AD SPACE AVAILABLE

AD SPACE AVAILABLE

AD SPACE AVAILABLE

© East County Sports.com
SANTEE (4-1-09) — Which is East County’s top baseball team at the moment?

Betcha not too many of the so-called experts would have listed the Sultans of Santana as No. 1.

One thing is certain, the Sultans (8-2) who have won their last seven in a row, will host Friday’s (Apr. 3) Grossmont North-South Tournament championship game at 4 p.m. The Sultans earned that berth by sweeping to a 5-0 mark in tournament pool play.

Santana registered a resounding 14-2 victory over visiting Steele Canyon in Tuesday’s (Mar. 31) final rung of pool play. Thus the Sultans will represent the Grossmont North for the conference tourney crown against either Helix or Granite Hills from the Grossmont South side.

In Santana’s romp over Steele Canyon (6-3), the Sultans slapped three Cougars pitchers around for 17 hits. At the top of that hit list were RYAN STUTZ, who slammed a three-run home run and CODY SMITH who smacked his East County-leading 4th homer – a solo shot in the 2nd inning.

Twice Santana batted around, scoring six runs in the 2nd and 4th innings.

“Our kids had good approaches,” Santana coach JERRY HENSON said. “We were aggressive as a team at the plate all day.”

Henson penciled 15 players into his lineup during the rout. Seven of them had two hits apiece and three more contributed a single safety each.

Santana’s starting pitcher KYLE HAYES twirled a no-hitter through the first five innings before the Sultans coaches brought in a pair of relievers to complete the job.

Hayes (4-1), who struck out six and walked one, was victimized by a dropped fly ball in the outfield that led to a Steele Canyon run in the 3rd inning. Only three other Cougars reached base – two by walks and another on a hit by pitch.

“I had it in the back of my mind that I was pitching a no-hitter,” Hayes admitted. “The coaches’ decision to take me out is fine. I didn’t mind. It’s still early in the season and they have to watch my pitch count.”

It didn’t take the Santana relievers long to give up the no-hitter as CLAYTON ROYER led off the 6th inning with a base hit to right field.

Santana’s early batting surge is no fluke to Hayes’ way of thinking.

“I don’t think people really look at us as a hitting team,” said Hayes, who was 2-for-5. “But I think we are starting to show it.”

CHRISTIAN 7, CATHEDRAL CATHOLIC 3 – Christian High won’t be playing in Saturday’s (Apr. 4) City Conference Tournament championship game, but the Patriots proved they are winners when they upset No. 2 ranked Cathedral Catholic Tuesday (Mar. 31) on the Dons’ field.

“Those guys were like a college team,” said Christian coach MIKE MITCHELL of Cathedral, which features seven Division I starters. “Everybody knows that they have probably the best hitting team in the county.”

Christian (6-2) did all of its scoring in the first two innings. Matter of fact, so did the Dons (8-2).

The Patriots sent out a wolf call and junior JOSH WOLFSON responded with a one-out single in the top of the 1st. That set the stage for TAYLOR EICHHORST’s third home run of the season, which easily cleared the 410 foot sign in centerfield.

“I think Taylor likes this ballpark,” Mitchell said. “He hit a long home run the last time we played here.”

An RBI by the Dons’ Casey Husband in the bottom of the inning cut the Patriots’ lead in half.

That didn’t seem to bother the Patriots, who jumped on Cathedral’s ace Jonathan Meyer for five more runs in the top of the 2nd.

CODY POTEET drilled an RBI double to right-centerfield to make it 3-1. Then it was Wolf Man Josh who catapulted Christian to a 6-1 lead with a 3-run homer beyond the right field fence.

Eichhorst followed that with a double to left field. Meyer tried to pick him off at second and threw the ball into centerfield. As Eichhorst raced for third and headed for home. The Dons’ centerfielder made a wild relay toward the plate to no avail. Eichhorst scored easily.

“Our kids were fired up – as much as I’ve seen them in a long time,” Mitchell said. “They really wanted to get after (the Dons) and they were very aggressive. No question this is our best game of the year.”

Junior ERICK ALLEN turned in a complete game pitching effort to run his record to 2-0. Allen, the Patriots’ quarterback in the fall, was doing a tightrope act all afternoon. He surrendered 8 hits but managed to dodge the knockout punch as he stranded a dozen Cathedral baserunners.

“Erick did a great job,” Mitchell said. “But he was one pitch away from being pulled, three or four times during the game.”

Cathedral Catholic left two runners on base in the 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th innings without scoring.

Allen needed 116 pitches (72 for strikes) to finish the job.

“This is a big confidence builder for us,” Mitchell added.

One thing these teams do have in common is they both lost to Scripps Ranch, which will be playing in Saturday’s tournament championship game.

FOOTHILLS CHRISTIAN 5, LUTHERAN 4 – It’s a little presumptuous to label coach STEVE PERDUE’s Foothills Christian Knights primary contenders in the Citrus League West pennant race.

But Tuesday’s (Mar. 31) league-opening nod over Lutheran (4-4, 2-3 CWL) at Chollas Park is a major conquest as it lifted Foothills Christian (4-2, 1-0 CWL) into third place.

San Diego Jewish Academy and Christian Life Academy are the league’s co-favorites with Foothills stepping in as a longshot.

J.R. ATTERBURY, BRANDON JAROSIN and HENRY LUSCHEI combined to spin a 7-hitter and strike out 15 batters against Lutheran. Luschei (2-0) shut out the Lutheran Knights on one hit over the final three innings to pick up his second win without a loss.

Jarosin struck out 9 batters in 3 2/3 innings and worked out of bases-loaded jams in the 1st and 2nd innings unscathed. He also provided the game-winning RBI by breaking a 4-all deadlock with a run-scoring basehit in the 6th.

DEREK DEYLING was 3-for-3 with an RBI to pace the Foothills Christian offense.

Lutheran’s Willie Heien struck out 11 Foothills Knights in a complete-game effort.

Helix Highlanders pitcher Jake Reed (Photo by Tony Bordine)

© East County Sports.com
LA MESA (3-31-09) — Apparently Helix High sophomore pitcher JAKE REED wasn’t impressed by the Grossmont Foothillers’ lofty San Diego CIF rating. BOXSCORES

The Foothillers, who earlier in the season knocked off Reed and the Highlanders 6-2, were sporting an 8-1 record and a No. 4-ranking when they arrived at Helix for Monday’s (Mar. 30) Grossmont North-South encounter.

Reed was ready for the rematch. The 6-foot, 155-pound right-hander came within two outs of blanking the Foothillers as Helix rolled to a surprisingly easy 6-1 victory. It was the sixth win in seven starts for the Highlanders (8-6).

“Jake struggled with his control in his first three starts,” Helix coach COLE HOLLAND said. “But today he was really pounding the strike zone. His control was sharp and that carried over to our defense.”

Reed struck out 7 and walked only 2 in a complete-game effort resulting in his first varsity win.

“I felt really good all day,” Reed said. “The biggest thing was my control. I was able to throw all three of my pitches (fastball, curveball and changeup) for strikes.”

By then, though, the game belonged to Helix.

“He hit a fastball away,” Reed said of Griffin.

No matter. The Highlanders are among the leading contenders to represent the Grossmont South in Friday’s (Apr. 3) tournament championship.

While his pitching was superb, Reed also made major contributions with the bat as the Highlanders’ leadoff hitter.

In his initial at-bat against Grossmont ace LEVI STEVENS in the bottom of the 1st inning, Reed struck out.

“I’d never faced Levi before,” said Reed, who has been at the top of the Helix batting order the past three games.

Reed did a better job with the bat when he doubled in a run in the 3rd inning off Stevens. He later slashed a 2-run single in the 6th off Grossmont reliever CRAIG SOGGIE-HENDERSON.

“He had a big day,” Grossmont coach JIM EARLEY said of Reed, who had three hits to raise his batting average to .333 on 17 hits.

Earley called Reed a class act for not flaunting his success.

“He went about his business without telling us about it,” the Hillers coach added.

“I’ve never really hit as well as I am right now,” Reed said. “I’m playing with confidence now. So is our whole team.”

Timely hitting was in tune for the Highlanders in this one. All of their runs came via two-out hits.

“We had some pretty decent approaches at the plate,” Holland said.

Back-to-back doubles by ANTHONY DIAZ and ARMANDO RODRIGUEZ followed by BENNY GUERRERO’s run scoring single made it 4-0 in the 4th.

Four of Helix’s six losses have come by a total of five runs – three by one-run margins.

The 6-foot-5, 205-pound Needy, who has a scholarship to the University of San Diego in hand, scattered 7 hits and allowed only 2 runs over six inning to post his 3rd win in four decisions.

RYAN STUTZ pitched a shutout 7th to finish the job.

If the Sultans (7-2) can beat Steele Canyon on Tuesday’s (Mar. 31) in Santee they will clinch a berth to represent the Grossmont North in Friday’s (Apr. 3) tournament championship game. In pool play Santana is 4-0 and one more victory would give the Sultans the host position in the 4 p.m. title game.

“It’s still a close race but we’re in the driver’s seat right now,” said Santana coach JERRY HENSON.

CODY SMITH, the Sultans’ junior centerfielder, continued his torrid hitting with a 3-for-4 effort against the Norsemen (3-6). His RBI single in the 1st inning gave the Sultans a lead they wouldn’t lose.

Smith is 9-for-15 in his last three games, with 6 runs and 7 RBI.

“Cody is on fire with the bat,” said Henson. “And KYLE HAYES always hits the ball hard.”

Hayes hammered his third home run of the season with two outs in the 3rd inning, extending Santana’s advantage to 3-1. He also contributed a line drive single to bring in two runs in the 5th inning.

This is the second time that Santana has beaten Valhalla this season. The Sultans nailed the Norsemen 9-3 in the Foothiller-Aztec Classic.

Injury-riddled Valhalla made a game of it early.

Freshman AUSTIN HENSLEY doubled into the left field corner and scored on JOHN AGUIRRE-RUIZ’ single to right, pulling Valhalla to within 2-1 in Monday’s rematch.

The Norsemen scored again in the 3rd as ANTHONY GONZALES doubled down the right field line and scored on BRYCE MOSIER’s base hit to left.

Valhalla ’s last chance came in the 5th inning. The Norsemen loaded the bases on a single by Gonzales, a double by Mosier and a walk to DANNY HAWKSLEY with nobody out. Valhalla never hit the ball out of the infield in that inning and came up empty.

EL CAPITAN 7, MONTE VISTA 3 – Freshman TROY CONYERS is setting the tone for the future for the El Capitan Vaqueros, who side-stepped host Monte Vista in Monday’s (Mar. 30) Grossmont North-South Tournament game in Spring Valley.

In the case of Conyers, a 6-foot-3, 205-pound left-hander, the future is now.

“This is his second strong start in a row,” said Vaqueros coach STEVE VICKERY. “He’s going to be somebody to reckon with. He obviously has great size and a nice loose arm. I like what I see in him right now.”

Conyers rationed the Monarchs to 4 singles, a double and 2 earned runs while striking out 11 in a complete game effort.

Despite Conyers’ powerful pitching performance Monte Vista (1-7) refused to go down easily.

“Winning today was not automatic for us,” Vickery said. “Monte Vista has a beautiful field – an infield that’s as nice as there is in the county and they have great coaches, so things are going to start going their way real soon.”

The Monarchs definitely made the Vaqueros scrap for this win.

TANNER RUST’s 2-run single gave El Capitan a 3-0 lead in the 2nd inning.

Monte Vista fought back in the bottom of the 2nd as NICK SABO doubled and scored on CARLOS OCHOA’s groundout.

A Monte Vista error in the outfield set the stage for BROOKS NOBLE’s 2-run single in the 3rd.

Once again Monte Vista answered in the bottom of the inning on MATT BOELTER’s RBI single.

“We just couldn’t shake these guys,” Vickery said. “Much of that was our fault because we kept leaving runners on base (11 in the game).”

TYRONE WIGGINS’ run-scoring single in the 5th inning extended his season-long batting streak to 9 games for the Vaqueros (6-3). Pinch-hitter RYAN McBURNEY stroked a run-scoring single in the 6th inning to lock up the victory for El Capitan.

The Vaqueros’ KORBIN KRUGER was the only player in the game to garner more than one hit and he finished 2-for-4 with a double.

Sure, coach JAMES DAVIS’ squad has struggled out of the gate to a 3-5 start. But they may be ready to turn the corner and take the stairway to the top in the Grossmont South.

“We’re showing signs of putting something together,” Davis said after Granite Hills riddled two El Cajon Valley pitchers for 17 hits in Monday’s (Mar. 30) Grossmont North-South League Tournament game on East Madison Avenue.

“The hits are coming and we’re getting people on base. It’s driving them in that’s the problem.”

Granite Hills stranded 11 runners against the visiting Braves (1-10).

“I know our RISP hitting isn’t near what it should be,” Davis added.

By the same token, Granite Hills’ underclassmen are the major contributors at the moment. Freshman DANIEL STARWALT was 4-for-4 with a double, a home run and 4 RBI.

In his last three games, Starwalt is batting .733 with 8 hits in 11 at-bats. As a rookie he’s batting .552 (16-for-29).

Junior leadoff man BRIAN CARROLL was 4-for-4 with 3 runs scored and 3 steals against the Braves. That effort raised his season average to a team-high .600 (18-of-30).

Another junior standout for the Eagles is TYLER JOWORSKI, who was 3-for-3 with 3 RBI.

Slump-ridden El Cajon Valley took a 1-0 lead in the 1st inning as DAVID SANCHEZ and EFREN PADILLA slapped one-out singles. Sanchez scored on a Granite Hills error.

Granite Hills broke a 1-1 tie in the 3rd inning as Carroll doubled and scored on a one-out single by DYLAN GARCIA. Starwalt chimed in with a run-scoring double and winning pitcher DEAN MILLER hoisted a sacrifice fly, making it 4-1.

Miller allowed only 2 earned runs and 5 hits as he posted the first victory of his senior season. He walked none and struck out 9.

STEELE CANYON 12, WEST HILLS 10 – One of the few old-fashioned slugfests in East County this season was held at Steele Canyon in Monday’s (Mar. 30) Grossmont North-South action.

In the first four innings the game was dominated by the Cougars (6-2), who marched to a 10-3 advantage.

But visiting West Hills (4-5) fought back to tie it at 10-10 in the 6th inning.

“When we were down by 7, I reloaded the lineup with substitutes,” said West Hills coach CHRIS BAUM.

It proved to be a wise move.

Junior ANDREW MOHRE led the West Hills comeback with a 2-run homer in the 5th and a 2-run triple that tied the game in the 6th. Backup catcher NOLAN KENNEDY came off the bench to go 2-for-2 with 2 runs scored.

“Mohre and Kennedy certainly had big games for us,” said Baum.

But it wasn’t good enough. Steele Canyon snapped the tie with 2 runs in the bottom of the 6th inning.

Run-scoring singles by MICHAEL WINTER and NOLAN MURRAY put Steele Canyon back on top.

Determined not to let victory slip away, Steele Canyon coach TODD SNYDER brought on ace ANDREW BELLATTI to close out the Wolf Pack in the top of the 7th. Bellatti struck out 2 of the 3 batters he faced to earn his first save.

Bellatti also had a big day with the bat, belting his East County leading 4th home run with two runners on in the 1st inning. He later drove in a fourth run with a single in the 4th inning.

Murray, the Cougars’ leadoff hitter, went 4-for-5 to maintain a share of the East County batting lead with Granite Hills’ BRIAN CARROLL at .600.

West Hills junior TONY SPEARS hit a 2-run homer in the 5th inning to finish with 3 RBI in the game.

© East County Sports.com
SANTEE (3-28-09) — CODY SMITH thought about it. After all, the Sultans’ junior center fielder was only a single away from hitting for the cycle in Friday’s (Mar. 27) romp over visiting Monte Vista 16-1 in a Grossmont North-South Tournament encounter.

“If the score wasn’t so lopsided I might have tried to bunt for a base hit,” Smith admitted.

Credit this kid for knowing baseball etiquette.

Smith tripled in his first at-bat, doubled in his 2nd and hammered a 3-run home run in his 3rd trip to the plate.

Santana led 13-1 after three innings, but Smith would be given two more chances to complete the cycle as Sultans coach JERRY HENSON did not substitute for his hot-hitting regular.

Smith flied out to center field in his fourth at-bat and grounded out in his fifth chance.

“It would have been great to hit for the cycle, but I’m not mad because I didn’t get that last hit,” Smith said. “We won the game didn’t we? That’s the important thing.”

Santana’s starting pitcher DALLAS SEIDEL limited the Monarchs to one run and 3 hits. ZACH OEDEWALDT and CHRIS CAMARDA delivered two shutout innings apiece.

Seidel was 3-for-3 with 2 RBI and one of Santana’s five home runs. Leadoff hitter RYAN STUTZ also had 3 hits for Santana, while KYLE HAYES, TRAVIS REYNOLDS and PRESTON CULVER added to the Sultans’ home run totals.

MATT BOELTER accounted for 2 of Monte Vista’s six hits. NICK SABO gave the Monarchs the early lead with an RBI double in the top of the 1st inning.

