’re one hit away from having nine more wins.”

When Henson thinks about a 9-game turnaround, he has to wince. Such a reversal would make Santana a 17-4-1 ballclub at the moment.

It was an especially tough week for Santana pitcher JOSH POND, who suffered all three losses in Santana’s 4-game week.

The Foothillers' Taylor Wohlwend pitched Grossmont to the North League lead with a 2-hitter of El Capitan in Friday's showdown of undefeated league leaders. (Photo by Greg Eichelberger)

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (4-28-07) — While Granite Hills was taking command of the Grossmont South League lead, the Grossmont Foothillers proved that the Grossmont North is a two-horse race that may be decided by a photo finish.

While Granite Hills was posting a second straight shutout of visiting Valhalla 3-0 on Friday (Apr. 27), the Foothillers were proving they’ll have a large say as to who wins the GNL. Grossmont snapped El Capitan’s 6-game winning streak with a 4-1 nod.

GROSSMONT 4, EL CAPITAN 1 – Steady senior TAYLOR WOHLWEND pitched arguably his finest game of the season when the Foothillers needed it most.

Wohlwend (5-1), who did not give up a hit until the 6th inning and did not allow an earned run all day, pitched a complete game 2-hitter while striking out a season-high 11.

On a day of stellar pitching performances, Grossmont's Nick Longmire crushes a pair of home runs to club El Capitan and grab the lead in the Grossmont North League. (Photo by Greg Eichelberger)

NICK LONGMIRE, the leading home run hitter in the San Diego CIF Section, laced his 10th and 11th home runs of the season to provide the Foothillers offensive spark.

Longmire, who was 3-for-3 in the game, launched his first rocket in the opening inning, handing Wohlwend an early 1-0 lead. Two innings later Longmire followed a two-out walk to JOSH SIMMS over the Hillers’ home run porch, giving Grossmont a 3-0 advantage.

A dropped fly ball in the 4th inning that followed a two-out walk to ANDY HALE presented El Capitan with its only run of the game.

JUSTIN MASON accounted for 2 of Grossmont’s 7 hits against hard-luck loser LUCAS WHITMORE (2-5).

“Whitmore only made two mistakes and it cost us three runs,” Vickery said.

GRANITE HILLS 3, VALHALLA 0 – As slick as the Eagles have been of late, the main concern of Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS following a key victory over Valhalla on Friday was a Saturday (Apr. 28) makeup game with visiting Steele Canyon.

“Yeah, we’re all excited right now about how well things have been going for us,” Davis said. “But I gathered the team and tried to instill how important the Steele Canyon game was going to be.”

As solid as No. 3 ranked Granite Hills has been of late – 11 wins in its last 12 games – Davis can’t get comfortable even though his club owns a 2-game edge over second place Valhalla (11-8, 3-2).

“There’s a lot of baseball still to be played,” said Davis , noting that the Eagles and Norsemen both have seven league games remaining.

A major cog in Granite Hills’ 2007 success story is the emergence of sophomore southpaw TRAVIS HOPPER. The soft-tossing Hopper stymied the over-aggressive Norsemen, holding Valhalla hitless until TREVOR FRANK’s leadoff single in the 6th.

“When you throw strikes and work fast, the defense is going to stay alive,” Davis noted.

And the Eagles’ defense was alert, playing error-free baseball. Of the five Norsemen to reach base, three were eliminated on the base paths. Hopper helped himself by picking a runner off first base and received a couple of defensive nuggets from TYLER WINTERS and shortstop JOHNNY OMAHEN.

Even though Valhalla starter and loser RYAN O’SULLIVAN (6-2) retired 15 batters in a row over one stretch, he was burned in the 1st and 6th innings.

Granite Hills parlayed an error, a LOUIS CAZARES double and a base hit by TRAVIS TAIJERON into a 1-0 first inning lead. The Eagles would then go hitless until the 6th inning.

Granite Hills loaded the bases on singles by BRIAN HUMPHRIES and Cazares and an intentional walk to Taijeron. One out later Norseman nemesis ERIC KRAUSE whistled a 2-run single into right field.

O’Sullivan, who deserved a better fate, finished with 8 strikeouts.

“We’ve got to do more to help out offensively and do less to help (the Eagles) out defensively,” said Valhalla assistant coach TROY PERDUE, who was pointing out Valhalla ’s three base-running blunders. “We ran ourselves out of innings a couple of times, and you can’t do that against a quality opponent like this.

“There are things that we can control but we didn’t do that today.”

HELIX 8, MONTE VISTA 2 – Pitcher MIKE ANDRADE had his season put on hold last month, but it wasn’t by choice. The 6-foot-3, 175-pound right-hander was stricken by an appendicitis attack which resulted in emergency surgery.

“We’ve been bringing him back gradually,” said Helix coach COLE HOLLAND. “And he’s almost there. We need him to be our No. 2 (pitcher) down the stretch.”

Andrade pitched 5 strong innings in Friday’s (Apr. 27) Grossmont South League game at Monte Vista. He allowed only 2 hits and 1 earned run, and was rewarded with his 2nd victory in three decisions.

MAHI LaBASTIDA, the Helix senior stalwart, blanked the Monarchs over the final two frames, striking out 4 to notch his 3rd save.

“We really needed this,” said Holland after the Highlanders (12-8, 3-4 GSL) snapped a 4-game losing streak. “We’ve been thin in pitching, but we knew that. For awhile there we were really hitting the ball.”

That has not been the case lately.

“We’ve left 24 guys on base in our last two games – more than half of them in scoring position,” Holland added. “That’s been our biggest frustration, not being able to get a key hit.”

Although the Highlanders hammered out 13 hits against three Monte Vista pitchers, they were unable to put the game away until the final inning.

Helix broke a 2-2 tie in the 6th and JEREMY PETERSON doubled down the right-field line and scored on an error. CALEB SCHUMAKER was injured that inning, breaking his nose, as he tripped while running to first base on the ball that Monte Vista booted.

Helix finally enjoyed a breakout inning in the 7th, scoring 5 runs on 6 hits. MATT COBB struck the key blow as he doubled over the head of the center-fielder, driving in 2 runs. Peterson added an RBI single, LaBastida doubled in a run, and RANDY PEREZ capped the scoring with a single.

On the bright side for Monte Vista (6-10-1, 2-2-1 GSL) third baseman MICHAEL NUSH extended his hitting streak to 8 games with an RBI single in the 2nd inning.

STEELE CANYON 11, MOUNT MIGUEL 3 – For one of the few times in a long time Steele Canyon sprinted out to an early lead in Friday’s (Apr. 27) Grossmont South League encounter against visiting Mount Miguel.

MARK BELLATTI led the charge with an RBI double in the 1st inning and a 2-run double in the 2nd, helping the Cougars (7-9-1, 2-2-1 GSL) take a 6-0 lead after two panels.

“We came out ready to play for a change,” said Steele Canyon coach PHIL MITTRY. We jumped out early and never let up. I just hope we keep it up the rest of league.”

Bellatti finished the game 3-for-4, as did ANDREW BRUDER.

KYLE KERSTETTER clubbed a 2-run homer in the 1st inning – his 3rd of the season and his 2nd in as many games.

Mount Miguel (5-14, 1-6 GSL) chipped away at the Steele Canyon lead on a run-scoring single by BRYANT SHIMIZU and an RBI double by NICO CALAFATO in the 3rd inning.

The Matadors took another step closer an inning later as DAVID WYNN doubled, stole third and scored on MICHAEL KOESTERER’s squeeze bunt.

However, Steele Canyon took the wind out of the Matadors’ capes by scoring three times in the bottom of the 4th. A hit batter, an error and a walk loaded the bases with one out. Bruder singled in one run and ANDREW BELLATTI singled in 2 to make it 9-3.

CODY KLOPP and NICK TODARO handled the pitching chores for Steele Canyon.

WEST HILLS 12, EL CAJON VALLEY 0 – It was an eventful day, but an uneventful game. The Wolf Pack rolled over the visiting Braves in Friday’s (Apr. 27) Grossmont North League play with a 14-hit attack and a combined one-hit pitching of BRIAN RITAYIK, BRENNAN TAYLOR and DAVID AGUIRRE.

The 3-pack pitchers totaled 12 strikeouts, with Ritayik leading the way with 7.

DAVID BRISTOL was 2-for-2 with a double, 4 RBI and a stolen base, while senior MARK HANDY went 3-for-4 with 3 RBI and 3 runs scored.

“Handy has been playing real well since the Lions Tournament, and Bristol has been working real hard on his own time and it really shows,” said West Hills coach CHRIS BAUM.

Senior BRET SKINNER also scored 3 runs, stole a base and had 2 hits in 3 at-bats.

