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2005 REGULAR SEASON
O'Sullivan belts four home runs in two days to close
out Valhalla's third-straight championship
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON: The Valhalla Norsemen secured a share
of their third straight Grossmont South League championship
Thursday (May 19) with a regular-season ending 12-1
conquest of host Mount Miguel.
For the second time in 24 hours, Valhalla senior SEAN
O'SULLIVAN belted a pair of home runs, raising his
season total to 11 and career count to 33. He passed
Monte Vista's LEO DIAGLE and now stands third
on the Grossmont Conference all-time list, trailing
only El Capitan's CHRIS WALSTON (43) and Monte
Vista's JOEY METROPOULOS (35). O'Sullivan is
tied for 7th on the San Diego CIF all-time career long-ball
ledger topped by Marian Catholic's Ismael Salas
(46).
In addition to belting the Matadors (0-28, 0-15) with
his bat, O'Sullivan also fired six innings of one-hit
ball, striking out 10 en route to his sixth win in seven
decisions.
Senior catcher CHRIS MOORE of Valhalla also delivered
a last day batting bonanza. Moore laced three doubles
and a single to drive in 3 runs and score 3 for the
No. 5-ranked Norsemen (21-7,13-2).
CHAD WILSON also feasted on Mount Miguel pitching
with three hits in as many at-bats.
Mount Miguel dodged a no-hitter when KEITH GREEN
hammered a solo home run in the second inning.
The Norsemen must now turn their attention to the post-season
where they will duel Western League champion Mission
Bay (21-8) and Santana (23-7) for the top-seeding position
in the Division III playoffs. That will be determined
Friday (May 20) as will all division seedings. East
County figures to land seven post-season berths.
CHRISTIAN 3, CRAWFORD 0: The late-season
lift JOEL McGRANAHAN has supplied Christian High
may become the lifeline the Patriots need to make a
run at the San Diego CIF Division IV playoffs.
The senior southpaw has won his last three starts, including
a 4-hit shutout of visiting Crawford in Thursday's (May
19) Harbor League finale which enabled the Patriots
(16-9, 8-4) to finish second place, one notch ahead
of the Colts (10-14, 7-5).
McGranahan, who was unable to shoulder much of the Patriots'
pitching load until the final stretch of the season
due to an arm maladies, struck out 7 and walked only
one as he tamed the Colts.
Freshman EDDIE YOUNG gave Christian the early
lead when he hammered his first varsity home run in
the 2nd inning.
SHANE STANOVIC continued his torrid hitting with
a pair of doubles and a single in three at-bats, elevating
his East County leading batting average to .507 (36-for-71).
The Patriots are coiled for a No. 3 seed behind Horizon
and Francis Parker in the San Diego CIF Division IV
seeding which takes place Friday night (May 20).
END OF REGULAR SEASON
THURSDAY, MAY 19, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Grossmont North League
NORSEMEN 12, MATADORS 1
VALHALLA ab r h bi MOUNT MIGUEL ab r h bi
J.Brown ss 4 1 1 1 Seavello 2b 3 0 0 0
R.OSullivan 3b 3 0 1 1 Calafato ss 3 0 0 0
S.OSullivan p 5 3 3 3 Newborn cf 3 0 0 0
Baum 1b 3 1 1 0 Plunkett 1b 2 0 0 0
Moore c 5 3 4 3 White c 3 0 0 0
G.Garcia 2b 4 1 1 1 Array lf 3 0 0 0
Sopata cf 3 0 0 0 Green 3b-p 3 1 1 1
Melendez lf 3 0 0 0 Vanderhyde p 1 0 0 0
Wilson rf 3 1 3 1 Cannon lf 2 0 0 0
LeValley ph 0 0 0 0 Sandoval 1b-p 1 0 0 0
Smith 3b 2 1 1 0
M.Young 1b-p 1 1 1 0
A.Brown cf 1 0 0 0
Wilkins ph 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 37 12 16 10 TOTALS 24 1 1 1
Valhalla (21-7, 13-2) 112 215 0 - 12 16 1
Mount Miguel (0-28, 0-15) 010 000 0 - 1 1 2
GWRBI: S.OSullivan (6).
E: Calafato 2, G.Garcia. DP: MM 1. LOB: MM 2, Val 9. 2B: J.Brown, R.OSullivan, Baum, Moore 3.
HR: S.OSullivan 2(10,11): 1st, solo and 3rd, solo; Green (2) 2nd, solo. SB: J.Brown, Newborn.
PITCHING SUMMARY
VALHALLA ip h r er bb so
S.OSullivan W(6-1) 6.0 1 1 1 0 10
M.Young 1.0 0 0 0 0 1
MOUNT MIGUEL
Vanderhyde L(0-7) 4.0 9 6 6 1 2
Green 1+ 7 6 6 3 0
Sandoval 2.0 1 0 0 0 0
Green faced 5 batters in the 6th inning.
HBP: by Green (Wilkins), by S.OSullivan (Plunkett, Seavello).
*
Harbor League
PATRIOTS 3, COLTS 0
CRAWFORD ab r h bi CHRISTIAN ab r h bi
Ventura 3b 3 0 0 0 Perry rf 4 0 0 0
Preciado cf 3 0 1 0 Stanovic cf 3 1 3 0
K.Burkhead 2b 3 0 1 0 Hart c 3 1 1 1
Newman 1b 3 0 0 0 Plum dh 3 0 1 0
J.Burkhead rf 2 0 0 0 T.Jones 3b 0 0 0 0
Wright p 2 0 0 0 Rossitto 1b 2 0 0 0
Jacobs ss 2 0 2 0 E.Young ss 3 1 1 1
Ja.Newman c 2 0 0 0 McGranahan p 3 0 0 0
Laster lf 2 0 0 0 Dossett lf 2 0 0 0
Abell ph 1 0 0 0
Schroeder lf 0 0 0 0
N.Adams 2b 1 0 0 0
O⤙Donnell ph 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 22 0 4 0 TOTALS 25 3 6 2
Crawford (10-14, 7-5) 000 000 0 - 0 4 3
Christian (16-9, 8-4) 010 020 x - 3 6 1
GWRBI: E.Young (4).
E: Ji.Newman, Ja.Newman 2, Rossitto. DP: Chr 1. LOB: Craw 2, Chr 7. 2B: Stanovic 2, Hart, Preciado.
HR: E.Young (1) 2nd, solo.
PITCHING SUMMARY
CRAWFORD ip h r er bb so
Wright L(2-5) 6.0 6 3 2 1 3
CHRISTIAN
McGranahan W(3-1) 7.0 4 0 0 1 7
HBP: by Wright (N.Adams, Rossitto). WP: Wright, McGranahan. PB: Ja.Newman.
(05-19-05)
 Grossmont Foothillers
pitcher A.J. Griffin (5) pitched a 2-hit shutout
against West Hills on Monday. (5-16-05/Photo by Ernie
Pile)
Valhalla plays usual long-ball to crush Cougars
EastCountySports.com
RANCHO SAN DIEGO: If you're searching for statistical
leaders, the Valhalla High roster is dotted with frontrunners,
including shortstop JAVIER BROWN and versatile
freshman RYAN O'SULLIVAN who rank at the top
of the Grossmont Conference batting and pitching charts.
This is not to overlook Norsemen greybeards such as
SEAN O'SULLIVAN and TOMMY McCLAIN.
One name you might not recognize on the conference leaders
list is that of senior CHRIS MOORE. However,
his hustle helped determine Wednesday's (May 18) Grossmont
South League contest at Steele Canyon. Moore ended an
0-for-16 slump by slugging one of four homers belted
by Valhalla, pacing the Norsemen to a 9-2 conquest of
Steele Canyon.
"The team has stayed together, and if you do, you
usually do a pretty good job," noted Moore, who
also added a double in a 2-for-4 performance, then executed
a pair of diving catches in the outfield. "I know
I was fighting on my second at-bat, but finally got
my hands moving faster to drive the ball out."
Moore, who hopes to walk-on at San Diego State in the
fall, sent his shot off an 0-2 pitch to leadoff the
4th inning, giving Valhalla a 3-0 lead. In the 5th,
O'Sullivan drilled his second homer of the game over
the centerfield fence, capping a 5-run rally to finally
put away the Cougars.
However, with the game still on the line, Moore came
up big on defense after Steele Canyon halved a four-run
Valhalla lead to 4-2 in the 4th. He charged forward
to make a diving stab at a low liner to rob GARRETT
JENNER. Moore repeated the effort on a similar play
an inning later to deny DANNY HARRIS.
"Chris is a 100-percenter and loves to play,"
noted Norsemen coach STEVE PERDUE. "We don't
have to worry about him, which is why he's in the lineup.
With his kind of heart, if we had 10 guys like him,
I'd like our chances to win every ballgame."
Meanwhile, Valhalla pitcher Ryan O'Sullivan overcame
a sloppy 4th, which allowed the Cougars to get close,
setting down 12 of the final 13 Steele Canyon batters
to all-but-guarantee Valhalla a share of the GSL crown.
"After giving up those two hits, I was really upset
with the way I was pitching," noted the freshman
right-hander, who struck out three and scattered eight
hits without yielding a walk. "I was leaving everything
up, so I just went right after them after that."
The pitcher's lone mistakes came on the first three
batters of the 4th, as MIKE LANGE registered
a ground-rule double, and scored on a ROSS EPPERSON
base hit. Epperson moved to third on an error, then
scored on a sacrifice fly by DAVID LEWIS.
However, O'Sullivan quickly regained his focus, with
the sac-fly starting a string of 11 consecutive batters
he would retire.
Of course, young O'Sullivan has done a masterful job
of retiring batters in each of his six Grossmont Conference
starts, all of which have resulted in victories. He's
allowed only 3 earned runs in 34 1/3 innings. To boot,
Ryan has jumped on conference pitching for a .429 batting
average (24-for-56), while driving 22 runs and scoring
23.
"Ryan was hitting his spots so well, so it didn't
matter what the catcher was doing," noted Moore,
who rotated to become the catcher for the final two
innings. "His curveball was hitting spots, his
fastball was hitting spots -- he pitched a great ballgame."
Javier Brown, who is also battering conference pitchers
at a .429 clip (24-for-56), led off the contest with
a home run to left off an 0-2 pitch.
Two batters later, Sean O'Sullivan drove a ball
over the center field fence for a quick 2-0 lead. In
the 4th, following Moore's lead homer, GREG GARCIA
and CHAD WILSON registered doubles for a
4-0 advantage.
Arguably, Steele Canyon should have kept Valhalla off
the scoreboard in the 6th, but a pair of minor misplays
by the Cougars took them out of contention.
Following Moore's lead double, Garcia (3-for-3) was
called safe at first on his sacrifice bunt, as the umpire
ruled the defender covering first base never had his
foot on the bag. Two batters later, the same hardluck
defender caught a line drive for an out, but his attempt
at a double play saw the ball thrown out of bounds,
allowing a run to score.
Valhalla took advantage of the extra out, as Ryan O'Sullivan
tagged a two-run double, then older brother Sean followed
with a two-run homer to put the game away. Sean O'Sullivan
now has nine home runs, tying him with Granite Hills'
NICK MONETTE for second behind leader DONNIE
SNOW of Grossmont who has 14.
Both of these teams will be going to the San Diego CIF
playoffs - Steele Canyon (16-11, 10-5 GSL) in Division
II and Valhalla (20-7, 12-2 GSL) in Division III.
But first, the Norsemen are slated to play the final
regular season Thursday (May 19) at Mount Miguel at
4 p.m.
SANTANA 2, GROSSMONT 1: Santana senior
right-hander JEFF WOODS silenced host Grossmont
in Wednesday's (May 18) regular season finale as the
Sultans forced the Foothillers to share second place
in the Grossmont North League.
Woods (8-3), who was the hard-luck loser the last time
he visited Grossmont's Joe Gizoni Field on Friday, May
6, avenged a defeat that centered around a couple of
controversial calls in the 7th inning of a 3-2 Grossmont
win.
"The scenario was so similar," Santana coach
JERRY HENSON said. "Jeff even hit the first
batter he faced in the 7th like he did the last time."
Only in Wednesday's rematch, Santana did not commit
a "three-base throwing error" nor was there
a bang-bang play at first base that resulted in a game-winning
single.
Woods scattered six hits and struck out 7 as he logged
his 5th complete game.
"Once again, Woods proved he is a big-time player
in a big game," Grossmont coach ROB PHILLIPS
said. "He deserves all the credit."
Santana spoiled an otherwise brilliant pitching performance
by Grossmont sophomore TAYLOR WOHLWEND by parlaying
a walk, singles by BRANDON HALEY and Woods, a
groundout and an error into 2 runs in the 3rd inning.
Grossmont's run came on a 5th inning home run by sophomore
NICK LONGMIRE.
Other than those two innings, the game belonged to the
pitchers.
"These are two good ballclubs and all three of
our games have been like this one today," Henson
said.
Grossmont (22-8, 8-4) is hoping to gain a No. 2 seed
in the SDCIF Division II playoffs, while Santana (23-7,
8-4) is eying a No.1 seed in Division III. Where these
teams begin the playoffs will be determined at the Friday
night (May 20) seeding meeting.
"Based on the whole year, we should be No. 2 behind
El Capitan in our division," Phillips said. "Over
the last couple weeks we've been consistently inconsistent.
Our approach at the plate hasn't been aggressive like
it has been most of the year. We've been swinging at
too many pitchers' pitches. Hopefully, with a little
break now, we can turn that around going into the playoffs."
EL CAPITAN 9, WEST HILLS 1: Seniors
BRYAN PAUKOVITS and NIK GARCIA
combined to spin a 3-hitter at visiting West Hills in
Wednesday's (May 18) Grossmont North League finale.
The Vaqueros' duo totaled 12 strikeouts, with Paukovits
notching 10 during his six-inning stint.
This has been quite a turnaround for an El Capitan squad
that staggered out of the gate with losses in five of
its first six starts. Since that sluggish beginning,
the Vaqueros (19-11, 11-1 GNL) have compiled three winnings
streaks of four or more, including a regular-season
ending six consecutive victories.
El Capitan's STEVE VICKERY has achieved numerous
milestones during his coaching career. Some obviously
are greater than others. But the Vaqueros' skipper was
pleased that this year's crew matched the 11-1 finish
of El Capitan's 2001 Grossmont North League champions.
"I'm really proud of that record," said Vickery,
whose Vaqueros used a rare three-game sweep of Santana
and a 2-1 edge over El Capitan to achieve that mark.
"This is a tough league."
The Vaqueros, who were guided by multiple-hit games
from AUSTIN RAUCH, JASSON KSIAZEK and
Nik Garcia, expect to be awarded the No.1 seed
in the San Diego CIF Division II playoffs. The Vaqueros
have captured the last two SDCIF Division II titles.
West Hills, which surprised the so-called experts with
a couple of stunning victories and overall competitive
manner, finished the campaign 9-18. The good news is
all but one of the Wolf Pack players return next spring.
"We wanted to earn respect each time we came to
play," West Hills' first-year coach SCOTT HOPGOOD
said. "If you ask the other teams in our league
I think we accomplished that goal."
GRANITE HILLS 10, MONTE VISTA 0: Eleven
Eagles contributed to Granite Hills' 14-hit attack in
Wednesday's (May 18) Grossmont South League finale at
Monte Vista.
Hard-nosed NICK MONETTE blasted his 9th home
run with a man aboard to give Granite Hills a 6-0 lead
in the 2nd inning.
RYAN MARQUIS broke out of a lengthy slump with
a pair of hits and two RBI for the 4th-ranked Eagles
(25-5, 13-2).
Monte Vista pitched in eight walks, five of them coming
in a 4-run Granite Hills 1st inning that featured just
two hits.
"We came into the season with four team goals,"
Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS said. "We
wanted to win 25 games (check), win at least one tournament
(the Eagles claimed the Grossmont North-South trophy),
win our league (co-champions with Valhalla) and win
CIF (Division I). So far, we've met three out of four."
Monte Vista, which was limited to three hits, finished
the year 7-20.
"It was a learning year for us," Monte Vista
coach LARRY RINEHART said. "I have a great
group of kids. There was no bickering, arguing or finger-pointing."
HELIX 8, MOUNT MIGUEL 3: Neither
of these teams will be going to the SDCIF playoffs.
Despite winning two of their final three games, the
Highlanders will have to be satisfied with their 12-16
finish.
"We're Division I, so there is no way we'll get
in," Helix coach COLE HOLLAND said. "We
don't deserve to go this year. But that's OK. We've
said all along that this club is a year away."
Ten of Helix's losses came by three runs or less. Six
times the Highlanders were beaten by a single run.
"That's the mark of an inexperienced team,"
Holland said.
After ZACH TANIDA's bases-loaded walk gave Helix
a 1-0 edge in Wednesday's (May 18) finale, RAUL RITCHIE
drilled a three-run double in the 3rd inning propelling
the Highlanders to a comfortable lead.
RANDY PEREZ and JEREMY PETERSON added
RBI singles in the 5-run 3rd and Tanida closed the Helix
scoring with a 2-run double in the 6th.
Mount Miguel (0-27,0-14) avoided a fourth shutout with
3 runs in the 6th inning. DEXTER SEAVELLO's 2-run
single was the key blow.
TUESDAY, MAY 18, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Grossmont North League
SULTANS 2, FOOTHILLERS 1
SANTANA ab r h bi GROSSMONT ab r h bi
Haley c 3 1 2 0 Ferrara 2b 4 0 0 0
Woods p 4 0 1 0 Berry rf 4 0 1 0
Helmholtz 1b 3 0 0 0 Pieczynski c 2 0 0 0
Hermansen cf 4 0 0 1 Griffin 3b 3 0 0 0
Martin ss 3 0 0 0 Snow dh 3 0 1 0
Brosnan lf 3 0 0 0 Phillips ss 3 0 2 0
Basnight 3b 1 0 0 0 A.Williams cf 2 0 0 0
Diaz ph 1 0 1 0 Haar lf 2 0 0 0
Martinez 2b 2 0 1 0 Sobel ph 1 0 0 0
N.Miller rf 2 1 0 0 Longmire 1b 2 1 2 1
TOTALS 26 2 5 1 TOTALS 26 1 6 1
Santana (23-7, 8-4) 002 000 0 - 2 5 0
Grossmont (22-8, 8-4) 000 010 0 - 1 6 1
GWRBI: Hermansen (2).