Baum’s focal praise was locked on senior COLE BUDVARSON, who teed off on Valhalla pitching for 2 doubles, a triple, 2 runs and an RBI.

No doubt “Bud” was the bomb for Baum.

“Cole had a huge game,” said Baum. “He’d been struggling most of the year because he was trying to pull every pitch he could reach.”

That wasn’t the case against Valhalla.

Budvarson, a 6-foot-2, 160-pound senior first baseman/pitcher, stuck his bat in the middle of all three of West Hills’ scoring innings.

In the bottom of the 2nd inning after TONY SPEARS singled to left, Budvarson belted a triple into the right-centerfield gap, giving the Pack an early 1-0 lead.

A one-out error by Valhalla set the table for a 3-run 4th for West Hills. Once again Budvarson contributed a double. KYLE HOOPER followed with a base hit to right field to make it 2-0. DAVID BRYAN drove in another run with an infield ground ball and SAM LINDAHL’s basehit made it 4-0 for West Hills.

Injury-riddled Valhalla ’s slumbering offense showed some life in the 6th inning when it cut West Hills’ lead in half.

WILL COOMBS drew a walk and scampered to second on ANTHONY GONZALES’ single. DANNY HAWKSLEY then doubled into the right-centerfield gap to score both runners.

But that man Budvarson was back banging away at Valhalla pitching in the bottom of the 6th. He led off the frame with his second double and darted to third on Hooper’s fly out to right. Bryan , in a 10-pitch at-bat, singled up the middle to score Budvarson to sway momentum back to the Wolf Pack.

ROBBY ROBLES made his best start of the season for West Hills. The 5-foot-11 right-hander held the Norsemen (3-5) to five singles in 5-plus innings as he posted his first win in three decisions.

“It was good to see the old Robles come back – he was calm, collected and the pitcher that we know he is,” Baum said. “He had a biting slider and did an excellent job moving the ball inside and outside. We have to have him pitch like this if we plan to contend for anything.”

THOMAS HEGNER retired the Norsemen in order in the 7th inning to earn the save.

“We have some key injuries right now,” Valhalla coach MIKE WILSON said. “But that’s not why we lost the game. We ran into a guy (Robles) who threw well against us, kept us off-balance. It didn’t help that we hit into four double plays.”

One of the bright spots for the Norsemen was the arm of catcher BRYCE MOSIER. The sophomore receiver was 4-for-4 in throwing out West Hills base runners.

“He’s gonna be a great one,” Baum said.

It was a shovel full of frustration for the visiting Eagles (2-5), who overcame a 3-0 1st inning deficit only to succumb in the end.

El Capitan’s KYLE MILLS tied the game 4-4 with his second home run of the year in the 3rd inning, and TYRONE WIGGINS decided the issue by doubling home ARMON WORRELL in the 4th inning.

“I was just hoping that we wouldn’t be the victim of one big inning again,” Vaqueros coach STEVE VICKERY said.

Not that Granite Hills didn’t try.

Consecutive singles by TYLER JOWORSKI, RONNIE VON HAGEN, CHARLIE ST. CLAIR and BRIAN CARROLL produced the Eagles first two runs in the 3rd frame. DYLAN GARCIA drilled a one-out double to tie the game 3-3. DEAN MILLER’s sacrifice fly presented Granite Hills with a 1-run edge.

After that the Eagles’ offense wilted as they produced only four hits over the final four frames.

Overall, the Vaqueros (5-3) stung Granite Hills ace TRAVIS HOPPER for six hits – but confined their scoring to the 3rd inning.

“Travis is a real hard pitcher to hit,” Wiggins said. “He has great off-speed stuff and when he keeps it down he’s almost impossible to hit. I was lucky that he left one pitch up in the zone, a fastball on the inner half, and I got a good swing on it.”

That’s the pitch Wiggins stroked for the game-winning hit.

Vickery relishes having Wiggins at the top of his batting order.

“Tyrone is the guy that makes us go,” said Vickery. “He knows when it’s time to crank it up a notch – a real clutch guy.”

In his nine seasons as Granite Hills’ head coach JAMES DAVIS has rarely, if ever, seen his Eagles begin the season with five losses in seven games.

“We’ll just keep grinding away and I think it won’t be long before we turn this thing around,” Davis said.

“But you have to give their guys credit too. They made the pitches they needed to make, got the hits they needed to have. That’s why they won the game.”

Although the numbers are not favorable for the Eagles’ Hopper, he wasn’t that far off the mark.

“He kept us in the game and that’s all you can ask of any pitcher,” said Davis.

El Capitan reliever ANTHONY VIGIL did better than that, as he picked up the victory after throwing four shutout innings in relief.

“I think I’ve pitched in all but two of our eight games,” said Vigil, who collected his second win in three decisions. “Some guys, all they want to do is start. But I like being a reliever – I like coming in in tight situations. Sure, it makes me nervous, but it also amps me up.”

HELIX 18, EL CAJON VALLEY 6 – TYLER SOTO is a virtual unknown in East County baseball. But that is about to change – and in a hurry.

The 6-foot, 180-pound junior first baseman went 5-for-5 with a pair of doubles and four RBI as the Highlanders (7-6) won for the fifth time in six starts Friday (Mar. 27) at El Cajon Valley. Soto’s surge raised his season batting average to .500 (21 for 42) and he now has 16 RBI.

Soto broke a 2-2 tie with a run-scoring double in the 3rd inning. ARMANDO RODRIGUEZ slashed a two-run single, KEVIN SCOTT smacked an RBI single and BENNY GUERRERO capped the scoring with a sacrifice fly.

But that was just the beginning, as the Highlanders scored in each of the first six innings. The 9-run burst in the 6th frame turned the game into a rout.

Helix produced a season-high 20 hits at the expense of three El Cajon Valley pitchers.

Junior DAVID SANCHEZ was 3-for-3 including an RBI single for El Cajon Valley (1-9). ABEL CERVANTES added a two-run single in the 6th for the Braves.

An 11-run third inning capped the Foothillers’ scoring free-for-all against visiting Mount Miguel in Friday’s (Mar. 27) Grossmont North-South Tournament action at Joe Gizoni Field.

“In games like these sometimes it’s hard to keep your focus,” said Grossmont coach JIM EARLEY said. “But our kids kept their heads into what was going on.”

All of them, in fact. Seventeen Foothillers saw action in the game that was called after 4 1/2 innings by mutual agreement.

“I think the guys that had the most fun were our pitcher-only guys,” Earley said. “They rarely get a chance to bat and they loved the opportunities they had today.”

Grossmont jumped on freshman starter JUWUN McCRAY for four runs in the 1st inning. McCray hit lead-off man STEVEN BERAULT with a pitch and then gave up RBI doubles to CONOR MEREDITH and LEVI STEVENS. BRETT ETHERTON chipped in with a run-scoring single, staking the Hillers to a 4-0 lead.

A 2-run home run by CODY SOS was the key blow in Grossmont’s 11-run uprising that featured 10 of the Foothillers’ 14 hits in the contest.

“We hit the ball hard all day long,” Earley said.

AARON GRIFFIN (4-0) blanked the Matadors on three hits over four innings. BRIAN PAZNOKAS allowed just one hit in the 5th.

Grossmont captured the Aztec-Foothiller Classic crown a week ago by blanking Montgomery 6-0 in the final. The Hillers would like to add another trophy by winning the Grossmont North-South title on Friday (April 3).

© East County Sports.com
LA MESA (3-25-09) — They do not possess a flame-thrower on their pitching staff nor do they hit home runs with reckless abandon.

The Helix Highlanders play vanilla ball. They exhibit more dash than flash, which of late is a combination allowing coach COLE HOLLAND the ability to extract a flavorful brand of fundamental baseball.

Baseball purists love it.

Helix (6-6) pushed a handful of bunts at the West Hills defense and more often than not Wednesday (Mar. 25) handcuffed the visiting Wolf Pack as the Highlanders grabbed a 7-1 Grossmont North-South Tournament second round victory.

“We threw the ball away on two routine bunts, and you can’t do that when you aren’t scoring many runs yourself,” West Hills coach CHRIS BAUM said. “You’ve got to make the easy plays. Instead we throw away a double play ball on a bunt, and muff a force play on another bunt.”

BENNY GUERRERO of Helix put down sacrifice bunts in the 2nd and 3rd innings. His first bunt helped key a 3-run Helix 2nd. The Highlanders had only two hits in that outburst – one an RBI single by TYLER SOTO. The other runs scored on a ground out and a batter hit with the bases loaded.

Helix’s ‘short ball’ philosophy helped the Highlanders make it 6-0 on 2 hits in the 3rd inning. Guerrero once again stuck his bat into that uprising with an attempted sacrifice bunt, only this one turned into a single. The bunts and infield hits kept on coming and West Hills pitched in a couple of errors to make matters worse.

BRYSON RUNIONS drove in the only Helix run in the 3rd frame with a base hit that reached the outfield. JAKE REED batted in the final marker with a single to left in the 6th.

“We think we put pressure on people with our style of play,” Holland smiled wryly.

DYLAN NICKERSON, a junior right-hander, did a high wire act for the Highlanders as he turned in his second complete game in four starts. Credit Nickerson for perseverance. Not once did he retire the Wolf Pack in order. By the same token he scattered West Hills’ seven hits evenly – one single per inning.

“I got two quick outs most of the time,” Nickerson said. “Five of the innings they got a hit after two outs.”

West Hills probably would not have scored had it not been for a Helix error in the 6th inning.

Pitching with an early 6-0 Helix lead was a confidence builder for Nickerson (2-0).

“After that all I thought about was throwing strikes and getting our team back into the dugout as fast as possible,” Nickerson said.

Although Nickerson did not get a chance to hit, he is a believer in Helix’s bunt-and-run offense.

“We are one of the few teams that still makes small ball work,” Nickerson said. “We work on it a lot in practice. I think we catch some of our opponents by surprise by how well we execute that type a game.”

The West Hills merry-go-round is beginning to make Baum dizzy. Not once has the Wolf Pack won two games in succession.

I know we are a better team than we’ve been showing,” Baum said. “But it’s hard to win games when you don’t make plays or can’t score runs.”

SANTANA 13, MOUNT MIGUEL 5 (10 inn.) – Starting pitchers RYAN STUTZ of Santana and RUDDY ACOSTA of Mount Miguel did just about everything they could do to decide the outcome of Wednesday’s (Mar. 25) Grossmont North-South Tournament game in Spring Valley.

The Matadors’ Acosta, a 6-foot-6, 195-pound junior, allowed only 4 runs and 7 hits while striking out 9 during a 7-inning stint. Furthermore, Acosta clubbed a pair of 2-run homers, which accounted for all of Mount Miguel ’s scoring in regulation and forced the game into extra innings.

“This is the best game Ruddy has pitched,” said Matadors coach BYRON GRIGSBY.

Santana coach JERRY HENSON agreed that Acosta was that good.

“He’s really good at getting a downward angle on the ball because he’s so tall,” observed Henson. “That’s why he’s so hard to hit. He looks like he’s 10 feet tall out there if you’re the guy batting at the plate. He was around the plate all day, had good velocity and had a nice little breaking piece.”

Not to be overmatched – although he stands in at 5-9, 160 – Stutz, a versatile senior right-hander, held the Matadors to 2 hits and 3 runs while striking out 9 in 5 1/3 innings.

“Pitching against a giant like Acosta obviously adds pressure, but it also makes the game more exciting,” said Stutz. “I recognized who I was pitching against but I wasn’t in awe. My fastball worked well and my curveball was my out pitch. I had them chasing a lot of pitches.”

When Acosta left the mound to play first base and Stutz shuffled to shortstop, it became a battle of the bullpens.

Santana definitely got the edge in relief as KYLE HAYES and ZACH OEDEWALDT allowed only 2 hits and one run in 4 2/3 innings. As a staff Santana struck out 16 Matadors.

On the reverse side, Mount Miguel ’s bullpen held up for 2 innings and then collapsed in the 10th, allowing Santana to score 9 runs on 9 hits.

Stutz was the centerpiece in Santana’s big inning. In fact he led off with a home run to left-centerfield and later in the frame added an RBI double.

Hayes, who garnered the relief win to raise his pitching record to 3-1, also laced a tape measure 2-run homer to right field in the decisive 10th.

“Guys just don’t hit home runs to right field in this ballpark,” said Grigsby. “He just crushed that pitch – it landed in somebody’s back yard (beyond the right field fence).”

ZACH BREIDT drove in a run with a base hit and TRAVIS REYNOLDS drove in two more with a double for Santana. CHRIS CAMARADA also smacked an RBI single, while CODY SMITH was 2-for-2 with a double, an RBI and a stolen base.

Earlier in the day Mount Miguel ’s Acosta was named to the Perfect Game All-America Underclassmen team.

“That’s a pretty big honor,” Grigsby said. “He’s one of only 60 players in the nation to be named to that team.”

Bellatti, who has accepted a baseball scholarship to Cal State Fullerton, pitched a complete game 5-hitter to run his pitching mark to 3-1. It was vintage Bellatti, who showed remarkable poise as a handful of major league baseball scouts looked on. He struck out 8 and walked 3.

“He’s the best we’ve seen,” El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY said.

The pro scouts seemed to agree. If Bellatti continues to push the radar guns with his 88-to-90 mph velocity he’s all but sure to get a draft call from some major league club.

“Any time he’s pitching I feel comfortable with us having a chance to win,” Steele Canyon coach TODD SNYDER said. “Our other pitchers are getting to that point as well. Winning is contagious.”

Bellatti’s solo home run – his third of the season – helped the Cougars (5-2) claw to a 3-3 tie after five innings.

Steele Canyon put the game away with a 4-run scoring spree in the 6th inning. DUSTIN DEGLER led off the pivotal inning with a double off the top of the left field fence. MICHAEL WINTER followed with an infield single to put runners at the corners.

TAYLOR MISHLER tapped a ground ball to second base to move the runners up 90 feet. The El Capitan catcher attempted to pick Degler off third base but his peg sailed high and was mishandled by the third baseman, falling to the ground. Degler then scampered home with what proved to be the winning run and Winter advanced to third.

Winter scored on a sacrifice fly by MICHAEL CASTRO.

The Cougars added their final two markers on a run-scoring triple by NOLAN MURRAY. El Capitan’s fourth error of the game allowed Murray to coast home.

“Murray is hitting .500 – he’s always on,” Snyder said. “In our seven games he’s had a 7-game hitting streak. He’s absolutely crushing the ball. Having someone like that at the top of your lineup is key to being successful. He’s turning into a leader.”

The steady Murray was 2-for-4 and Degler was 3-for-3 for the Cougars.

El Capitan (4-3) started on a high note as KYLE MILLS and KORBIN KRUGER banged back-to-back doubles for a 1-0 lead in the 2nd inning.

“I feel like today was big because it was El Capitan (that we beat),” said Snyder. “They play with class and I completely respect Coach Vickery. That’s how we want our players to play and we did that today. Our goal is that they start believing in themselves. I feel fortunate to be where we are at – we’ve bounced back after some losses.”

TYRONE WIGGINS’ 2-run triple in the 5th inning gave El Capitan its final lead of 3-2.

“We had some great at-bats versus Bellatti,” Vickery said. “I would say anytime we can score three runs against Bellatti I’d like to think we would win the game. And I think we should have won today.”

It was kind of presumptuous when it was suggested that Earley and Rogers were once teammates at Grossmont High School. Granted, both are Foothillers alumni but…

“Actually I coached Brandon in high school in the early to mid-1990s,” said Earley.

Oh.

Earley was still handing out a few lessons when his No. 4-ranked Foothillers pounded out 14 hits while three of the Grossmont pitchers twirled a 2-hitter at the struggling Monarchs.

“It was kind of weird because for the first time since I’ve been the head coach we had a big lead with several innings to go, and I wasn’t sure whether to hold our runners up or make wholesale substitutions before today,” Earley said. “I certainly didn’t want to embarrass Brandon or his team by running up the score. I’ve known him since he was an infant.”

Grossmont (7-1) wasted little time jumping out in front of the Monarchs as leadoff hitter and winning pitcher STEVEN BRAULT opened the game with his first home run. By the time the Monarchs (1-5) could close the door Grossmont was up 4-0 in the first frame.

This was Grossmont’s best game of longball hitting of the young season and it did not come in the friendly confines of Joe Gizoni Field.

Junior shortstop EVAN POTTER, who was 3-for-5 for the Foothillers, popped his first home run of the season in the 4th inning, and CONOR MEREDITH followed suit. It was Meredith’s third circuit clout.

“Potter was a JV guy last year that could have easily been on the varsity if we hadn’t had so much Division I college talent,” Earley said. “But he’s getting his chance now and making the best of it. I think the first three pitches he saw he got hits, and he’s super smooth at shortstop.”

Brault, making just his second start of the season, limited Monte Vista to one run and two hits over five innings. NICK GASPAR and KEVIN KLEIS finished the job with one hitless inning apiece.

Monte Vista dodged the shutout when MATT BOELTER doubled in TOMMY DEMARS who had reached base when hit by a pitch in the 1st inning.

Monte Vista starting pitcher NICK SABO accounted for the only other Monarchs hit with a single in the 4th inning. He was, however, eventually picked off by Grossmont catcher ALEX OHLSON.