“Skinner had a nice breakout day. Three of his balls were hit really hard,” said Baum. “That’s been our one spot that we needed to improve on. The kids put together a string of hits today and it was a real morale booster.”

El Cajon Valley’s only hit of the game came on a single by RAY AQUININGOC.

The Braves played the contest without head coach WAYNE WEIGHTMAN, who stepped down from his post Thursday following nearly eight full seasons with the program, the first two as an assistant before taking over the reins from FERDY REED prior to the 2002 season.

Weightman, 58, was responsible for building a coaching staff from just himself to six coaches for the varsity and junior varsity ballclubs, while also putting thousands of dollars and countless hours in improving the El Cajon Valley ballpark, which now features new fencing and backstop, plus the removal of dangerous wire grass from the playing surface.

Weightman, an advanced 'A' level racquetball player when not playing on high-level amateur baseball teams, will be replaced by assistant KURT VETTERLING on an interim basis for the balance of the season.

© East County Sports.com
SAN DIEGO (4-27-07) — Sometimes even when you win, a game can last so long that it almost seems endless. The visiting Christian Patriots punched out 15 hits and capitalized on 15 walks to steamroller Crawford 23-8 in Thursday’s (Apr. 26) Central League action.

The Patriots (12-4, 5-0 CNT) scored in all seven innings en route to their 5th straight win and 10th in 11 outings.

“It was a long day,” said Christian coach MIKE MITCHELL, who’s Patriots won an earlier meeting with the Colts 13-4. “We were playing station-to-station by the 4th inning.”

Even though the Patriots’ league season isn’t even half over, Christian is a leadpipe cinch to capture their 2nd Central League title in four seasons. Three of the five teams, including Crawford, are tied for 2nd place with four losses.

Eleven Patriots batted in the 1st inning as Christian captured a 5-0 lead.

EDDIE YOUNG led off the game with a walk and proceeded to steal second and third. He scored on BRYAN MITCHELL’s sacrifice fly. But that was only the beginning as things rapidly got worse for the Colts (4-16, 3-4).

“You pretty much get the idea of what kind of game it’s going to be when you score 5 runs and get only 2 singles,” coach Mitchell said. The Colts chipped in five walks in the opening frame.

Christian sent 14 batters to the plate in an 8-run 6th inning. Sophomore TAYLOR EICHHORST contributed a single and a 2-run double in that inning alone, as the Patriots extended their lead to 22-5. Eichhorst, who has hit safely in all 16 Christian games, lifted his season average to .508 with 4 hits in 6 at-bats. The first baseman finished with 4 RBI and 3 runs scored as well as a pair of doubles.

Young, the Patriots junior shortstop, accounted for 7 runs in the leadoff spot. He collected 3 singles, 3 steals, scores 3 runs and drove in 4.

Catcher MICHAEL GRUBER was 3-for-4 with a pair of RBI and 3 runs scored.

SHAUN DAY knocked an RBI single in the 1st inning to stretch his batting streak to 11 games.

ADAM NASH scored 3 runs and walked 3 times but failed to get a hit, which snapped his hitting streak of 10 games.

JOHN GEE allowed the Colts 5 hits and no earned runs in the first 4 innings to pick up his 4th win without a loss.

Only three of Crawford’s runs were earned, as Christian committed five errors.

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (4-26-07) — Granite Hills senior ERIC KRAUSE is taking giant strides toward establishing himself as the leading candidate for East County Player of the Year.

The gritty right-hander with the Greg Maddux-like poker face blanked host Valhalla 5-0 in a key Grossmont South League contest on Wednesday (Apr. 25).

Krause allowed only 2 harmless singles while walking one and striking out 10.

It was Krause’s East County leading 7th win in 8 decisions and an Inland best 6th complete game. His 64 strikeouts also lead area pitchers. Krause’s spin on the Eagles’ current surge of 5 straight wins and victories in 10 of their last 11 outings, is paramount.

Granite Hills' Travis Taijeron sends a shot over the fence in left for a 4th-inning, solo homer, then accepts congratulations at home plate. (Photo by Greg Eichelberger)

Krause’s mark also ranks 8th in San Diego CIF history. Padres pitcher David Wells owns the record with 42 consecutive scoreless innings, set while pitching for Point Loma in 1982.

Another big name on the SDCIF list is Philadelphia Phillies left-hander Cole Hamels, who ranks 3rd for having thrown 35 1/3 consecutive scoreless innings for Rancho Bernardo in 2002.

During his current streak, Krause has allowed only 11 hits while striking out 36. The 5-foot-10, 175-pound Krause is 5-0 during that 5-game span, which includes 4 starts and one relief appearance.

“All of this is pretty crazy,” said Krause. “I’ve never been in a groove like this. I’m not doing anything different, but that’s a lot of innings. I’m just hitting my spots, nicking the corners, pitching backwards and doing what I need to do to win. Basically it’s the same routine every inning.”

The last run Krause allowed was a solo home run by Grossmont’s KYLE SECCIANI March 29 at Joe Gizoni Field.

Krause has added a new dimension to his game, that being as a hitter. For the first time in his high school career he has been given a chance to bat on a regular basis. In his last two games Krause is 5-for-7, including his first career home run and 6 RBI.

“I have as much confidence in my hitting as I do in my pitching right now,” Krause said. “I’m doing a better job of going ‘oppo’ (opposite field). Just having a bat in my hands feels good right now.”

It was Krause’s home run with one out in the 2nd inning that gave the No. 3-ranked Eagles (14-4, 4-0 GSL) the early lead.

Catcher TRAVIS TAIJERON tagged his 6th homer leading off the 4th to make it 2-0. It was the 28th career homer for Taijeron, a Granite Hills record.

Taijeron also contributed an infield single that loaded the bases in the 5th frame where Granite Hills eventually doubled its lead thanks to a Valhalla error.

The Eagles final tally came in the 6th inning as JOHNNY OMAHEN singled, stole second and third and scored on a single by LOUIS CAZARES.

It was a tough day for Eagles’ leadoff batter BRIAN HUMPHRIES who went hitless in four at-bats, which snapped his 14-game hitting streak.

It wasn’t much better for the Norsemen (11-7, 3-1 GSL), who were limited to singles by TOMAS KARAGIANES and PAT THOMAS.

EL CAPITAN 4, SANTANA 3 (10 inn.) – After a lackluster start, the Vaqueros of El Capitan are proving that they are a worthy contender for the Grossmont North League pennant.

El Capitan posted its 6th straight victory with a come-from-behind effort against host Santana Wednesday (Apr. 25) in Santee.

After the Sultans (7-12-1, 0-5 GNL) jumped out to a 3-0 lead after two innings, the Vaqueros were relegated to playing catch-up. El Capitan was up to the challenge.

Bolstered by 5 innings of one-hit shutout relief from MILES REAGAN, the Vaqueros finally decided the issue in the 10th inning.

NATHAN KIRBY sparked the rally with a leadoff single. MATT EICHELBERGER ran for him and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by MARCO MARISCAL. Eichelberger scooted to third on KEVIN MORTON’s sacrifice bunt. Eichelberger then scored the winning marker on a wild pitch.

LUCAS WHITMORE, normally a starter, pitched a scoreless 10th to gain his first save.

“It was an outstanding played ballgame,” said El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY. “Santana had the go-ahead run on base in almost every inning and hit right to our guys.”

It was the 7th one-run loss suffered by the Sultans, who have yet to win a league game in five starts. To make matters worse, Santana has suffered a pair of 2-run losses and endured an 11-inning tie. They are that close to being a primary contender.

“It’s not like we as coaches are just sitting in the dugout watching the game,” said Santana coach JERRY HENSON. “We are making changes every day and analyzing every pitch. It’s just frustrating.”

That frustration was magnified in the 5th inning of Wednesday’s game against the league-leading Vaqueros (12-8, 5-0 GNL).

“We had the bases loaded with nobody out and had our 3-4-5 hitters coming up,” Henson said. “All we needed was a fly ball, but we couldn’t hit the ball out of the infield.”

Vickery agreed that the Sultans’ failure to connect was a key point in the game.

“We put Reagan in to pitch and he coaxed a pop-up, a strikeout and a groundout. That right there was the turning point,” said Vickery.

Reagan accounted for half of the El Capitan hits with a 3-for-4 effort, including a 2-run homer and a double. Nevertheless El Capitan could have lost in regulation had it not been for ANDY HALE’s 2-out homer that tied the game 3-3 in the 6th.

Then reality set in. The Matadors hit the skids, losing 12 of their next 13 games. Given their unstable history over the past few years, it could have been a case of abandon ship. But the affable Grigsby convinced his Matadors not to quit.

Mount Miguel snapped an 8-game losing streak by clipping the visiting Cougars in a see-saw Grossmont South League battle on Wednesday (Apr. 25) in Spring Valley.