E: Griffin. DP: Gro 2. LOB: Sant 8, Gro 6. HR: Longmire (1) 5th, solo.
SB: Haley, Martin, Martinez. S: Martinez.
PITCHING SUMMARY
SANTANA ip h r er bb so
Woods W(8-3) 7.0 6 1 1 1 7
GROSSMONT
Wohlwend L(7-2) 6.0 5 2 1 3 6
T.Adams 1.0 0 0 0 1 1
HBP: by Woods (Pieczynski, A.Williams). WP: Wohlwend.
*
VAQUEROS 9, WOLF PACK 1
WEST HILLS ab r h bi EL CAPITAN ab r h bi
Gagnon c 2 0 0 0 Hostetler rf 3 1 1 2
Parker c 2 0 0 0 Russo 2b 4 1 1 0
Mello cf 2 0 0 0 Rauch c 3 2 2 1
Carley cf 2 0 0 0 Royer ph 1 1 1 0
Stoner ss-p 2 0 1 0 Ksiazek ss 3 1 2 0
Richardson rf 2 0 0 0 Sullenger ss 1 0 1 0
Skinner rf 0 0 0 0 N.Garcia 1b-p 2 1 2 1
Strasburg p 1 0 0 0 D.Garcia ph 1 0 0 0
Eddy p 1 0 0 0 Erickson dh 3 1 1 1
Hoffard p 1 0 0 0 Paukovits p 0 0 0 1
Irvin 2b 2 0 0 0 Walston cf 2 0 0 0
Drescher ph 1 1 1 0 Nazzal cf 1 0 1 0
Pichette dh 1 0 0 0 Griffith lf 2 1 1 1
Maldonado 1b 1 0 0 0 Hensen ph-lf 1 0 0 0
Hall 3b 2 0 1 0 C.Garcia 3b 2 0 0 0
Hooper lf 1 0 0 0 McCarthy 1b 0 0 0 0
Thomason lf 2 0 0 0
TOTALS 25 1 3 0 TOTALS 29 9 13 7
West Hills (9-18, 3-9) 000 000 1 - 1 3 1
El Capitan (19-11, 11-1) 150 021 x - 9 13 2
GWRBI: None.
E: Gagnon, Russo 2. LOB: WH 7, EC 8. 2B: N.Garcia. 3B: Erickson. HR: Hostetler (3) 2nd, one on.
SB: N.Garcia, Russo. SF: Paukovits.
PITCHING SUMMARY
WEST HILLS ip h r er bb so
Strasburg L(1-0) 3.0 7 6 6 4 1
Eddy 2.0 3 2 2 1 3
Stoner 1.0 3 1 1 0 1
EL CAPITAN
Paukovits W(7-2) 6.0 2 0 0 4 10
N.Garcia 1.0 1 1 0 0 2
WP: Strasburg. PB: Gagnon 2.
*
Grossmont South League
NORSEMEN 9, COUGARS 2
VALHALLA ab r h bi STEELE CANYON ab r h bi
J.Brown ss 4 2 1 1 Minich dh 4 0 2 0
R.OSullivan p 4 1 1 2 Harris 2b 3 0 0 0
S.OSullivan dh 4 2 2 3 Inzone rf 3 0 2 0
Baum 1b 3 0 0 0 Rice cf 3 0 0 0
McClain c 3 0 0 0 Lange 1b 3 1 0 0
Sopata ph-cf 1 0 1 0 Epperson ss 3 1 1 1
Moore lf-c 4 2 2 1 Lewis lf 2 0 1 1
G.Garcia 2b 4 2 3 0 W.Murray c 3 0 1 0
D.Smith 3b 2 0 0 0 Jenner 3b 3 0 1 0
Wilson cf-rf 3 0 1 1
Melendez rf-lf 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 32 9 11 8 TOTALS 27 2 8 2
Valhalla (20-7, 12-2) 200 205 0 - 9 11 1
Steele Canyon (16-11, 10-5) 000 200 0 - 2 8 2
GWRBI: J.Brown (1).
E: Jenner, Wilson, Harris. DP: Val 1. LOB: Val 7, SC 5. 2B: W.Murray, Minich, G.Garcia, Wilson, Moore, R.OSullivan.
HR: Brown (2), 1st, solo; S.OSullivan 2:(8,9) 1st, solo and 6th, one on; Moore (1), 4th, solo. S: D.Smith. SF: Lewis.
PITCHING SUMMARY
VALHALLA ip h r er bb so
R.OSullivan W(8-1) 7.0 8 2 1 0 3
STEELE CANYON
Johnson L(4-4) 7.0 11 9 9 1 6
HBP: by Johnson 3 (D.Smith, Wilson, Baum). PB: McClain.
*
HIGHLANDERS 8, MATADORS 3
HELIX ab r h bi MOUNT MIGUEL ab r h bi
Ra.Perez ss 4 1 2 1 Seavello ss 3 0 2 2
Tanida c 4 0 1 3 Newborn p 3 0 0 0
Peterson 1b-p 4 0 2 1 Sandoval lf 4 0 0 0
Valles cf 0 1 0 0 White c 2 1 0 0
Ponce rf-p 5 1 1 0 Green 2b 4 1 1 0
Rosenthal lf 3 1 0 0 Plunkett 3b 2 0 1 0
Ritchie 3b 2 1 2 3 Freeman-Bolden ph 1 0 0 0
Beltran dh 2 1 0 0 Cannon rf 2 1 0 0
Webb ph 1 0 0 0 Vanderhyde 1b 2 0 0 0
Wenham ph 1 0 0 0 Calafato ph 1 0 0 0
Rohmer 2b 1 2 1 0 Array cf 3 0 0 0
TOTALS 27 8 9 8 TOTALS 27 3 4 2
Helix (12-16, 4-11) 015 002 0 - 8 9 2
Mount Miguel (0-27, 0-14) 000 003 0 - 3 4 3
GWRBI: Tanida (2).
E: Ritchie 2, Plunkett, Sandoval, Green. DP: MM 2. LOB: Helix 13, MM 6. 2B: Peterson, Tanida, Ritchie.
SB: Seavello, Ponce.
PITCHING SUMMARY
HELIX ip h r er bb so
Schuler 2.0 1 0 0 0 2
Runions W(1-0) 2.0 1 0 0 0 4
Ponce 2.0 2 3 3 2 3
Peterson 1.0 0 0 0 0 0
MOUNT MIGUEL
Newborn L(0-1) 7.0 9 8 8 12 1
HBP: by Schuler (White), by Ponce (Cannon), by Newborn (Valles 2, Peterson). WP: Runions. BK: Ponce.
*
EAGLES 10, MONARCHS 0
GRANITE HILLS ab r h bi MONTE VISTA ab r h bi
Decker ss 4 0 1 1 Palacios 2b 1 0 1 0
Sabala ph 1 0 0 0 Starling 2b 1 0 0 0
Humphries rf 3 1 2 0 DeAnda rf 2 0 0 0
T.Williams rf 2 1 2 1 Lopez lf 1 0 0 0
Crawford dh 2 2 1 1 Messenger rf 0 0 0 0
Harkins dh 1 0 1 0 Rodriguez 1b 3 0 1 0
Russell 1b 1 0 1 0 Sopher 1b 2 0 0 0
Monette c 2 2 1 2 Leboffe cf-p 2 0 1 0
Roberts c 2 0 1 0 Simmons dh 3 0 0 0
Taijeron lf 3 1 1 0 Cooper c-p 3 0 0 0
Boltz lf 2 0 0 0 Mendiola c 1 0 0 0
Anderson 1b-p 2 1 0 0 Croft ss 2 0 0 0
J.Miller ph 1 0 0 0 Hale 3b 2 0 0 0
Cazares 2b 2 0 0 0
Gay ph 1 0 1 0
Marquis cf 2 1 2 2
Horner 3b 2 1 0 1
Coleman 3b 1 0 0 0
TOTALS 34 10 14 8 TOTALS 23 0 3 0
Granite Hills (25-5, 13-2) 430 020 1 - 10 14 0
Monte Vista (7-20, 5-10) 000 000 0 - 0 2 2
GWRBI: Crawford (4).
E: Cooper, Dailey. DP: MV 1. LOB: GH 11, MV 4. 2B: Humphries. HR: Monette (9) 2nd, one on. SB: Marquis.
PITCHING SUMMARY
GRANITE HILLS ip h r er bb so
Krause W(9-1) 5.0 2 0 0 1 4
Sylvester 1.0 0 0 0 1 1
Anderson 1.0 1 0 0 0 0
MONTE VISTA
Dailey L(0-1) 1.1 5 6 6 6 1
Leboffe 4.2 6 4 3 2 4
Cooper 1.0 3 1 1 0 0
WP: Dailey 2.
(05-18-05)
Griffin provides Foothillers' spark in final week
of season
EastCountySports.com
SANTEE: Grossmont junior A.J. GRIFFIN could
be a starting pitcher for any team in East County. For
the Foothillers, though, the junior right-hander remains
a premier reliever, a spot starter and a nugget at third
base. Hoping to improve their San Diego CIF Division
II seeding position, Grossmont coach ROB PHILLIPS
knew coming in to the final week of the regular season
that his ballclub needed a two-game sweep. He called
on Griffin to provide the spark in Monday's (May 16)
Grossmont North league trial at West Hills.
GROSSMONT 3, WEST HILLS 0: The 6-foot-4,
205-pound Griffin pitched a 2-hit shutout, retiring
the final 16 West Hills batters in succession as the
Foothillers (22-7, 8-3) posted a 6th win in their last
8 starts.
"We're playing to get that second seed (in the
San Diego CIF in the Division II) playoffs," Phillips
said. "We have 22 wins and a chance at 23, so we
deserve that No. 2 seed. If we can get that we will
have a home field advantage throughout the playoffs
to the championship game (June 4 at SDSU's Tony Gwynn
Stadium)."
Griffin was in playoff form against the Wolf Pack, stumbling
only briefly in the 2nd inning. Other than that frame,
Griffin retired West Hills in order in each of the other
six innings, striking out 8 and walking none.
West Hills' only hint of an offensive assault came in
the 2nd inning when STEPHEN STRASBURG doubled
into the right field corner leading off the 2nd inning.
Two outs later AARON GAGNON laced one into left
field that Grossmont freshman left fielder BRIAN
HAAR hauled in on a single bounce. Thus Strasburg
stopped at third and Gagnon put the brakes on at first.
Griffin responded to the challenge with an inning-ending
strikeout. Those were the only Wolf Pack runners to
reach base.
"I didn't have my best fastball, but I made up
for it with my curveball and changeup," said Griffin
(5-2), who logged his third complete game in six starts.
"A couple of times I think my changeup must have
been down around the 50 miles per hour range. And that
only made my 80 miles per hour fastball appear that
much faster."
West Hills junior southpaw AARON RICHARDSON has
dealt better stuff in the past, but managed to make
what he had at his fingertips keep Grossmont's high-powered
offense in check.
"Aaron didn't have his usual velocity on his fastball,
but managed to keep them with his split-finger and curveball,"
West Hills coach SCOTT HOPGOOD said.
A couple of youngsters helped Grossmont break into the
scoring column.
Haar led off the 3rd with a double. First baseman NICK
LONGMIRE followed with a nifty bunt, putting runners
at the corners. But when Richardson decided he had a
play on Longmire at first base, his throw sailed off
the mark permitting Haar to jog in with the first run
of the game.
Grossmont made it 2-0 in the 6th as AUGIE WILLIAMS
spanked a two-out double and scored on NICK SOBEL's
triple.
Longmire's double and MIKE MEDINA's bloop RBI
single handed the Foothillers a 3-0 advantage in the
7th.
"I was getting tired around the 4th inning, so
I went with more curveballs and changeups and it seemed
to work," Griffin said. "The main thing was
my defense was there behind me."
A cornerstone in the Grossmont defense was the glove
work done by neophyte Longmire at first base.
"Nick came up big picking those balls out of the
dirt," Griffin said. "On top of that he started
hitting like he did in winter league."
Phillips noted that Longmire was sent down to the junior
varsity level to gain some playing time a couple of
weeks ago. Last Friday, Longmire hit for the cycle with
a single, two doubles, a triple and a home run against
El Capitan.
"Like I've always maintained, if you hit, I'll
find a spot for you," Phillips said.
West Hills (9-17, 3-8) could easily have short-circuited
Grossmont's playoff plans. The Wolf Pack was in the
Foothillers' faces in all three league encounters, losing
3-2, 3-1 (in 11 innings) and 3-0.
The Wolf Pack's final shot was diluted by the strong-arm
pitching off Griffin.
"I knew this was a pivotal game for us, and I was
going to do whatever it took to make us win."
STEELE CANYON 9, HELIX 8: The Cougars of
Steele Canyon still have a reasonable shot at making
the San Diego CIF Division II playoffs. But the downtrodden
Highlanders nearly spoiled Steele Canyon's post-season
chances.
A 6-run 4th inning gave Helix (11-16, 3-11) an 8-4 advantage.
Noting proudly that his team "got down but they
came back," Mittry confessed he missed some of
the 4th inning when Helix scored their 6 runs -- "I
was throwing things around in the dugout."
But the Highlanders were unable to maintain their grip
as the Cougars eventually snatched victory from the
jaws of defeat as JOE INZONE's three-run double
erased an 8-6 deficit in the bottom of the 6th inning.
"Joe gave us that big double in the left field
gap, and we had some fast guys on base," said Steele
Canyon coach PHIL MITTRY. "DANNY (HARRIS)
reads the ball well off the bat, and I had him going
from the get-go."
Harris, of late, has taken up permanent residence on
the base paths. He's compiled a six-game hitting streak,
producing a .706 batting average (12-for-17) along the
way.
Clutch relief pitching by sophomore ANDREW BRUDER,
who allowed only 2 hits in 3 1/3 innings, held Helix
at bay while Steele Canyon recoiled its offense. Better
than that, Bruder earned his 5th win in 7 decisions.
ANDREW VALLES was 2-for-4 with 3 RBI for Helix.
SANTANA 4, EL CAJON VALLEY 1: The
Sultans displayed their pitching depth in Monday's (May
16) Grossmont North League encounter in Santee.
Seniors CHRISTIAN SPICER and ERIK MEDRUD combined
to spin a 4-hitter as Santana (23-4, 8-2) slithered
past El Cajon Valley in Monday's (May 16) Grossmont
North League game to reach the San Diego CIF Division
III playoffs.
Santana senior JEFF WOODS was on line to have
a big day as he doubled and scored on the front-end
of a double steal in the 1st inning and appeared to
have hit his 3rd home run a few innings later except
for the leaping catch by El Cajon Valley junior center
fielder CLIFTON THOMAS.
"Woods hit a ball five feet over the fence in center
field and Thomas made a spectacular play - went over
the fence and brought it back," said an amazed
Santana coach JERRY HENSON. "He could start
for anyone. He can go get a ball, whether it's over
the fence or in the gap.
Thomas came into this game batting at a .395 clip.
"Thomas has got a real chance, could definitely
play at the next level - if he'll take the mustard off
the hotdog," Henson said. "He's that good.
He could be better at the plate but discipline would
take care of that. As for his defensive skills, I haven't
seen any better."
Santana took a 1-0 edge in the 1st inning as Woods doubled,
advanced to third on KYLE HELMHOLTZ's single
and scored on the front end of a double steal.
RYAN BROSNAN's third home run over the left fence
made it 3-0 in the 2nd inning.
The Sultans were far from home, however, as JONATHAN
MANZO's RBI single in the 3rd cut the Santana lead
in half.
Santana tacked on a pair of runs in the 4th inning thanks
to an El Cajon Valley passed ball and JOHN BASNIGHT's
sacrifice fly.
"Helmholtz swung the bat well and Brosnan showed
some power today," Henson said.
GRANITE HILLS 19, MOUNT MIGUEL 2:
No. 4 Granite Hills slammed a season-high 5 home runs,
racked up 21 hits and won its 9th straight in Monday's
(May 16) Grossmont South League demolition of the visiting
Matadors .
"This is what I thought we would hit like this
season," Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS
said. "I felt our strength would be hitting and
our pitching would be suspect."
For the most part, it's been just the opposite. Solid
starting pitching has been the Eagles' strength.
"That's why it was good to hit the ball so well
in this game," Davis said. "If we can get
our bats, pitching and defense going in synchronization
like I think we can, we could be pretty tough come (San
Diego CIF Division I) playoff time."
Not surprisingly, catcher NICK MONETTE set the
pace for the Eagles' offensive fireworks, driving in
four runs with a 2-run single in the 3rd and his 8th
home run with a man aboard in the 4th.
BRANDON DECKER also enjoyed an offensive jubilee,
hammering his 5th home run, a double and a single, while
scoring 4 runs and cashing in a pair from his leadoff
post.
A classic inning for Granite Hills (24-5, 12-2) was
the 4th when the Eagles put together back-to-back doubles
by Decker and BRIAN HUMPHRIES, an RBI single
by CODY CRAWFORD and back-to-back home runs by
Monette and TRAVIS TAIJERON.
It was more of the same in the 5th when Granite Hills
poured on 10 more runs. Decker and NICK BOLTZ
banged back-to-back home runs and after JOSH MILLER
walked, pinch-hitter MATT ROBERTS walloped the
third home run of the inning.
DARREN GAY (8-0) enjoyed the offensive serenade,
allowing just three hits and two runs.
Mount Miguel's DEXTER SEAVELLO and BILLY PLUNKETT
spoiled Gay's outing with solo home runs.