The move paid dividends, as DANNY HAWKSLEY, JOE KUSTER and NICK BROWN joined forces to ration the visiting Braves to 4 hits and no earned runs.

“We were very pleased with Danny, Joe and Nick on the hill today as they did a great job of throwing strikes and making them put the ball in play,” Wilson said.

Valhalla (3-4), which snapped a three-game losing streak, was burned by its only error which helped the Braves avoid a shutout. Kuster, who was tagged for the two unearned tallies, struck out six and earned the win during a three-inning stint.

JOHN AGUIRRE-RUIZ gave Valhalla a 1-0 edge in the 2nd inning as the Norsemen produced 2 runs with only one hit.

In the 5th, BRYCE MOSIER singled and coasted home on Hawksley’s home run that rattled around in the football bleachers beyond left field to make it 5-0.

El Cajon Valley fought back to avoid the shutout on a two-run single by DAVID SANCHEZ in the 6th inning.

Hawksley and freshman AUSTIN HENSLEY had three hits apiece to pace the Norsemen. Hawksley, in fact, was just one hit short of hitting for the cycle. Hensley’s totals included a pair of doubles.

“It was nice to see all the different guys step up today while we are dealing with injuries as a team,” Wilson said. “Some guys are fulfilling their backup roles while others are showing their athleticism and playing out of their normal positions.”

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (3-25-09) — In his quest to expand his pitching staff, Christian High coach MIKE MITCHELL is doing a little on-the-mound, game-time training.

It was junior ERICK ALLEN’s turn to make the start in Tuesday’s (Mar. 24) City Conference Tournament game against visiting San Diego. Allen passed the test as he blanked the Cavers on 4 hits over 5 innings, while striking out 3 and walking only 2.

Of course, his teammates helped him out by pounding out 16 hits in the 10-3 victory.

“Erick pitched very well in his first varsity pitching start,” Mitchell said. “He threw 66 pitches through five innings. He had a great day throwing strikes.”

MICHAEL GRUBER, the Patriots’ No. 1 catcher, toiled 1 2/3 innings in relief, and then CODY POTEET came on to get the final out.

Meanwhile, senior BRAD ROBERTSON continued his torrid hitting. He was 3-for-3 with a double, 2 RBI, 2 runs and a stolen base. Robertson has hit safely in his last four games, batting at an .800 clip (8-for-10). Three of his hits have gone for extra bases, including one home run.

The Patriots (5-2) broke a scoreless tie with three runs in the 3rd. Cody Poteet started the rally with a one-out single to right field. SHAUN DAY was hit by a pitch and JOSH WOLFSON doubled to left-centerfield, scoring Poteet. TAYLOR EICHHORST brought in two more with a double down the left-field line.

MICHAEL STOWERS’ RBI single made it 4-1 in the 4th before the Patriots broke the game open with a 6-pack in the 5th.

Allen added to the offensive show with a 2-run single to left and eventually scored on Day’s base hit.

FOOTHILLS CHRISTIAN 23, ROCK ACADEMY 3 (5 inn.) – HENRY LUSCHEI drove in four runs with a home run, a double and a pair of singles Tuesday (Mar. 24) as Foothills Christian turned The Rock Academy into pebbles in a nonleague game halted after four innings at Stars Field at Barona.

After the visiting Warriors jumped on Foothills starter freshman A.J. HOFFMAN for 3 runs in the top if the 1st inning, the Knights (3-2) scored 10 runs in the bottom of the inning and the rout was on.

Hoffman blanked The Rock (1-4) in the 2nd and 3rd innings before Luschei pitched 2 hitless innings of relief. Each of the Knights’ pitchers had 3 strikeouts.

“Our team continues to get better every day,” said Knights coach STEVE PERDUE. “What I am most impressed with today is we played hard and with class.”

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (03-24-09) – LEVI STEVENS had to wonder what it was going to take to win Monday’s (Mar. 23) Grossmont North-South Tournament game against visiting Valhalla at Joe Gizoni Field. BOXSCORES

After blanking the Norsemen on 4 hits while striking out 11 and walking only one in seven innings, Stevens thought the Foothillers were going to come away losers.

That’s probably because he saw Valhalla’s JOSH AUSTEL break a scoreless deadlock with a 2-run double off reliever AARON GRIFFIN in the 8th inning.

But Stevens would have the last word. After Valhalla reliever TYLER JEZIERSKI walked the bases loaded with two outs in the bottom of the 8th, Stevens laced a 1-0 pitch into the right field corner to drive in 3 runs, giving the No. 4 ranked Foothillers a 3-2 victory.

Grossmont first baseman Brett Etherton stretches for the grab to nip Valhalla's Danny Hawksley. (Slideshow by Mark Gonzales)

Grossmont Foothillers at Valhalla Norsemen (Slideshow by Mark Gonzales)

Valhalla ace TREVOR FRANK could not have pitched much better. Although he issued an unusually high number of walks (5), he allowed only one hit – a single by STEVEN BRAULT. A senior right-hander, Frank also struck out 13 during a 7-inning stint.

The irony of the afternoon was that four of the five runners who scored reached base on walks.

After Griffin struck out the first two batters in top of the 8th inning, CISCO TELLEZ walked and DANNY HAWKSLEY singled, setting the stage for Austel’s key hit.

Grossmont then capitalized on Valhalla ’s wildness out of the bullpen as COLTER RIOS, Brault and EVAN POTTER walked to load the bases. Stevens took care of the rest.

“I was able to throw my curveball for strikes, hitting my spots all day,” said Stevens. “I guess you could say it was my out pitch, whereas most of the time I use my fastball for strikeouts.”

Stevens, one of two returning starters, talked about the Foothillers’ youth coming of age.

“This was a big win for us,” Stevens said. “We haven’t done that well in this tournament in the past.”

It was a tight ballgame – a good pitchers’ duel with Stevens and Frank matching each other. There was an equal pitch count for seven innings for both pitchers. In two different innings they each struck out the side – twice.

Junior centerfielder BRIAN CARROLL continues to provide the spark at the top of the Granite Hills batting order. He has hit safely in all six games with a .542 batting average (13 for 24), 8 runs and 6 steals.

“Carroll is the prototypical leadoff batter,” said West Hills coach CHRIS BAUM. “You want runs scored and your leadoff batter to get on base and score runs. He did that. He set the tone for that team.”

But offense is not the only way Carroll has been able to contribute. As a sophomore he was confined to playing shortstop where he was so-so. Now that he’s been able to spread his wings in the outfield he’s become a nugget.

Not surprising since his father DONNIE CARROLL was a multi-sport athlete who eventually was a second-round draft pick of the Los Angeles Dodgers in the late 1980s.

Carroll was hit by a pitch to ignite a four-run 1st inning for Granite Hills. He eventually scored on a base hit by DYLAN GARCIA.

TYLER PONCIANO added a two-run single and TYLER JOWORSKI drove in the final opening marker with a single.

After that, the game belonged to freshman right-hander DANIEL STARWALT, who scattered 6 hits and allowed only 2 runs in 6 innings. Starwalt also helped his own cause, ironically after he left the mound, giving way to reliever Garcia, by slugging a 2-run homer in the 7th inning.

Eight of Granite Hills’ starters contributed to a 13-hit attack.

For West Hills (3-3) it was the third time the Pack has suffered a lopsided loss.

“Inconsistent baseball – that’s the story of West Hills baseball right now,” said Baum. “I told the guys ‘.500 ball is not going to make the playoffs.’ It’s been win big, lose big; win big, lose big; win big, lose big.”

“I honestly believe we can play with anybody in this district. We can’t rely on BRENNAN TAYLOR for every single game. Someone else needs to step up on the pitching staff other than Brennan Taylor. He needs support. Taylor is 3-0 and everybody else is 0-3 on our pitching staff.”

SANTANA 3, HELIX 1 – No question, the Santana Sultans can match pitching with most any team in the San Diego CIF.

For the Sultans (4-2) it’s a matter of scoring runs.

Sturdy right-hander JAMES NEEDY, a 6-foot-5, 205-pounder who has a scholarship in hand to USD, limited the visiting Helix Highlanders to one run and 5 hits over 6 2/3 innings in Monday’s (Mar. 23) Grossmont North-South Tournament action.

KYLE HAYES came on to get the final out to earn his first save.

Santana scored all the runs it would need in the 2nd inning. The Highlanders helped out by issuing two walks and hitting a batter to load the bases.

KEVIN FERREIRA singled to left to score ZACH BREIDT for the Sultans. RYAN STUTZ followed with a base hit up the middle to make it 2-0.

In the 3rd inning Needy supplied a key double to send DALLAS SEIDEL (walk) to third, where he scored on Breidt’s fly ball.

After that the Sultans had only one more hit in their final three turns at bat.

“We hadn’t been on the field in a long time and they had been playing a lot of ball in that tournament in Arizona,” said Santana coach JERRY HENSON. “So we were a little bit rusty and they were tired.”

It was the first loss in four games for Helix (5-6), which wasted a strong pitching performance by JAKE REED and MIKE LOPEZ. Lopez pitched two shutout innings in relief while striking out three.

EL CAPITAN 12, MOUNT MIGUEL 1 – El Capitan is arguably the top team in East County. That opinion will surely not get much argument from Mount Miguel , as the Vaqueros took an 11-0 lead after two innings and never looked back in Monday’s (Mar. 23) opening round of the Grossmont North-South Tournament.

The Vaqueros (4-2) slashed Mount Miguel freshman JUWON McCRAY for 7 hits, including RBI doubles by CHARLES MOORMAN and KYLE MILLS to take a 5-0 lead in the 1st inning.

Mills, a senior second baseman, an inning later slugged a 2-run homer.

Moorman, CRAIG LEAVITT and TANNER RUST also contributed two hits apiece to El Capitan’s 13-hit assault on three Mount Miguel pitchers. Leavitt had a triple for the Vaqueros, as did TYRONE WIGGINS.

“We did an outstanding job at the plate with our bats,” said Vaqueros coach STEVE VICKERY. “We did a good job hitting the balls where they were pitched.”

TROY CONYERS and MICHAEL FLORES combined to spin a 2-hitter at the Matadors (2-4). Conyers, a freshman left-hander, struck out a career high 12 in 6-plus innings, allowing only one hit and no runs in his second varsity start.

“This was an outstanding pitching performance by Conyers in his second varsity start,” said Vickery. “He had great command of his fastball and an outstanding changeup.”

Mount Miguel ’s only hits were by RUDDY ACOSTA and TONY ALVAREZ.

STEELE CANYON 13, EL CAJON VALLEY 0 – BRAD BOEHMKE and NATHAN O’TOOLE combined to spin a three-hit shutout in Monday’s (Mar. 23) opening round of the Grossmont North-South Tournament at El Cajon Valley.

“I was proud of my two pitchers,” Steele Canyon coach TODD SNYDER said. “Boehmke threw just 42 pitches in five innings (striking out 3 and walking none). He definitely had the strike zone. They both pounded the strike zone. We had tremendous pitching.”

As a hitter Boehmke drove in two runs with a basehit during Steele Canyon’s 6-run 5th inning.

Cougars catcher JESSE JENNER went 3 for 4 at the plate.

The Cougars (4-2) clubbed 13 hits, scoring in five of the first six innings.

“It hurts not having DANNY MacINTYRE (fractured hand) in the lineup – he’s our team captain and the doctor said he’d be out a month. I would argue that MacIntyre is the best third baseman in the county.”

While the Falcons were credited with the seemingly easy victory in Monday’s (Mar. 23) City Conference Tournament opener, it was a crumbling Christian defense that handed Scripps Ranch eight unearned runs.

Ouch!

That spoiled an otherwise decent pitching performance by TAYLOR EICHHORST, BRAD ROBERTSON and CODY POTEET. The Patriots’ trio, led by Eichhorst making his first start, limited the Falcons to just seven hits.

“I thought Eichhorst threw pretty well,” Christian coach MIKE MITCHELL said. “It was his first time on the mound.

“We have two pitchers that are injured and are out for extended periods – one with a broken ankle and one with a shoulder separation (in his non-throwing arm), and one has the stomach flu.”

Christian (4-2) never had more than one hit in any inning.

Robbie who?.. lol

Jim Earley, who replaced 5-time CIFSDS titlist Rob Phillips as head coach this season, hoists the championship trophy after the Foothillers blanked Montgomery, 6-0, in Saturday's title ballgame. (Photo by Tim Soto)

Aztec-Foothiller Classic championship: Montgomery Aztecs at Grossmont Foothillers (Slideshow by Tim Soto)

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (03-22-09) — To make a run at the Grossmont North or Grossmont South League pennant a bona fide contender needs to have three quality starting pitchers.

The Grossmont Foothillers (5-1), which have a solid 1-2 pitching punch in LEVI STEVENS and AARON GRIFFIN, may have found the missing link. That is, a third starter in junior lefthander STEVEN BRAULT.

Making his first pitching appearance of the season in Saturday’s (Mar. 21) Aztec-Foothiller championship game at Joe Gizoni Field, Brault blanked Montgomery on four hits over 5 2/3 innings as Grossmont ground out a 6-0 victory to claim its third straight tournament title.

Brault, who thinks of himself as an outfielder first and a pitcher second, may have to adjust his focus in the immediate future.

“I felt good, threw mostly fastballs,” said Brault, who needed only 54 pitches to polish off the first five innings. “I mixed in a few curveballs and threw only three splitters all day.”

It’s not like his Foothillers teammates made it easy.

Grossmont took an early lead, breaking through for two runs in the 2nd inning. Stevens ignited the rally with a double to left center. BRETT ETHERTON followed with a single up the middle, scoring Stevens. A base hit by ALEX OHLSON and a walk to COLTER RIOS loaded the bases. Etherton, a wide receiver in football, scored on WILL SOTO’s sacrifice fly.

“I think if the game is close I’m more tuned in as a pitcher,” Brault said. “I like the pressure – knowing every pitch is crucial.”

The Hillers broke the game open in the 7th inning. Brault, who is batting at a .529 clip (9-for-17) singled to center to set the merry-go-‘round in motion. After EVAN POTTER reached on an error, CONOR MEREDITH singled to left to make it 3-0.

Pinch hitter MARK VASQUEZ singled in a run, and reliever Griffin , who got the final four outs to record the pitching save, drove in a run with an infield grounder. The Aztecs added a throwing error to plate Grossmont’s final run.

“One of our goals is to win a tournament every year, and we reached that goal the first time out,” Brault said.

Grossmont coach JIM EARLEY was pleased with his team in general and Brault in particular.

“I think the biggest positive was seeing Brault work out of the few jams he got into,” Earley said. “An outing like this can only give him confidence.”

Not to mention what a lift it provided the Foothillers.

ESCONDIDO CHARTER 2, FOOTHILLS CHRISTIAN 1 – The visiting Knights continue to show improvement this season, but suffered a biting loss to the White Tigers in Saturday’s (Mar. 21) consolation contest of the Eagles-Warriors Tournament at MiraCosta College.

Yet even in defeat Foothills Christian (2-2) looked sharp behind the pitching of BRANDON JAROSIN and DEREK DEYLING, who together limited Escondido Charter (6-2) to two runs and five hits. Deyling dealt two shutout innings while striking out three.

“Jarosin allowed both runs but he was the hardluck loser,” said Knights’ coach STEVE PERDUE.

Except for a costly passed ball and a wild pitch – which scored both of Escondido Charter’s runs – the Knights were on the mark defensively. Junior right fielder DYLAN MORRIS threw out two Escondido Charter runners at the plate. Morris was also 3-for-3 with the bat.

Foothills Christian took a 1-0 lead in the second inning as IAN MURPHY doubled and scored on a basehit by freshman A.J. HOFFMAN.

“We either left guys in scoring position or ran ourselves out of innings in this game,” Perdue said. “That’s on coaching. Coaching cost us this game today. This was one of those growing pains games.”

© East County Sports.com
TUCSON, Ariz. (3-21-09) — Helix High coach COLE HOLLAND was in a foul mood after the first two games of the week-long Salpointe Lancer Classic. But the veteran mentor was pleased by the Highlanders’ finish, which included three straight wins.

The Highlanders (5-5) crunched the Checotah (Okla.) Wildcats 11-2 in Friday’s (Mar. 20) final round of consolation allowing Helix to balance its ledger at 5-5.

“Bouncing back the way we did made this whole trip worthwhile,” Holland said. “Every team we played was no cupcake except this last one.”

Four of Helix’s nine hits went for extra bases against the Wildcats – three of them for triples.

In the five-game event, Helix laced 13 extra-base hits – 6 of them treys. That includes three triplets against Checotah.

“These are big ballparks over here,” Holland noted. “If you hit one into the gap, you can run forever.”

Sophomore catcher AUSTIN GONZALEZ struck three-base blows in each of the last three games for the Highlanders. His triple against the Wildcats drove in three runs in the 5th inning, turning the game into a rout.

BENNY GUERRERO smacked a pair of RBI singles and stole two bases for Helix, which now has more wins than any team in East County.

Not to be overlooked is the pitching of MIKE LOPEZ and MAURO OLIVARRIA. The Helix duo allowed only four hits and no earned runs.