The Matadors (5-13, 1-5 GSL) snapped a 35-game league losing streak when DAVID WYNN lined a single to right field scoring BRYANT SHIMIZU with two outs in the bottom of the 7th inning.

The last time Mount Miguel won a league game was in the 2004 finale when the Matadors edged Helix 2-1 for a 6-9 loop finish.

“Wynn has started to come alive at the end of the season,” noted Grigsby, who was pleased at the low numbers (4) left on base by the Matadors.

There were no unearned runs in this game.

Freshman JULIAN CHARLES drew a 2-out walk in the 3rd inning to lay the groundwork for a 3-run rally for Mount Miguel, which was trailing 2-0 at the time.

JAMES TREBUS followed with a single, sending Charles to third. After Trebus stole second, Shimizu laced a 2-run double.

“Every time Charles leads off, we score,” said Grigsby.

NICO CALAFATO followed Shimizu with a double, giving Mount Miguel a 3-2 edge.

Steele Canyon (6-9-1, 2-1 GSL) tied the game 3-3 in the 4th inning on ANDREW BELLATTI’s 3rd home run of the season.

After Mount Miguel took the lead on a passed ball in the 5th inning, KYLE KERSTETTER hit a home run in the 6th to knot the score at 4-4.

“All of Mount Miguel ’s runs came with 2 outs,” Steele Canyon coach PHIL MITTRY reported. “But they didn’t get down, just kept battling.”

All Mount Miguel ’s offense came from the top four hitters who were a combined 7-for-11. Shimizu accounted for three of the hits.

“The kids worked hard in this game,” said Grigsby. “They are finally learning the game of baseball. We went back to playing street ball where you have to hit everything up the middle or to the right side to advance a runner. They are finally finding a way to put runners in scoring position and clutching up when they need to.”

MONTE VISTA 6, HELIX 2 – Monte Vista coach LARRY RINEHART keeps searching for the right combination. He knows he has the players, it’s just a matter of putting them in the right order.

Rinehart rolled a winning hand in Wednesday’s (Apr. 25) Grossmont South League victory at Helix.

In his quest for a winning combination, Rinehart placed SPENCER REED in the leadoff spot for the Monarchs (6-9-1, 2-1-2 GSL). The junior right-fielder drove in 3 runs – two coming on his 3rd home run of the season – as the Monarchs posted their second straight GSL victory.

“We knew that Reed has been struggling, but he has the speed and the power to be an effective leadoff man,” said Rinehart. “By putting him at the top of the order, we realize that if he puts the ball in play his speed gives him a chance to get on every time he makes contact.”

The Monarchs’ 4-run lead after two innings was more than enough for senior JOSH KELLY, who pitched a complete game 5-hitter.

“We’ve been looking for him to be our leader on the mound, and now he’s doing that,” said Rinehart. “He came to me in the 6th inning and asked how many pitches he’d thrown, and wondered whether I’d let him finish the game. I told him I have a pitch count on all of my pitchers, and he was getting close to his limit. And he said ‘Coach, I want to finish the game.’”

A 7th inning double play helped Kelly achieve that goal as he balanced his record at 2-2.

A couple of key errors handed the Monarchs two runs in the 2nd inning and sent Helix (11-8, 2-4 GSL) reeling for its fourth straight loss.

“I’ve never been so frustrated as a coach in my entire life,” lamented Helix coach COLE HOLLAND.

GROSSMONT 13, EL CAJON VALLEY 3 – Four Foothillers enjoyed multiple-hit games as Grossmont squashed visiting El Cajon Valley in Wednesday’s (Apr. 25) Grossmont North League encounter.

The Foothillers (16-5, 4-3 GNL) loaded the bases in the opening frame on a single by JOSH SIMMS and walks to NICK LONGMIRE and BRYAN HAAR. One out later AUGIE WILLIAMS doubled to right-center, giving Grossmont a 2-0 lead.

KYLE SECCIANI added a 2-run single to left-center, giving the Foothillers all the runs they would need.

El Cajon Valley (3-15, 0-3 GNL) staged a comeback in the 3rd inning. KEVIN CARREON ignited the rally with a one-out single to left field. EFFRIN PADILLA walked and both runners advanced on a balk. With two outs RAY AQUININGOC and MATT THOMAS followed with back-to-back singles up the middle, cutting Grossmont’s lead in half.

El Cajon ’s pitchers lost the strike zone in the 3rd inning and surrendered 3 runs without benefit of a hit. Included in that Grossmont rally was the second of Haar’s four walks in the game.

Grossmont put the game away in the 4th inning. After loading the bases, the Foothillers’ DEREK BAUM laced a single to left field to make it 5-2. Williams followed suit to make it 6-2. Secciani drove in the third run of the frame with a sacrifice fly, and JUSTIN RUTHERFORD ripped an RBI double to right-center to stake Grossmont to an 11-2 lead.

For good measure CASH McCLELLAN belted his first varsity homer to begin the 5th. Rutherford added an RBI single that capped the Foothillers’ scoring.

Four Grossmont pitchers combined to limit the Braves to 5 hits. ALEX LEON pitched a shutout 4th and was awarded his first varsity win.

Sophomore AARON GRIFFIN, brother of 2006 SDCIF Player of the Year A.J. GRIFFIN (now at USD), made quite a splash in his varsity debut. The younger Griffin blanked the Braves on one hit while striking out 3 over the final three innings to notch the save.

© East County Sports.com
LA MESA (4-24-07) — The visiting Valhalla Norsemen used a left-right knockout punch to capture a key Grossmont South League victory over Helix on Monday (Apr. 23).

TOMAS KARAGIANES and RYAN O’SULLIVAN hit two home runs apiece as the Norsemen (11-6, 3-0 GSL) edged the Highlanders 4-3 in 9 innings.

Karagianes, who will attend Arizona on a baseball scholarship next season, clobbered a mammoth home run with two outs in the top of the 7th on a 3-1 pitch off of Helix ace MAHI LaBASTIDA, giving Valhalla a 2-1 edge.

“I knew once he got behind 3-0 (in the count) that he was going to come in with a fastball,” said Karagianes.

Norsemen pitcher Trevor Frank delivers against Helix, yielding just one run in six innings but left with no decision. (Photo by Mark Gonzales)

Helix (11-7, 2-3 GSL) came back in the bottom of the 7th to tie the game on ZACH TANIDA’s sacrifice fly with the bases loaded, to create extra innings.

O’Sullivan led off the 8th inning with a line drive home run over the left-field fence, staking the Norsemen to a 3-2 advantage.

Helix answered back when JEREMY PETERSON powered a fly ball over the right-field fence to send the game into the 9th.

With 2 outs and nobody on, Karagianes came up big for the second time in the contest as he hammered one over the right-center field fence, which proved to be the difference in the game.

Neither Karagianes nor O’Sullivan could recall the last time Valhalla had hit 4 home runs in a game.

The Norsemen have hit only 8 home runs in their first 16 games.

“There wasn’t much wind but both my homers came on 3-1 counts,” said Karagianes. “Even my Mom thought this was one of the most exciting games I’ve ever been involved in. It seemed like it came down to every pitch.”

Valhalla's Ryan O'Sullivan pulls the ball to left field for the first of his two home runs. Tomas Karagianes also homered twice to lift the Norseman past host Helix, 4-3 in 9 innings. (Photo by Mark Gonzales)

“In my first home run, Mahi threw an off-speed pitch for a strike,” O’Sullivan said. “Then he came back with a fastball and I was ready. I hit it right down the (left field) line.”

O’Sullivan burned LaBastida a second time in the 8th inning.

O’Sullivan, who doubled his home run total to 4, labeled the victory over the Highlanders “a huge win for us – one that gives us a great momentum boost.”

The focus O’Sullivan had in mind was that it kept the Norsemen tied with Granite Hills for the Grossmont South League lead heading into a 2-game series between the two, beginning on Wednesday (Apr. 25) at Valhalla.

The teams will play a second time on Friday (Apr. 27) at Granite Hills.

It was a bitter defeat for the Highlanders, who have dropped three straight key league decisions.

“I wasn’t happy leaving 11 on base,” Helix coach COLE HOLLAND said. “We missed 3 sac bunts, and I wasn’t happy about that either. But we’ll be all right.”

Santana left-fielder Anthony Moreno gets airborne to make the catch vs. El Capitan. (Photo by Chris Edwards)

Those who doubt the Vaqueros’ ability to run for the roses should take another look.

KEVIN MORTON pitched a 3-hitter as host El Capitan (11-8, 4-0 GNL) won a crucial victory over visiting Santana (7-11-1, 0-4 GNL).

“It’s the best Morton has thrown in a month. He was able to throw all three pitches for strikes,” said El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY.