VALHALLA 19, MONTE VISTA 6: If nothing
else, credit host Monte Vista for providing the playoff-bound
Norsemen a bit of resistance in Monday's (May 16) Grossmont
South League contest in Spring Valley.
Only three teams have scored more against 5th-ranked
Valhalla (19-7, 11-2) than did these Monarchs (7-19,
5-9), who fell behind 13-0 before breaking through for
5 runs in the bottom of the 6th inning.
Only Eastlake (7), El Dorado (11) and Grossmont North
League-champion El Capitan (12) have scored more on
Valhalla's talented pitching staff.
The Norsemen teed off on four Monte Vista pitchers for
20 hits, including a 5-for-6 effort by senior shortstop
JAVIER BROWN that hoisted his season average
to a Grossmont Conference-best .500.
"All of his hits were rockets, nothing cheap,"
Valhalla coach STEVE PERDUE said. "He's
been a solid, aggressive hitter who has been there
for us all season."
Sophomore GREG GARCIA enjoyed one of his better
games with the bat, driving in three runs with a double
and a pair of singles.
"He takes some pretty good hacks for a little guy
(5-foot-7, 155)," Perdue said of his slick fielding
second baseman. "He's not flashy, but he is steady."
Valhalla's ERIC JULIENNE blanked the Monarchs
over five inning before the Monarchs jumped on him for
a two-run double by ALAN SOPHER and a three-run
home run by CORY COOPER.
 Collision at the plate between Christian
catcher Matt Hart (10) and Hoover's Jeff Martinez
in a Harbor League game earlier this season.
(Courtesy photo)
Patriots' game is rough outing at Crawford
EastCountySports.com
SAN DIEGO: Christian High baseball coach MIKE MITCHELL
hates playing baseball games at Crawford High. No doubt
part of the reason is due to the Patriots' lack of success
on the Colts diamond. Well, it's not really a diamond.
It's more of a rough, one of those old-time designs
that one has to see to believe. Fact remains, though,
Christian lost for the third straight year at Crawford
on Tuesday (May 17), falling in the Colts' corral 3-2.
The loss left the two teams tied for second place in
the Harbor League with one game remaining.
"We don't play well on that field - it's a weird
field," Mitchell fumed. "There are two fences
in the outfield at Crawford. The first one is really
close (about 220 feet) and about 10 feet high. If you
hit a ball over it it's a ground rule double. Any other
field and it's an out."
That regular-season finale will match these same two
teams Thursday (May 19) at Christian at 3 p.m.
Mitchell will be pleased to conduct the rematch on his
home soil. This will actually mark the fourth meeting
between these teams, with the Patriots (15-9, 7-4) holding
a 2-1 series advantage. Both wins - during a tournament
- came at Christian.
Crawford (10-13, 7-4) capitalized on a Christian throwing
error and a pair of bloop doubles to take a 2-0 edge
in the 1st inning on Tuesday. Neither of the doubles
was hit hard off Christian starting and losing pitcher
TODD JONES.
The Colts made it 3-0 in the 3rd inning before Christian
finally broke through in the 4th on JOEL McGRANAHAN's
2-run double.
That blow stretched McGranahan's hitting streak to six
games. He is batting at a .619 clip (13-for-21) during
that span.
On the other side of the coin, SHANE STANOVIC
saw his 9-game hitting streak come to an end.
The loss also halted Christian's 4-game winning skein.
"Today everything went against us," Mitchell
said. "If we win on Thursday it shouldn't hurt
us. If we lose, we could end up going on the road in
the (San Diego CIF Division IV) playoffs."
TUESDAY, MAY 17, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Harbor League
COLTS 3, PATRIOTS 2
CHRISTIAN ab r h bi CRAWFORD ab r h bi
Perry rf 3 0 1 0 Ventura 3b 3 1 1 0
Stanovic cf 3 0 0 0 Preciado cf 3 0 1 0
Hart c 3 1 1 0 Love p 2 2 0 1
Plum 3b 2 0 0 0 Newman 1b 3 0 0 0
Rossitto 1b 3 0 1 0 BBurkhead rf 2 0 1 1
EYoung ss 2 1 0 0 Wright c 3 0 1 1
Abell pr 0 0 0 0 Jacob ss 3 0 0 0
McGranahan dh 3 0 1 2 CBurkhead 2b 3 0 2 0
Schroeder lf 2 0 0 0 Latau lf 2 0 0 0
Dossett lf 1 0 0 0
Adams 2b 2 0 0 0
TOTALS 24 2 4 2 TOTALS 24 3 6 3
Christian (15-9, 7-4) 000 200 0 - 2 4 2
Crawford (10-13, 7-3) 201 000 0 - 3 6 0
GWRBI: None.
E: E.Young, Adams. LOB: Chr 6, Craw 7. 2B: Ventura, McGranahan. SB: B.Burkhead, Perry, Stanovic.
PITCHING SUMMARY
CHRISTIAN ip h r er bb so
Jones L(4-3) 6.0 6 3 2 4 5
CRAWFORD
Love W(6-3) 7.0 4 2 2 5 5
WP: Jones, Love 2.
(05-17-05)
MONDAY, MAY 16, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Grossmont North League
FOOTHILLERS 3, WOLF PACK 0
GROSSMONT ab r h bi WEST HILLS ab r h bi
Ferrara 2b 2 0 0 0 Mello cf 3 0 0 0
Griffin p 2 0 0 0 Irvin 2b 3 0 0 0
Pieczynski c 3 0 1 0 Stoner ss 3 0 0 0
Snow rf 2 0 0 0 Strasburg dh 3 0 1 0
Medina rf 2 0 1 1 Maldonado 1b 0 0 0 0
Phillips ss 4 0 1 0 Pichette c 3 0 0 0
AWilliams cf 2 1 1 0 Richardson p 2 0 0 0
Sobel 3b 2 0 1 1 Gagnon c 2 0 1 0
Haar lf 3 1 1 0 Hall 3b 2 0 0 0
Longmire 1b 3 1 2 0 Hooper rf 2 0 0 0
TOTALS 25 3 8 2 TOTALS 23 0 2 0
Grossmont (22-7, 8-3) 000 011 1 - 3 8 0
West Hills (9-17, 3-8) 000 000 0 - 0 2 1
GWRBI: None.
E: Richardson.
DP: WH 2. LOB: Gro 7, WH 2. 2B: Strasburg, Pieczynski, Haar, A.Willliams. 3B: Sobel. S: Ferrara, Griffin.
PITCHING SUMMARY
GROSSMONT ip h r er bb so
Griffin W(5-2) 7.0 2 0 0 0 8
WEST HILLS
Richardson L(3-5) 6.0 8 3 3 4 5
HBP: by Richardson (Ferrara).
*
SULTANS 4, BRAVES 1
EL CAJON VALLEY ab r h bi SANTANA ab r h bi
Thomas cf 3 1 1 0 Haley c 3 0 0 0
Dyer 2b 3 0 0 0 Woods ss 3 1 1 0
Manzo lf 3 0 1 1 Helmholtz 1b 3 0 2 0
Abbod 3b 2 0 0 0 Hermansen cf 2 1 1 0
D.Perez c 3 0 0 0 Diaz rf 1 0 1 0
Mansfield 1b 2 0 1 0 Martin 3b 2 1 0 0
L.Perez p 2 0 0 0 Brosnan lf 2 1 1 1
Vega rf 2 0 0 0 Wylie lf 1 0 0 0
Myer rf 1 0 1 0 Basnight dh 1 0 1 1
Padilla ss 3 0 0 0 Schaub dh 0 0 0 0
Martinez 2b 2 0 1 0
NMiller rf 2 0 0 0
TOTALS 24 1 4 1 TOTALS 22 4 8 2
El Cajon Valley (4-23, 0-12) 001 000 0 - 1 4 0
Santana (22-7, 8-3) 110 200 x - 4 8 1
GWRBI: None.
E: Woods. DP: ECV 1, Sant 1. LOB: ECV 5, Sant 4. 2B: Woods, Basnight. HR: Brosnan (3) 2nd, solo.
SB: Thomas, Woods, Helmholtz, Hermansen, Diaz, Martinez. SF: Basnight.
PITCHING SUMMARY
EL CAJON VALLEY ip h r er bb so
L.Perez L(2-5) 6.0 8 4 4 2 0
SANTANA
Spicer W(4-0) 5.0 3 1 1 1 5
Medrud Sv(1) 2.0 1 0 0 1 2
HBP: by L.Perez (Martinez), by Spicer (Mansfield). WP: L.Perez. PB: D.Perez.
*
Grossmont South League
COUGARS 9, HIGHLANDERS 8
HELIX ab r h bi STEELE CANYON ab r h bi
Ra.Perez ss 4 1 1 0 Minich ss 4 2 1 1
Tanida c 3 2 1 1 Harris 2b 2 3 2 0
Peterson 1b 5 1 1 0 Inzone rf 3 0 2 3
Valles cf 4 1 2 3 Rice cf 4 0 0 1
Ponce rf 3 2 2 0 Lange 1b 3 1 2 1
Ritchie 3b 3 0 0 0 Klopp pr 0 0 0 0
Rosenthal lf 1 0 1 1 Epperson p 2 0 1 1
Deharo lf 1 0 0 0 Bruder p 2 0 1 0
Beltran dh 3 0 0 0 Lewis lf 4 1 1 0
Rohmer 2b 4 1 0 0 WMurray c 3 1 1 0
Wenham p 0 0 0 0 Jenner 3b 2 0 1 1
Runions p 0 0 0 0 Jacobsmeier pr 0 1 0 0
TOTALS 31 8 8 5 TOTALS 29 9 12 8
Helix (11-16, 3-11) 011 600 0 - 8 8 2
Steele Canyon (16-10, 10-4) 301 203 x - 9 12 4
GWRBI: Inzone (3).
E: Minich 4, Peterson, Rohmer. LOB: SC 9, Helix 9. 2B: Minich, Lange, Valles, W.Murray, Harris, Inzone.
SB: Tanida, Valles.
PITCHING SUMMARY
HELIX ip h r er bb so
Wenham L(3-5) 5.0 12 9 7 3 0
Runions 1.0 0 0 0 1 0
STEELE CANYON
Epperson 3.2 6 8 4 3 2
Bruder W(5-2) 3.1 2 0 0 0 1
Wenham faced 4 batters in the in the 6th inning.
HBP: by Epperson (Ponce, Beltran), by Bruder (Tanida).
*
EAGLES 19, MATADORS 2
MOUNT MIGUEL ab r h bi GRANITE HILLS ab r h bi
Seavello 2b 3 1 1 1 Decker ss 4 4 3 2
Newborn cf-p 2 0 0 0 Sylvester 1b 1 0 1 1
Calafato ss 3 0 1 0 Humphries rf 2 2 2 2
White c 3 0 0 0 Boltz rf 2 1 1 1
Sandoval rf 2 0 0 0 Crawford dh 3 1 1 2
Plunkett 3b-1b 2 1 1 1 J.Miller dh 1 1 0 0
Vanderhyde 1b-p 2 0 0 0 Monette c 4 1 3 4
Green p-3b 2 0 0 0 Roberts c 1 1 1 2
Array lf 2 0 0 0 Taijeron lf 3 1 1 1
T.Williams lf 1 1 1 0
Anderson 1b 3 0 1 0
Krause 2b 1 1 1 1
Cazares 2b 2 0 0 0
Harkins 3b 2 2 2 0
Marquis cf 4 1 1 1
Horner 3b 2 1 1 0
Coleman ss 1 1 1 2
TOTALS 21 2 3 1 TOTALS 37 19 21 19
Mount Miguel (0-26, 0-13) 000 1 1 0 - 2 3 2
Granite Hills (24-5, 12-2) 103 5(10) - 19 20 0
Game called after 5Â12 innings.
GWRBI: Crawford (3).
LOB: MM 2, GH 7. 2B: Sylvester, Decker, T.Williams, Coleman.
HR: Seavello (3) 4th, solo; Monette (8) 4th, one on; Taijeron (6) 4th, solo;
Decker (5) 5th, one on; Boltz (1) 5th, solo; Plunkett (1) 5th, solo; Roberts (2) 5th one on.
SB: Newborn, Monette, Crawford, Decker 2.
PITCHING SUMMARY
MOUNT MIGUEL ip h r er bb so
Greene L(0-1) 3.2 7 6 5 1 3
Vanderhyde 0.1 5 5 5 1 0
Newborn 1.0 8 8 8 1 1
GRANITE HILLS
Gay W(8-0) 5.0 3 2 2 0 7
Russell 1.0 0 0 0 1 0
Vanderhyde faced 5 batters in the 5th.
*
NORSEMEN 19, MONTE VISTA 6
VALHALLA ab r h bi MONTE VISTA ab r h bi
J.Brown ss 6 2 5 3 Palacios 2b 3 0 2 0
R.OSullivan dh 3 2 1 2 DeAnda lf-p 3 0 1 0
S.OSullivan 3b 2 2 1 2 Lopez 1b-rf 2 0 0 0
Baum 1b 3 2 2 2 Rodriguez p-1b 4 1 1 0
McClain c 4 1 2 1 Leboffe cf 4 1 2 1
G.Garcia 2b 4 3 3 3 Simmons 3b-p 3 1 2 0
Sopata cf 3 2 1 1 Sopher dh 4 1 2 2
Melendez lf 3 1 1 1 Cooper c 3 1 1 3
Wilson rf-cf 3 1 2 3 R.Garcia lf 1 0 0 0
Smith 3b 2 2 1 0 Mendiola 2b 1 0 0 0
M.Young 1b 2 1 1 0 Hale 3b 1 1 1 0
LeValley rf 1 0 0 0 Messenger rf 2 0 0 0
Wilkins c 1 0 0 0 Haase p-lf 2 0 0 0
TOTALS 33 6 12 6 TOTALS 37 19 20 18
Valhalla (19-7, 11-2) 100 165 6 - 19 20 1
Monte Vista (7-19, 5-9) 000 005 1 - 6 12 1
GWRBI: None.
E: Palacios, S.OSullivan. LOB: MV 7, Val 8. 2B: J.Brown, S.OSullivan, Baum, G.Garcia, Hale.
HR: Cooper (1) 6th, two on. SB: S.OSullivan, Baum. SF: Wilson.
PITCHING SUMMARY
VALHALLA
Julienne W(5-1) 5.1 9 5 5 0 6
Stangyl 1.2 3 1 1 0 2
MONTE VISTA ip h r er bb so
Rodriguez L(2-10) 4.2 8 6 6 3 3
Haase 0.0 2 2 2 3 0
DeAnda 0.1 1 0 0 0 0
Simmons 2.0 9 11 11 3 2
Haase faced 5 batters in the 5th.
HBP: by Simmons (Baum, Smith, R.OSullivan), by Julienne (Simmons). PB: Wilkins 2, Cooper 3.
Fair ball called foul... a critical play
in Friday's Grossmont South League championship game
at Valhalla. Granite Hills' Cody Crawford
(12) races for home as Norsemen Sean O'Sullivan
(12), Ryan O'Sullivan (15) and catcher Tommy
McClain (13) watch the ball.
(5-13-05/Photo by Adolfo Villanueva)
Eagles' Anderson deals shutout in big win over Valhalla;
Vaqueros get two home runs from Rauch in clinching win
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON: It was championship Friday (May 13)
in East County. On the Grossmont North League side,
the El Capitan Vaqueros secured their 9th league title
under the tutelage of coach STEVE VICKERY by
turning back Grossmont 5-4 in a battle of home runs.
Meanwhile, on the Grossmont South side, Granite Hills
was edging Valhalla 2-0 in a premier pitching duel that
created a probable co-championship in that league.
Granite Hills' Donnie Anderson pitched a 3-hit
shutout as the Eagles defeated defending Grossmont South
champion Valhalla 2-0 on Friday. (5-13-05/Photo
by Adolfo Villanueva)
GRANITE HILLS 2, VALHALLA 0: For the record,
Valhalla coach STEVE PERDUE concedes that visiting
Granite Hills earned Friday's (May 13) key Grossmont
South League victory.
Yet, the focus of Friday's title bout was on a misguided
call by the plate umpire that left the No. 5 Norsemen
angry, Valhalla coach Perdue ejected and the 4th-ranked
Eagles trying to conceal their delight at their unexpected
good fortune.
Things were going as expected as Valhalla's SEAN
O'SULLIVAN and Granite Hills' DONNIE ANDERSON
were dealing donuts until the top of the 3rd when the
Eagles received a break they hadn't counted on.
With runners at first and second and two outs in the
Granite Hills 3rd inning, Eagles batter TRAVIS TAIJERON
raised a popup midway between home plate and third base.
Valhalla catcher TOMMY McCLAIN and third baseman
RYAN O'SULLIVAN began tracking the ball, but
neither called the other off. Thus, the ball handed
in fair territory, and eventually rolled foul some 50
feet from 3rd base.
An obvious foul ball, or so it would seem.
That's when the chaos began. Thinking the ball was foul,
the Norsemen were in no hurry to step and fetch. At
the same time, the Eagles' CODY CRAWFORD was
running full tilt from third to score the game's first
run as Taijeron turned a big league popup into an RBI
double.
"All I wanted them (the umpires) to do was get
the call right," said Perdue, who was eventually
ejected for insisting the umpire had made the wrong
ruling.
Valhalla coach Steve Perdue isn't buying
what he's hearing. (Photo
by Adolfo Villanueva)
Dissatisfied with the plate umpire's weak-kneed interpretation
of the play, Perdue turned to the veteran base umpire
to gain his take on the play.
"I said 'I don't mean to embarrass your buddy,
but (said Perdue, restating the play), is that a fair
ball or a foul ball?' He said, '"Yes, that is a
foul ball.'"
Hours later the umpires changed their story, which more
than likely will keep Perdue from registering his planned
protest.