© East County Sports.com
CARMEL VALLEY (3-20-09) — Cathedral Catholic is considered King of the Hill in the San Diego Section – for good reason. The Dons have seven Division I scholarship players and are No. 1-ranked in the section and No. 7 in Southern California.

Upstart El Capitan had the Dons pinned down 5-0 after three innings of Thursday’s (Mar. 19) final round of pool play in the Hilltop-Lolita’s Tournament.

Unfortunately, the Vaqueros folded after that. El Capitan (3-2) was blanked on 5 hits over the final four innings as Cathedral Catholic stole a 6-5 victory over the Lakeside Nine to earn a berth in the tournament finale opposite Poway.

The contest will be played at Hilltop High in Chula Vista at 10:30 a.m. Saturday (Mar. 21).

“We really got off to a great start, and then we became two different teams out there,” said Vaqueros coach STEVE VICKERY. “We were very, very competitive in the first four innings and then we just shut down.”

“Of our last 11 hitters, 8 struck out. We only had two quality at-bats in our last three innings.”

In the fateful 5th with two outs and Cathedral’s Geoff Rocha on second base, the Vaqueros pitcher uncorked a wild pitch and Rocha was able to race all the way home to cut the Vaqueros lead to 5-3.

“The momentum of the game switched at that point,” recalled Vickery.

Cathedral (5-0) tied the game 5-5 in the 6th inning with a pair of runs.

In the 7th inning El Capitan reliever ANTHONY VIGIL struck out the first two Cathedral batters and Tyler Gaffney popped up to centerfield. It appeared the game was going into extra innings.

But the umpires ruled catcher’s interference as the bat hit his glove, thus Gaffney was awarded first base. To add insult to injury, Gaffney then stole a base.

El Capitan elected to intentionally walk Casey Husband, who had doubled in his two previous at-bats. On a 1-0 count Tommy Cheek hit a single to centerfield, scoring Gaffney. Game over.

“It was the most competitive we have been in the last four times we’ve played them. If you make a mistake against Cathedral Catholic they make you pay for it.”

El Capitan took a lead two batters into the game as TYRONE WIGGINS singled up the middle and TANNER RUST homered to right center.

The Vaqueros (3-2) extended their advantage in the 3rd inning as Wiggins singled to left and stole second base. Rust singled to center to put runners at the corners. CHARLES MOORMAN singled to center to make it 3-0. KYLE MILLS drove in Rust with a base hit and CRAIG LEAVITT brought in pinch-runner ARMON WORRELL with a single.

Riggins, the Vaqueros starting pitcher, blanked the Dons over the first three innings.

“Riggins actually pitched a whale of a ballgame,” Vickery said. “He threw a terrific game – he didn’t miss his target. With a little bit of help he could have survived.”

HELIX 11, POUDRES (Ft. Collins, Colo.) 5 – Scoring their season high, the Highlanders won their second straight game in the Salpointe Lancer Classic in Tucson, Ariz. on Thursday (Mar. 19) by knocking off the Impalas – a 5A Class team from Fort Collins, Colo.

BRONSON RUNIONS led the charge for the Highlanders, driving in 4 runs with a double, a single and a sacrifice fly.

The Highlanders broke the game open with 6 runs in the 5th inning. TYLER SOTO, who was 2-for-3 against the Colorado squad and has had 13 hits in his last five games, provided the spark to the big inning with a leadoff single.

He scored on AUSTIN GONZALEZ’ second triple in as many games to break a 4-4 tie. MICHAEL ADRADE then singled in Gonzalez. KEVIN SCOTT kept the flame burning with a base hit and BENNY GUERRERO then ripped a 2-run double.

The Highlanders picked up two more runs in the same frame on a groundout by ANTHONY DIAZ and a sacrifice fly by Runions.

Consecutive singles by ANDREW MARTINEZ, Guerrero and Diaz added an insurance run for the Highlanders (4-5) in the 7th inning. Not to be overlooked was Gonzalez RBI single in the 1st and Runions’ 2-run double in the 4th.

DYLAN NICKERSON twirled a complete game for the Highlanders.

“We didn’t kick the ball around as much as we have in the past,” said Helix pitching coach MIKE MILLER. “Nickerson gave us a chance to win and that’s all we can ask.”

The junior right-hander walked none and struck out 3.

That fast start was swiftly negated as the Titans scored 5 runs in the 2nd inning and never relinquished the lead.

The Eagles are stunned by their 1-4 start. One of the shining lights for the Eagles is junior centerfielder BRIAN CARROLL, Granite Hills’ leadoff hitter.

Not only has Carroll hit safely in all five games, he boasts a .550 average (11 for 20) with 5 runs, a couple of doubles and 6 stolen bases.

Another diamond in the rough is freshman pitcher/first baseman DANIEL STARWALT, who is batting at a .444 clip (8 of 18) with 3 doubles and 6 RBI. Starwalt is also going to be a pitching gem as indicated by his 0.00 ERA over 7 1/3 innings.

Against Poway Starwalt was 2-for-4, including a 2-run double. Carroll was 3-for-4 with 2 runs and 2 steals.

Connor Joe slugged a 3-run homer for the Titans, while Josh Anderson and Trevin Lipe both hit solo shots.

“I know it sounds strange to get beat by Poway and say we showed signs of improvement, but we hit better today (10 hits). Our pitchers just left some balls out over the plate that they hit.”

Granite Hills begins the Grossmont North-South Tournament on Monday (Mar. 23) at West Hills. Albeit inconsistent most of the season, the Wolf Pack is coming off an upset 5-1 win over Montgomery.

“Our schedule doesn’t get any easier,” Davis said. “But I see signs of us turning things around. Once we finally get healthy in a couple of weeks we’ll be OK. We’re hoping it will happen before league.”

Davis is looking forward to welcoming DANIEL VINTON and JARED HUNT back to his squad.

“Vinton had surgery today for a separated shoulder and Hunt is recovering from a fractured hip,” the coach said.

After the Mariners (5-2) took a 2-0 lead in the 3rd inning, the Braves brought out the heavy lumber in the bottom of that inning to move back on top.

ANTHONY JACKSON led off with a single and scored on a triple by ABEL CERVANTES. EFREN PADILLA, who was 3-for-4, matched Cervantes’ blow with a three-base hit of his own to tie the game.

BRENT HARRIS kept the Braves extra-base barrage alive when he doubled in Padilla, giving El Cajon Valley a 3-2 edge.

It was all Mar Vista after that as the Mariners hoisted up consecutive 3-run innings in the 4th, 5th and 6th innings.

El Cajon Valley made a last ditch effort for a comeback in the bottom of the 7th as CASEY RIVERA singled and eventually scored on a sacrifice fly by Cervantes.

“We played a pretty good team today,” Braves boss MIKE RUPP said. “They took advantage of all our mistakes. We are a very young team – only two seniors on varsity. Our players are still suffering with the transition to high school varsity baseball.”

EL CENTRO-CENTRAL 7, MOUNT MIGUEL 3 – Five-year veteran Mount Miguel coach BYRON GRIGSBY had high hopes for his Matadors this season. It’s not that he’s given up those expectations, but he is disappointed that his team finished 2-3 in the Bully’s East Tournament.

“We have got to play more consistent,” Grigsby said. “We are not taking advantage of our opportunities, we made too many errors (4).”

After taking a 1-0 lead in the 1st inning, the Matadors put all the pressure on pitcher EDUARDO HIGUERA. That formula did not work as the Spartans scored five runs in the 3rd and two in the 4th to lead 7-1.

“Higuera pitched better than his numbers show,” Grigsby said. “We’re not supporting him too well.”

JULIAN CHARLES tried to ignite a comeback when he hit the first pitch leading off the 4th inning for his 2nd home run of the season.

The Matadors staged a two-out rally in the 6th inning as JOAQUIN IBARRA singled, JULIO ORTIZ walked and freshman JUWON McCRAY singled up the middle, cutting the Spartans lead to 7-3. But Mount Miguel could do no more on the offensive end.

Charles and McCray had 2 hits apiece for Mount Miguel and McCray also stole 2 bases.

© East County Sports.com
SANTEE (3-19-09) — West Hills senior BRENNAN TAYLOR probably won’t appear among the Who’s Who of San Diego CIF superior pitchers.

That may change.

Taylor has been the stabilizing force for West Hills as he owns all three victories in the Wolf Pack’s venture through the Foothiller-Aztec Classic.

Taylor made arguably his best pitching performance with a complete game effort against previously undefeated and No. 9-ranked Montgomery in Wednesday’s (Mar. 18) final day of tournament pool play.

Despite handing Montgomery its first loss in five games, the Wolf Pack could not deny the Aztecs a berth in Saturday’s (Mar. 21) Foothiller-Aztec Classic championship game against host Grossmont (4-1) at 10:30 a.m.

That didn’t bother Wolf Pack coach CHRIS BAUM.

“We had no errors and the game was over in an hour and 20 minutes – quick and clean, just like I like ‘em,” said Baum. “This was the ball I was expecting to play all year. This is ‘go time.’”

West Hills snapped a 1-1 tie in the 3rd inning. DAVID BRYAN slugged a one-out double and Allen followed with a walk. SAM LINDAHL singled home Bryan to break the tie. With two outs MICHAEL LOBAUGH slugged a 2-run single to left, making it 4-1 in favor of the Wolf Pack.

West Hills tacked on one more run in the 5th inning with a similar combination. Bryan singled up the middle, advanced to second on Allen’s sacrifice bunt and scored on Lindahl’s single to left center.

“If we end up making it to the playoffs this could be a big win for us in the seedings,” said Baum. “ Montgomery was expected to come in and beat us, but the boys didn’t back down. As a coach it makes me ecstatic to be around this group of kids.”

GROSSMONT 15, EASTLAKE 10 – For the first time this season Grossmont displayed its traditional offensive sock in Wednesday’s (Mar. 18) Foothiller-Aztec Classic victory at Eastlake.

Senior CONOR MEREDITH, the Hillers’ newfound power source, drove in 5 runs with his second home run, a double and a sacrifice fly with a 3-for-3 effort to cast Grossmont into Saturday’s (Mar. 21) Foothiller-Aztec Classic championship game at Joe Gizoni Field at 10:30.

Grossmont coach JIM EARLEY made another major change to his batting order and the results were positive. He hoisted junior right fielder STEVEN BRAULT into the leadoff spot, and Brault responded with four hits in five at-bats and scored four runs.

“Conor Meredith at second base played well today and so did Steven Brault in right field,” said Earley. “We put Steven in the leadoff spot for the first time today and it worked out well.”

EVAN POTTER, batting in the No. 2 slot, also scored 4 runs as he was 3-for-5.

“It was good today – we won but it was ugly,” Earley said. “We definitely have some things that we need to work on. We were up 15-4 then we kinda fell asleep at the wheel.”

BRETT ETHERTON was 2-for-4 with an RBI and LEVI STEVENS drove in 3 runs.

HELIX 5, STILWELL (Okla.) 4 — The Highlanders’ road to victory lane had plenty of bumps Wednesday (Mar. 18) as Helix (3-5) won its first game of the week-long Salpointe Lancer Classic in Tucson, Ariz.

Things started out fine for the Highlanders as they built a 4-0 lead in the first three innings. But Helix saw that lead evaporate when the Indians (7-3) scored two runs in the 4th and two unearned tallies in the 7th.

In the bottom of the 7th, pinch-hitter ARMANDO RODRIGUEZ led off with a single. BENNY GUERRERO ran for Rodriguez but was doubled off first when ANTHONY DIAZ popped up an attempted sacrifice bunt.

The Highlanders did not fold. Consecutive singles by BRONSON RUNIONS, JAKE REED and TYLER SOTO provided Helix with a fine two-out rally and a one-run victory.

“The biggest thing about this game is our kids never gave up,” said Helix assistant coach MIKE MILLER. “Even after that botched bunt, we found a way to win. That’s an encouraging sign.”

MAURO OLIVARRIA pitched the final three innings to pick up the win. The sophomore gave up only two singles and no earned runs.

Soto, who has 11 hits in his last four games, was 3-for-4 in the win. He drove in his club’s first run with a base hit and has logged 11 hits in his last four games.

An inning later Diaz whacked a two-run triple. A 3rd-inning triple by AUSTIN GONZALEZ made it 4-0 in the 3rd inning.

Gonzalez and Runions had two hits apiece for the Highlanders.

CHRISTIAN 11, LA JOLLA COUNTRY DAY 2 – Senior BRAD ROBERTSON bulked up by some 25 pounds since last season, and the 6-foot-1, 205-pound Christian High infielder is developing into a potential slugger.

Robertson went 3-for-3 with his first career home run, a ground-rule double and a single to drive in two runs, helping the Patriots (4-1) pound visiting La Jolla Country Day in Wednesday’s (Mar. 18) final round of pool play in the Christian Invitational.

“Brad is a much different hitter this year,” Christian coach MIKE MITCHELL said. “He had some kind of growth spurt.”

Robertson’s double plated a run in the Patriots’ 5-run 3rd which gave Christian an 8-0 lead. His home run was a solo shot in the 5th.

“It’s always nice to have another bat in the lineup,” Mitchell said. “Since we have so many guys who can hit, there’s a lot of competition for starting jobs. That’s a good situation to have as a coach.”

Every Christian starter contributed to a 15-hit attack. Eight of the nine had at least one RBI.

Junior JOSH WOLFSON was 2-for-4 with 3 RBI for the Patriots. His biggest hit was a two-run single in Christian’s pivotal 3rd inning.

SHAUN DAY, TAYLOR EICHHORST and DANIEL RODRIGUEZ injected two hits apiece into Christian’s 15-hit attack.

Sophomore MICHAEL POTEET scattered six hits in a complete game effort. Although his record stands even at 1-1, he has not allowed an earned run in 10 innings.

SANTANA 4, MONTE VISTA 0 – When JAMES NEEDY is a groove, opposing hitters might as well take a seat.

Santana’s 6-foot-5, 205-pound senior right-hander had near perfect rhythm in Wednesday’s (Mar. 18) Foothiller-Aztec Classic conquest of host Monte Vista.

Needy, who has a baseball scholarship to the University of San Diego in hand, needed only 68 pitches to blank the Monarchs (1-4).

Only CARLOS OCHOA (double) and MATT BOELTER (single) got hits off Needy, who walked just one and struck out 8 for his first win in two decisions.

Monte Vista 6-foot-3 sophomore NICK SABO also turned in a complete game, rationing the Sultans (3-2) to seven hits and two earned runs. He certainly deserved a better fate as he walked one and struck out 7.

Junior CODY SMITH was 3-for-4 with a home run to lead Santana.

The Sultans scored a 1st inning run without benefit of a hit. Santana extended its advantage to 2-0 in the 3rd inning as Smith singled and stole second and third. He scored on a base hit by KYLE HAYES.

Smith homered over the 400 foot marker in dead center field to make it 3-0 in the 5th inning.

DALLAS SEIDEL singled in the final run in the 7th inning.

“We had no offense, walked nine and hit three others,” Snyder said. “We are constantly making outs with runners in scoring position. From a hitting standpoint we need to do a better job of executing. We’ve got a lot of work to do. We need to be more disciplined in all aspects of the game.”

As disgruntled as Snyder seemed, he was pleased when the visiting Cougars put together a winning rally in the 9th inning.

CLAYTON ROYER drew a one-out walk and NOLAN MURRAY followed with a single. A Chula Vista breakdown in pitching helped advance the Steele Canyon rally as NATHAN HESS walked to load the bases and JESSE JENNER followed with another base on balls to force in the go-ahead run.

ANDREW BELLATTI then took away a lot of the suspense as he lined a 2-run single, staking the Cougars to a 3-run lead.

Steele Canyon had broken up a scoreless deadlock with 2 runs in the 6th inning. Jenner provided the initial spark with a leadoff single. BRAD BOEHMKE doubled him home one out later. MICHAEL WINTER followed with another 2-base hit to bring in Boehmke.

Five Steele Canyon pitchers combined to check Chula Vista (0-6) on just 2 hits. But somehow the Spartans managed to score 2 runs in the bottom of the 7th to force extra innings.

That was the part that irked Snyder.

Bellatti pitched two perfect innings in relief while striking out 4 to earn his second win in three decisions.

VISTA 12, VALHALLA 4 – What could come up short, did exactly that for the host Valhalla Norsemen in Wednesday’s (Mar. 18) final day of pool play in the

Foothiller-Aztec Classic.

Visiting Vista (4-1) rolled over Valhalla in a ruthless manner, banging out 17 hits while scoring in six of seven innings as the Norsemen (2-3) were stopped at every corner.

Botched run-down plays on defense, leaving eight runners in scoring position and mediocre pitching sent the Norsemen tail-spinning.

“It wasn’t a well-played game on our part, but our guys stayed up and involved in the game even when we fell behind,” Valhalla coach MIKE WILSON said. “We kept trying to chip back, but couldn’t get that one key hit to start us on a big comeback.”

Twice Valhalla left the bases loaded – in the 4th and 6th innings. This was not the game to come up empty as the Panthers did just about anything they desired on the offensive end.

Even in defeat, Valhalla was retired in order only once – in the bottom of the 7th.

Valhalla’s JOSH AUSTEL, no doubt the tallest shortstop in the county at 6-foot-6, was 3-for-4 with a double. Catcher BRYCE MOSIER reached base in all four of his at-bats, with a double, single, walk and hit by pitch. He scored twice.