While Morton was pitching his second complete game of the season, he was left no margin for error.

Santana started fast as DALLAS MARTIN hit the second pitch of the game with a solo shot into the El Capitan parking lot for his 7th home run of the season.

Morton regrouped quickly as he did not allow another hit until the 5th inning.

Santana’s BRANDYN BELL, who pitched a complete game 5-hitter, stumbled only in the 2nd inning.

El Capitan first baseman Andy Hale rises high on his toes to haul in this throw for the out, helping the Vaqueros nip Santana, 2-1. (Photos by Chris Edwards)

Neither team displayed much offense. The two teams combined for only 8 hits.

For slumping Santana it was the Sultans 9th loss in 11 games. Santana must find its offense to earn a Division III playoff position.

GRANITE HILLS 14, STEELE CANYON 5 – The visiting Eagles took another flight towards landing their 3rd straight Grossmont South League title on Monday (Apr. 23) as they crushed the Cougars.

Senior ERIC KRAUSE led the 3rd-ranked Eagles’ offensive charge with a 2-run double, an RBI single and a sacrifice fly.

BRIAN HUMPHRIES was 3-for-4 in the Granite Hills leadoff spot, extending his batting streak to 14 games in a row.

DARREN GAY was the beneficiary of Granite Hills’ 15-hit attack as he allowed the Cougars only 5 hits and one earned run over 5 innings for his third win in four decisions.

TYLER WINTERS contributed a 2-run double in the 4th inning for the Eagles, while JOSH QUERIONES slapped a 2-run single in the 1st and an RBI single in the 4th.

AUSTIN COLEMAN clubbed a 2-run triple in the Eagles 5-run 6th inning to turn the game into a rout.

“It was not a stellar day for the top of the lineup,” said Steele Canyon coach PHIL MITTRY. “We didn’t play defense. We came out slow and sluggish. We need to figure some things out before we get too deep in league.”

GROSSMONT 16, EL CAJON VALLEY 1 (5 inn.) – BRYAN HAAR broke out of a soft slump with four hits in five at-bats to lead the visiting Foothillers to Monday’s (Apr. 23) Grossmont North League blow out.

Haar hammered his 7th home run of the season – a solo shot – to make it 7-0 in the 2nd inning and added an RBI single in the 4th. His infield single in the 5th scored an additional run. The four-hit batting spree raised Haar’s season average to .439.

First baseman JUSTIN RUTHERFORD also drove in three runs for the Foothillers (14-6, 3-0) with a 2-run single in the 1st and a sacrifice fly in the 2nd.

CASH McCLELLAN, TAYLOR WOHLWEND, LEVI STEVENS combined to limit the Braves to one hit in a game that was called after five inning by mutual consent.

Competing in the Grossmont North League has not been a healthy situation for the Braves (3-14, 0-2). Fact is, they’ve lost a state record 112 league games in succession, dating back to 1997.

MONTE VISTA 7, MOUNT MIGUEL 5 – In a battle of Grossmont South League Spring Valley rivals, the visiting Monarchs and the Matadors traded late inning leads before Monte Vista finished on top in Monday’s (Apr. 23) encounter.

Trailing 3-0 entering the 6th inning the Monarchs (5-9-1, 1-1-1 GSL) put together a 6-run outburst to take command.

BO AGUILAR’s double made it 3-2 and MICHAEL NUSH’s bases-loaded walk tied the game. A MATT MORRIS single to left gave Monte Vista a 4-3 edge.

“(MIKE) HOLDREN-HATCH pitched a good game,” said Monte Vista coach LARRY RINEHART, “and (ANTHONY) MARCON did a good job in relief. The guys are starting to come around.”

Although being tagged for 6 runs (5 earned) in 5 innings, Mount Miguel starter DAVID WYNN struck out 8 to push his season total to 58, which ranks among the elite in the San Diego Section.

“Wynn pitched a good game,” noted Rinehart. “They are a really improved ballclub.”

Valhalla's Tomas Karagianes (24) cracks his second home run of the game -- a game-winning solo shot in the top of the 9th inning -- in a 4-3 decision. (Photo by Mark Gonzales)

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (4-20-07) — When it comes to baseball championships in the Central League it’s all about Christian and Madison. In the last three years it’s been mostly about Madison, as the Warhawks were outright champions the past two seasons after sharing the 2004 title with the Patriots.

The Patriots (11-4, 4-0 CNT) pounced on the visiting Warhawks to take a 6-0 lead after two innings in the first of three meetings between the two league powers Thursday (Apr. 19).

Christian went on to claim an 8-1 victory behind the pitching of BRADLEY JOHNSTON and JOHN FERREIRA, who limited Madison (6-11, 3-1 CNT) to 9 singles and one unearned run.

“We wanted to come out here and just smash them down,” said Christian sophomore TAYLOR EICHHORST. “When we came out here for the final game in league last year they were all cocky. I remember they were all yelling at us.”

The noise generated by the conquerors from Madison was probably more of a celebration than a dig at the Patriots. But it stung nonetheless and left a ringing in Eichhorst’s ears.

“I remember making the final out of that game and it’s just stuck in my mind,” Eichhorst said. “I want to beat ‘em every time I see them now.”

Eichhorst was 3-for-4 and scored 2 runs in the Patriots’ latest victory, which extended his East County-leading streak to 15 games.

“It’s going to be like it has for awhile now, the winner of the Christian-Madison series will win the league,” Christian coach MIKE MITCHELL said.

Mitchell likes to believe that the Patriots were the league champions in 2004 although they posted the same record as Madison.

“Hey we beat them 2 out of 3, so that makes us champions in my book,” Mitchell said.

Having won 9 of its last 10 games, Christian doesn’t plan on losing any games against Central League foes this season. That, of course, would leave no doubt as to which team is king of the hill.

“ Madison got us the last two years but now we think it’s our turn again,” Mitchell said. “There’s a feeling of wanting to take out the frustrations of the last two years. We play them the last two games of the (regular) season. We know it’s going to come down to that, but it feels really good to get this first one.”

“We’re in the position that we want to be in because now they have to come and get us,” he added.

The Patriots came out of the gate swinging in the 1st inning. After a one-out walk to BRYAN MITCHELL, Eichhorst singled to put runners at the corners. Eichhorst then stole second base. ADAM NASH singled home Mitchell for the first run. MICHAEL GRUBER followed with a double down the left-field corner, scoring Eichhorst. SHAUN DAY sliced a double down the right-field line to score two more runs, staking Christian to 4-0 1st inning advantage.

In the 2nd frame Mitchell walked, Eichhorst singled and Nash nailed a double to the fence in left field to score both runners, extending Christian’s lead to 6-0.

“We’re tough to beat at home,” said Coach Mitchell, whose Patriots are 6-1 at Christian.

The usual suspects

Granite Hills slugger Travis Taijeron (18) is greeted en masse following his 3-run homer, helping the host Eagles paste Helix, 10-1. (Photo by Greg Eichelberger)

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (4-19-07) — During his 3-year career, pitcher ERIC KRAUSE has won more games than any pitcher in Granite Hills history.

Krause, who is in the lineup as the Eagles first baseman in this particular game, proved he can be a force with a bat.

“Most of my career has been about pitching,” said Krause (6-1). “I would just sit and wait for my turn in the rotation. It’s nice to be able to swing the bat this year.”

The Eagles pitching responsibilities were handled by TRAVIS HOPPER, a sophomore left-hander who mesmerized the Highlanders (11-6, 2-2 GSL) with a variety of off-speed pitches.

Pitch, hit and run

Granite Hills uses a three-prong attack to defeat Helix, including (from top) the pitching of Travis Hopper, Eric Krause's 2-run double, and a stolen base from Josh Queriones. (Photos by Greg Eichelberger)

Krause struck out 17 and blanked the Highlanders over 10 innings in a 1-0 Granite Hills win earlier this week.

“He is the ultimate thumber,” Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS said.

Holland and the Highlanders would hardly contest the point. “He lulls you to sleep and rolls over a lot of ground balls,” the Helix coach said.

Hopper, who needed only 58 pitches to complete 6 innings, walked none and struck out one.

“He really messed us up,” Holland said. “This time he was good – effectively up in the strike zone. We just kept popping the ball up.”

The only solid connection Helix had was AARON DODD-WADDINGTON’s home run leading off the 4th.

“I know I can’t blow the ball by anybody, so I just try to hit my spots and keep the ball down,” said Hopper (4-1). “I think people tend to over-swing against me. They try to pull the ball and I try to keep it away from them.”

Granite Hills put the game on ice early on as TRAVIS TAIJERON belted a 3-run homer in the 1st inning.