"I'm going ahead with the protest no matter what
they say," Perdue said. "I believe in integrity
and I don't think (the umpires association) is on the
same page. Who are those guys accountable to?"
Politics aside, the Eagles' 6-foot-4, 200-pound Anderson
is at the pinnacle of his game. The senior right-hander
rationed Valhalla (18-7, 10-2 GSL) to three hits, two
of them coming from leadoff man JAVIER BROWN.
Anderson, most experienced of a blossoming Granite Hills
pitching staff, blanked the Norsemen on 3 hits for his
6th win in 7 decisions.
"Beating Valhalla and O'Sullivan in the same game
is certainly a bonus," said Granite Hills senior
catcher NICK MONETTE, who burned the Norsemen's
ace with an RBI double in the 5th inning.
Monette was 2-for-2, while freshman teammate BRIAN
HUMPHRIES was 3-for-4.
"Monette has had an MVP year," Perdue said.
Anderson was more reserved in his post-game comments.
Granite Hills' Louis Cazares (3) starts
a double play as Valhalla's Sean O'Sullivan (12)
slides. (5-13-05/Photo
by Adolfo Villanueva)
"We just had to come in here and shut them down,"
Anderson said. "My curveball was working great
and I was placing my fastball pretty good, too. Yeah,
this was my best game of the season."
Only once did the Norsemen advance a runner as far as
third base against Anderson, who has beaten Valhalla
twice this season.
"I think they were guessing a lot today because
I did a good job of mixing my pitches," said Anderson
(6-1).
Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS believed Anderson
was dealing at his best.
"It's hard to imagine that Donnie can pitch any
better," Davis said.
Granite Hills (23-5, 11-2 GSL) has assured itself of
its first league title since 2002. Valhalla, winner
of the previous two league titles, can still grab a
share of this flag by sweeping its final three regular
season games.
Not to be overlooked was the pitching of O'Sullivan,
who was tagged with his first loss despite pitching
his finest game of the season. He struck out 11.
"O'Sullivan got better as the game went on,"
Davis said. "That's the best fastball I've seen
him throw all year. He's so hard to judge because he
throws three or four different fastballs as far as velocity
goes. When he wants to, he can really pump it up."
Gossip among the scouts had O'Sullivan consistently
throwing between 89-to-93 miles per hour.
Over the final two frames, O'Sullivan was bringing it
like he did a year ago. He mowed down five of the final
seven batters he faced on strikes.
If there was a knock against O'Sullivan it was that
he went to his curveball too many times.
"I think five of our hits came on breaking balls,"
Davis said. Three of those Granite Hills safeties
came off the bat of Humphries.
Valhalla was clearly keyed for the rubber match of this
series with archrival Granite Hills.
"I've never seen a Valhalla team so animated,"
Davis said. "That's the most 'up' I've seen them
all year."
Once settled down and focused on the ballgame at hand,
Perdue realized that Friday's contest was a classic
showdown between two of East County's finest.
"I told our guys not to hold their heads down,"
Perdue said. "There is no shame in losing to a
good team. And Granite Hills is a good team. Take away
the bad call and they still beat us."
El Capitan's Austin Rauch (18) hit two home runs
as the Vaqueros defeated Grossmont 5-4 on Friday to
clinch the Grossmont North League championship. (5-13-05/Photo
by Ernie Pile)
EL CAPITAN 5, GROSSMONT 4: The once
forgotten Vaqueros, who opened the season with five
losses in their first six games, are celebrating a Grossmont
North League championship this weekend. Victories in
10 of the last 13 games, including a current five-game
winning streak helped El Capitan clinch its second straight
Grossmont North League flag.
El Capitan junior catcher AUSTIN RAUCH slammed
two of the six home runs hit in Friday's (May 13) showdown,
both for key insurance runs, helping the Vaqueros prevail.
Rauch lifted an opposite field shot to right to mount
a 4-1 advantage in the 5th inning, but the Foothillers
struck back in the home-half of the frame when AUGIE
WILLIAMS smacked a two-run blast to trim the lead
to 4-3.
However, Rauch answered back by launching a monster
shot to left in the 7th - the ball traveling well over
400 feet as it landed on the JV diamond - to push the
lead back to two runs.
"You always try to get some extra runs for insurance,"
noted Rauch, who opened his 4-for-4 performance with
a pair of singles before going deep. "And it looked
like we needed them today."
El Capitan starting pitcher CRISTIAN GARCIA tossed
a complete-game, 6-hitter, striking out 9 as he raised
his personal pitching mark to 7-3.
"This was a huge win for us," El Capitan coach
STEVE VICKERY said. "Anytime you win a league
championship, it's special. We are feeling pretty good
right now."
No. 6 Grossmont (21-7, 7-3) pushed the game to the brink
after three batters stayed alive when there were two
strikes and two outs on each of them in the bottom of
the 7th.
Grossmont leadoff man, catalyst TIM FERRARA, lifted
a 1-2 pitch over the wall for his first home run of
the season. He was the third Foothillers batter to go
the opposite way in clearing the barriers of Joe Gizoni
Field.
Late-inning substitute NICK SOBEL coaxed a walk
to bring the potential winning run to the plate. However,
Garcia registered the final of his nine strikeouts to
seal the championship for the Lakesiders.
Danny Pieczynski hits a home run for Grossmont against
El Capitan Friday (photo by Ernie Pile)
"You just accept it as a pitcher that the ball
will go out of this park, suck it up and keep pitching,"
explained Garcia. "Because this league is so tough,
winning it is better than the playoffs."
Garcia set down eight consecutive batters in the early
going, baiting the Hillers to climb the ladder on strikeout
pitches well above the strike zone. Later on, he went
down and away for his out pitch.
"Cristian threw all of his pitches well - any time,
any count," added Rauch. "We just tried to
mix it up and get different sequences of pitches."
Meanwhile, Grossmont stayed close throughout with some
timely infield defense by turning three double plays,
although one resulted in a 3rd-inning run when El Capitan
had runners at the corners with nobody out. The grounder
made it 3-0 after GRIFF ERICKSON belted a 2-run
homer to open the scoring in the 2nd.
The Foothillers, who used the long ball to account for
all four runs, began their comeback on a solo homer
by catcher DANNY PIECYZNSKI in the 4th.
Ferrara (2-for-4) had the only multiple-hit outing for
Grossmont, while THOMAS HOSTETLER went 2-for-4
for the Vaqueros, sending Hillers starter TAYLOR
WOHLWEND to his first loss in eight decisions.
Even with the league pennant firmly secured by the two-time
defending SDCIF Division II champion Vaqueros, a 4th
meeting could be in offing as both teams figure to make
legitimate challenges for prominent playoff positions
when the seeing committee convenes on Friday, May 20.
So far, El Capitan owns a 2-1 series edge.
HELIX 5, MONTE VISTA 1: With their
San Diego CIF playoff chances flickering at best, the
Highlanders finally caught fire in Friday's (May 13)
Grossmont South League encounter in La Mesa.
Helix seniors MIKE SCHULER and MATT WENHAM
combined to twirl a 5-hitter at the visiting Monarchs
(7-18, 5-8) in a must-win situation for the Highlanders
(11-15, 3-10).
"Our pitching has been there for us most of the
season," Helix coach COLE HOLLAND said.
"Just look at the job Schuler has done for us with
literally no run support. The guy is 2-5 with an ERA
under three (2.82 to be exact) and he's walked only
five in 54 2/3 innings. He's deserved better."
Schuler included 55 strikes in his 79 pitches against
the Monarchs. He walked none and did not allow an earned
run.
For one of the few times in more than a month, the Highlanders
finally produced some timely offensive blows with the
game on the line.
Sophomore RAUL RITCHIE broke a 1-1 tie with an
RBI single in the 4th inning.
"That was a 2-strike hit, something we haven't
been getting most of the year," Holland said.
JEREMY PETERSON belted a 2-run home run - his
third - to extend the Helix lead to 4-1 in the 5th inning.
"He's been our main source of power," Holland
said of the 6-foot-5, 250-pound sophomore first baseman.
"Twenty of his 26 hits have gone for extra bases
(17 of them doubles). His home run was the big blow
for us today."
Monte Vista started out fast as DAVID PALACIOS
and DAN DeANDA banged back-to-back singles in
the opening frame. But a double-play killed that budding
rally.
"We just cruised from there," Holland said.
STEELE CANYON 8, MOUNT MIGUEL 1:
While heavyweights Granite Hills and Valhalla have been
hogging the headlines in their bid for the Grossmont
South League pennant, coach PHIL MITTRY's Cougars
(15-10, 9-4) have been lurking only a few strides back
in third place.
To be sure, Steele Canyon has a firm grip on the "show"
ticket in what has been primarily a three horse race
in the Grossmont South.
Junior second baseman DANNY HARRIS has been the
driving force behind the Steele Canyon charge of late.
In his last four starts, Harris has compiled a .667
batting average (10-for-15).
Harris opened Friday's (May 13) game at Mount Miguel
with a double that led to a 4-run 1st inning. MIKE
LANGE, ROSS EPPERSON, WILL MURRAY and JESSE JACOBSMEIER
punched out RBI singles.
A triple by JOE INZONE and an RBI single by MATT
KNAUST stretched Steele Canyon's advantage to 5-0.
Then it was Harris' turn again. His two-run single keyed
a 3-run 6th inning as the Cougars slapped a clap on
any comeback plans the Matadors (0-25, 0-12) might have
been entertaining.
"Harris has been hot for the last week or so,"
Mittry said. "He started to heat up at the right
time. This is when you want to be peaking."
The SDCIF playoffs begin on Tuesday (May 24) and Steele
Canyon figures to be a longshot in Division III.
Sophomore ANDREW BRUDER turned in a powerful
five innings on the mound, limiting the Matadors to
one hit while striking out six.
Mount Miguel, meanwhile, avoided being shutout for the
fourth time this season as BUD NEWBORN
followed a pair of walks by the Steele Canyon relief
corps with an RBI single.
"Those kids really play hard for him (Matadors
coach BYRON GRIGSBY)," Mittry said. "They've
only got 10 guys, and they all hustle. They are out
there busting their butts for the very last out of the
game."
WEST HILLS 8, EL CAJON VALLEY 1: SHAIN
STONER drove in three runs with a double and a single
Friday (May 13) to carry host West Hills to an easy
Grossmont North League victory over El Cajon Valley.
Perhaps the biggest news on the West Hills front was
that hard-luck STEPHEN STRASBURG chalked up his
first win in 10 decisions. The 6-foot-4, 220-pound junior
right-hander scattered 8 hits and struck out six during
a 6-inning stint to silence the Braves (4-22, 0-11).
"Strasburg had a key 1st inning - threw only 11
pitches," said West Hills coach SCOTT HOPGOOD.
"It helped him to settle down."
It also set an economical pattern as Strasburg needed
just 82 pitches to sail through six innings.
"Strasburg was in charge from the start,"
said El Cajon Valley coach WAYNE WEIGHTMAN.
"We've had problems with injuries and eligibilities
all season. We had a great practice yesterday but today
we were flat. But these guys are fighters - they haven't
given up all season."
Hopgood agreed.
"El Cajon's been playing tough," Hopgood noted.
"We wanted to get on them early and take momentum
from them. We executed in every phase of the game. We
really swung the bats well, and we were very aggressive
on the bases."
For West Hills (9-16, 3-7) it was only the third time
the Wolf Pack had logged back-to-back victories. The
playoff-hopeful Pack plays its final regular games against
Grossmont and El Capitan.
"We know we need to finish with four wins - we're
halfway there," Hopgood said.
Valhalla shortstop Javier Brown attempts to complete
a double play after forcing Granite Hills' Louis
Cazares at second base. Watching in the background
is Greg Garcia.
(5-13-05/Photo by Adolfo Villanueva)
FRIDAY, MAY 13, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Grossmont North League
WOLF PACK 8, BRAVES 1
EL CAJON VALLEY ab r h bi WEST HILLS ab r h bi
Thomas cf 4 1 1 0 Mello cf 2 2 0 0
Dyer 2b 4 0 1 0 Parker cf 0 0 0 0
Manzo lf 3 0 2 1 Irvin 2b 2 2 1 1
Abbod 3b 3 0 0 0 Stoner ss-p 3 1 2 3
L.Perez rf 3 0 0 0 Strasburg p 3 0 1 2
Aquiningoc 1b 3 0 2 0 Dresher 2b 0 0 0 0
D.Perez c 3 0 1 0 Richardson dh 1 0 1 0
Padilla ss 2 0 0 0 Maldonado 1b 0 0 0 0
Mansfield ph 1 0 0 0 Eddy dh 2 0 1 1
Myer p 3 0 1 0 Gagnon lf 3 0 0 0
Pichette c 3 0 2 1
Hall 3b 3 0 0 0
Hooper rf 3 2 2 0
Hoffard ph 1 0 0 0
Carley pr 0 1 0 0
TOTALS 29 1 8 1 TOTALS 26 8 10 8
El Cajon Valley (4-22, 0-11) 001 000 0 - 1 8 2
West Hills (9-16, 3-7) 103 400 x - 2 10 0
GWRBI: Irvin (3).
E: Padilla 2. DP: WH 1. LOB: ECV 7, WH 5. 2B: Irvin, Stoner. SB: Mello, Carley, Hooper 3. SB: Eddy, Strasburg.
PITCHING SUMMARY
EL CAJON VALLEY ip h r er bb so
Myer L(1-6) 3.2 8 8 7 3 2
L.Perez 0.1 2 0 0 0 0
Abbod 2.0 0 0 0 0 1
WEST HILLS
Strasburg W(1-9) 6.0 8 1 1 1 6
Stoner 1.0 0 0 0 0 2
HBP: by Myer (Mello). WP: Strasburg. PB: D.Perez 3.
*
VAQUEROS 5, FOOTHILLERS 4
EL CAPITAN ab r h bi GROSSMONT ab r h bi
Hostetler rf 4 0 2 0 Ferrara 2b 4 1 2 1
Russo 2b 4 1 1 0 Griffin 3b 2 0 0 0
Rauch c 4 2 4 2 Sobel 3b 0 0 0 0
Ksiazek ss 3 0 0 0 Snow dh-p 4 0 0 0
N.Garcia 1b 3 1 0 0 Pieczynski c 3 1 1 1
D.Garcia pr 0 0 0 0 Phillips ss 2 0 1 0
Erickson dh 2 1 1 2 Cusumano pr 0 0 0 0
Walston cf 2 0 1 0 Berry rf 3 0 0 0
Sullenger ph 0 0 0 0 Passanini 1b 3 1 1 0
Griffith 3b 2 0 0 0 Williams cf 3 1 1 2
Henson ph 1 0 0 0 Haar lf 2 0 0 0
Nazzal lf 3 0 0 0
TOTALS 25 5 9 4 TOTALS 26 4 6 4
El Capitan (18-11, 10-1) 021 010 1 - 5 9 1
Grossmont (21-7, 7-3) 000 120 1 - 4 6 1
GWRBI: Erickson (2).
E: Ferrara, Ksiazek. DP: Gro 3. LOB: EC 6, Gro 5. 2B: Russo, Passanini.
HR: Erickson (1), 2nd, one on; Pieczynski (8), 4th, solo; Rauch 2(3,4) 5th, solo, and 7th, solo;
A.Williams (5), 5th, one on; Ferrara (1), 7th, solo. SB: Cusumano.
EL CAPITAN ip h r er bb so
C.Garcia W(7-3) 7.0 6 4 4 3 9
GROSSMONT
Wohlwend L(7-1) 5.0 7 4 3 1 3
Snow 2.0 2 1 1 3 3
PB: Pieczynski.
*
Grossmont South League
EAGLES 2, NORSEMEN 0
GRANITE HILLS ab r h bi VALHALLA ab r h bi
Decker ss 4 0 0 0 J.Brown ss 3 0 2 0
Humphries cf 4 1 3 0 R.OSullivan 3b 3 0 0 0
Crawford dh 4 1 0 0 S.OSullivan p 2 0 0 0
Horner 3b 0 0 0 0 Baum 1b 3 0 0 0
Monette c 2 0 2 1 McClain c 2 0 0 0
Taijeron lf 3 0 1 1 Moore lf 3 0 0 0
Anderson p 2 0 0 0 LeValley dh 2 0 0 0
Cazares 2b 2 0 1 0 Wilson rf 1 0 0 0
Boltz rf 3 0 0 0 G.Garcia 2b 1 0 0 0
Russell 1b 3 0 0 0 Smith ph 1 0 0 0
Sopata cf 2 0 1 0
TOTALS 27 2 7 2 TOTALS 23 0 3 0
Granite Hills (23-5, 11-2) 001 010 0 - 2 7 1
Valhalla (18-7, 10-2) 000 000 0 - 0 3 0
GWRBI: Taijeron (4).
E: Decker. DP: GH 2, Val 1. LOB: GH 7, Val 5. 2B: J.Brown, Taijeron, Monette.
SB: Crawford, S.OSullivan, Humphries.
PITCHING SUMMARY
GRANITE HILLS ip h r er bb so
Anderson W(6-1) 7.0 3 0 0 3 4
VALHALLA
S.OSullivan L(5-2) 7.0 7 2 2 2 11
HBP: by S.OSullivan (Anderson).
*
HIGHLANDERS 5, MONARCHS 1
MONTE VISTA ab r h bi HELIX ab r h bi
Palacios 2b 4 0 1 0 Perez ss 3 1 0 0
DeAnda rf 3 0 1 0 Tanida c 3 1 2 0
Lopez 1b 3 0 0 0 Peterson 1b 3 1 1 2
Rodriguez dh-p 3 0 0 0 Valles cf 3 2 2 0
Sopher lf-p 3 1 2 0 Ponce rf 2 0 2 0
Leboffe p-cf 3 0 0 0 Ritchie 3b 3 0 1 1
Hale 3b 1 0 0 0 Rosenthal lf 1 0 0 0
Messenger dh 1 0 0 0 Schuler p 2 0 0 0
Cooper c 1 0 1 0 Beltran ph 1 0 1 0
Simmons ph 1 0 0 0 Deharo pr 0 0 0 0
Croft ss 2 0 0 0 Wenham p 0 0 0 0
Haase cf-lf 0 0 0 0 Rohmer 2b 3 0 1 0
Lopez p 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 25 1 5 0 TOTALS 24 5 10 3
Monte Vista (7-18, 5-8) 010 000 0 - 1 5 1
Helix (11-15, 3-10) 100 130 x - 5 10 2
GWRBI: Ritchie (2).