Early on, the Norsemen looked if they’d make a game of it as DANNY HAWKSLEY’s two-run double sliced a 3-0 Vista advantage to a single marker in the 3rd inning. That would be as close as Valhalla would get.

© East County Sports.com
LAKESIDE (3-18-09) — Senior TANNER RUST and freshman CHARLES MOORMAN collected 3 hits apiece to pace El Capitan’s 17-hit assault on three Escondido pitchers in Tuesday’s (Mar. 17) Hilltop-Lolita’s Tournament game won by the Vaqueros 14-2.

“We just had a lot of quality at-bats today,” said Vaqueros coach STEVE VICKERY. “We had nine different players get RBI, and that doesn’t happen too often.”

El Capitan (3-1) burst in front with a pair of runs in the 2nd inning. KYLE MILLS provided the spark with a single up the middle. RYAN McBURNEY followed with a double and senior CRAIG LEAVITT doubled to deep centerfield to score both runners.

“Their pitcher wasn’t throwing that hard so I was looking for him to get a pitch up so I could hit it into the gap,” Leavitt said. “And sure enough, he hung a curveball.”

Leavitt finished 2-for-2 in the game to extend his on-base streak to eight consecutive at-bats over the last three games. The time prior to the streak he put down a sacrifice bunt.

“I don’t think about stuff like that,” said Leavitt, the Vaqueros’ senior first baseman. “If I did it would only add pressure. When I go to the plate I just try to make contact.”

In the Vaqueros 5-run 3rd inning Leavitt contributed a RBI single up the middle. An inning later he was hit by a pitch.

“He came at me with a fastball and I got a good swing on it,” Leavitt said of his 3rd inning at-bat.

KORBIN KRUGER keyed the 5-run 3rd inning with a 2-run double.

TYRONE WIGGINS slugged a solo home run in the 5th inning and ARMON WORRELL whacked an RBI double in his first varsity at-bat in the same frame.

Rust, Moorman and McBurney combined for 8 hits, 8 runs scored and 3 RBI among them.

Junior BRIAN WILSON contributed a pair of doubles and an RBI to the Vaqueros’ account.

Senior left-hander RANDY SCHREIBMAN pitched 5 innings, scattering 5 hits while striking out 5 and allowing no earned runs as he posted his second win against no losses.

“He’s kinda taken the reins as our No. 1 guy,” said Vickery of Schreibman, who owns a 1.40 ERA and has struck out 9 batters in 10 innings. “When he beat Rancho Bernardo about 70 percent of his pitches were changeups. He went to his fastball a lot more today.”

“What really makes him tough is he has three different speeds on his fastball. That just makes his changeup that much more effective. He never gives in to a hitter. The main thing we need to do to make him a really good pitcher is to get him to work ahead in the count.”

IAN McALLISTER and CAMERON MACKY each pitched a shutout inning for the Vaqueros.

“We had two outstanding innings from McAllister and Macky,” Vickery said. “They were making their debut this season.”

TRAVIS HOPPER and DANIEL STARWALT combined to pitch a 4-hitter against St. Augustine in Tuesday’s (Mar. 17) Hilltop-Lolita’s Tournament at Hickman Field.

Neither of the Saints’ runs was earned, as Hopper picked up his 17th career win while striking out 7 and walking none. He needed help at the end though, as the Saints (1-3) attempted a comeback with two outs in the bottom of the 7th.

“I thought Travis had it in the bag, but Hickman Field is in such bad condition he got burned by a bad-hop infield hit,” said Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS. “And then they got a bloop single to right and that led me to make a pitching change.”

Davis summoned freshman right-hander Starwalt out of the bullpen. It proved to be a wise move. Starwalt threw 4 pitches for a game-ending strikeout and his first career save.

“It wasn’t like I lost confidence in Hopper, because it was vintage Hopper out there on the mound today,” Davis said. “Our pitching has been just fine. Our problem is trying to find enough hitters to score a few more runs.”

Against the Saints, Granite Hills (1-3) took a 2-0 lead in the 2nd inning. ERIC BORTISSER drew a one-out walk and advanced to second on a base hit by EMILIO CAZARES. CHARLIE ST. CLAIRE moved the runners up with a sacrifice bunt. BRIAN CARROLL, who was 3-for-5 in the game, drove in both runners with a shot to left-center.

“Watch out for this kid,” Davis said. “Carroll’s really coming on. He’s hitting the ball to all fields.”

The Eagles doubled their lead in the 4th inning thanks to two St. Augustine errors.

DEAN MILLER drove in a run with an infield ground-out and Starwalt made it 4-0 with a basehit.

MAR VISTA 13, MOUNT MIGUEL 7 – Coach BYRON GRIGSBY of Mount Miguel sat in the home team dugout following Tuesday’s (Mar. 17) Bully’s East Tournament game trying to figure out how one of the best pitchers in the county could not come away with a win when he was supported by seven runs.

“When we score that many runs with RUDDY ACOSTA on the mound, there’s no way we should lose,” Grigsby said. “But the umpires won’t make up their mind what the strike zone is. That not only hurts my pitchers, it also hurts my hitters.”

Grigsby said he went out to ask the plate umpire what his strike zone was going to be.

“He told me it was going to be from the shoulders to the knees, and I said ‘Fine,’” Grigsby said. “But that’s not what he called, and that fouled up not only my pitchers but my hitters as well. They need to stick to what they say.”

The 6-foot-6, 195-pound Acosta, a junior right-hander, was tagged for 4 earned runs in four innings, yet left the game with a 5-4 mound. Freshman reliever JUWUN McCRAY surrendered 12 hits and 9 runs – 5 of them unearned – in 2-plus innings of relief.

The Matadors started out fast as TONY ALVAREZ hit the first of his 3 doubles to drive in JULIAN CHARLES in the 1st inning. JOAQUIN IBARRA followed with a home run, giving the Matadors a 3-0 lead.

Mar Vista countered with 4 runs in the 2nd inning but the Matadors regained the lead with a pair of markers in the 3rd. After Charles was hit by a pitch, Acosta tripled and Alvarez doubled to make it 5-4.

The Matadors, however, could not counter the 9 runs by the Mariners (4-0) in the final two innings.

“We shouldn’t get involved in a slugfest when we have Ruddy on the mound,” Grigsby said. “I’m not sure what the problem is but I know the inconsistency of the umpires’ strike zone is really hurting him.”

SD-SOUTHWEST 10, EL CAJON VALLEY 5 – Shoddy defense once again spelled costly for the visiting El Cajon Valley Braves in Tuesday’s (Mar. 17) Bully’s East Tournament contest in South Bay.

Four errors by the Braves (1-5) added up to four unearned runs that ultimately led to their demise.

The Braves out-hit the Raiders 12-11, as ABEL CERVANTES, EFREN PADILLA, GAVINO PINAL, DAVID SANCHEZ and EDWIN TORRES had two hits apiece for the Braves.

Cervantes, who was tagged for his third pitching loss in as many decisions, was 2-for-4 with an RBI double. ANTHONY JACKSON clubbed an RBI double, DAVID SANCHEZ doubled in a pair and BRENT HARRIS plated a run with a sacrifice fly.

“We didn’t do a good job of hitting with runners in scoring position,” El Cajon Valley coach MIKE RUPP said. “And our fielding left a lot to be desired.”

CIENEGA (Ariz.) 14, HELIX 2 – So far Helix’s visit to the southern Arizona desert has been no oasis.

In Tuesday’s (Mar. 17) second round of the Salpointe Lancer Classic in Tucson, Ariz. three Helix pitchers were smacked around for 17 hits by the Bobcats (7-3) of Cienega (Ariz.).

By the time the Highlanders (2-5) – losers of their last three games – came to bat they trailed 3-0. JAKE REED slugged a solo home run in the bottom of 1st inning.

Helix scored again in the 3rd inning on doubles by ANTHONY DIAZ and TREVOR SOTO. By then, though, the Scotties trailed 6-2.

Soto, one of the East County’s top hitters at .381 (8 for 21), accounted for two of Helix’s five hits.

© East County Sports.com
CLAIREMONT (3-17-09) — It was a game Christian High coach MIKE MITCHELL was pretty sure his Patriots (3-1) would win. And they did clobber High Tech High, 12-2, on Monday (Mar.16) in a Christian Patriots Tournament encounter at the Balboa Youth Baseball Complex.

MICHAEL STOWERS’ two-run double capped a 5-run 1st inning that included five walks. MICHAEL GRUBER cracked a two-run home run in the 2nd and TAYLOR EICHHORST smacked a solo shot in the 3rd to make it 8-0.

But it wasn’t his offense that pleased Mitchell most. It was the pitching of freshman right-hander CODY POTEET, who limited the Storm to three hits and one run in 5 1/3 innings. Poteet struck out 10 and walked none.

“We got everybody in and the younger guys got to bat,” said Mitchell. “Cody did a great job on the mound. He threw 66 pitches in five innings – we let him face the first batter in the 6th. He could have finished the game but we wanted to give MIKE FERREIRA some work.”

CATALINA (Ariz.) 7, HELIX 6 (8 inn.) – The Helix Highlanders played giveaway in Monday’s (Mar. 16) opening round of the Salpointe Lancer Classic in Tucson, Ariz.

After building a 6-3 lead over the Catalina (Ariz.) Trojans, the Highlanders caved in. They allowed 3 runs in the bottom of the 7th and one in the last of the 8th to suffer their fourth setback in six starts.

“We walked their No. 9 hitter three times and it finally burned us in the 7th inning,” said Helix assistant coach MIKE MILLER.

The Highlanders eventually lost the game when the Trojans fused a pair of singles, a walk and an error into the winning marker.

Helix overcame an early 2-0 deficit with 5 runs in the 3rd inning. BENNY GUERRERO’s two-run single was the key blow.

Three of Catalina’s runs were unearned.

“Of the four games we’ve lost, we were leading three of them in the 5th inning,” Helix coach COLE HOLLAND said.

© East County Sports.com
CHULA VISTA (3-15-09) — Veteran coach STEVE VICKERY of El Capitan must have wondered what was going on when his Vaqueros fell behind Bonita Vista 5-0 in the top of the 2nd inning on Saturday (Mar. 14) in the Hilltop-Lolita’s Tournament.

Stunned as he was at the time Vickery had to be pleased in the end when BROOKS NOBLE laced a single up the middle in the bottom of the 7th inning to score KYLE MILLS with the winning run in the 6-5 victory over the Barons.

Noble, a 6-foot-4 junior, drove in El Capitan’s first run with a deep drive to centerfield for a sacrifice fly in the 2nd inning.

“The biggest thing was Noble hit the ball hard in the 2nd inning for a sacrifice fly, and he hit a key sacrifice in the 6th inning, and then came up big with a guy in scoring position in the 7th,” Vickery said. “He has become a lot more aggressive at the plate, looks for a good pitch to hit. I like the change in his approach.”

TYRONE WIGGINS, the Vaqueros’ leadoff hitter, doubled in a run in the 2nd inning and singled in another run in the 6th to tie the game 5-5.

In the bottom of the 7th KORBIN KRUGER led off with a shot that glanced off the shortstop’s glove for a base hit. Kruger was replaced by a pinch runner who was promptly picked off. Mills rekindled the Vaqueros’ rally by drawing a walk on four pitches. He took second on a passed ball and hustled to third when RYAN McBURNEY struck out and the catcher scrambled to throw to first base for the second out.

CRAIG LEAVITT was intentionally walked. The Barons ignored Leavitt and allowed him to take second base without a play.

It came down to a duel between Bonita Vista reliever junior Jesse Hernandez and Noble, and the nod went to Noble for delivering the game-winning blow.

“Bonita Vista swings the bat really well,” said Vickery. “We gave up a big inning and it took us seven innings to overcome it. Most of the time that beats you. I’m happy with my kids for battling. That’s what we have got to get better at.”

El Capitan relievers MICHAEL FLORES and ANTHONY VIGIL blanked the Barons over the final 2 innings with Vigil gaining the pitching win.

Hayes started the Santana scoring spree in the 1st inning when he lined a double to right field. An error on the Valhalla first baseman on a ball hit by DALLAS SEIDEL allowed Hayes to score and Seidel to take second. A single to JAMES NEEDY cashed in Seidel to make it 2-0 after one inning.

A Valhalla error opened the door to the 5-run inning. A bunt single by CODY SMITH extended the inning and Hayes was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Seidel then slashed a single over the head of the third baseman to score 2 runs. Needy came through with his second RBI hit to make it 5-0.

KEVIN FERREIRA then singled up the middle to drive in 2 more runs, staking Santana to a 7-0 lead after three innings.

Hayes, who picked up his 2nd win in three decisions, blanked the Norsemen on one hit over four innings while striking out 7.

“Hayes threw a dynamite game,” said Santana coach JERRY HENSON.

Valhalla coach MIKE WILSON agreed. "Hayes threw the ball well today. He will be tough to beat this year,” he said.

Stutz pitched the final four innings to earn the save.

Valhalla avoided the shutout when CISCO TELLEZ drove in a run with an infield grounder in the 5th inning.

MATT GONZALEZ, who was 2-for-3 for the Norsemen, drove in a run with a basehit in the 7th. DANNY HAWKSLEY walked with the bases loaded to cash in Valhalla ’s final run in the last inning.

WILL COOMBS was the hardluck loser for Valhalla.

"Will is a pleasant surprise so far as he is stepping into our #3 role this year,” said Wilson. “I was very pleased with his outing today. It's not easy to pitch on a day when only 2 of 7 runs are earned, but he didn't let that stop him from what he should have been doing, throwing strikes."

CHRISTIAN 14, THE BISHOP’S 3 – The Patriots cranked out 14 hits and overcame a 3-0 1st-inning deficit in Saturday’s (Mar. 14) Christian Patriots Tournament.

Coach MIKE MITCHELL shook up his batting order for the Patriots’ joust with the visiting Knights. It obviously paid off.

MICHAEL GRUBER was 3-for-3 with a double, three runs scored and three RBI for the Patriots (2-1). JOSH WOLFSON, the former Christian leadoff hitter, drove in three runs and scored three with a triple and a single batting in the No. 3 slot.

SHAUN DAY, moved to the top of the order, was 3-for-4 with three runs scored.

In the new order, Christian’s top six hitters were a combined 13-for-21 (.619) with 10 RBI and 11 runs.

While Mitchell was pleased with the Patriots’ punch, he was equally as excited by Christian’s pitching effort.

“Our pitchers did a much better job throwing strikes today,” he said. “We came out and played well after playing really lousy in the last game (a 23-5 loss to Horizon).”

MICHAEL KAUFMANN, a 6-foot-3, 215-pound freshman left-hander twirled four innings to notch his first varsity win. BRAD ROBERTSON and MICHAEL FERRIERA combined to blank Bishop’s on two hits over the final three frames.

MOUNT MIGUEL 10, SD-SOUTHWEST 7 – And they thought all Mount Miguel 6-foot-6 junior RUDDY ACOSTA could do is pitch.

Well, Acosta wasn’t on the mound in Saturday’s (Mar. 14) Bully’s East Tournament encounter at San Diego Southwest. But he did make an impact with the bat, belting a two-run home run in the 1st inning and finishing 2-for-4 with 3 RBI and 3 runs scored.

Acosta’s 3-run home run in the 1st inning provided the spark to Mount Miguel ’s second win in three starts. Acosta also clubbed a double.

JULIAN CHARLES continued his torrid hitting for the Matadors with 4 hits – one a triple – 2 runs and a pair of RBI. The junior right-hander also pitched the final two innings.

JUWUN McCRAY was 2-for-3 for Mount Miguel.

“We’re getting better, we’re starting to believe in ourselves,” said BYRON GRIGSBY said. “I thought we really hit the ball well today and we are starting to take advantage of all our opportunities. Our pitching is getting much better. I think we have a chance to be pretty decent team.”

EASTLAKE 6, STEELE CANYON 3 – Getting off to a fast start has been an Achilles' Heel for the Steele Canyon Cougars, who have allowed each of their first four foes to score in the opening inning.

Eastlake (1-3) took a 2-0 edge in the 1st inning and made it 5-0 in the 3rd as the Titans handed visiting Steele Canyon (2-2) its second straight loss in Saturday’s (Mar. 14) Foothiller-Aztec Classic action.

“It was a frustrating loss,” Cougars coach TODD SNYDER said. “We’re giving up too many hits on 0-1 and 0-2 counts. Falling behind early like we have hasn’t helped either. But we’re not going into panic mode.”

Probably the biggest concern at the moment is the health of third baseman- pitcher DANNY MacINTYRE. The senior right-hander injured his pitching hand when he dived into first base for an apparent single in the 2nd inning. The base umpire called him safe, but was overruled by the plate umpire.

Snyder was not sure of the extent of MacIntyre’s injury, but believed his No. 3 starting pitcher jammed his fingers rather than broke them.

“We need to have Danny out there every day,” Snyder said. “I don’t know how long he will be out.”

A pair of Eastlake errors set the stage for NOLAN MURRAY’s RBI single in the 5th. MICHAEL CASTRO followed with a run-scoring double.