BRIAN HUMPHRIES, the Eagles’ leadoff hitter, reached base in 3 of his 4 at-bats, scoring 3 times. He included a pair of singles in his totals to stretch his hitting streak to 13 games in a row.

LOUIS CAZARES broke out of a lengthy slump with a single and a double in 3 official at-bats.

As Helix prepares for a 2-game series against Valhalla, Holland expressed concern about the Highlanders’ lack of offense.

“Our offense has left us. We scored 2 runs in 17 innings against Granite Hills,” said Holland . “You’re not going to beat anybody doing that. We need to pick it up right away to keep ourselves in this thing.”

WEST HILLS 4, SANTANA 2 – Upstart West Hills refuses to go away.

While the other four members of the Grossmont North would like to consider West Hills an easy mark, the Wolf Pack (7-10, 1-2 GNL) of coach CHRIS BAUM is insistent on earning a share of the pie.

The Wolf Pack’s hunger has not been fed as yet. The visiting Pack slapped the Sultans (7-10-1, 0-3 GNL) in a key Grossmont North League contest on Wednesday (Apr. 18).

BRET SKINNER turned in probably the best pitching performance of his career. The senior southpaw allowed only 7 hits and 2 walks as he recorded a complete game victory – his second in 5 decisions.

“Skinner threw the best game I’ve ever seen him throw,” said Baum. “He located his pitches real well – got out of two or three really big jams. I’m really proud of him. He wanted the ball and he gave it everything he had.”

West Hills broke out in front in the opening inning as DAVID BRISTOL lined a 2-run single to right-center. STEVEN SCHIMPF took one for the team (hit by a pitch) with the bases loaded to force in a run and make it 3-0 in the 3rd inning.

An inning later BRENNAN TAYLOR doubled down the left-field line and scored one out later on a base hit to center by RYNE BARKLEY.

Stuck in slumber mode for the first four innings, Santana finally came to life in the 5th.

Base hits by ANTHONY MORENO and BRANDYN BELL, followed by a wild pitch and RYAN STUTZ’ groundout, gave Santana its first run.

The Sultans came back for more in the 6th. DALLAS MARTIN ignited the rally with a walk and wrapped around to third on NICK SICA’s base hit to right. KYLE ROMERO, who was 3-for-3 on the day, singled up the middle to score Martin.

But the Santana offense stalled after that.

In the 7th inning Skinner struck out the side – all looking.

“Neither Skinner or I could get the smiles off our faces after that,” Baum said. “I’m real happy with the way the pitching staff has been throwing this year.”

STEELE CANYON 3, MONTE VISTA 0 – Given the circumstances of the last couple of weeks, the Monte Vista Monarchs were happy to just be able to host a game. Thieves nearly destroyed the Monarchs’ varsity diamond by clipping off all the sprinkler heads, which made it impossible to irrigate.

Monte Vista coach LARRY RINEHART has had to spend the majority of his time attempting to remedy the situation. He believes the Monarchs should be back to business as usual by Monday (Apr. 23).

What the Monarchs hadn’t planned on was dealing with Steele Canyon’s sophomore ANDREW BELLATTI.

Bellatti bested Monte Vista’s JOSH KELLY in a pitchers’ duel.

“We played good defense for a change,” said Mittry. “ANDREW BELLATTI threw inside and pitched away. He threw a great game. We didn’t score a whole lot of runs but when you goose egg up, you don’t need to score more than one.”

Steele Canyon (6-7-1, 1-0-1 GSL), broke into the scoring column in the 4th inning. With one out MARK BELLATTI walked, advanced to second on a passed ball and scored on ANDREW BRUDER’s base hit.

Steele Canyon padded its lead in the 6th inning. JORDAN HINDI led off with a double and eventually scored on Bruder’s sacrifice fly. A double steal, lead by Mark Bellatti and trailered by KYLE KERSTETTER, finished the scoring.

ANTHONY LOPEZ and MICHAEL NUSH had 2 hits apiece for Monte Vista (4-9-1, 0-1-1 GSL).

“I’ve been here five years and I’ve never seen the wind blow in from right field,” Rinehart said. “I’m not saying that it decided the game, but it was a factor. Both teams hit some shots that would have on a normal day been hit in the gap for extra bases. But for some reason on this particular day, the wind stood them up and they wound up being outs.”

VALHALLA 15, MOUNT MIGUEL 0 (6 inn.) – Junior RYAN O’SULLIVAN pitched a 2-hit shutout and struck out 10 during a 6-inning stint as host Valhalla mauled the Matadors in Wednesday’s (Apr. 18) Grossmont South League action.

The victory was O’Sullivan’s 5th against one loss.

The game was for all intents and purposes was over after the 1st inning when the Norsemen pushed across 10 runs in the bottom of the 1st.

TOMAS KARAGIANES set the tone with a leadoff home run. One out later GREG GARCIA walked and CHRIS THOMAS doubled. After DANNY HAWKSLEY walked to load the bases, TYLER KEATON followed with a 2-run single.

The hinges fell off for Mount Miguel (4-12, 0-4 GSL) after that. Two errors and a hit batter handed the Norsemen (10-6, 2-0 GSL) three additional runs.

Batting for the second time in the opening frame, Karagianes walked to load the bases with 2 outs. Garcia then laced a bases clearing double to make it 8-0. O’Sullivan then lined a 2-run homer just inside the left field foul pole to cap the big inning.

A 2-run single by GARRETT GILES lifted Valhalla ’s lead to 13-0 in the 3rd.

Mount Miguel ’s offense consisted of a triple by DAVID WYNN and a single by BRYANT SHIMIZU.

EL CAPITAN 20, EL CAJON VALLEY 0 (6 inn.) – Based on the Vaqueros’ sluggish preseason start of 4-6, most prognosticators were not viewing El Capitan as a legitimate contender in the Grossmont North League race this season.

Don’t look now but coach STEVE VICKERY’s Vaqueros appear to be gaining momentum with six wins in their last eight outings.

MILES REAGAN drove in 4 runs with a single and a triple as the visiting Vaqueros (10-8, 3-0 GNL) swept to the lop-sided win over El Cajon Valley on Wednesday (Apr. 18).

The Vaqueros 18-hit attack featured inside-the-park home runs by BRYSON LUKACIK and JAMES LONG. Lukacik’s first home run of the year made it 5-0 in the 3rd inning. Long’s first homer of the season added 3 runs to the Vaqueros’ total in the 6th.

MARCO MARISCAL, known more for his pitching, contributed 2 singles, a triple and scored 3 runs in 4 at-bats. Designated hitter DANIEL LEAVITT enjoyed his finest day as a varsity player with a double, 2 singles and 2 RBI in 4 at-bats.

Nearly lost in the offensive onslaught was the pitching of JOSH SODEN and Long. Soden blanked the Braves on one hit over 5 innings before Long closed out the 6th in 1-2-3 fashion.

Soden, primarily a reliever, needed only 41 pitches to earn his first varsity win. His teammates supported his effort by rolling 2 double plays.

“What Soden did was incredible, throwing so few pitches,” said Vickery. “He had a no-hitter going for four innings. And he’s our 5th pitcher. I was really happy for him to get his first varsity win.”

El Cajon Valley’s ADRIAN TORRES broke up the no-hitter with a leadoff single in the 5th inning.

Norsemen third baseman Anthony Gonzales gets horizontal, but just misses snaring a hot grounder hit down the line by Mount Miguel. Valhalla won, 15-0. (Photo by Mark Gonzales)

© East County Sports.com
SAN DIEGO (4-18-07) — After beginning the Central League season with two free-for-all scoring fests, the Christian High Patriots got back to playing baseball Tuesday (Apr. 17) at Hoover High’s newly refurbished field.

Junior JOHN GEE was a whiz, shutting out the Cardinals 5-0 on a 3-hitter. Gee, a right-hander who came into the game with a 5.25 ERA, walked one and struck out 8 as he improved his personal record to 3-0 with his second complete game in 6 starts.

“Gee pitched a great game – got stronger as the game went along,” said Christian coach MIKE MITCHELL.

The Patriots (10-4), who have won 8 of their last 9, will host Madison (6-10, 3-0) in a battle of Central League co-leaders on Thursday (Apr. 19) at 3 p.m.

While Gee was muzzling the Cardinals (1-15, 0-3 CNT), the Patriots’ usually-potent offense struggled against the offerings of Michael Geraci. Part of Christian’s problem honing in on Geraci was he was effectively wild, walking 7 and hitting one.

Steady TAYLOR EICHHORST slashed an RBI single to right field, scoring DANNY MITCHELL to give Christian a 1-0 lead in the 3rd inning. That blow extended Eichhorst’s East County-leading hitting streak to 14.

Christian doubled its advantage with a 2-out rally in the 6th inning. JOHN FERREIRA walked and stole second base. He scored on Danny Mitchell’s double down the left-field line.