E: Croft, Rohmer, Peterson. DP: MV 1, Helix 1. LOB: MV 7, Helix 7. 2B: Sopher, Ritchie.
HR: Peterson (3) 5th, one on. SB: Perez, Tanida.
PITCHING SUMMARY
MONTE VISTA ip h r er bb so
Leboffe L(3-4) 3.1 4 2 1 2 1
DeAnda 1.0 4 3 3 1 2
Lopez 0.0 0 0 0 0 0
Sopher 0.2 1 0 0 0 1
Rodriguez 1.0 1 0 0 0 1
HELIX
Schuler W(2-5) 6.0 5 1 0 0 4
Wenham Sv(2) 1.0 0 0 0 0 1
HBP: by (Schuler (Cooper, Hale). PB: Cooper. BK: DeAnda.
*
COUGARS 8, MATADORS 1
STEELE CANYON ab r h bi MOUNT MIGUEL ab r h bi
Minich ss 5 1 1 0 Seavello 2b 1 0 0 0
Harris 2b 5 2 3 2 Freeman-Bolden 1b 1 0 0 0
Inzone rf 4 1 1 0 Newborn cf 2 0 1 1
Knaust 1b 3 1 2 1 Califato ss 3 0 1 0
Lange dh 2 1 1 1 White c 3 0 0 0
Johnson ph 1 0 0 0 Green 3b-p 3 0 0 0
Epperson 3b 4 1 2 2 Plunkett 1b-2b 3 0 1 0
W.Murray c 4 0 2 1 Cannon rf 3 0 0 0
Jacobsmeier cf 4 0 2 1 Vanderhyde p 2 0 0 0
Klopp lf 4 1 1 0 Array lf 1 1 0 0
TOTALS 36 8 15 8 TOTALS 22 1 3 1
Steele Canyon (15-10, 9-4) 400 013 0 - 8 15 0
Mount Miguel (0-25, 0-12) 000 001 0 - 1 3 0
GWRBI: Lange (1).
DP: SC 1. LOB: SC 9, MM 2. 2B: Minich, Harris. 3B: Inzone. SB: Newborn, Array.
PITCHING SUMMARY
STEELE CANYON ip h r er bb so
Bruder W(4-2) 5.0 1 0 0 0 6
West 1.0 2 1 1 2 1
Jenner 1.0 0 0 0 0 1
MOUNT MIGUEL
Vanderhyde L(0-6) 5.0 9 5 5 1 2
K.Green 2.0 6 3 3 0 2
HBP: by Bruder (Newborn), by Vanderhyde (Lange).
*
(05-13-05)
Stanovic has five hits as Christian crushes Kearny
again
EastCountySports.com
SAN DIEGO: Junior SHANE STANOVIC extended
his hitting streak to nine games with a 5-hit outbreak
spearheading the Christian High Patriots in a 19-4 romp
over host Kearny in Saturday's (May 14) Harbor League
action.
Stanovic slugged a triple and four singles in six at-bats
against the Komets (2-22, 1-9). The only time he made
an out was in the 1st inning when he lined into a double
play.
"What can I say - the guy is hot," Christian
coach MIKE MITCHELL said. "In his last at-bat
today his swing hit the catcher's glove. It was
going to called catcher's interference except Shane
managed to hit the ball into left field for a single.
Since the rule says he gets his choice, Shane naturally
took the hit. You know your luck is good when stuff
like that happens."
Stanovic has 20 hits in 32 at-bats for a .625 average
over his last nine games.
JOEL McGRANAHAN whacked a pair of doubles in
five trips to push his batting streak to five games.
The senior standout is batting at a .667 clip during
that stretch with a dozen hits.
In addition to wielding a hot bat, McGranahan also pitched
four innings to earn his second win in three decisions.
CHAD O'DONNELL blanked the Komets on one hit
over two innings of relief and KELLEN ROSSITTO finished
the job by spinning a scoreless 7th.
The Patriots staged a six-run rally with two outs in
the 1st inning and never looked back. EDDIE YOUNG's
3-run double and a 2-run double by NICK ADAMS
were the key blows. Adams smacked another 2-run double
in Christian's 5-run 4th that gave the Patriots a 12-0
lead.
Christian out-scored Kearny 47-9 in a three-game series
sweep.
SATURDAY, MAY 14, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Harbor League
PATRIOTS 19, KOMETS 4
CHRISTIAN ab r h bi KEARNY ab r h bi
Perry rf 2 1 1 0 Reed 3b-cf 3 0 1 0
W.Murray rf 3 1 1 2 K.Richey ss-2b 3 1 0 0
Stanovic cf 6 3 5 1 Neeleman lf 1 0 0 0
Hart c-ss 6 1 3 1 Sarantopolous lf 1 1 0 0
Plum dh 2 2 1 1 Bell 1b-cf 3 0 0 0
T.Jones 3b 3 0 0 0 A.Whyte p 3 1 3 1
Rossitto 1b 2 2 1 1 T.Richey c 3 1 1 1
O'Donnell p-1b 2 0 1 1 Alcon 2b 1 0 0 0
E.Young ss 4 3 3 3 Johnson 2b 2 0 1 2
McGranahan p-1b 5 2 2 1 Marsh p 1 0 0 0
Dossett lf 2 1 0 0 J.Whyte 3b 2 0 0 0
Schroeder lf 2 2 1 2 Heyenga rf 3 0 0 0
N.Adams 2b 3 0 2 4
Abell c 1 1 0 0
TOTALS 43 19 21 17 TOTALS 26 4 6 4
Christian (15-8, 7-3) 610 513 3 - 19 21 1
Kearny (2-21, 1-9) 000 400 0 - 4 6 3
GWRBI: E.Young (3).
E: Reed, K.Richey, Abell. DP: Kearny 2. LOB: Chr 8, Kearny 2. 2
B: Hart, E.Young 2, McGranahan 2, Schroeder, N.Adams. 3B: A.Murray, Stanovic. SB: Plum, Hart.
PITCHING SUMMARY
CHRISTIAN ip h r er bb so
McGranahan W(2-1) 4.0 5 4 4 1 2
O'Donnell 2.0 1 0 0 0 2
Rossitto 1.0 0 0 0 0 1
KEARNY
Marsh L(1-8) 3.2 12 12 9 2 1
A.Whyte 3.1 9 7 6 1 1
HBP: by Marsh (Plum, Dossett), by A.Whyte (E.Young). WP: McGranahan, O'Donnell, Marsh.
(05-14-05)
Patriots rack up 18 runs in rout of Kearny
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON - Christian High coach MIKE MITCHELL
likes to think of the Patriots' final five games of
the regular season as fine-tuning for the San Diego
CIF Division IV playoffs. The Patriots (14-8, 6-3) seem
to have their offense in synch, rolling up 30 runs,
34 hits and a pair of Harbor League victories.
SHANE STANOVIC led the charge in the 18-2 crunching
of Kearny's Komets on Thursday (May 12). The junior
southpaw extended his current hitting streak to eight
games with a pair of singles and scored three runs.
Stanovic is batting at a .577 clip (15 for 26) over
that stretch.
Christian High senior JOEL McGRANAHAN has a modest
four-game hitting skein. His numbers during that span
- 10 hits in 13 at-bats - are equally as eye-catching.
He went 3-for-3 with a double, three runs and one RBI
against Kearny.
Stanovic also picked up the pitching nod, checking the
Komets (2-21, 1-8) on 3 hits while striking out 10 over
four innings.
One baseball oddity involved Christian for the second
time this season. It had no impact on the game except
to embarrass the umpires.
"They struck out (TODD) JONES on two strikes,"
said an amazed Mitchell. "And we even told (the
plate umpire) what the pitches were and the sequence
they were thrown in. It didn't matter. He still rung
Jones up."
Earlier in the year, ADAM PERRY was subjected
to the two-strike out.
If this continues, they'll have to change the words
to "Take Me Out To The Ballgame."
THURSDAY, MAY 12, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Harbor League
PATRIOTS 18, KOMETS 2
KEARNY ab r h bi CHRISTIAN ab r h bi
Alcon 2b 2 0 0 0 Perry cf 3 4 3 2
Neeleman 2b 2 0 0 0 Stanovic p 2 3 2 0
Reed 3b 2 1 1 0 O'Donnell p 3 1 1 1
Bell p 2 0 0 0 Hart c 3 1 3 2
J.Whyte p 1 0 0 0 Abell c 2 0 1 0
A.Whyte cf 3 0 2 1 Plum dh 3 0 1 0
K.Ritchey ss 3 0 0 0 Jones 3b 1 0 0 0
Heyenga rf 3 1 1 0 Rossitto 1b 2 1 0 1
T.Ritchey c 3 0 0 0 EYoung ss 2 0 0 0
Sarantopolus lf 3 0 1 0 AMurray 2b 1 2 1 3
Johnson 1b 2 0 0 0 McGranahan rf 3 3 3 1
Schroeder lf 1 1 0 0
Dossett lf 2 1 1 1
NAdams 2b-ss 3 1 1 3
TOTALS 26 2 5 1 TOTALS 31 18 17 14
Kearny (2-21, 1-8) 110 000 0 - 2 5 1
Christian (14-8, 6-3) 225 207 x - 18 17 3
GWRBI: None.
E: A.Whyte, Schroeder, Hart, Jones. DP: Chr 1. LOB: K 5, Chr 11.
2B: O'Donnell, Hart, A.Murray, McGranahan, N.Adams, Reed. 3B: Abell.
SB: Reed, Perry 2, Plum 3, Rossitto, McGranahan. S: Adams. SF: Rossitto, Dossett.
PITCHING SUMMARY
KEARNY ip h r er bb so
Bell L(1-6) 2.0 5 6 6 4 3
J.Whyte 3.2 7 9 8 4 2
Marsh 0.1 5 3 3 0 0
CHRISTIAN
Stanovic W(2-1) 4.0 3 2 1 1 10
O'Donnell 2.0 2 0 0 0 1
Allen 1.0 0 0 0 1 0
HBP: by Bell(Perry, Schroeder), by J.Whyte (Perry, Rossitto). WP: Bell, Stanovic. BK: Bell, Stanovic.
(05-12-05)
Valhalla's Steven LeValley (18) smacks his 3rd
home run in as many games as the Norsemen beat Helix
13-5. Helix catcher is Zach Tanida (11). (5-11-05/Photo
by Gary Sopata)
Vaqueros complete season sweep of Sultans
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON - El Capitan registered its first series sweep
of Santana in 13 years, DONNIE SNOW broke the
Grossmont High record for home runs in a season, Granite
Hills sophomore ERIC KRAUSE won his 8th game,
Helix's head coach COLE HOLLAND was handed down
a four-game suspension and Monte Vista had two key pitchers
return to its rotation during Wednesday's (May 11) Grossmont
Conference activity. Meanwhile, all the favorites won
Wednesday, thus setting the stage for Friday's (May
13) Grossmont North League championship encounter between
El Capitan and Grossmont at Gizoni Field, and the Grossmont
South League title bout matching two-time defending
champion Valhalla and challenger Granite Hills on Norsemen
soil. First-place goes up for grabs beginning at 4 p.m.
at both sites.
EL CAPITAN 13, SANTANA 9: Tradition-rich
El Capitan has been a perennial force in these parts
for so long it's hard to imagine any opponent holding
an overall series advantage over the Vaqueros. Not when
it comes to league competition anyway.
Yet, there are two Grossmont Conference baseball programs
that do possess an all-time series edge - Helix (44-32)
and Santana (60-42).
Perhaps that is why El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY
relished Wednesday's (May 11) come-from-behind Grossmont
North League victory over Santana. The win gave the
Vaqueros a three-game sweep of the league series - the
first time El Capitan has blanked Santana since 1993.
"I couldn't put my finger on when it happened the
last time, but I knew it had been a long time since
we took all three games from Santana in the same season,"
Vickery said. "I wanted our guys to know that this
just doesn't happen, that Santana would be so fired
up 'you better be ready to match their energy.'"
Vickery was right on both fronts. The visiting Sultans
(21-7, 6-4 GNL) batted a round in the opening inning,
putting up 5 runs before 10th-ranked El Capitan could
take its first swing.
"It was looking like a long day when we went down
by five and had the prospects of facing (Santana ace
JEFF) WOODS," Vickery admitted.
To their credit, the Vaqueros (17-11, 9-1 GNL) climbed
off the deck to pull the rug out from under the Sultans'
planned magic carpet ride.
A three-run double by GRIFF ERICKSON in the 1st
and a two-run homer by LOUIE RUSSO in the second
pulled El Capitan even at 5-5.
El Capitan eventually broke the game open with a six-run
burst in the 5th inning that gave the Vaqueros a 13-7
lead. Once again Erickson was at the forefront of the
onslaught with a two-run single and one run scored.
It must be mentioned that Santana contributed to its
demise with an error, two hit batters and a pair of
walks in the fateful 5th.
Erickson drove in a career high 5 runs while Russo was
4-for-4 with a home run and three RBI.
"We were a little bit scared at the beginning,"
Russo admitted. "Then we started hitting and things
started looking up from there. We're a pretty good team
when we're on, when we're hitting like we did today."
Both teams totaled 13 hits.
Although El Capitan starter BRYAN PAUKOVITS was
knocked around in a manner in which he is not accustomed,
Vickery never lost faith in his ace.
"Paukovits was missing with everything in that
1st inning, and that's the bottom line," Vickery
said. "But he battled his jaws off the rest of
the time and I am so proud of him for doing that. If
hadn't sucked it up, and we have to go deep (into our
pitching staff), that would have hurt us on Friday (at
Grossmont)."
After the wobbly 1st that was keyed by DALLAS MARTIN's
bases-loaded triple, Paukovits limited Santana to one
earned run on four hits over the next four innings.
Despite losing to El Capitan in all three league match-ups,
Santana coach JERRY HENSON wasn't ready to cry
uncle.
"I know they beat us three times, but I still think
we can beat that ballclub," Henson said. "The
biggest thing that hurt us today was giving up four
hits on 0-2 counts."
Prior to this year, Santana had won the season series
from the Vaqueros eight of the last 11 years. That included
a 3-0 sweep in 2000.
The last time El Capitan swept Santana was in 1993 when
the Vaqueros actually posted four victories, including
a 7-0 San Diego CIF 2A playoff win.
GROSSMONT 9, EL CAJON VALLEY 3: In with the
new and hail to the old was the visiting Grossmont Foothillers'
take on Wednesday's (May 11) Grossmont North League
victory at El Cajon Valley.
DONNIE SNOW's two-run home run down the right
field line gave No. 6-ranked Grossmont (21-6, 7-2) a
3-0 advantage in the 3rd inning at the Braves' spacious
home ballpark.
Snow's four-bag job broke the existing three-way tie
for the top mark of 13 shared by lanky senior, JUSTIN
BAUM and MARK DOBBINS.
"Donnie has been struggling for the past couple
of weeks, but we knew it was only a matter of time before
he broke loose again," Grossmont coach ROB PHILLIPS
said. "He stayed back on the ball and made solid
contact (on his record-breaking homer). It was a no-doubter.
Maybe now that he has this record, he can relax and
help us down the stretch."
Grossmont unveiled a surprise package of sorts on Wednesday
as freshman BRIAN HAAR joined the varsity lineup
for the first time. Stationed in left field and batting
No.9 in the order, Haar made an impressive varsity debut.
Haar collected 3 hits in four at-bats while driving
in 2 and scoring a pair.
"We needed somebody to give us a little bit of
a spark," Phillips said. "We thought Haar
could do that for us, and so far he has. We know he
can swing it and by putting him in the No. 9 hole, there's
not as much pressure."
Haar singled in his first varsity at-bat and scored
on TIM FERRARA's triple in the 3rd inning. Haar
added an RBI double in the 4th frame and picked up an
RBI single in the 7th.
Quite a debut for the young man.
"As long as he hits, he'll be in there," Phillips
said of Haar, whose brother Jason Haar was a standout
at St. Augustine last year.
Trailing 6-0, the Braves chewed the Hillers' lead in
half in the bottom of the 6th. CLIFTON THOMAS,
who has six hits in his last eight at-bats, ignited
the comeback with a single and stole second. He scored
on ALAN ABBOD's single. DAVID PEREZ plated
Abbod with a double and LUIS PEREZ scored his
brother with a base hit.
That rash of offense caused Phillips to replace starter
THOMAS ADAMS (5-2) with reliever A.J. GRIFFIN,
who needed only one pitch to end the 6th. Griffin then
retired the Braves in order in the 7th to earn his 3rd
save.
Other Grossmont standouts included NICK SOBEL,
who chipped in a 2-run single in the 7th inning as the
Foothillers added insurance to snuff out any comeback
plans the Braves (4-21, 0-10) might have had.
VALHALLA 13, HELIX 5: The Norsemen needed
to turn up their offensive flame to burn the upset-minded
Highlanders in Wednesday's (May 11) Grossmont South
League game which put Valhalla in position to claim
its third straight league title.
Although the 5th-ranked Norsemen (18-6, 10-1) scored
6 runs in their first two turns at-bat, they led by
only two runs as Helix - playing without head coach
COLE HOLLAND - refused to go away.
Valhalla, which has won 40 of its last 42 league games
dating back to the 2002 season, eventually broke the
game open with 6 runs in the 6th inning. The key blow
was STEVEN LeVALLEY's 3-run home run â¤"
his third round-tripper in as many games.