The same combination provided Steele Canyon with its final run in the 7th inning. Murray smacked a two-out single, stole his second base of the game and scored on Castro’s base hit.

Murray paced Steele Canyon’s 8-hit attack with a 3-for-14 effort in the lead-off spot.

“Nolan wanted the leadership role and that is why he’s one of our team captains,” Snyder said. “He’s hitting something like .700 right now.”

OLYMPIAN 3, EL CAJON VALLEY 2 – It was a strange game for the visiting Braves in Saturday’s (Mar. 14) Bully’s East Tournament contest at Olympian.

It was also somewhat positive even though it resulted in a loss.

El Cajon Valley (1-4) received strong pitching from 6-foot-6, 210-pound junior JIMMY CATLITT and sophomore EDWIN TORRES combined for a seven-hitter in a losing effort. The duo issued only one walk between them and El Cajon Valley ’s defense did not commit an error.

The Braves scored in the opening frame when DAVID SANCHEZ singled, advanced to second on a wild pitch and scored on BRENT HARRIS’ double.

After Michael Cordova put Olympian on top with a 2-run home run in the 5th inning, the Braves tied it in the 6th. Harris drilled a one-out double and ABNER GARCIA and ESTABAN HERRERA slashed back-to-back singles.

Olympian had the last word by scoring the winning marker in the bottom of the 7th inning.

“I was happy that we finally played good defense and the pitchers threw strikes,” said El Cajon Valley coach MIKE RUPP. “We didn’t hit well, but I know the bats will come around. They just did a good job of keeping us off balance.”

Grossmont starting pitcher Nick Gaspar (Photo by Cathy Gaspar)

Grossmont (3-1) surrendered 3 unearned runs and that made the difference as the Bulldogs (2-5) registered the upset.

“After the intense game we played at Steele Canyon yesterday (a win for the Foothillers), I think our kids were kinda under the belief that they would show up and win today,” Grossmont coach JIM EARLEY said. “This will be better for us in the long run.”

Calexico right-hander Luis Briseno turned in the complete pitching victory.

“He kept us off balance all day,” Earley said. “He was throwing fastballs, changeups and sliders. We just didn’t get a whole lot together.”

“We gave up a couple of 0-2 hits, and made three errors and they were killers,” Earley said.

COLTER RIOS was 2-for-2 with a run scored for the Foothillers.

HILLTOP 5, GRANITE HILLS 3 – Coach JAMES DAVIS must have felt pretty good when he saw DYLAN GARCIA drive in BRIAN CARROLL (walk) with the Eagles’ first home run of the season in Saturday’s (Mar. 14) opening inning of the Hilltop-Lolita’s Tournament at Hilltop.

But the Lancers (2-1) wiped out that early edge with two tallies in the bottom of the 1st and pilfered the victory with three more runs in the 6th inning.

“We are struggling, we haven’t figured out how to win yet,” said Eagles coach JAMES DAVIS. “We’ll turn the ship around eventually.”

Granite Hills, which at 0-3 is off to its poorest start in recent memory, took a 3-2 advantage without benefit of a hit in the 3rd inning. JARED OLEJNICZAK and Garcia drew walks and advanced 90 additional feet thanks to a wild pitch. Freshman DANIEL STARWALT hoisted a sacrifice fly to score Olejniczak.

Carroll spearheaded the Eagles’ anemic attack with a triple and a single.

RAMONA 3, HELIX 2 – Of the five games Helix has played this year Saturday’s (Mar. 14) Foothiller-Aztec Classic setback to Ramona at Vista had to gnaw on the nerves of Highlanders coach COLE HOLLAND the most.

“When you make 6 errors in the game you are fortunate to be in a game,” Holland said. “We had our chances and just couldn’t push across the key run.”

What the Highlanders (2-3) did was blow a 2-0 advantage over the final three innings.

ANTHONY DIAZ, who was 3-for-4 at the top of the Helix batting order, opened the game with a base hit and eventually scored on TYLER SOTO’s single.

Helix made it 2-0 in the 4th inning as Soto singled, skipped to second on ARMANDO RODRIGUEZ’s sacrifice bunt. A pair of passed balls by the Ramona backstop permitted Soto to score.

Ramona (2-2) picked up unearned runs in the 5th and 6th innings to knot the score at 2-2.

After the Bulldogs took the lead on Alex Willeford’s base hit in the top of the 7th, Helix positioned itself for a tie in the bottom of the frame. However, in the bottom of the 7th Helix had runners on first and second when a called third strike ended the game.

TRI-CITY CHRISTIAN 8, FOOTHILLS CHRISTIAN 7 – One thing about the Knights this year is they seem to be a bit more competitive. They built a 7-4 lead in Saturday’s (Mar. 14) Eagles-Warriors Classic contest at MiraCosta College, but couldn’t hold on.

Foothills Christian (1-1) saw its pitchers combine to spin a 3-hitter. That was the positive part. Walking 10 – that really hurt. So did four Knights errors, which helped TCC score the final four runs to steal the victory.

“In defense of the pitchers, they all gutted it out,” said Foothills Christian coach STEVE PERDUE. “Frosh right-hander JORDAN LANCASTER started and while hitting in the bottom of the 2nd, fouled a pitch off into his nose. He was replaced right then with a pinch-hitter, but Lancaster returned to gut out the 2nd and 3rd innings. He was taken to Kaiser Zion emergency room with a possible broken nose.”

Foothills’ BRANDON JAROSIN pitched 3 shutout innings of hitless relief and struck out 4.

TRAVIS GEORGE was 2-for-2 with three runs scored and IAN MURPHY, catching with a tight hamstring, was 2-for-2 with 3 RBI for the Knights (1-1).

“This is a very young team that played hard all day,” Perdue said. “Lack of pitching depth due to early season arm soreness really was our downfall.”

MATER DEI 7, WEST HILLS 0 – Seems it’s all-or-nothing for the Wolf Pack of West Hills. Win big or lose big.

So far the boys from west Santee have not been involved in anything close to a pitching duel. Saturday’s (Mar. 14) Foothiller-Aztec Classic engagement against the Crusaders (2-2) at Eastlake was West Hills’ closest game of the season.

The Wolf Pack offense, which was blanked for the second time in four starts, consisted of singles by CHRIS ALLEN, MICHAEL LOBAUGH and BRENNAN TAYLOR against Mater Dei’s Carlos Rodriguez, who went the distance.

“We are just not playing consistent baseball right now,” noted West Hills coach CHRIS BAUM. “We are hitting the ball, but hit too many fly balls today. We are making contact, just not finding holes right now.”

VISTA 17, MONTE VISTA 2 – The Monarchs’ trip to Vista was no pleasure cruise in Saturday’s (Mar. 14) Foothiller-Aztec Classic blowout.

The Panthers (3-1) scored in each of the last five innings, including 9 times in the 6th frame to send the Monarchs reeling to their third loss in four outings.

No. 10-ranked Vista riddled four Monte Vista pitchers for 18 hits. The Monarchs have been outscored 51-8 this season.

ADAM TIMANUS led an anemic Monarchs offense with three hits, a stolen base, a run and one RBI.

The Monarchs made a game of it for awhile. Trailing 3-0 in the 3rd inning, Monte Vista got base hits from Timanus and TOMMY DEMARS plus walks from MATT BOELTER and CARLOS OCHOA to produce a run.

Timanus added an RBI single in the 4th.

© East County Sports.com
LA MESA (3-14-09) — In his heyday as manager of the Oakland A’s, the late Billy Martin would love the style of play adopted by coach COLE HOLLAND and his Helix Highlanders.

Knocking home runs is not in the Helix playbook. The Highlanders’ offensive “attack” is small ball.

“Billyball,” devised by Martin in the late 1970s and early 1980s, is comprised of bunts, stolen bases, hit-and-run and anything that does not involve the power game.

“I told my kids ‘If you can’t lay down a bunt, I don’t need you,’” said Holland. “Everybody on our team can bunt.”

Although the Highlanders’ 9-6 victory over visiting Eastlake on Friday (Mar. 13) as a part of the Foothiller-Aztec Classic had hints of being a slugfest, it was anything but.

The Highlanders collected 11 hits – all singles – as they scored in five of their six turns at bat.

“We laid down 6 bunts – 4 of them went for base hits and 2 of them were sacrifices,” Holland said. “That’s our game. We don’t have the kind of team that can wait around for the 3-run homer, we have to manufacture runs by taking advantage of our speed and ability to put the ball in play.”

“Our team takes pride in executing the perfect bunt. If you advance a runner or reach base, you know when you get back to the dugout you’re going to get mobbed by your teammates.”

Trailing 5-4 entering the 5th inning the Highlanders took the lead by scoring 3 runs. That rally started with KEVIN SCOTT’s drag bunt single. DYLAN NICKERSON was hit by a pitch, and the runners advanced into scoring position on BENNY GUERRERO’s sacrifice bunt. ANTHONY DIAZ singled in Scott to tie the game, 5-5.

JAKE REED singled to reload the bases. Junior TYLER SOTO then singled to score Nickerson and Diaz to put the Highlanders (2-2) on top for good.

Helix padded its lead in the 6th inning with a pair of runs. Of course that rally involved a bunt single by Scott and a sacrifice bunt by Nickerson. Eastlake chipped in with a throwing error to plate one run and Diaz drove in the other with a sacrifice fly.

MIKE LOPEZ turned in 2 2/3 innings of hitless relief to pick up the win.

Granite Hills wasted six innings of shutout relief by 6-foot-2, 173-pound freshman DANIEL STARWALT, who followed a strong start by DEAN MILLER. The 6-foot-3 Miller held Mission Bay to just 2 runs on 6 hits over the first five frames.

“You can’t ask for better pitching than that,” said Eagles coach JAMES DAVIS.

Starwalt was also 3-for-5 with 2 doubles and 2 RBI. Miller was 2-for-5 with 2 runs scored and an RBI.

Too bad this is a 9-man game.

Granite Hills snapped a 2-2 tie with three runs in the 13th inning.

BRIAN CARROLL doubled to left-center to leadoff the inning and advanced to third on RONNIE VAN HAGEN’s sacrifice bunt. Carroll coasted home on DYLAN GARCIA’s double, giving the Eagles a 3-2 lead. Miller singled to put runners at the corners and Starwalt followed with an RBI double. After Olejniczak walked to load the bases, TYLER JOWORSKI hoisted a fly ball to score Miller, making it 5-2.

“I really thought we had it then,” Davis said.

Not so.

Mission Bay (1-1) came thundering back against reliever Von Hagen. The Buccaneers’ Robert Phiakeo drove a ball to deep left field, but it appeared that the Eagles’ Miller – who had moved to the outfield after pitching – was in position to make a circus catch to rob the Bucs of a game-tying 3-run homer.

Miller leaped up over the fence and appeared to have the ball in his glove, but couldn’t hold it, and the game was tied.

“I asked Dean if he actually caught that ball, and he said he did,” Davis said. “I mean this was one of those late night highlight reel plays – the top half of his body was completely over the fence. I saw the ball hit Dean’s glove but he told me when he came down with it his arm hit the fence and the ball fell out of his glove. Unfortunately, it fell on the wrong side of the fence.”

Before the Eagles finished lamenting Miller’s near-miss, Mission Bay ’s Harvey Bersalona slashed a one-out triple. But even after that blow the Eagles looked like they might be able to escape and force the game to continue.

Mission Bay ’s Eric Espinosa slapped a ground ball to third base. Bersalona broke for the plate but the Granite Hills third baseman threw to first base for the second out of the inning, allowing Bersalona to score the game-winning run.

“I couldn’t believe it. We had that guy dead coming to the plate, but for some reason we made the wrong play,” said Davis.

After falling behind 2-0 in the first four innings Granite Hills (0-2) picked up a run on back-to-back doubles by Miller and Starwalt in the 5th inning, and then tied the game on JARED OLEJNICZAK’s RBI single with one out in the 7th.

“I think we’re going to be all right, but we just don’t know how to win yet,” Davis said. “We hit the ball hard all day but not very many of them fell in our favor.”

The Foothillers (3-0) snapped a 4-4 tie with a 2-out rally in the 5th inning. ALEX OHLSON was hit by a pitch and raced to third when pitcher LEVI STEVENS doubled. BRETT ETHERTON then supplied the big blow as he doubled in both runners.

That would be all Stevens (2-0), a senior left-hander, would need to win a pitching duel with Steele Canyon ace ANDREW BELLATTI.

“Levi was on – he was dealing,” said Grossmont coach JIM EARLEY. “He made only a couple of bad pitches, otherwise he was pretty sound.”

The two times Steele Canyon burned Stevens was like déjà vu. Stevens hit DANNY MacINTYRE in the 2nd inning and Bellatti followed with a home run, which at the time cut Grossmont’s lead to 3-2.

Ditto for the 4th inning. MacIntyre drew a walk and scored on another home run by Bellatti, which tied the game at 4-4.

“We definitely didn’t play our best game today,” said Cougars coach TODD SNYDER.” Our players know where we stand. We didn’t make physical mistakes. I still feel like we can play with anyone. It’s hard to lose the first one.”

Despite his power swings, Bellatti surrendered 10 hits but only 3 earned runs in a complete game effort as he suffered his first loss in two decisions. The Cal State Fullerton-bound Bellatti struck out 7 and walked one.

Stevens, who also authored a complete game, limited the Cougars to 5 hits while striking out 4.

STEVEN BRAULT, CONOR MEREDITH, WILL SOTO and Stevens had 2 hits apiece for the Foothillers.

“We are what we are,” Earley said. “We’re not going to be banging the ball out of the park like we have in past years. We’re just going to put the ball in play and make things happen. That’s what we did today.”

teed off on two Monte Vista pitchers for 12 hits, including three home runs in Friday’s (Mar. 13) Foothiller-Aztec Classic action.

BRENNAN TAYLOR was 2-for-3 with a solo home run and pitched six innings of two-hit ball against the Monarchs (1-2). Taylor logged 7 strikeouts before SAM LINDAHL finished the job pitching a perfect 7th with a pair of strikeouts.

“It was a great bounce-back game from Wednesday (an 11-0 loss to Vista ),” said West Hills coach CHRIS BAUM. “We hit the ball hard all day.”

Catcher MICHAEL LOBAUGH was 2-for-4 with a home run and 4 RBI, while COLE BUDVARSON belted a solo homer to break a 1-1 deadlock in the 2nd inning.

West Hills’ latest conquest wasn’t all about the long ball. The Wolf Pack also stole 8 bases, including 2 each by DAVID BRYAN, TONY SPEARS and CHRIS ALLEN. Taylor and KYLE HOOPER added one theft apiece.

“We just played aggressive ball; that’s how this team likes to play and that’s how I like them to play,” Baum said. “A lot of the guys have the green light to steal.”

Monte Vista took a 1-0 lead in the opening inning. ADAM TIMANUS was hit by a pitch, advanced to second when MATT BOELTER walked and scored on a double by NICK SABO.

IVAN PARMA smacked an RBI double to account for the Monarchs second run in the 6th inning.

VALHALLA 6, CHULA VISTA 0 – Senior right-hander TREVOR FRANK blanked the Spartans during a 6-inning stint of Friday’s (Mar. 13) Foothiller-Aztec Classic contest in South Bay to run his pitching record to 2-0.

Frank allowed just three hits and one walk while striking out 7.

JOE KUSTER set Chula Vista (0-2) down in order in the final frame while striking out one.

"We played well today,” said Valhalla coach MIKE WILSON. “Trevor and Joe combined to pitch a great game today and BRYCE (MOSIER) did an excellent job behind the plate calling a good game. It really seemed like the battery was working well for us today."

Valhalla started its offensive surge with two outs in the bottom of the 1st inning when CISCO TELLEZ singled to right. JOSH AUSTEL then singled to left and Mosier walked to load the bases. Frank drew a second walk to make it 1-0.

In the 2nd inning with one out WILL COOMBS doubled. Chula Vista ’s pitching continued to be off the mark as MATT GONZALES and ANTHONY GONZALES walked to load the bases. Tellez then took one for the team as he was hit by a pitch to make it 2-0.

Valhalla took command in the 3rd inning by punching across three runs. Frank provided the spark with a double down the left field line. AUSTIN HENSLEY ripped a single to right to put runners at the corners. NICK BROWN singled to left, scoring Frank. After Coombs put down a successful sacrifice bunt to advance the runners, Anthony Gonzales doubled to right to make it 5-0.

Tellez and Austel paced Valhalla ’s 9-hit attack with 2 hits apiece.

MONTGOMERY 2, SANTANA 1 – This one belonged to blue chip pitchers JAMES NEEDY of Santana and Abraham Torres of Montgomery.

The visiting Sultans (1-2) gave Needy the early edge in Friday’s (Mar. 13) Foothiller-Aztec Classic, scoring their lone tally in the 1st inning. It was a two-out rally as KYLE HAYES doubled and rode home on DALLAS SEIDEL’s single.

Santana would outhit the Aztecs 6-4, but Montgomery (3-0) remained undefeated, scoring runs in the 6th and 7th innings.

“Montgomery’s a good ballclub and we’re a good ballclub,” Santana coach JERRY HENSON said. “It could have gone either way. We more or less beat ourselves with errors and walks. We only had two walks but the first one we gave up scored.”