An inning later the Patriots produced a second 2-out rally. ADAM NASH doubled to center field to extend his hitting streak to 9. After that Geraci lost the strike zone as he served up consecutive walks to MICHAEL GRUBER, SHAUN DAY and BRADLEY JOHNSTON to make it 3-0. COLIN RYAN then put the game away with a 2-run single up the middle.

This was not one of Christian’s finest offensive outings, as only No. 9 hitter, Danny Mitchell, garnered more than one hit.

None of that mattered as the Patriots are in position to take sole possession of the Central League.

© East County Sports.com
LA MESA (4-17-07) — Early prognostications concerning the Grossmont South League pennant race did not include Helix as a primary contender. A dark horse, maybe, but nothing more.

West Hills' Tony Spears (16) slides into second base, successfully kicking the ball out of the glove of El Capitan shortstop Tanner Rust. Spears was ruled safe, but El Cap won 5-0. (Photos by Greg Eichelberger)

“It was a good old-fashioned East County pitching duel,” said Helix coach COLE HOLLAND. “We didn’t swing the bats real well, but MAHI (LaBASTIDA) did a good job – pitched 8 innings and gave up no runs.”

LaBastida’s biggest problem was he was swapping pitches with Eagles ace ERIC KRAUSE.

The winningest pitcher in Granite Hills’ history, Krause blanked the Highlanders over 10 innings, allowing just 2 hits while striking out a career-high 17.

“Krause spotted his pitches nicely,” said Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS. “Both teams had outstanding pitching. LaBastida did a great job. Both pitchers were on today.”

Krause’s control was pinpoint perfect. He allowed harmless singles to JEREMY PETERSON and CALEB SCHUMAKER. Two Highlanders walked but both were by choice, as Krause issued intentional passes.

It was Krause’s East County-leading 5th complete game and his 6th win in 7 decisions.

LaBastida, the Highlanders’ ace, held Granite Hills in check on 5 hits while striking out 8 and walking 2 in 8 innings.

“It was probably the best pitched game I’ve ever seen as a coach,” Davis said.

Granite Hills’ BRIAN HUMPHRIES was the only offensive threat for either team, as he collected 3 hits in 5 at-bats to extend his batting streak to 12 games.

Ironically, Humphries struck out in the 10th inning with a chance to win the game after KENNY BELZER was hit by a pitch and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by JOHNNY OMAHEN.

The Highlanders had a chance to smash Granite Hills’ emerging rally, but booted a ground ball by LOUIS CAZARES to put runners at the corners with two down.

Belzer eventually scored on a passed ball, which gave the No. 6 ranked Eagles (11-4) the hard-fought victory.

“We’ll take it any way we can get it,” Davis said.

These teams will meet again on Wednesday (Apr. 18) at Granite Hills at 4 o’clock.

While Lucas Whitmore (top) tosses a 3-hit shutout at West Hills, El Capitan shortstop Kevin Morton applies the tag on the Pack's Chris Gagnon for the successful pickoff. (Photos by Greg Eichelberger)

The Vaqueros of coach STEVE VICKERY have not bowled over their preseason competition, but there is a rumbling to those who have a keen sense of hearing.

Don’t count these guys out.

El Capitan completed a 2-game sweep of dark horse contender West Hills Monday (Apr. 16) as LUCAS WHITMORE pitched the finest game of his career.

Whitmore, who suffered 4 straight hard-luck losses to begin his senior season, was neat and tidy against the Wolf Pack (6-10, 0-2 GNL). The 6-foot, 165-pound southpaw limited host West Hills to 3 singles while striking out a career-high 13.

“The bottom line is for a Monday game we got a solid pitching performance – Whitmore was dominating,” said Vickery. “We tell our kids championships are won on Mondays. If you play well on Monday, you have a chance to win a championship.”

Pollsters have virtually ignored El Capitan, but better take notice of the groundswell that has the Vaqueros tied with Grossmont for the GNL lead.

The Vaqueros, who have a modest 3-game winning streak going, can thank West Hills for a 1st inning error that staked them to a 1-0 lead.

Although El Capitan out-hit West Hills 7-3, the Vaqueros were fortunate that the ball bounced their way.

A high hopper (infield single) by CANNON NIKZAD in the 2nd inning scored RYAN INVERSO, who had walked, to make it 2-0.

El Capitan tacked on its final run in the 5th. Back-to-back singles by TANNER RUST and Whitmore began the one-out rally. MILES REAGAN walked to load the bases. Rust scored on ANDY HALE’s groundout.

GROSSMONT 3, SANTANA 2 – This has been a season of frustration for Santana senior standout DALLAS MARTIN. It seems no matter what the versatile Sultan does, he comes out second best.

Case in point was Monday’s (Apr. 16) Grossmont North League contest against archrival Grossmont in Santee.

Martin and the Sultans were cruising 2-0 after 4 innings. Then Santana’s infield reacted in a fashion that is not reflected in box scores.

The Foothillers’ BRYAN HAAR hoisted a pop-up in the middle of the infield to lead off the 5th inning. All of the Sultans infielders charged in as if they were going to make the catch. Almost simultaneously they all froze, allowing Haar’s seemingly harmless pop-up to land for a gift double.

DEREK BAUM followed with his third home run of the season over the left field fence to tie the game 2-2.

Grossmont (13-6, 2-0) snapped the deadlock in the 6th inning as JUSTIN RUTHERFORD led off with a double to right-center field and scored on a base hit by NICK LONGMIRE.

“That one play of the pop-up was really the key to the whole ballgame,” said Santana coach JERRY HENSON. “Everybody came in and the ball dropped between them. That’s not coaching – it just happens in baseball.”

For the Sultans’ Martin, unquestionably one of the top players in East County, it was another woeful result. Martin spun a complete game 5-hitter and struck out 6, but he also saw his 12-game hitting streak end.

Grossmont sophomore LEVI STEVENS, who may be the key to the Foothillers’ season, held the Sultans to 2 hits over 5 innings. TAYLOR WOHLWEND pitched 2 innings of shutout relief to earn his 3rd save.

MONTE VISTA 8, STEELE CANYON 8 – Talk about a game of mixed emotions, this one fits the bill.

The Monarchs (4-8-1) took an 8-1 lead in Monday’s (Apr. 16) Grossmont South League opener at Steele Canyon. No doubt that had to make Monte Vista coach LARRY RINEHART happy.

But Rinehart’s joy faded fast, as the Cougars (5-7-1) scrambled back to tie the game and send it into overtime.

Because the game started a half hour late at 4:30 and the pace of play was anything but swift, darkness halted the proceedings after 7 innings. Both Rinehart and Steele Canyon coach PHIL MITTRY hoped to continue the game in Wednesday’s scheduled meeting at Monte Vista.

Based on similar situations in the past, chances of that happening are remote. Most likely the game will end in a tie.

CORY COOPER’s bases-loaded triple helped spike the visiting Monarchs to a 4-run 1st inning. In the 3rd inning after Steele Canyon starter ALEX CEBALLOS sandwiched a Steele Canyon error around a pair of walks to load the bases, Monte Vista third baseman MIKE HOLDREN hammered a grand slam over the right-field fence, staking Monte Vista to an 8-run lead.

After that Monte Vista’s offense went silent.

Down but not out, the Cougars clawed back. KYLE KERSTETTER sliced a 2-run homer over the right field fence in the 3rd to signal to Monte Vista that Steele Canyon was still alive. ANDREW BELLATTI’s 2-run single in the 5th allowed the Cougars to creep closer.

Monte Vista helped out in the 6th with a walk and a throwing error to hand the Cougars an unearned run. Steele Canyon, which had hit only one home run in its previous 12 games, hit 2 against the Monarchs, including Bellatti’s solo blast to left field leading off the 7th.

JORDAN HINDI’s sacrifice fly scored TOMMY HOYT with two outs in the bottom of the 7th to tie the game.

“Those two hits that scored 8 runs (in the 1st and 3rd innings) killed us,” said Steele Canyon coach PHIL MITTRY. “We came out flat. That first inning was an abomination – a throwing error gave them 4 runs. But we came back – we were down 8-1 and came out and tied it up. We’ve got to get away from the slow start.”

Kerstetter paced the Cougars with a 3-for-3 effort, including a double and a home run.

VALHALLA 8, MOUNT MIGUEL 2 – The visiting Norsemen opened the Grossmont South League in cakewalk fashion as they scored all of their runs in the opening two frames to improve their overall mark to 9-6 Monday (Apr. 16) in Spring Valley.

The early scoring outburst helped sophomore pitcher TREVOR FRANK to his first win in three decisions. Primarily a reliever a year ago, Frank is adjusting to his role as Valhalla ’s No. 3 starter. He had one of his better days at the expense of the Matadors (4-11, 0-1 GSL).