Senior SEAN O'SULLIVAN smacked his 7th homer
of the season and 29th of his career in the 1st inning.
He settled for two RBI as did DAVID SMITH, BRENNAN
BAUM and RYAN O'SULLIVAN.
TOMMY McCLAIN chimed in with a triple and a double
in three at-bats.
"The big thing is he took the ball to the opposite
field," said Valhalla coach STEVE PERDUE.
Ryan O'Sullivan also picked up his 7th win in eight
decisions, limiting the Highlanders (10-15, 2-10) to
two hits and one earned run in five innings. Closer
COREY STANGYL finished the job, spinning one-hit
ball over the final two frames.
"I think our kids came out flat, probably looking
toward Friday's showdown with Granite Hills," Perdue
said. "It doesn't get much better than that game
right there. We have a great rivalry with Granite Hills,
and I think our kids will respond in a positive manner.
They seem to get up for big games, and this is one of
those games."
The highpoints were few for Helix, which learned that
Holland was handed down a sentence that would prevent
him from coaching the Highlanders on game days over
the final four contests of the season. Although Holland
will continue to conduct the practices, assistant coach
MIKE MILLER will handle the game-day chores.
The San Diego CIF mandate for baseball coaches is that
a second game ejection during the course of the season
results in a coach having to miss the remainder of the
campaign in terms of game-day activities.
"This is an unfortunate situation and I feel worse
for the kids than I do for myself," Holland said.
"But rules are rules no matter how unfair they
may seem. I have to take the punishment."
Not surprisingly, Holland disputes each of his two ejections,
especially the latest one last week against Valhalla.
"I didn't go out there to argue a call with the
intent of being ejected," said Holland, who was
appealing a slide at second base by one of his players
that was ruled illegal and an automatic double play
was called. "I wasn't in the umpire's face. All
I said was, 'This is ridiculous.' I didn't use any profanity,
and he threw me out without any discussion."
Holland noted how basketball coaches are not ejected
from a game until they receive two technical fouls,
and that football coaches are not excused until they
are tagged with back-to-back 15-yard penalties. Soccer
players and/or coaches receive a yellow card before
being hit with a red card and a game expulsion.
"That's not the case in baseball," Holland
said. "If we dispute anything there is a good chance
we're going to get tossed. Seems to me there is something
wrong about what is accepted and what isn't among sports."
Valhalla coach Perdue vouched for Holland's behavior,
saying the Highlanders' coach was not out of line.
Yet Perdue's telephone calls and emails to SDCIF Commissioner
Dennis Ackerman and the San Diego County Umpires Association
on Holland's behalf have fallen on deaf ears.
"I've had several coaches step up for me, and I
appreciate that," Holland said. "All I can
say is it's going to be a lot quieter around the Helix
dugout next season.
MONTE VISTA 12, MOUNT MIGUEL 4: The
formula is amazingly simply: Place your leadoff batters
on base and let the middle of the lineup drive them
home.
For Monte Vista first baseman ANTHONY LOPEZ,
such a situation allowed him to register an RBI in each
of his first three at-bats from the No. 3 spot in the
batting order, helping the Monarchs snap a five-game
losing skid with their third straight win over Spring
Valley rival Mount Miguel in Wednesday's (May 11) Grossmont
South League contest.
After leadoff batters DAVID PALACIOS and DANNY
DeANDA reached base on each of their three trips
to the plate, it made life easy for Lopez, who went
single-double-double over the first three innings to
permit Monte Vista to mount a 9-4 lead.
"I felt more relaxed at the plate," noted
Lopez, one of a handful of blossoming sophomores on
the Monte Vista roster. "I used to flick my back
hand out, but coach (LARRY RINEHART) has helped
me with my hands, then I got to see some inside pitches
for the first time in a long time."
The results were all positive for Lopez. His first at-bat
was a hard ground single to tie the game at 1-all in
the 1st inning. He doubled to the wall in right-center
field in both the 2nd and the 3rd innings.
"We're young and developing," added Lopez,
who saw Monte Vista (7-17 overall, 5-7 GSL) keep its
slim SDCIF playoff hopes alive. "And we're learning
to hit the middle-outside pitches - that's all you see
at this level."
Later in the 1st, MATT HALE accepted a bases-loaded
walk to force home the eventual game-winning run, then
the third baseman - another Monarchs sophomore - slammed
a ball to left which was ruled a triple for two additional
runs in the 5th to cap a 2-for-3, 3 RBI performance.
Meanwhile, GOLDIE SIMMONS proved successful in
his first start, going three strong innings while on
a 60-pitch count to collect the victory. Equally as
rewarding for the Monarchs was the belated debut of
senior right-hander JAMES DAILEY.
The Monarchs might be challenging for a league title
had the aforementioned duo been able to pitch with regularity.
Both are coming off injuries. Simmons made a few token
appearances earlier in the year, but Dailey was saddled
with a cast for four weeks and unable to make a pitch
until Wednesday.
"This was sort of like a rehab assignment for Dailey,"
Rinehart said of the 6-foot-3, 205-pound right-hander
who has secured an academic scholarship to the University
of Hawaii where he plans to play baseball as a walk-on.
"James is on a pitch-count as well. He threw primarily
fastballs in this game with maybe a couple of curves."
The sudden availability of Simmons and Dailey makes
Monte Vista a much stronger team in terms of pitching
depth. In reality, though, their addition to the club
may be too late to make Monte Vista post-season worthy.
Mount Miguel received some pitching help from senior
infielder KEITH GREEN. Normally, the third baseman,
Green foiled a potential big rally by Monte Vista in
the 5th by retiring three straight batters, then set
the Monarchs down in order in the 6th to complete a
6-up, 6-down performance of perfect relief.
"It looks like we found ourselves a new closer,"
noted Matadors coach BYRON GRIGSBY on one of
the team's few bright spots after losing two more players
to eligibility issues over the weekend.
Center fielder BUD NEWBORN and catcher JEREMIAH
WHITE each batted 2-for-3 with an RBI for Mount
Miguel (0-24, 0-11), and DEXTER SEAVELLO drove
home another run with a double.
For White, it was his third straight 2-for-3 performance,
raising his batting average to .329 for the season.
GRANITE HILLS 5, STEELE CANYON 4: The
Eagles, much like the Norsemen, were hoping to squeeze
out a victory on Wednesday (May 11) to keep their shot
at a Grossmont South League flag waving.
TRAVIS TAIJERON's RBI triple keyed a 2-run 2nd
inning for Granite Hills (22-5, 10-2), which tucked
away its seventh straight win with its focus now on
knocking off defending league champion Valhalla on Friday-the-13th.
Second baseman RICKY CAZARES' cracked a 2-run
single that gave Granite Hills a 5-1 cushion in the
4th inning.
That would be enough for Eagles sophomore ERIC KRAUSE,
who pitched into the 7th inning as he earned his East
County-best 8th victory of the season.
"I was really happy with our pitching today,"
said Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS. "Krause
has been pretty dang good for us all season."
Seldom used BILLY SYLVESTER bailed Krause out
of a 7th inning jam to earn his first save.
"Sylvester came in at a crunch time and did a very
good job," Davis praised. "I was really happy
with him."
Davis has a close relationship with all of his players.
Sylvester is the team comedian.
"He is the only one who can make me laugh during
a game," the coach said. "I think that attitude
helps him when he's on the mound, too. He's competitive
yet lets the chips fall where they may. His best days
are still ahead of him."
For the 10th time in 24 games, Steele Canyon was involved
in an adventure game decided by two runs or less. The
Cougars (14-10, 8-4) are 5-5 in those close encounters.
"We butchered the ball around today," lamented
Steele Canyon coach PHIL MITTRY. "We can't
make a double play. We came out flat, didn't start playing
any kind of baseball until the 3rd inning. We
failed to execute a double play and that cost us three
runs. Our defense was shoddy, to say the least. And
they took advantage of every mistake we made."
Nevertheless, the Cougars are almost a sure bet to make
the SDCIF playoff lineup.
DANNY HARRIS was the main man in the Cougars'
production department, driving in three runs with a
pair of singles and a sacrifice fly.
West Hills' Travis Irvin (4) went 3-for-4 with
2 runs and 4 RBI in Wednesday's non-league defeat of
the visiting Brawley Wildcats. (5-11-05/Photo
by Adolfo Villanueva)
WEST HILLS 7, BRAWLEY 6: First-year West
Hills coach SCOTT HOPGOOD wanted to give his
non-starters a little more playing time Wednesday (May
11) when the Wolf Pack hosted the Wildcats from the
Imperial Valley.
Despite falling behind 6-1 after 2 1/2 innings, the
Wolf Pack (8-16) scrambled back to claim the victory
and halt a five-game losing streak.
"We played our bench, and they gave me a good effort,"
Hopgood said. "After we got down by five, I had
to put some of our regulars in."
The combination panned out.
TRAVIS IRVIN, who was 3-for-4 with 2 runs and
4 RBI, keyed the West Hills' rebound effort. The junior
middle infielder clubbed his first varsity home run
with 2 men aboard in the 3rd inning to pull the Pack
to within 6-4.
Left fielder SEAN CARLEY, the only senior on
the West Hills roster, was 0-for-3 on the season before
taking a bite out of Brawley pitching in his first start.
Carley was 3-for-3 with a double and 2 runs scored.
"Travis and Sean did a great job
setting up our offense," Hopgood said. "They
had some great at-bats."
Irvin sparked the winning rally in the bottom of the
7th with a double to right field. MICHAEL HALL
followed with an infield single to put runners at the
corners. Pinch-hitter STEPHEN STRASBURG provided
the final heroics when he singled off the right-center
field fence to score Irvin with the game-winner.
JOHN EDDY blanked Brawley on one hit over the
final 3 1/3 innings to earn his 4th win against five
losses.
"We had a good effort from everybody today,"
Hopgood said. "We think we can win our last four
and get into the playoffs."
By any account, West Hills can celebrate its 8th win
knowing that last year's Wolf Pack finished 7-22.
WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Grossmont North League
FOOTHILLERS 9, BRAVES 3
GROSSMONT ab r h bi EL CAJON VALLEY ab r h bi
Ferrara 2b 3 1 3 2 Thomas cf-p 4 1 3 0
Griffin 1b-p 4 0 1 0 Dyer 2b 1 0 0 0
Schroeder ph 1 0 0 0 Aquiningoc 3b 1 0 0 0
Pieczynski c 4 0 1 1 Manzo p-lf 3 0 1 0
Snow dh 3 1 1 2 Abbod 3b 3 1 1 1
Kinsella 1b 0 1 0 0 D.Perez c 3 1 1 1
Phillips ss 4 0 1 0 L.Perez ss 3 0 1 1
AWilliams cf 3 0 1 0 Myer 1b 3 0 0 0
Berry cf 0 1 0 0 Vega lf-rf 3 0 1 0
Medina rf 2 1 1 0 Sotos rf 1 0 0 0
Cusumano rf 0 0 0 0 Gonzales p 1 0 0 0
Sobel 3b 4 2 2 2 Sines cf 1 0 0 0
Haar lf 4 2 3 2
TOTALS 32 9 14 9 TOTAL 27 3 8 3
Grossmont (21-6, 7-2) 003 300 3 - 9 14 0
El Cajon Valley (4-21,0-10) 000 003 0 - 3 8 2
GWRBI: Ferrara (2).
E: Thomas, Manzo.
LOB: Gro 8, ECV 3. 2B: Haar, D.Perez. 3B: Ferrara, Medina. HR: Snow (14) 3rd, one on.
SB: Ferrara 2, Kinsella, A.Williams, Thomas. S: Cusumano, Dyer. SF: Ferrara.
PITCHING SUMMARY
GROSSMONT ip h r er bb so
TAdams W(5-2) 5.2 8 3 3 1 7
Griffin Sv(3) 1.1 0 0 0 0 2
EL CAJON VALLEY
Manzo L(0-3) 3.0 8 6 6 0 0
Gonzales 3.0 4 1 1 1 0
Thomas 1.0 2 2 2 2 1
HBP: by Manzo (Medina). WP: TAdams, Thomas.
*
VAQUEROS 13, SULTANS 9
SANTANA ab r h bi EL CAPITAN ab r h bi
Haley c 4 2 2 0 Hostetler rf 3 3 1 0
Woods p-ss 3 1 1 0 Russo 2b 4 3 4 3
Helmholtz 1b 3 1 1 2 Rauch c 2 0 0 1
Hermansen cf 3 1 3 0 Ksiazek ss 3 1 0 1
Martin ss-3b 4 1 1 3 N.Garcia 1b 3 1 2 1
Brosnan lf 3 2 1 0 Erickson dh 3 1 2 5
Basnight 3b-p 2 0 0 0 Walston cf 4 1 2 0
Diaz ph 1 1 1 1 Griffith lf 3 1 0 0
Martinez 2b 2 0 1 0 C.Garcia 3b 3 2 2 1
Tippin ph 1 0 0 0 Sullenger ph 1 0 0 0
N.Miller rf 4 0 2 1
Wylie pr 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 30 9 13 7 TOTALS 29 13 13 12
Santana (21-7, 6-4) 501 011 1 - 9 13 1
El Capitan (17-11, 9-1) 320 260 x - 13 13 3
GWRBI: None.
E: Paukovits, Russo, C.Garcia, Woods. DP: Sant 2, EC 1. LOB: Sant 7, EC 6.
2B: Haley, Brosnan, Erickson, Walston, C.Garcia. 3B: Martin. HR: Russo (5) 2nd, one on; Diaz (1) 7th, solo.
SB: Haley 2. S: Basnight. SF: Helmholtz, Rauch.
PITCHING SUMMARY
SANTANA ip h r er bb so
Woods 3+ 9 7 7 2 1
Basnight L(3-2) 1.1 3 5 1 0 0
Medrud 0.1 0 1 0 2 0
Spicer 1.3 1 0 0 0 2
EL CAPITAN
Paukovits W(6-2) 5.0 9 7 6 4 4
King 2.0 4 2 2 0 3
Woods faced 2 batters in the 4th.
HBP: by Paukovits (Haley), by Basnight (Rauch, Griffin, Hostetler). WP: Medrud, Basnight. PB: Haley.
*
Grossmont South League
EAGLES 5, COUGARS 4
STEELE CANYON ab r h bi GRANITE HILLS ab r h bi
Minich ss 4 0 2 0 Decker ss 3 1 1 0
Harris 2b 3 0 2 3 Humphries cf 3 0 1 0
Inzone rf 3 0 0 1 Crawford dh 3 0 0 0
Rice cf 4 0 1 0 Monette c 2 1 0 0
Lange 1b 3 0 0 0 Taijeron lf 3 1 1 1
Lewis lf 2 0 0 0 Anderson 1b 3 1 1 0
Duby c 2 1 0 0 Boltz rf 2 1 1 1
Jenner dh 3 1 1 0 Cazares 2b 3 0 1 2
Epperson 3b 3 2 2 0 Horner 3b 1 0 0 0
Coleman ph 1 0 0 0
TOTALS 27 4 8 4 TOTALS 24 5 6 4
Steele Canyon (14-10, 8-4) 001 010 2 - 4 8 3
Granite Hills (22-5, 10-2) 021 200 x - 5 6 1
GWRBI: Taijeron (3).
E: Horner, Minich 2. LOB: SC 6, GH 4. 2B: Epperson. 3B: Taijeron. SB: Epperson, Rice. SF: Boltz, Harris.
PITCHING SUMMARY
STEELE CANYON ip h r er bb so
Johnson L(4-3) 7.0 6 5 3 1 2
GRANITE HILLS
Krause W(8-1) 6+ 7 4 3 1 4
Sylvester Sv(1) 1.0 1 0 0 0 0
Krause pitched to 2 batters in the 7th.
HBP: by Johnson (Monette).
*
NORSEMEN 13, HIGHLANDERS 5
HELIX ab r h bi VALHALLA ab r h bi
Ra.Perez ss 1 2 0 0 JBrown ss 3 2 1 0
Tanida c 3 2 0 0 R.OSullivan p-2b 3 2 1 2
Peterson 1b-p 2 0 1 3 S.OSullivan 3b 1 2 1 2
Ponce p-rf 3 0 0 0 Baum 1b 4 1 2 2
Valles rf-lf-cf 3 1 1 0 McClain c 3 1 2 1
Ritchie 3b 4 0 0 0 ABrown pr 0 1 0 0
Rosenthal lf-1b 3 0 1 1 Moore lf 3 0 0 0
Schuler p 0 0 0 0 Smith lf 1 1 1 2
Rohmer 2b 3 0 0 0 LeValley dh 4 1 1 3
Deharo cf 2 0 0 0 Wilson rf 0 0 0 0
Beltran ph 1 0 0 0 GGarcia 2b 2 1 2 0
Wenham p 0 0 0 0 Stangyl p 1 0 0 0
Sopata cf 4 1 2 0
TOTALS 25 5 3 4 TOTALS 29 13 13 12
Helix (10-15, 2-10) 310 000 1 - 5 3 4
Valhalla (18-6, 10-1) 330 016 x - 13 13 3
GWRBI:Baum (3)
E: G.Garcia 2, Baum, Ponce, Deharo, Ra.Perez 2. DP: Val 1. LOB: Hel 6, Val 5. 2B: Baum, Peterson, Valles, McClain.
3B: McClain. HR: S.OSullivan (7), 1st solo; LeValley (3), 6th two on. SB: J.Brown 2, Tanida 2. SF: S.OSullivan.
PITCHING SUMMARY
HELIX ip h r er bb so
Ponce L(4-2) 2.0 6 6 5 2 0
Schuler 2.0 1 0 0 0 2
Peterson 1.1 6 7 7 2 2
Wenham 0.2 0 0 0 0 1
VALHALLA
R.OSullivan W(7-1) 5.0 2 4 1 4 3
Stangyl 2.0 1 1 1 2 1
HBPJ: by R.OSullivan (Ra.Perez), by Schuler (S.OSullivan). WP: Peterson, Stangyl. PB: Tanida, McClain 2. BK: Peterson.