A two-base throwing error helped the Aztecs score the winning marker.

“It should have been the third out, which would have sent the game into extra innings,” Henson said.

Hayes had two hits off Torres, who struck out 8 and walked none.

FOOTHILLS CHRISTIAN 10, JULIAN 6 – Visiting Foothills Christian must have enjoyed the crisp mountain air in Friday’s (Mar. 13) opening round of the Eagles-Warriors Classic as they began the season with a victory over host Julian.

The Knights did not head for the hills to sample the apple pie. They meant business, taking an 8-0 lead over the Eagles in the 5th inning under first year head coach STEVE PERDUE.

Sophomore JR ATTERBURY pitched 3 solid innings to get the win and was also 3-for-4 with 2 RBI.

“In addition to Atterbury, freshman JORDAN LANCASTER was thrown to the wolves without much instruction and showed great passion and competitiveness,” said Perdue.

Lancaster logged two innings before BRANDON JAROSIN and TRAVIS GEORGE came on to pitch one inning apiece to finish the job.

“Travis George, one of only two seniors on our roster, was outstanding at the plate going 3-for-5,” Perdue said. “He did a good job in centerfield before closing out the game on the mound. He is a legit D-I kid.”

Freshman first baseman DILLON WALSH was 2-for-4 with 2 RBI and shortstop Jarosin also had 2 hits. Senior catcher IAN MURPHY contributed a double, 3 RBI and a stolen base.

The Knights were aggressive on the bases with 8 stolen bases.

“This team was ready to play thanks to assistant head coach DAVE LEWIS, who ran the team the first few weeks while I was out of town with an ill uncle who passed on Tuesday,” Perdue said. “I get the win on my coaching record but this one belongs to a good friend and a very loyal and outstanding coach, Dave Lewis.”

© East County Sports.com
SPRING VALLEY (3-13-09) — Don’t look for the Mount Miguel Matadors to be pushovers this season. Fifth-year head coach BYRON GRIGSBY has assembled probably the best team he’s had during his reign.

After falling behind 6-0 to visiting Olympian (0-2) in Thursday’s (Mar. 12) Bully’s East Tournament game, the Matadors (1-1) tied it with 6 runs in the 5th inning and then won it 7-6 on JOAQUIN IBARRA’s sacrifice fly in the bottom of the 7th.

“We showed some character today,” said Grigsby. “We were down 6-0 and we found a way to win. We didn’t quit.”

Freshman JUWUN McCRAY turned in 6 impressive innings of relief, limiting the Eagles to one run and one hit to earn the victory.

Junior JULIAN CHARLES clubbed a grand slam to left-center for the key blow in Mount Miguel ’s big 5th inning.

That cut Olympian’s lead to 6-5.

Junior RUDDY ACOSTA followed Charles’ blow with a double and advanced to third on a wild pitch. Ibarra, a junior, came through with a basehit to score Acosta with the tying run.

Charles sparked the winning rally with a leadoff single in the 7th. Acosta walked. An Olympian error then loaded the bases with nobody out, setting the stage for Ibarra’s heroics.

The hub of Mount Miguel ’s defense is senior catcher TONY ALVAREZ, who came up big against Olympian, throwing out three would-be base-stealers.

“Tony had a good day behind the plate today,” Grigsby said.

“We didn’t stop the big innings for a couple of reasons,” said Vaqueros coach STEVE VICKERY. “One was through faulty pitching, the other through faulty defense. We did not come through in the clutch when we had the opportunity to do so.”

TANNER RUST, KORBIN KRUGER, KYLE MILLS, RYAN McBURNEY and BROOKS NOBLE had 2 hits apiece for El Capitan (1-1). Bunching those hits was a different matter however.

After Fallbrook scored 4 runs in the top of the 1st the Vaqueros cut that advantage in half in the bottom of the frame.

TYRONE WIGGINS doubled to left centerfield to start El Capitan ’s comeback bid. Rust followed with a line-drive single to left, putting runners at the corners. CHARLES MOORMAN belted a flyball to deep centerfield, allowing Wiggins to coast home. Kruger then lined a double down the left-field line to score Rust.

The Warriors tacked on four more runs in the top of the 4th as they exposed El Capitan ’s questionable pitching. Two Vaquero errors aided Fallbrook (1-1) in scoring three unearned runs.

Noble doubled and scored on an error in the bottom of the 4th, and then drove in the Vaqueros final run with an infield grounder an inning later.

CASTLE PARK 8, EL CAJON VALLEY 5 – Senior ABEL CERVANTES went 4-for-4 with a triple, 3 runs scored and allowed only 2 earned runs in 5 1/3 innings, but it wasn’t enough to carry the El Cajon Valley Braves in Thursday’s (Mar. 12) Bully’s East Tournament against visiting Castle Park.

Cervantes, who is batting at a .563 clip (9 for 16) with 6 runs scored, 4 extra base hits and 4 steals, continues to be an East County force.

Against the usually light-hitting Trojans (2-0), Cervantes was sabotaged by 6 El Cajon Valley errors and thus suffered his second loss in as many decisions.

“We didn’t make the plays today,” said Braves coach MIKE RUPP. “Six errors cost us the game. Cervantes pitched well enough to win, we just didn’t play well enough behind him.”

Trailing 5-2 in the 5th inning Cervantes ignited a Braves comeback with a leadoff single. One out later EFREN PADILLA was hit by a pitch. The runners advanced on a 2-out wild pitch and scored on a double by DAVID SANCHEZ.

After the Trojans extended their advantage with three runs in the 6th, Cervantes again attempted to bring El Cajon Valley back as he led off with a triple in the bottom of the 7th. He scored on Padilla’s groundout, but the Braves could do no more.

© East County Sports.com
RANCHO SAN DIEGO (3-12-09) — Those who may have thought that Steele Canyon’s winning of the Grossmont South League championship a year ago was a fluke had better stay tuned. The Cougars (2-0) are ready to repeat.

Leadoff hitter NOLAN MURRAY and the bottom third of the order – consisting of DUSTIN DEGLER, MICHAEL CASTRO and CLAYTON ROYER – combined for the 8-2 victory over Mater Dei with 8 hits, 6 RBI and 6 runs in Wednesday’s (Mar. 11) second round of the Foothiller-Aztec Classic.

After Mater Dei took a 2-0 lead, the Cougars erupted for 4 runs in the bottom of the 2nd inning.

One out walks to ANDREW BELLATTI and BRAD BOEHMKE set the stage for Degler’s 2-run double into the left-centerfield gap to tie the game. Royer slashed a 2-out single to drive in Degler to give Steele Canyon the lead. Murray, who was 3-for-4, then tripled to score Royer.

That would be all the run support Cougars pitchers NATHAN O’TOOLE and CODY KLOPP would need to post the victory.

But the Cougars weren’t through with their offensive charge. With one out in the 4th Degler singled and stole second. Castro walked. Royer and Murray followed with run-scoring singles. A Mater Dei error allowed a third run to score in the inning.

For good measure Steele Canyon tacked on an insurance run in the 6th frame as Degler singled and scored on a double by Castro.

“Degler is probably our biggest surprise,” said Steele Canyon coach TODD SNYDER. “He’s come a long, long way. He’s very athletic. He wanted to be a shortstop and worked very hard to earn that spot. But he’s turned into being a great right fielder. He runs down everything – covers a lot of ground.”

Degler finished 3-for-3 with 3 runs and 2 RBI against Mater Dei.

“He’s strong and we worked at compacting his swing so that now he makes solid contact,” said Snyder.

O’Toole struggled with his control a bit, walking 5 and allowing 5 hits, but the upside is he struck out 5 in his five inning stint to earn the victory.

Klopp was lights out in relief with 2 hitless innings and one strikeout.

“I get the idea that people think we don’t have much pitching except for our one main guy (Bellatti),” Snyder said. “But we have 6 or 7 really good arms. I think one of our biggest surprise pitchers will be DANNY MacINTYRE. I hope people will come out and see us – we have a lot to offer.”

GROSSMONT 6, HELIX 2 – Don’t look for the Grossmont Foothillers to batter opponents with a barrage of home runs. That simply is not going to happen.

What the Foothillers do have is solid pitching.

Six-foot-5, 195-pound senior AARON GRIFFIN blew away the visiting Helix Highlanders in Wednesday’s (Mar. 11) second round of the Foothiller-Aztec Classic with a complete game 3-hitter.

Griffin, whose brother A.J. GRIFFIN was a former San Diego CIF Player of the Year and presently a standout pitcher at the University of San Diego, is carving his way into the Foothillers pitching lore.

Aaron Griffin needed only 85 pitches to turn in a complete game in his first start of his senior season. He allowed only 3 hits, no earned runs and struck out 7.

“He’s so tough,” said Helix coach COLE HOLLAND of Griffin. “He throws hard but is able to throw his off-speed pitch for a strike any place in the count.”

Grossmont coach JIM EARLEY was pleased that Griffin was able to pitch as well as he did.

“We weren’t sure he would be able to go after he got hit by a linedrive right in the chest during our scrimmage last week,” Earley said. “It was unbelievable. We thought he ate the baseball. That’s how hard it was hit.”

Despite that blow, Griffin proved that he is a true pro. Over the last four innings he allowed only one hit, and then picked a runner off first base.

The Foothillers overcame a 2-0 deficit with 4 runs in the 4th frame.

EVAN POTTER, STEVEN BRAULT and CONOR MEREDITH supplied RBI singles and the Highlanders contributed a throwing error, allowing Grossmont to take the lead.

Grossmont (2-0) added two runs in the 5th inning as COLTER RIOS singled to right for an RBI and MARK VASQUEZ hoisted a sacrifice fly.

“We’ve had the lead in all three of our games,” said Holland whose team fell to 1-2. “But we haven’t been able to close games out. You have to be able to finish and that’s something we haven’t done.”

ANTHONY DIAZ was 2-for-3 including a 2-run single for the Highlanders in the 3rd inning.

MONTE VISTA 4, CHULA VISTA 2 – After a season-opening disaster against perennial power Montgomery when the Monarchs lost by 22 runs, second year head coach BRANDON ROGERS restored order on the Good Ship Monte Vista.

Visiting Chula Vista, however, took a 2-0 lead in the 2nd inning but the Monarchs refused to fold in Wednesday’s (Mar. 11) second round of the Foothiller-Aztec Classic. Monte Vista ’s pitchers NICK SABO, TOMMY DEMARS and ADAM TIMANUS slammed the door on the Spartans after that.

Offensively Monte Vista got up off the floor with a run in the bottom of the 2nd. IVAN PARMA singled, stole second and scored on CARLOS OCHOA’s basehit.

The Monarchs (1-1) tied the game in the 5th inning.

JOSH SANTIAVEZ walked, advanced to second on a basehit by Timanus and scored on MATT BOELTER’s single.

Monte Vista found victory lane in the 6th inning. BENNY GUERRERO led off with a single and advanced to third on a double by Ochoa. Junior KEVIN STARLING delivered the clutch hit of the day as he singled in both runners, giving the Monarchs the victory.

Demars, who pitched two shutout innings, got the win, and Timanus, who blanked the Spartans in the 7th, got the save.

Rogers refused to look back at the opening day debacle against Montgomery.

“Our pitching was much better,” Rogers said. “We’re a young team, but I was impressed with how we bounced back after falling behind again. I think our kids knew even though we were behind today that we weren’t out of the game.”

And that proved to be true.

CALEXICO 6, SANTANA 4 (8 inn.) – Even after spotting four 1st inning runs to visiting Calexico, the Sultans scurried back to tie the contest with 4 runs in the 4th inning of Wednesday’s (Mar. 11) second round of the Foothiller-Aztec Classic.

But the Bulldogs ultimately pulled out the game in the 8th inning on an RBI double by Erick Ochoa and a run-scoring single by Rudy Arellano.

Calexico’s winning rally came at the expense of Santana junior KYLE HAYES.

Offensively, the Sultans outhit the Bulldogs 8-5. Half of Santana’s hits came in its only scoring inning.

DALLAS SEIDEL led off with a double, CAMERON BALOUGH was hit by a pitch, and JAMES NEEDY singled to score Seidel. Sophomore ZACH BREIDT, the Santana football quarterback, whacked a 2-run double over the left-fielder’s head to drive in two more runs. Sophomore CHRIS CAMARDA, who was the Sultan’s starting pitcher, singled to score Breidt with the tying run.

“The little things beat us,” said Santana coach JERRY HENSON. “I’m not happy about the results, but as long as we learn from them I think it will pay off in the long run.”

Needy was 2-for-3 with the bat and pitched one shutout inning while striking out two.

RYAN STUTZ, in his quest to be a switch-hitter, went 2-for-4 from the left side.

HORIZON 23, CHRISTIAN 5 – MIKE MITCHELL has been coaching baseball for more than 20 years – 14 of them at Christian. Rarely has he seen a game as strange as Wednesday’s (Mar. 11) Christian Patriots Tournament encounter against Horizon at Sunshine Pony-Colt League field in Southeast San Diego.

Things started out well enough for the Patriots (1-1) as they stormed to a 5-0 lead after 3½ innings. JOSH WOLFSON drove in a pair of runs with a double and freshman CODY POTEET smacked his second varsity home run in as many games. It appeared Christian was on its way an easy victory.

Suddenly the plate umpire lost the strike zone. And so did the Christian pitchers.

The Patriots served up 14 walks, hit two batters, committed seven errors and allowed Horizon 11 hits. That mess computed to 23 runs – all of which came in the 4th and 5th innings.

“I’ve never had a team score 10 runs in an inning against one of my teams. Mitchell said. “I don’t really want to say anything about the umpiring, but I wasn’t happy.”

Horizon (3-0) has scored 48 runs in its first three starts in the Christian Patriots Tournament.

“We gave them 15 unearned runs,” Mitchell said of the Panthers. “You can’t beat anybody doing that.”

MONTGOMERY 8, VALHALLA 3 – The Norsemen (1-1) surrendered four unearned runs in Wednesday’s (Mar. 11) Foothiller-Aztec Classic contest with the 9th-ranked Aztecs of visiting Montgomery and it spelled doom.

The Aztecs (2-0), who have scored 30 runs in their first two games, erased a 1-0 Valhalla edge with 3 runs in the 2nd inning. The South Bay powerhouse kept piling it on until it led 6-1 in the 5th inning.

Valhalla made a comeback bid in the bottom off the 5th as TREVOR FRANK singled and scored on a home run by freshman AUSTIN HENSLEY, cutting Montgomery ’s lead in half.

Hensley was one of only two Inland players to club a home run in the seven games involving East County teams on Wednesday. Both longball guys are freshmen.

The Norsemen produced just four hits with MATT GONZALES and CISCO TELLEZ accounting for a single apiece.

VISTA 11, WEST HILLS 0 – Visiting Vista wasn’t too happy about losing its season opener to Santana and took its anger out on the Wolf Pack in Wednesday’s (Mar. 11) second round of the Foothiller-Aztec Classic.

The 10th-ranked Panthers (1-1) shredded West Hills starter ROBBY ROBLES for nine earned runs in the first four innings, including six in the opening frame.

“Robby couldn’t throw his breaking ball for strikes,” West Hills coach CHRIS BAUM said. “So they just jumped his fastball.

Vista’s Julian Esquibel, with help from reliever Chris Liuchan, combined for a 1-hit shutout. Esquibel, in fact, was pitching a perfect game for 4 1/3 innings before Wolf Pack senior BRENNAN TAYLOR laced a double down the left field line for their only hit.

The only other West Hills baserunner was COLE BUDVARSON, who was hit by a pitch by Esquibel leading off the 6th inning.

“We hit seven or eight balls hard and their shortstop (Larry East) made the plays every time,” Baum said. “It was Vista’s day and not ours.”

West Hills fell to 1-1.

Wed., Mar. 11

Foothiller-Aztec Classic COUGARS 8, CRUSADERS 2 Vista (1-1) West Hills (1-1) 600 320 0 - 11 11 0 000 000 0 - 00 01 2 Esquibel, Liuchan (7) and Irwin; Robles, Hegner (5), Enslow (7) and Lobaugh. W-Esquibel (1-0). L-Robles (0-1). BULLDOGS 6, SULTANS 4 (8 inn.) Calexico (1-3) Santana (1-1) 400 000 02 - 6 5 1 000 400 00 - 4 8 1 Garcia, Briseno (6) and Martinez ; Camarda, Oedewaldt (4), Seidel (4), Needy (6), Hayes (7) and Ferreira. W-Briseno (1-1). L-Hayes (1-1). AZTECS 8, NORSEMEN 3 Montgomery (2-0) Valhalla (1-1) 030 133 0 - 8 10 2 100 020 0 - 3 04 2 Lopez, ECarrillo (7) and NCarrillo; Tellez, Gross (5), Jezerski (7) and Mosier. HR-Hensley (V, 1) 5th, one on. W-Lopez (1-0). L-Tellez (0-1). S-ECarrillo (1).