In 4 1/3 innings Frank scattered 6 hits, allowed one run, one walk and struck out 10. He gave the ball to another sophomore, 6-foot-3, 190-pound TREVOR CAHOON to finish off the Matadors.

Valhalla capitalized on the early wildness of Mount Miguel starter JAMES TREBUS to score a 1st inning run without benefit of a hit.

TYLER KEATON picked up the game-winning RBI with a bases-loaded walk.

It was more of the same in the 2nd inning, only this time Mount Miguel, which committed six errors in the game, helped fuel a 3-run Valhalla rally.

After ANTHONY GONZALES reached base on an error, TOMAS KARAGIANES delivered a hit-and-run single to right to put runners at the corners with one out.

The Norsemen then executed a double steal as Gonzales scored when the Matadors went after Karagianes at second.

Valhalla continued to take advantage of Mount Miguel ’s miscues. After Karagianes advanced to third on a wild pitch, GREG GARCIA drew his second walk in as many innings. As Karagianes kept creeping down from third to dare the Matadors to make a play on him, Mount Miguel catcher TONY ALVAREZ made a pickoff throw to third base but the ball wound up in left field, allowing Karagianes to score and Garcia took second. Garcia skipped to third on a wild pitch and scored on RYAN O’SULLIVAN’s groundout.

The Norsemen finally put the aluminum to the ball in the 3rd inning. DANNY HAWKSLEY and Anthony Gonzales hit back-to-back singles. After more Matadors defensive lapses in the field handed the Norsemen two more runs, Garcia put the game out of reach with a 3-run shot over the right field fence.

For Mount Miguel Trebus had more success with a bat than he did on the mound, collecting 3 hits in 4 at-bats.

JULIAN CHARLES was 2-for-3 with the bat and blanked the Norsemen on 2 hits over the final 3 1/3 innings.

© East County Sports.com
BONITA (4-15-07) — Watch out for the El Capitan Vaqueros. Although they have an unspectacular record of 8-8, they may be the team to beat in the Grossmont North League pennant race.

You Make The Call

Grossmont's Josh Simms hustles down the line in an attempt to beat-out an infield grounder. But did Simms make it? Answer HERE. (Photo by Chris Edwards)

Following a basehit by Augie Williams (4, in background), Grossmont's Levi Stevens tests Mission Bay's outfield by attempting to take an extra base, but did he make it? Answer HERE. (Photos by Chris Edwards)

“This was our best game of the year,” Vickery said Saturday (Apr. 14) after the Vaqueros bopped host Bonita Vista 13-3 in a non-league encounter. “It was one of those days where everything we hit had eyes. But we also hit the ball very hard. And on top of that, our pitching was solid and our defense was perfect.”

It was also a crowd-pleasing performance for the El Capitan faithful as Vickery used all 19 players.

The Vaqueros zoomed to a 9-0 lead after 3 innings. That was more than enough for the pitching trio of MARCO MARISCAL, JOSH SODEN and MILES REAGAN who limited the Barons (12-6-1) to 7 hits and no earned runs.

Mariscal pitched the first 5 innings to garner his 3rd win in 4 decisions.

“He just flat located his fastball on both sides of the plate,” said Vickery. “Of the 5 hits he gave up, 3 were of the infield variety.”

LUCAS WHITMORE launched a 1st inning rally with a triple to right field. He scored on a base hit by Reagan. After ANDY HALE doubled, BRYSON LUKACIK lifted a sacrifice fly to make it 2-0.

In the 2nd frame NATHAN KIRBY doubled to right center and scored on a base hit by CANNON NIKZAD. After Nikzad scooted to second on a wild pitch, TANNER RUST ripped the first of his 2 doubles to make it 4-0.

El Capitan broke the game open in the 3rd inning and recorded a little bit of unrecorded history.

After an RBI single by RYAN INVERSO and a run-scoring double by Nikzad, KEVIN MORTON executed a perfect squeeze bunt. Not only did Kirby score on the play, but Morton also reached first base safely.

“If you know me you know I don’t believe in the squeeze,” Vickery said. “I’ll betcha that’s the first time I’ve called for a squeeze in about 10 years.”

An RBI double by Rust and a run-scoring single by Whitmore capped the 5-run 3rd frame.

Having a healthy Inverso should put a charge in the El Capitan offense. With the hard-throwing Reagan rounding into form can only bolster the Vaqueros pitching staff.

The Vaqueros, who travel to West Hills on Monday (Apr. 16) in search of their second league win in as many starts, could be 4-0 by the end of the week. For El Capitan it could turn out to be ‘catch-us-if-you-can.’

Grossmont senior Augie Williams sends the ball deep over the Gizoni Field fence in left, but Mission Bay swept the Hillers. (Photos by Chris Edwards)

To the coach JERRY HENSON and his visiting Sultans, it was a game of importance.

“The way things have been going for us lately, this was a key ballgame for us – one that we needed to win,” said Henson.

The victory snapped a 3-game losing streak, but it was only the 2nd game in 8 games for the Sultans (7-8-1).

A 5-run 1st inning outburst gave Henson hope, but not comfort in the early going at Otay Ranch. DALLAS MARTIN’s single scored Santana’s first run. A 2-run single by RYAN STUTZ capped the gala first inning.

But it wasn’t until the 6th inning that Henson could breathe easy. Leading 6-4 at the time, the Sultans finally pulled away on an RBI single by Martin and a 2-run single by KYLE ROMERO.

Senior KYLE CULVER limited the Mustangs (10-8) to 5 hits and 2 earned runs over 5 innings as he collected his 3rd win against a single loss. Culver struck out 4, walked one and had to survive 6 Santana errors.

JOSH POND got the final 5 outs to secure the win for Santana.

The game ended on a strange note. Otay Ranch appeared to have put runners at the corners with 2 outs on a pair of singles.

“I have to give credit to Stutz for being heads-up,” Henson said. “He noticed that the Otay runner going to third missed second base. He called “time” and made an appeal to the base umpire, and threw the ball to Martin, who touched the bag for the game-ending out.”

Oh yeah, Henson wanted to make sure that he praised the base ump for being alert.

Sat., Apr. 14 Non-League SULTANS 9, MUSTANGS 5 Santana (7-8-1) Otay Ranch (10-8) 510 003 0 - 9 12 6 211 001 0 - 5 07 3 KCulver, Needy (6), Pond (6) and Sica. Ruiz, Debod (6) and Aguirre. W-KCulver (3-1). L-Ruiz. VAQUEROS 13, BARONS 3 El Capitan (8-8) Bonita Vista (12-6-1) 225 022 0 - 13 13 0 000 100 2 - 03 07 2 Mariscal, Soden (6), Reagan (7) and Kirby, Gross (6). Apalategui, DeOcampo (3), Marquez (3), Norris (6) and Shields, Apalategui (3). W-Mariscal (3-1). L-Apalategui (1-1). BUCCANEERS 13-8, FOOTHILLERS 7-5 Game 1 Mission Bay (13-4) Grossmont (12-5) 250 330 0 - 13 09 2 340 000 0 - 07 12 0 Morgan, Long (5) and Croce. Mason, McClellan (2), Longmire (4), Wingerden (6), Leon (7) and Baum, Wright (6). W-Morgan. L-Longmire (2-1). Sv-Long. HR-Sagun (MB) 1st, solo, Stonecipher (MB) 2: 2nd, slam, 5th, solo; Croce (MB) 5th, solo. Game 2 Mission Bay (14-4) Grossmont (12-6) 210 320 0 - 8 10 2 111 020 0 - 5 07 1 Stokes, Santos (3), and Croce, Black (4). Silva, Wohlwend (3), Haar (4), Stevens (6) and Baum, Wright (7). W-Santos (1-0). L-Haar (0-2). HR-Long (MB) 2nd, solo; Williams (G, 3) 2nd, solo; Baum (G, 2) 3rd, solo.

No. 4 ranked Mission Bay came to Joe Gizoni Field on Saturday (Apr. 14) to sweep a non-league double-header. The Foothillers – since their fast start – are a .500 club, having split 12 decisions.

Grossmont pitching, which has been respectable for most of the season, was little more than batting practice for the visiting Buccaneers (14-4). The Hiller hurlers made matters worse by issuing 15 walks in the two games – 8 of the free passes were cashed in for runs.

In their last three games the Foothillers have watched teams convert 11 walks into runs. It’s numbers like those that question whether Grossmont is capable of capturing a third straight San Diego CIF Division II championship.

The opener of the twinbill had a wild beginning as the score was tied 7-7 after two frames. LEVI STEVENS’ 2-run double, followed by AUGIE WILLIAMS’ sacrifice fly, gave the Hillers a 3-2 edge after one inning. DEREK BAUM’s 2-run single capped a 4-run 2nd for Grossmont.