*
MONARCHS 12, MATADORS 4
MOUNT MIGUEL ab r h bi MONTE VISTA ab r h bi
Seavello 2b 2 2 1 1 Palacios 2b 2 3 1 0
Newborn cf 3 0 2 1 Starling 2b 1 0 0 0
Calafato ss 4 0 0 0 DeAnda rf 2 3 1 1
White c 3 0 2 1 Messenger rf 2 0 1 0
Green 3b-p 3 0 1 0 Lopez 1b 5 2 3 3
Freeman-Bolden p 1 0 0 0 Rodriguez dh 5 0 0 1
Plunkett p-3b 1 0 0 0 Leboffe cf 2 0 1 1
Cannon rf 3 0 0 0 Haase cf 2 1 1 0
Vanderhyde 1b 3 1 1 0 Mendiola lf 3 0 1 0
Array lf 2 1 0 0 Ri.Garcia lf 1 1 1 0
Hale 3b 3 1 2 3
Cooper c 4 0 2 1
Croft ss 4 1 1 0
TOTALS 25 4 7 3 TOTALS 36 12 15 9
Mount Miguel (0-24, 0-11) 103 000 0 - 4 7 4
Monte Vista (7-17, 5-7) 243 030 x - 12 15 0
GWRBI: Hale (1).
E: Vanderhyde, Calafato 2, Seavello. DP: MV 1. LOB: MM 5, MV 11. 2B: Lopez 2, Seavello, Cooper. 3B: Hale. SB: Palacios.
MOUNT MIGUEL ip h r er bb k
Freeman-Bolden L(0-2) 3.0 10 9 5 4 2
Plunkett 1.0+ 5 3 3 0 0
Green 2.0 0 0 0 0 2
MONTE VISTA
Simmons W(1-0) 3.0 5 4 4 1 1
Dailey 2.0 0 0 0 1 3
Sopher 2.0 2 0 0 1 1
Plunkett faced 4 batters in the 5th.
HBP: by Plunkett (Starling), by Sopher (Seavello). WP: Freeman-Bolden 2. PB: Cooper. BK: Simmons.
*
Non-League
WOLF PACK 7, WILDCATS 6
Brawley (9-14) 123 000 0 - 6 8 0
West Hills (8-16) 103 200 1 - 7 12 2
Parano, Santana (6) and Gonzales; Hoffard, Eddy (4) and Parker, Gagnon (5).
HR: Irvin (WH, #1) 3rd, two on; Guillen (B, #2) 3rd, two on. SB: Parker, Hall, Drescher. W: Eddy (4-5). L: Santana (0-1).
(05-11-05)
Patriots have too much firepower for Cards at Williams
Field
EastCountySports.com
SAN DIEGO - Playing out the theory that it's never too
late to strike up a rally, the visiting Christian High
Patriots punched out the host Hoover Cardinals 12-7
in a Harbor League encounter Tuesday (May 10) at Ted
Williams Field. Six of the Patriots' runs were the result
of two-out rallies.
Christian cashed in 3 runs in the 2nd inning with two
down, 2 more in the 5th and another in the 6th, staking
pitcher TODD JONES with a 7-1 lead.
"It's kind of like doing things the hard way, but
whatever works," Christian coach MIKE MITCHELL
said. "Actually, we hit the ball the hardest in
the 3rd inning and we didn't score. We lined out three
times in that inning and six times in the game."
It was indeed a strange afternoon - complete with screaming
sirens as a host of San Diego Police cars arrived on
the Hoover campus to defuse some sort of disturbance
away from the baseball field.
"As long as we didn't hear any gun fire, we were
going to continue the game," Mitchell said.
SHANE STANOVIC, MATT HART and JOEL McGRANAHAN
were a composite 10-for-15 with 8 RBI and 6 runs scored
to pace the Patriots (13-8, 5-3).
But it was C.J. SCHROEDER's RBI double in the
2nd inning that broke a 1-1 tie and vaulted Christian
into a lead it wouldn't lose.
Jones (4-2) needed only 57 pitches to blanket the first
5 innings, but took 59 deliveries to put the 6th and
7th innings in the books.
"We didn't help him much in that 6th inning,"
noted Mitchell. "Four of our five errors came in
that inning, which seemed like it lasted 17 hours."
Leading only 7-5, Christian put the game away with 5
runs in the 7th. AUSTIN MURRAY drove in the first
run with a base hit. Stanovic followed with a 2-run
single and Hart matched that with a single that plated
another pair for the Pats.
Christian hosts Kearny on Thursday (May 12) at 3 p.m.
and then visits the Komets Saturday (May 14) in Kearny
Mesa at 1:30 p.m.
TUESDAY, MAY 10, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Harbor League
PATRIOTS 12, CARDINALS 7
CHRISTIAN ab r h bi HOOVER ab r h bi
Perry rf 4 1 1 0 Sheehan ss-p 4 2 2 0
Stanovic cf 5 3 4 3 Geraci 2b-p 4 1 1 0
Hart c 5 0 3 4 Camacho rf-p 4 1 2 2
Plum 3b 2 0 1 0 Torres 1b 4 1 1 0
Abell 3b 1 1 0 0 Martinez c 4 1 3 1
E.Young ss 2 1 0 0 Hyde 3b 2 0 0 0
O'Donnell ph 1 0 0 0 E.Jones 2b 0 0 0 1
Rossitto 1b 3 0 1 1 Rios cf 4 0 1 0
Allen ph 2 0 0 0 Richards p-2b 3 0 1 0
McGranahan dh 4 2 3 1 Gonzalez lf 2 1 0 0
Schroeder lf 3 1 1 1
Dossett lf 1 1 1 0
N.Adams 2b 2 1 1 1
A.Murray 1b 2 1 1 1
TOTALS 37 12 17 12 TOTALS 31 7 11 4
Christian (5-3, 13-8) 130 021 5 - 12 17 5
Hoover (3-6, 8-14) 100 004 2 - 7 11 1
GWRBI: Schroeder (1).
E: Hart, A.Murray, Rossitto, Abell, E.Young, Martinez. DP: Chr 1. LOB: Chr 9, Hoov 6.
2B: Stanovic, Hart, McGranahan, Schroeder, Sheehan, Martinez. SB: Stanovic, Sheehan. S: E.Jones.
PITCHING SUMMARY
CHRISTIAN ip h r er bb so
T.Jones W(4-2) 7.0 11 7 3 1 4
HOOVER
Richard L 4.2 10 6 6 2 2
Geraci 0.1 0 0 0 0 1
Camacho 1.2 7 6 6 3 3
Sheehan 0.1 0 0 0 0 1
HBP: by T.Jones (Hyde). WP: Camacho 2.
(05-10-05)
El Capitan.s Mike Griffith (10) is greeted by
teammates as he scores the game-winning run against
El Cajon Valley on Monday. (5-9-05/Photo by Andrew
Huse)
Vaqueros dodge Braves' shot at ending long league
losing streak
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON - It was a Monday (May 9) laden with games
decided by one run. Four of the six games involving
East County squads were determined by one-run spreads,
most noteworthy of which was No. 10-ranked El Capitan's
5-4 narrow escape at El Cajon Valley that took 8 innings
against the Braves who haven't won a league game since
1997. Other close calls included Santana's come-from-behind
2-1 win over West Hills, Steele Canyon avoiding a Monte
Vista upset bid 5-4 and Granite Hills 2-1 nod over Helix.
EL CAPITAN 5, EL CAJON VALLEY 4 (8): El
Cajon Valley has lost 95 consecutive Grossmont League
games. But, for a few hopeful moments in Monday's (May
9) duel with Grossmont North League-leading El Capitan,
the Braves - most of whom do not realize the length
of their winless streak - thought they might pull off
the biggest upset of the East County season.
"I think we gave El Capitan a wake-up call when
we went up on them 3-2," El Cajon valley coach
WAYNE WEIGHTMAN said of the Braves' 3-run burst
anchored by DAVID PEREZ's 2-run double. "We
showed we weren't going to just roll over."
An El Cajon Valley error opened the door to a 2-run
El Capitan rally in the 4th inning. Worse than that
from the Braves' standpoint, El Cajon Valley pitchers
walked AUSTIN RAUCH with the bases loaded to
tie the score and followed with a free pass to LOUIE
RUSSO to give the Vaqueros the lead.
Credit junior center fielder CLIFTON THOMAS for
giving the Braves (4-20, 0-9) a fighting chance to provide
El Cajon Valley a precious league win. Not only did
Thomas leadoff the bottom of the 7th inning with a base
hit and eventually scored the tying marker on ALAN
ABBOD's two-out single that gave the Braves
the tying marker, he also made a big league throw from
center field that appeared in time to erase what turned
out to be El Capitan's winning run.
Vaqueros junior VINNY NAZZAL, who was injected
into the game as a 4th inning pinch hitter, drew a walk
and punched a pair of singles. His last base hit scored
MICHAEL GRIFFITH with the winning run with one
out in the 8th.
"I was just trying to hit the ball right back up
the middle," Nazzal said. "Fortunately I was
able to get a couple hits. That last one - the game
winner - came off a fastball right down the middle."
El Cajon Valley took issue with the bang-bang play when
Griffith arrived standing at the plate just as Thomas'
on-the-fly throw arrived to catcher DAVID PEREZ,
who made a one-handed tag that appeared to be on time
to keep the game locked at 4-4.
"Thomas made a heckuva throw to make that place
close," El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY said
of Thomas. "The only guy that wasn't arguing was
the catcher. That play at the plate looked close to
me too. But again, the catcher didn't argue and that
tells me the runner was safe."
Weightman was convinced that his defense thwarted El
Capitan's winning tally. He wasn't sure that the plate
umpire was in position to make the proper call.
"Our catcher Derek Perez said he got the runner
on the arm," Weigtman said. "That was the
best play of the game and I don't think we got the right
call."
Another key call in the game came when Vickery made
an early substitution bringing Nazzal into focus.
Vickery noted Nazzal's value to his club.
"Vinny is a guy we've had trouble starting,"
Vickery said. "But he's had four quality at-bats
coming off the bench. We've tried to start him a couple
of times, but for one reason or another he gets nervous
or something."
Nazzal was 2-for-2 with a walk against at El Cajon Valley.
"Coming off the bench he's been a tough out,"
Vickery said.
After JASSON KSIAZEK's RBI single gave El Capitan
a 1-0 lead in the 1st inning and AUSTIN RAUCH
belted a solo home run to up the count to 2-0 in the
3rd.
Denying El Cajon Valley an end to its eight-year league
winless streak was satisfying to the Vaqueros.
"We dodged a bullet," Vickery said. "That's
all I'm going to say."
SANTANA 2, WEST HILLS 1: The source
of inspiration doesn't really matter as long as you
eventually find it. The Santana Sultans, coming off
a weekend full of frustration finally found their energy
from pitcher DALLAS MARTIN.
The sophomore right-hander earned his stripes by pitching
4-hit ball into the 6th inning, and provided the difference
on offense by slugging a tiebreaking homer in the 4th
inning as Santana kept its slim hopes of Grossmont North
League title alive.
"Nobody came to play today - we weren't up at all,"
admitted Sultans shortstop JEFF WOODS, who tossed
1 1/3 innings of relief to collect his second save,
three of the four outs coming on strikes."
While obviously impressed by Martin's pitching, Woods
was equally as wowed by Martin's work the bat.
"It was the first time I ever saw Dallas turn on
one - his homer against Grossmont on Friday went to
the opposite field," Woods said.
Of course, Martin has had not trouble swinging the bat.
His 11-game hitting streak is the longest among East
County hitters at the moment.
Martin twisted a 3-1 pitch over the fence in left field
for the deciding run to deny West Hills a much desired
upset on Monday.
"After our last game, just to somehow get a win
was nice," noted Martin, who struck out six. "After
striking out 12 of them the last time I faced West Hills,
in the beginning today, I didn´t get anything
over the plate, so I just starting throwing and let
it go."
The Wolf Pack (7-16, 2-7) also hindered itself with
an array of mistakes on the basepaths. Included were
two runners caught stealing, another runner was picked
off first base by Martin, and yet another was caught
between third and home after thinking there were three
outs, but was tagged out in a rundown after the batter
was actually safe at first on an error.
"A win's a win and we'll take it," added Woods,
who saw his team hit into two double plays to stymie
the comeback. "In games like this when you don't
hit, you hope your pitching carries you and it did."
For the longest time, it looked like a 50-foot, infield
single could carry West Hills to a 1-0 victory. After
SHAIN STONER opened the game with a walk and
moved to third on a pair of wild pitches, JOE MELLO
hit a slow tapper toward first, but the ball was unplayable
and Stoner scored.
However, hard-luck losing pitcher AARON RICHARDSON
was let down by his defense to allow Santana to pull
even, despite throwing a complete-game, 4-hitter.
Woods, who batted 2-for-2 with a walk, singled to center
then advanced another base on a wide throw from the
outfield. Woods took third on a passed ball, then delayed
coming home on a grounder to shortstop by KYLE
HELMHOLTZ. After getting checked by the defender,
Woods burst for the plate on the throw to first and
beat the relay throw home.
Two batters later, Martin delivered his go-ahead homer.
"If West Hills doesn't get caught in those rundowns,
we would've lost," added Woods. "We made a
lot of mistakes, too, but Dallas saved the game for
us."
Mello collected two of the Pack's five hits, while third
baseman JOHN EDDY delivered a two-out double
in the 7th to represent the potential tying run before
Woods ended the ballgame with a strikeout.
I'm beyond upset," stated West Hills coach SCOTT
HOPGOOD flatly. "We compete and we battle but
we don't get hits when we need them. We play good enough
to win and then we do things to give the game away.
We do not play smart baseball. We don't hit the ball
well enough to cover over up our mistakes."
On the flip side, Santana coach JERRY HENSON
raised his 14-year coaching record at Santana to 259-168-2.
STEELE CANYON 5, MONTE VISTA 4: It's difficult
for the majority of East County's baseball aficionados
to picture Steele Canyon as a primary contender in a
pennant race this late in the season. And, while the
focus is on Friday's (May 13) Granite Hills-Valhalla
showdown, the Cougars (14-9, 8-3) can't be counted out
just yet.
At the very least, Steele Canyon can foil Granite Hills'
title aspirations on Wednesday (May 11) when the two
clubs meet on the Eagles' diamond. This will be the
rubber match at 4 p.m.
Neither of the contending team's coaches is talking
about the pennant race at the moment.
When the top third of the Steele Canyon batting order
comes up big, the Cougars are darn near impossible to
beat. That was appeared to be the case in Monday's (May
9) Grossmont South League encounter.
"We jumped out ahead then kinda rolled over, and
they got back into the game," said Steele Canyon
coach PHIL MITTRY. "The kids got a chance
to see what it's like to play with a little bit of pressure
in a close game. But we did what it took to get the
job done."
After blowing a 4-0 lead, the Cougars pulled out a victory
in the 7th as CORY MINICH doubled and scored
on DANNY HARRIS' single to right field.
Falling behind 4-0 after 4 innings, the Monarchs (6-17,
4-7) scrambled back to tie the contest with 2 runs in
the 5th and a pair in the 6th. The tying run came across
on ALAN SOPHER's squeeze bunt that scored pinch
runner JEFF STARLING.
"CODY MINICH had a good at-bat -- hit a
sacrifice fly in the 4th inning, and got the rally started
for us in the 7th inning," Mittry said. "And
Harris hit the ball hard three times and had the game-winning
RBI."
Monte Vista coach LARRY RINEHART was quick to
salute his club's defensive effort despite succumbing
to a 5th straight loss.
"I told the guys afterwards that we have so many
positives that things are going to swing in our favor
very soon," Rinehart said.
The highlight of the outing was a defensive gem turned
in by right fielder BRET HAASE who nailed a Steele
Canyon runner attempting to score with a bullet throw
to catcher COREY COOPER in the 5th inning.
The top third of the Steele Canyon batting order was
a composite 7 for 9 for the Cougars.
GRANITE HILLS 2, HELIX 1: Sophomore
pitcher DARREN GAY continued to produce in relative
obscurity Monday (May 9) as the Eagles tip-toed past
visiting Helix in a key Grossmont South League game.
Gay needed only 60 pitches to check the Highlanders
(10-14, 2-9) on 4 hits as he earned his 7th win without
a loss.
"Am I surprised that Darren is 7-0?" Granite
Hills coach JAMES DAVIS said, repeating the question.
"Of course I am. At the same time, I'm extremely
happy from what he's given our team. He comes right
at the hitter. He can throw his fastball, curveball
and changeup for strikes with consistency."
Helix had some chances to rock the boat against Gay.
But the only time the Highlanders hit the pitcher was
when sophomore ZACH TANIDA led off the 4th inning
with a game-tying home run to left-center field.
It appeared that would be the swing inning for the Highlanders
as ANDREW VALLES and ERIK PONCE followed
with base hits to put runners at the corners. That threat
came to an abrupt end as ALEX ROSENTHAL rapped
into an inning-ending twin-killing that did not come
without controversy.
Helix coach COLE HOLLAND questioned the base
umpire's interference call on the runner, which led
to an automatic twin-killing. So vehement was Holland
that he was ejected from the contest.
"I don't know exactly what Cole said, but he had
a right to appeal the call because it was that close,"
Davis said. "It didn't appear that their runner
made a vicious slide, but my second base was off-balance
when he made a weak throw to first base. All I know
is the umpire said the runner slid past the bag and
that means he's out and so is the batter."
No. 4 Granite Hills (21-5), winner of 6 straight, took
a 1-0 lead on back-to-back doubles by BRANDON DECKER
and BRIAN HUMPHRIES in the 3rd inning.
The winning mark for the Eagles came in the 6th inning
as DONNIE ANDERSON's sacrifice fly brought in
NICK MONETTE, who reached base on an error.