Foothiller-Aztec Classic FOOTHILLERS 6, HIGHLANDERS 2 Helix (1-2) Grossmont (2-0) 002 000 0 - 2 3 3 000 420 x - 6 8 2 Reed, Lopez (4), Oliveria (5) and Gonzalez; Griffin and Ohlson. W-Griffin (1-0). L-Reed (0-1). MONARCHS 4, SPARTANS 2 Chula Vista (0-2) Monte Vista (1-1) 110 000 0 - 2 5 0 011 012 x - 4 8 3 LeMountain, Schwanke (5) and Rosas; Sabo, Demars (5), Timanus (7) and Ochoa. W-Demars (1-0). L-Schwanke. S-Timanus (1). Christian Patriots Tournament PANTHERS 23, PATRIOTS 5 Christian (1-1) 011 300 0-05 08 7 Horizon (3-0) 000 (13)(10)0 x-23 11 0 Ramirez, GSaquilon (6) and White; MPoteet, CPoteet (4), Allen (5), Maples (5), Stowers (6) and Gruber. HR-CPoteet (C, 1) 2nd, solo; Ramirez (H) 4th, one on; NSaquilon (H) 5th, two on. W-Ramirez. L-MPoteet (0-1).

© East County Sports.com
RANCHO BERNARDO (3-11-09) — Going into the season, El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY realized that pitching was an untested commodity for his ballclub. No big names – just fresh faces.

Vickery had to be pleased by what he saw in Tuesday’s (Mar. 10) opening round of the Hilltop-Lolita’s Tournament. Senior southpaw RANDALL SCHREIBMAN and junior lefty ANTHONY VIGIL combined to pitch a 5-hitter as the Vaqueros busted the Broncos 6-3.

“We just really came out aggressively,” said Vickery. “Our left-handed pitching really kept RB off stride.”

The El Capitan duo recorded 6 strikeouts and walked only 3.

KORBIN KRUGER paced the Vaqueros’ 13-hit attack with 3 hits and 2 RBI in four at-bats. Shortstop TANNER RUST also had 2 hits and a pair of RBI.

“I’m very pleased with the way we played today,” said Vickery. “We were very aggressive with the bats. We put pressure on Rancho Bernardo offensively. Schreibman really pounded the strike zone and Vigil gave us 2 strong innings in his first varsity experience.”

El Capitan took a 2-0 lead in the 3rd inning.

TYRONE WIGGINS led off with a double and advanced to third on an error by the right-fielder. Rust followed with a single up the middle to make it 1-0. CHARLES MOORMAN and Kruger each chipped in singles to load the bases.

With one out RYAN McBURNEY singled to right to score Rust.

El Capitan was at it again in the 4th as BRIAN WILSON led off with a double to right field. A drag bunt single up the first base line by Wiggins put runners at the corners with nobody out. Rust singled to left to make it 3-0. One out later Kruger singled up the middle to make it 4-0.

Leading 4-1 entering the 6th inning, the Vaqueros picked up two more runs on a RBI double by Moorman and a single to left by Kruger.

RANCHO BUENA VISTA 4, GRANITE HILLS 2 – For the first five innings of Tuesday’s (Mar. 10) opening round of the Hilltop-Lolita’s Tournament in El Cajon, neither the visiting Longhorns nor the host Eagles mustered a single hit.

Rancho Bernardo broke through in the 6th when Tony Wolters laced a 2-run homer off Eagles ace TRAVIS HOPPER.

The Eagles only error of the game helped RBV extend its advantage to 4-0 in the top of the 7th.

But Granite Hills battled back in the bottom of the 7th against Longhorns ace Jose Rodriguez. DYLAN GARCIA was hit by a pitch and basketball star DEAN MILLER followed with a single. Freshman DANIEL STARWALT followed with a single to load the bases. JARED OLEJNICZAK slashed a single, driving in Garcia. ERIC BORTISSER brought in Miller with a sacrifice fly, cutting the deficit in half.

A passed ball put the runners in scoring position as Starwalt and Olejniczak moved to second and third, respectively, with one out.

“At that point I thought we could at least tie the game,” said Eagles coach JAMES DAVIS.

That didn’t happen though, as Rodriguez put the finishing touches by logging a strikeout and coaxing a groundout.

“We’re young but we competed well,” said Davis. “RBV is a good ballclub. But I thought we did a good job of hanging with them. We have two freshmen in our starting lineup and I can’t remember the last time that’s happened at Granite Hills. They’re good players who are only going to get better.”

Hopper allowed only 6 hits and 2 earned runs, but was stuck with only his 5th loss in 21 career decisions.

The Trojans’ senior right-hander Jorge Quezada handcuffed the Matadors, spinning a 1-hitter and striking out 11 in a complete game outing.

A delayed double steal backfired and the Matadors came up empty.

“It was a learning experience,” said Matadors coach BYRON GRIGSBY. “We really didn’t believe in our offense. It’s a new group of guys and they really don’t believe in the philosophy yet.”

EL CAJON VALLEY 10, HOOVER 7 – EFREN PADILLA, BRENT HARRIS and ABEL CERVANTES combined to limit host Hoover to six hits and three earned runs Tuesday (Mar. 10) as the Braves posted their first win in three decisions.

The Braves barged in front 9-1 and then hung on.

Padilla (1-1) pitched the opening four innings to log the win. Cervantes, who started in center field, closed out the Cardinals with 1 2/3 innings of perfect relief. He struck out three and earned the save in the opening round of the Bully’s East Tournament.

No batting totals were reported.

“I have only two seniors in my starting lineup, so I have to teach the young ones on the job,” El Cajon Valley coach MIKE RUPP said.

Non-League
Foothills Christian vs. Guajome Park, ppd., state basketball playoffs

Christian High's Taylor Eichhorst (19) receives congratulations from Patriots skipper Mike Mitchell following a grand slam against Lincoln. (Photo by Mike Jones)

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (3-10-09) — DANIEL RODRIGUEZ made quite a bang in his Christian High baseball debut. The senior first baseman clubbed a three-run home run and a two-run homer Monday (Mar. 9) as the Patriots pasted visiting Lincoln 24-1 in the opening round of the Christian Invitational.

Rodriguez finished 3-for-4 with 4 runs scored and 5 RBI.

The home runs by Rodriguez were only part of the Christian pyrotechnics. TAYLOR EICHHORST belted a grand slam to key an 11-run 4th inning and freshman CODY POTEET blasted a grand slam in the 6th inning.

Catcher MICHAEL GRUBER was 3-for-4 with 3 RBI and a stolen base for the Patriots, SHAUN DAY was 2-for-4 with 4 runs, a double and a steal.

All of the Christian starters contributed to the onslaught.

In the wild 4th inning, the Patriots sent 15 batters to the plate. They collected seven hits while capitalizing on four walks and two errors.

MATER DEI 4, HELIX 3 – Four errors proved costly for the visiting Highlanders in Monday’s (Mar. 9) Foothiller-Aztec Classic second round contest at Mater Dei.

“Every one of those errors hurt us,” Helix coach COLE HOLLAND said.

Only one of the Crusaders’ runs was earned against Helix pitchers DYLAN NICKERSON and MIKE LOPEZ. Nickerson, the starter, scattered six hits, walked none and struck out 4. Lopez was tagged with the loss even though he allowed only one hit.

Lead-off doubles by BRONSON RUNIONS in the 1st inning and KEVIN SCOTT in the 2nd helped the Highlanders take a 3-2 advantage.

“We never got our lead-off man on base after that,” Holland said. “Worse than that is we got only one hit in the last five innings. Pretty tough to win a ballgame when you’re doing that.”

Holland was pleased that his pitchers have allowed only two earned runs in as many games.

© East County Sports.com
RAMONA (3-8-09) — Last season, the Santana Sultans fell one game short of reaching the San Diego CIF Division III championship game at Tony Gwynn Stadium.

Six starters return from Santana’s 21-13-1 team of a year ago and they’re ready to make a title run. They made that statement clear in Saturday’s (Mar. 7) season-opening round of the Foothiller-Aztec Tournament versus Vista at Ramona.

KYLE HAYES and JAMES NEEDY combined to pitch a 6-hitter, directing Santana to a 7-4 victory over the No. 10 ranked Panthers.

Hayes, last year’s East County ERA champion with a mark of 0.74, limited the Panthers to 4 hits and one earned run over five innings to earn the win.

Needy pitched the final 2 innings, but surrendered two unearned runs due to Santana errors in the bottom of the 7th.

“We played good solid baseball,” said Santana skipper JERRY HENSON. “Hayes had an outstanding game – only threw 56 pitches in 5 innings – and Needy came in and sealed the deal.”

Santana broke a 1-1 tie with 5 runs in the 4th inning. Varsity rookie CHRIS CAMARDA started the inning with a double. KEVIN FERREIRA singled to put runners at the corners with one out. ZACH BREIDT popped up for the second out. But then junior CODY SMITH laced a 1-2 pitch over the right-field fence for a 3-run homer.

Sophomore CAMERON BALOUGH capped the big inning with a 2-run single.

DALLAS SEIDEL paced Santana’s 10-hit attack with three singles in four at-bats.

VALHALLA 7, EASTLAKE 4 – Two teams known to be among the San Diego CIF’s pitching leaders must have been shocked when the 1st inning of Saturday’s (Mar. 7) season opening round of the Foothiller-Aztec Tournament found the score tied 4-4.

Valhalla ace TREVOR FRANK regained his poise and wound up permitting just seven hits and the four runs during a six-inning stint.

“In the 1st inning I was a little bit shaky,” said Frank, a four-year varsity veteran. “But I figured it out and started throwing better. When I went into the game my arm didn’t feel right but once I started pitching it started coming back and I started throwing hard.”

Frank struck out 6 and walked only one.

“I didn’t really throw too much stuff today – mostly fastballs,” he said.

The Norsemen snapped a 4-4 tie with a run in the 5th inning. With one out CISCO TELLEZ singled and advanced to third base on a pair of wild pitches. He scored on a basehit by DANNY HAWKSLEY.

Valhalla expanded its lead in the 7th inning and once again it was Tellez – who pitched a shutout 7th inning to earn the save – who provided the offensive spark with a walk. Two outs later BRYCE MOSIER doubled.

The Titans then intentionally walked NICK BROWN to load the bases. The strategy backfired, though, as freshman AUSTIN HENSLEY singled to score two runs.

Perhaps the reason Eastlake elected to intentionally walk Brown was because he slashed a 3-run double in the 1st inning.

“I was very pleased with our team’s overall performance today,” said Valhalla coach MIKE WILSON. “Everyone contributed for us in today’s win.”

GROSSMONT 2, MATER DEI 1 – It didn’t take long for Grossmont first-year head coach JIM EARLEY to collect his first win as the Foothillers’ varsity coach.

Not that Saturday’s (Mar. 7) opening round game of the Foothiller-Aztec Tournament was any small challenge. Visiting Mater Dei saw to that.

This was an unusual game for the friendly confines of Joe Gizoni Field, normally a haven for high-scoring encounters. But on this particular day the two teams combined for a total of just 6 hits – none of them of the extra base variety.

Grossmont senior southpaw LEVI STEVENS was up to the task as he pitched a complete game while striking out 6 and walking only one. Stevens also broke a 1-1 tie with an RBI single in the 4th that proved to be the winning run.

“It was my first game as head coach of the Foothillers and there was a definite different feeling to it,” said Earley. “There were people coming to me asking questions that (former head coach) ROB (PHILLIPS) used to answer.”

Obviously Earley had most of the right answers as Grossmont is off to its usual good start.

“It’s nice to win the first one,” Earley said.

The veteran Stevens had a lot to do with welcoming Earley to the winner’s circle.

“Levi had a big game today,” said Earley. “He pitched really well and made some key plays in the field.”

ANDREW BELLATTI, who has a scholarship to Cal State Fullerton in hand, was 2-for-4 with the bat and held Ramona to one run and three hits over five innings to earn the win.

NOLAN MURRAY, JESSE JENNER, MICHAEL WINTER and DANNY MacINTYRE – the top four batters in Steele Canyon ’s order – were a collective 10-for-19 with 9 RBI and 10 runs scored.

MacIntyre keyed a 5-run fifth inning with a 3-run homer.

Jenner and Winter each had 3 hits and 3 RBI, while Murray had 3 hits and scored 4 runs in the leadoff spot.

“It was definitely a good way to come out – we showed a lot of poise and patience,” said Steele Canyon coach TODD SNYDER. “We have quality pitchers. We just started making things happen from the top to the bottom of the lineup. It was nice to get out there and see how we match up against other teams.”

WEST HILLS 12, CHULA VISTA 4 – The Wolf Pack scored 8 runs in the 1st inning and wound up pounding out 18 hits overall in Saturday’s (Mar. 7) Foothiller-Aztec Tournament opener in Santee.

BRENNAN TAYLOR’s 2-run double with the bases loaded started the onslaught. DAVID BRYAN and CHRIS ALLEN also contributed 2-run doubles in the wild 1st inning.

Taylor finished the game 3-for-3 with a pair of doubles and 4 RBI. For good measure Taylor also pitched the first four innings to pick up the win.

ROBBY ROBLES spun two shutout innings of relief and was 2-for-3 with the bat.

COLE BUDVARSON and TONY SPEARS contributed 3 hits apiece to the Wolf Pack attack.

“We made up for what we didn’t do in the winter,” said West Hills coach CHRIS BAUM. “I don’t think we scored 12 runs all winter. The first run is always the toughest to get. The boys have been working extremely hard in the off-season. It’s good to see the bats come alive.”

MONTGOMERY 22, MONTE VISTA 0 – The Monarchs’ season opener in the Foothiller-Aztec Tournament at Montgomery on Saturday (Mar. 7) was a nightmare. Not only did the 9th-ranked Aztecs hammer three Monte Vista pitchers for 19 hits, the Monarchs’ defense contributed a handful of errors.

Perennial power Montgomery scored 9 runs in the 3rd and 8 in the 4th innings.

Carlos Garcia paced the Aztecs with 3 hits and 5 RBI, while Kevin Carreon slashed 4 hits to drive in four runs.

For Monte Vista IVAN PARMA collected 2 of the Monarchs’ 3 hits in the rout. ADAM TIMANUS produced a 3rd hit.

“We just couldn’t catch the ball or throw it,” said Monte Vista coach BRANDON ROGERS. “We’re a young team – we’ll have to get back to the drawing board. It was a good wakeup call for us. We didn’t make basic plays, it was just a mess.

“We started making errors and had four foul balls dropped by our outfielders.”

© East County Sports.com
LA MESA (3-7-09) — For starters, the Helix Highlanders beat a pretty good pitcher in Friday’s (Mar. 6) season opener in the Foothiller-Aztec Tournament against visiting Calexico.

The Highlanders jumped on the Bulldogs senior right-hander Luis Briseno for two runs in the 1st inning and that was all the offense Helix ace MICHAEL ANDRADE needed as the Highlanders squeaked out a 2-1 victory.

BRONSON RUNIONS opened the bottom of the 1st inning with a walk. He advanced to second base on a passed ball and scored on a single by sophomore JAKE REED. ANTHONY DIAZ then singled to put runners at the corners. Reed scored what proved to be the winning run when TYLER SOTO hit into a force out.

Andrade scattered six hits and struck out 8 in a complete game effort.

“I was very pleased with our pitching,” said Helix coach COLE HOLLAND. “Andrade threw a great game. Of our starting nine we have only three guys returning from last year. I was excited for them. It’s always nice to start the season with a ‘W.’”

Briseno, the Imperial Valley League Pitcher of the Year in 2008 when he logged a 7-0 record, rationed the Highlanders to five hits. Three of those safeties were generated by Reed, including a triple in the 5th inning.

CANYON CREST 8, EL CAJON VALLEY 3 – Pitching short El Cajon Valley fell behind early and never recovered in Friday’s (Mar. 6) non-league home opener against Canyon Crest Academy.

The Ravens led 8-0 before the Braves (0-2) finally broke through for a pair of runs on DAVID SANCHEZ’s two-run double in the 5th inning.

GAVINO PINAL, BRENT HARRIS, ABNER GARCIA and ANTHONY JACKSON had two hits apiece for the Braves. El Cajon Valley totaled 11 base hits for the day, matching Canyon Crest’s total.

Three of the Ravens runs were the result of three El Cajon Valley errors.

“We are real short right now because one of my pitchers is injured, and my second baseman is out of town,” said Braves coach MIKE RUPP. “So I had a lot of people playing out of position for the second straight game. Once we get rolling we should be OK.”

© East County Sports.com
CLAIREMONT (3-6-09) — El Cajon Valley let two leads slip away at Horizon Thursday (Mar. 5) as the Braves opened the season with a 10-7 loss to the Panthers.

The Braves grabbed a 5-1 lead in the second inning and held a 7-6 edge entering the bottom of the 6th inning, but couldn’t hang on.

ABEL CERVANTES paced El Cajon Valley’s offensive attack with a pair of doubles and a three-run home run. He scored two runs and stole two bases.

DAVID SANCHEZ and BRENT HARRIS each drove in a run with a double for the Braves. EFREN PADILLA also had an RBI while GAVINO PINAL had a double, stole a base and scored twice.

“We hit the ball pretty well,” El Cajon Valley coach MIKE RUPP said. “But our pitchers gave up too many walks and hit too many batters. And we were missing our top two catchers which caused us to play guys out of position. That hurt us defensively.”

El Cajon Valley hosts Canyon Crest Friday (Mar. 6) in a non-league game at 3:30 p.m.