The Foothillers’ offense ran out of gas after that, generating only 4 hits over the final 5 frames.

Mission Bay bombed the hosts with 4 home runs, including 2 by Sequoyah Stonecipher. His first was a 2nd inning grand slam. His most impressive shot, however, was a 5th inning solo blast.

The nightcap produced a similar start as the two clubs sparred back and forth for three innings, which left the game tied 3-3 at that point.

Mission Bay then jumped on reliever BRYAN HAAR for 5 runs and 6 hits over the ensuing two innings.

On the high side for Grossmont was the hitting of NICK LONGMIRE, who went 4-for-6 with 3 runs scored, and JOSH SIMMS, who was 4-for-8 with 2 runs and an RBI.

Mission Bay gained a 5-2 home run edge over their hosts. Williams and Baum hit solo homers for the Hillers.

© East County Sports.com
LINDA VISTA (4-13-07) — Life in the topsy-turvy Central League doesn’t figure to be any picnic for the heavily favored Christian High Patriots.

The hot-and-cold Patriots turned in a typical performance in Thursday’s (Apr. 12) 15-10 victory at Kearny that took eight innings and 3½ hours to complete.

“We can score runs, but we just can’t put people away,” Patriots coach MIKE MITCHELL said. “I think Kearny is in a similar situation – all three of their league games so far have gone extra innings, but they’ve won only one.”

Talk about living on the edge… The Patriots failed to hold leads of 5-0 and 10-6 before finally putting the game away with a 5-run outburst in the 8th inning.

“The games we’ve played so far this year are about as strange as I’ve ever been involved in,” Mitchell commented.

Junior BRYAN MITCHELL paced the Patriots (9-4, 2-0 CL) with 3 hits, 4 RBI and 3 stolen bases.

TAYLOR EICHHORST extended his East County-best hitting streak to 13 games with a 2-run homer and an RBI double. Eichhorst added a 4th RBI in the fray with a sacrifice fly.

ADAM NASH nailed a 2-run home run and was 2-for-3 on the day to push his hitting streak to 8 games. EDDIE YOUNG was 3-for-5 with a double and 2 stolen bases to extend his batting string to 8 games as well.

“Obviously offense is not our problem,” Mitchell noted. “Honestly I think it may be a lack of concentration. I don’t know but it seems like once we get a lead we go to sleep.”

At times Mitchell is mystified how his Patriots can do so many detrimental things to put the pressure on themselves.

The Patriots could easily have lost in regulation. A hit batter and a triple allowed the Komets (4-11, 1-2 CL) to tie the game at 10-apiece in the bottom of the 7th. Christian escaped defeat by picking the potential winning run off third base, which caused the game to continue into extra innings.

“We picked two guys off and threw out two guys attempting to steal,” Mitchell said. “That kind of stuff becomes real important when your pitchers allow the leadoff guy to reach base for six straight innings.”

This game could have easily been a walk in the park for the Patriots had they not bungled a double play ball in the bottom of the 3rd inning.

“We were like a pinball machine in that one,” Mitchell said. “You know, where the ball bounces off one guy and hits another guy… and everybody’s safe.”

Matters got worse in that inning when two Patriots collided attempting to catch an infield fly rule pop-up. Kearny scored a run off that.

“I don’t know what it is about this team,” Mitchell pondered. “But it seems like every time we get a lead, we find ways to squander it. On the upside we have the ability to keep coming back.”

The Patriots have won 7 of their last 8 games.

GRANITE HILLS 4, ESPERANZA 3 – Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS has been around baseball most of his life. But the Eagles skipper said he’s never been challenged more as a coach than he was in Thursday’s (Apr. 12) third place game of the Phil Nevin National Classic at El Dorado High.

“We had a 40 mph wind blowing straight in to the batters’ faces,” said Davis. “I’m not exaggerating – that wind was constant, not gusting. Even the Esperanza coach, who’s been around these parts for 10 years, said he’s never seen it blow straight in from center field like it did today.”

Thus the strategy in the game had to change. The long ball was out.

“This had to be one of the weirdest games in Granite Hills history,” Davis said. “I mean, the wind was howling and we had to play small ball like we’ve never done before.”

The uncharacteristic statistic of the game credited Granite Hills with 4 sacrifices compared to just 3 hits.

“Can you believe that? Davis queried.

Believe this. The No. 8 ranked Eagles (10-4) had only one hit but were tied 3-3 with the Aztecs of Esperanza after 6 innings.

“It was evident from the outset that you were not going to bang your way to a win,” Davis said. “I have to give my kids credit for going along with our Plan B.”

Two of Granite Hills’ hits came in the decisive bottom of the 7th inning. Senior TYLER WINTERS provided the spark with a bunt single.

“I can’t say enough good things about Winters,” Davis said. “He came through with the pressure on, did exactly what I asked of him.”

JOHNNY OMAHEN advanced Winters to second with a sacrifice bunt. A balk advanced Winters another 90 feet.

BRIAN HUMPHRIES then decided matters when he singled up the middle to score Winters. It was Humphries’ 2nd RBI of the game. He tied the game 1-1 in the 3rd inning with a groundout.

TRAVIS TAIJERON went hitless for the first time in the 4-game tournament, but he hit a mammoth sacrifice fly, giving Granite Hills a 2-1 edge in the 3rd inning.

“Travis just crushed that ball,” Davis said. “But the wind held it up so he had to take what he could get. On a normal day that ball probably would have made it out.”

As it was, Taijeron – who was named to the All-Tournament team – batted .545 (6-for-11) with 2 homers, a pair of doubles, 7 RBI and 5 runs scored.

ERIC KRAUSE, normally a starter for the Eagles, pitched a shutout 7th inning in relief against Esperanza. It was hardly smooth sailing as the Aztecs loaded the bases against Krause with only one out. But Krause got the next two batters out and wound up with his 5th win in 6 decisions.

Krause, who was 2-0 and did not allow an earned run in the tournament, was also named to the All-Tournament team.

Granite Hills’ only loss in this prestigious tournament was to Riverside Poly, which is ranked No. 23 in the nation and No. 7 in the Western Region by USA Today.

Thurs., Apr. 12 Phil Nevin National Classic EAGLES 4, AZTECS 3 Esperanza (14-5) Granite Hills (10-4) 100 110 0 - 3 7 7 002 100 1 - 4 3 2 One out iwhen winning run scored. Lu, Holt (5) and Berbert. Gay, Krause (7) and Taijeron. W-Krause (5-1). L-Holt. MONARCHS 11, NORSEMEN 4 Valhalla (8-6) Mater Dei (13-5) 001 100 2 - 04 04 5 119 000 x - 11 11 4 Karagianes, Gross (3), McAllister (5) and Ruiz, Cady (5). Blanchard, Venegas (6), Carrig (7) and Schaeper, Armijo (6). W-Blanchard. L-Karagianes (0-1). Central League Click HERE for Boxscore.

Although the Norsemen’s 8-6 record isn’t all that attractive, this ballclub will be a power to be reckoned with during the Grossmont South League race and beyond.

Senior second baseman GREG GARCIA was an offensive tower of strength for Valhalla, generating 7 hits in 16 at-bats for a .438 average during the tournament. Garcia’s totals included 3 doubles, 2 home runs, 4 RBI and 7 runs scored. He was named to the All-Tournament team.

Valhalla’s week-long run included an 8-5 victory over Newbury Park, which is ranked No. 25 in the nation according to USA Today. One of the Norsemen’s losses was to Palm Beach Central (Fla.), the eventual tournament champion.

In Thursday’s (Apr. 12) consolation finale, the Norsemen appeared to be out of gas. They saw a 2-1 game swell to an insurmountable 11-1 deficit after the Monarchs (13-5) scored nine runs in the 3rd inning.

The two apparently weary teams combined to commit 9 errors, which led to 9 unearned runs. Wipe those off the board and Mater Dei wins 6-0.

A positive note in the lop-sided finale for Valhalla is that the Norsemen turned 4 double plays. That deserves a gold star, no matter what the score.

Valhalla’s offense consisted of 4 hits – 2 of them by Garcia.

Vaqueros left-hander Lucas Whitmore (top) makes the delivery to the plate Wednesday, while Brian Ritayik of West Hills offers this fastball from the right side in GNL action. (Photos by Greg Eichelberger)

West Hills' Blaine Hoffard scores as the ball skips past El Capitan catcher Nathan Kirby. The Vaqueros rallied for a 6-4 victory in the teams' Grossmont North League opener. (Photo by Greg Eichelberger)

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LAKESIDE (4-12-07) — Anyone expecting the El Capitan