"It was tough playing a team like Granite Hills
without our best two production guys," said Holland,
who was referring to the injured JEREMY PETERSON
and the ineligible NICK LEDESMA.
VALHALLA 13, MOUNT MIGUEL 2: Fourteen
Norsemen contributed to a 17-hit attack as Valhalla
coach STEVE PERDUE made wholesale substitutions
early in Monday's (May 9) Grossmont South League game
against the visiting Matadors.
The No. 5 Norsemen (17-6, 9-1) were leading 10-1 after
2 innings causing Perdue to empty his bench against
the hapless Matadors (0-23, 0-10).
Mount Miguel took a 1-0 edge in the 1st inning on BUD
NEWBORN's RBI single. After that, though, the game
belonged to Valhalla, which won its 6th straight.
Valhalla took the lead as simple as 1-2-3. That is,
JAVIER BROWN singled, stole second, RYAN O'SULLIVAN
walked and SEAN O'SULLIVAN belted his 6th home
run of the season. More was to come in the opening frame.
BRENNAN BAUM doubled and scored STEVEN LeVALLEY's
base hit.
Valhalla rang up six more in the 2nd as RYAN O'SULLIVAN
ripped a 2-run single, TOMMY McCLAIN doubled
in a pair and LeValley belted his second home run in
as many games to give Norseman starter ERIC JULIENNE
a 9-run cushion.
LeValley's blast was of titanic proportion as he hit
the top of the aluminum bleachers on the football field
beyond left field.
Julienne struck out 8 during his 4-inning stint as he
logged his 4th win in five decisions.
KEITH GREEN smacked two doubles and drove in
one run for Mount Miguel, which lost three players to
grades, including leading hitter EDDIE De ARCOS.
GROSSMONT 4, MONTGOMERY 1: Sure, this was
simply a non-league game between powerhouse teams in
different divisions Monday (May 9) in South Bay. But
the pride factor was certainly at stake if nothing else.
The 6th-ranked Foothillers (20-6), primary contenders
for the San Diego CIF Division II title, received four
solid innings from seldom-used junior left-hander MATS
MATTSON and three sterling innings of relief from
DONNIE SNOW to plow under the No. 7-ranked Aztecs
(15-9), who were representing Division I.
Mattson, who has logged 2 wins and a 1.27 ERA in 11
innings this season, held Mesa League-leading Montgomery
to one run and three hits during his starting stint.
Snow was touched for 3 hits but little else as he punched
in his 3rd save.
Grossmont took a 1-0 edge in the 2nd inning. With one
down, TRISTAN PHILLIPS drew a walk and TREVOR
BERRY singled. That set the stage for MATT PASSANISI's
RBI double.
Montgomery tied in the 3rd inning as Roman Pena singled
and scored on Edgar Molina's double.
Grossmont counter-punched in the 4th as two Montgomery
errors and Passanisi's sacrifice fly put the Foothillers
back on top to stay.
The Hillers did not gain any breathing room until the
7th when a pair of Montgomery throwing errors and an
RBI single by DANNY PIECZYNSKI staked Snow to
a 4-1 advantage entering the bottom of the 7th.
For what it's worth, Grossmont is 5-1 against Division
I team this season.
MONDAY, MAY 9, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Grossmont North League
VAQUEROS 5, BRAVES 4 (8 inn.)
EL CAPITAN ab r h bi EL CAJON VALLEY ab r h bi
Rauch c 4 1 1 1 Thomas cf 4 1 3 0
Russo 2b 2 1 1 1 L.Perez p-1b 3 1 1 0
N.Garcia 1b 5 0 0 0 Manzo lf 3 1 1 0
Ksiasek ss 4 0 2 1 Abbod 3b 2 1 1 1
Erickson rf 4 0 0 0 D.Perez c 4 0 1 2
Hostetler rf 0 0 0 0 Aquiningoc dh 4 0 2 1
McCarthy p 1 0 1 0 Dyer 2b 0 0 0 0
Henson p 2 0 0 0 Sotos pr 0 0 0 0
King p 0 0 0 0 Sims rf 1 0 0 0
Walston cf 4 1 0 0 Gonzalez rf 3 0 0 0
Griffith lf-3b 4 2 2 0 Myer 1b-p 4 0 0 0
C.Garcia 3b 1 0 0 0 Padilla ss 3 0 0 0
Nazzal lf 2 0 2 1
TOTALS 33 5 9 4 TOTALS 31 4 9 4
El Capitan (16-11, 8-1) 101 200 01 - 5 9 1
El Cajon Valley (4-20, 0-9) 003 000 10 - 4 9 1
GWRBI: Nazzal (1).
E: Abbod, Griffith. DP: EC 1. LOB: EC 10, ECV 8. 2B: D.Perez, Griffith. HR: Rauch (2) 3rd, solo.
SB: Thomas, Russo, Ksiazek. S: L.Perez.
PITCHING SUMMARY
EL CAPITAN ip h r er bb so
McCarthy 2.2 4 3 3 1 5
Henson W(1-0) 4.1 4 1 1 0 3
King Sv(2) 1.0 1 0 0 0 0
EL CAJON VALLEY
L.Perez 3.1 6 4 3 3 4
Myer L(1-5) 4.2 3 1 1 1 5
HBP: by McCarthy (Abbod, Manzo), by Myer (Russo). WP: Myer. PB: D.Perez 2.
*
SULTANS 2, WOLF PACK 1
WEST HILLS ab r h bi SANTANA ab r h bi
Stoner ss 1 1 0 0 Haley c 3 0 1 0
Irvin 2b 3 0 0 0 Woods ss-p 2 1 2 0
Parker pr 0 0 0 0 Holmholtz 1b 2 0 0 1
Mello cf 3 0 2 1 Hermanson cf 3 0 0 0
Strasburg 1b 2 0 0 0 Martin p-ss 2 1 1 1
Richardson p 3 0 1 0 Brosnan lf 2 0 0 0
Hooper rf 3 0 0 0 Basnight 3b 1 0 0 0
Gagnon c 2 0 0 0 Martinez 2b 2 0 0 0
Eddy 3b 3 0 1 0 Miller rf 0 0 0 0
Hoffard pr 0 0 0 0
Pichette lf 3 0 1 0
TOTALS 23 1 5 1 TOTALS 17 2 4 2
West Hills (7-16, 2-7) 100 000 0 - 1 5 1
Santana (21-6, 6-3) 000 200 x - 2 4 1
GWRBI: Martin.
E: Woods, Mello. DP: WH 2. LOB: WH 3, San 3. 2B: Eddy. HR: Martin (2), 4th, solo. S: Miller, Helmholtz.
WEST HILLS ip h r er bb k
Richardson L(3-4) 6.0 4 2 2 2 1
SANTANA
Martin W(6-1) 5.2 4 1 1 4 6
Woods Sv(2) 1.1 1 0 0 0 2
HBP: by Richardson 2 (Martin, Basnight). WP: Martin 2, Richardson. PB: Gagnon, Haley.
*
Grossmont South League
NORSEMEN 13, MATADORS 2
MOUNT MIGUEL ab r h bi VALHALLA ab r h bi
Scavello 2b 3 1 0 0 J.Brown ss 2 2 2 0
Newborn cf 3 0 2 1 R.OSullivan 2b-ss 3 3 2 2
Calafato ss 4 1 0 0 S.OSullivan 3b 1 1 1 3
White c 3 0 2 0 Baum 1b 2 1 1 0
Green 3b-p 3 0 2 1 McClain c 2 1 1 2
Plunkett 1b 3 2 0 0 Moore lf 2 0 0 0
Sandoval p-1b 2 0 0 0 LeValley dh 3 2 2 3
Cannon rf 1 0 0 0 Sopata cf 4 0 1 0
Array lf 7 0 3 0 Wilson rf 2 1 1 0
Vanderhyde p 3 0 1 0 GGarcia 2b 2 1 1 1
Smith 3b 2 0 1 2
Young 1b-p 2 0 1 0
Wilkins c 2 0 1 0
Melendez lf 2 0 1 0
A.Brown rf 2 1 1 1
TOTALS 33 13 17 13 TOTALS 27 2 6 2
Mount Miguel (0-23, 0-10) 100 100 0 - 2 6 1
Valhalla (17-6, 9-1) 462 100 x - 13 17 0
GWRBI: S.OSullivan (5).
E: Green. DP: MM 1. LOB: Val 4, MM 7. 2B: R.OSullivan, Baum, McClain, Sopata.
HR: S.OSullivan (6) 1st, two on; LeValley (2) 2nd, one on. SB: J.Brown 2, R.OSullivan,
S.OSullivan, Wilson, Seavello, Newborn. Array.
PITCHING SUMMARY
MOUNT MIGUEL ip h r er bb so
Sandoval 0+ 1 1 1 0 0
Vanderhyde L(0-5) 1.2 7 9 9 2 1
Green 4.1 7 2 2 0 0
VALHALLA
Julienne W(4-1) 4.0 3 2 2 0 8
Young 2.0 2 0 0 0 0
Stangyl 1.0 0 0 0 1 3
Sandoval faced one batter in the 1st.
HBP: by Julienne (Seavello, Plunkett).
*
COUGARS 5, MONARCHS 4
STEELE CANYON ab r h bi MONTE VISTA ab r h bi
Minich ss 3 1 2 1 Palacios 2b 3 0 1 1
Harris 2b 4 0 3 1 De Anda rf 4 0 1 0
Inzone rf 2 0 2 0 Lopez 1b 4 1 1 0
Rice cf 4 0 0 0 Rodriguez p 3 1 1 0
Lange 1b 3 0 0 0 Leboffe cf 3 0 1 1
x-Murray 3b 3 1 2 0 Mendiola c 1 0 0 0
Duby c 3 2 2 0 Croft ss 2 1 1 0
Epperson p 3 0 1 0 Sopher dh 1 1 1 1
Klopp lf 3 1 2 1 Cooper 3b-c 3 0 1 1
Jacobsmeier pr 0 0 0 0 R.Garcia lf 1 0 0 0
Haase lf 2 0 1 0
Starling pr 0 1 0 0
TOTALS 28 5 14 2 TOTALS 27 4 9 4
Steele Canyon (14-9, 8-3) 030 100 1 - 5 14 0
Monte Vista (6-17, 4-7) 000 022 0 - 4 9 2
GWRBI: Harris (3).
E: Cooper, Lopez. DP: MV 1. LOB: SC 5, MV 4. 2B: Minich, Harris, Duby, Palacios, Croft.
S: Inzone, Sopher. SF: Minich.
PITCHING SUMMARY
STEELE CANYON ip h r er bb so
Epperson W(4-3) 6.0 8 4 4 0 5
Johnson Sv(1) 1.0 1 0 0 0 2
MONTE VISTA
Rodriguez L(2-9) 7.0 14 5 3 1 1
HBP: Epperson (Palacios, Sopher).
*
EAGLES 2, HIGHLANDERS 1
HELIX ab r h bi GRANITE HILLS ab r h bi
R.Perez ss 3 0 0 0 Decker ss 3 1 1 0
Tanida c 3 1 1 1 Humphries rf 3 0 1 1
Valles lf 3 0 1 0 Crawford dh 3 0 0 0
Ponce rf 3 0 2 0 Monette c 2 1 1 0
Rosenthal 1b 2 0 0 0 Taijeron lf 3 0 1 0
Ritchie 3b 3 0 0 0 Anderson 1b 2 0 1 1
Webb dh 2 0 0 0 Cazares 2b 3 0 1 0
Rohmer 2b 2 0 0 0 Marquis cf 3 0 1 0
DeHaro cf 2 0 0 0 Horner 3b 2 0 1 0
TOTALS 23 1 4 1 TOTALS 24 2 8 2
Helix (10-14, 2-9) 000 100 0 - 1 4 4
Granite Hills (21-5, 9-2) 001 001 x - 2 7 1
GWRBI: Anderson (2).
E: Horner, R.Perez, Rohmer 2, Ritchie. DP: Hel 1, GH 2. LOB: Hel 2, GH 5. 2B: Decker, Humphries.
HR: Tanida (2) 4th, solo. SB: Cazares. SF: Anderson.
PITCHING SUMMARY
HELIX ip h r er bb so
Wenham L(3-4) 6.0 7 2 1 1 3
GRANITE HILLS
Gay W(7-0) 7.0 4 1 1 1 3
*
FOOTHILLERS 4, AZTECS 1
Grossmont (20-6) 010 100 2 - 4 7 0
Montgomery (15-9) 001 000 0 - 1 6 5
Mattson, Snow (5) and Pieczynski; Spicer, Procopio (3), Gutierrez (5), Garcia (7) and Hall.
W: Mattson (2-0). L: Procopio (2-3). Sv: Snow (3).
(05-09-05)
El Capitan's Nik Garcia (21) scores as West Hills
catcher Aaron Gagnon (9) scoops up the late throw.
(5-6-05/Photo
by Adolfo Villaneuva)
Foothillers find a way to finalize win over Santana
in final frame
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON - For 6 1/2 innings, Santana and Grossmont
were cautiously stalking one another in Friday's (May
6) key Grossmont North League engagement, one of the
more controversial match-ups in East County this season.
The Sultans, thanks to DALLAS MARTIN's two-run
single in the 3rd inning, held the upper hand with three
outs to go. Turbulence rocked the bottom of the 7th
inning at Grossmont's Joe Gizoni Field. The Sultans
thought they got robbed and the Foothillers were thankful
to pull out an emotional 3-2 victory.
"I think we were clinically dead until the 7th
inning," said Grossmont coach ROB PHILLIPS,
whose Foothillers (19-6, 6-2) garnered only one infield
single over the final four innings. "We just had
no fire."
Things heated up in a hurry in the 7th.
While Santana was certain it had been burned by the
base umpire two times in the final frame, the Sultans
(20-6, 5-3) added to their demise by putting two Grossmont
runners on base - hitting one and walking another. None
the less, Santana reliever JEFF WOODS provided
the Sultans with an escape hatch by recording a key
strikeout, setting the stage for a game-ending double
play.
A.J. GRIFFIN tapped a groundball to Santana
third baseman JOHN BASNIGHT, who stepped on third
for a force (out No. 2), but missed the chance for a
game-ending double play when his subsequent throw to
first base was off line. Basnight's throw not only eluded
first baseman KYLE HELMHOLTZ, it rolled under
the fence about 25 feet down the right field line.
The two umpires working the game huddled for a quick
discussion and then determined that Grossmont's TIM
FERRARA, who began the play running from first base,
should be allowed to score after the ball rolled under
the fence.
Once informed of the umpires' decision, Santana coach
JERRY HENSON went ballistic. His hat held in
hand, Henson approached the base umpire to plead his
case. He received no sympathy, as his cries fell on
basically deaf ears.
Henson claimed Ferrara was wrongly permitted to score
from 1st base when the ballpark ground rules (and National
Federation High School Rule Book) said he should have
had to stop at third.
The runner gets the base he's running to plus one more,"
Henson said. "I could have accepted that. But then
the base ump tells me that (Ferrara) was already rounding
second when the ball went under the fence. That's bull.
Nobody can run that fast."
Henson hardly had time to cool off when a second controversial
play went against his Sultans.
With the game now tied 2-2 and the winning run at third
base with two outs, Henson elected to intentionally
walk DONNIE SNOW to bring DANNY PIECZYNSKI
to the plate.
Pieczynski made the Sultans pay when he spanked a groundball
into the 5.5 hole. Santana shortstop Martin made
the backhanded stop. But as Martin threw from the lip
of the grass in left field, his peg took a bounce before
arriving to first baseman Helmholtz. The Santana senior
first sacker was able get his glove on Martin's throw
just as Pieczynski arrived at the bag.
Henson insisted the ball beat Pieczynski and he should
have been out, this forcing the game into extra innings.
The umpires, however did not share Henson's view. Thus,
Pieczynski was credited with an infield single and more
importantly, an RBI as Griffin scored the game-winner
from third base.
"What made that play go our way was hard baseball,
something we've been talking about all week," said
Pieczynski, who accounted for half of Grossmont's six
hits. â¤Helmholtz had to short-hop that
throw and was standing on top of the bag when he got
the ball."
Pieczynski collided with Helmholtz, which made the
base umpire's call that much tougher.
"It was real close, but there is no question in
my mind that I was safe," Pieczynski said. "Helmholtz
was standing on top of the bag, so I just went in hard
and tried to get him to move. I didn't tackle him; I
just hit him with my legs when I went by. He was on
his heels because he had to stretch for the throw."
The fact that Santana intentionally walked Snow to
Pieczynski only added to the Grossmont catcher's desire
to deliver the knockout blow.
"After that I knew I had one job to do and that
was put the ball in play," Pieczynski said. "I
was surprised that they walked Donnie in that spot because
they had him off balance all day. He hasn't been swinging
the bat that well lately."
Pieczynski is Grossmont's hottest hitter. He stroked
singles in each of his first two at-bats and flied to
deepest dead center in his third at-bat before he came
through with his game-winning single.
"It's all about doing whatever it takes to win
the game," Pieczynski said.
Henson attempted to protest the game, but the plate
umpire said he had no cause.
"He said it was a judgment call, so I couldn't
protest," Henson said. "Well, I just hope
those two guys (umpires) realize they denied my kids
any chance at winning league. I feel bad for my kids
to have them see a ballgame taken away from them like
that."
Grossmont coach Phillips said while he could emphasize
with Henson, he agreed with umpires and their decisive
calls. Especially the one involving the overthrow.
"I know Ferrara was past second base as soon as
the ball went through (and fielded by third baseman
Basnight) he was almost here," said Phillips, who
was coaching third base. "So I think the umpire's
call was right."
Phillips went on to say that he thought Pieczynski was
safe on his game-winning infield single.
That, of course, is hardly surprising.
Both teams received superior pitching. Grossmont's THOMAS
ADAMS and TAYLOR WOHLWEND limited the Sultans
to five singles, while Basnight and Woods rationed Grossmont
to six safeties.
Griffin's solo home run in the 1st inning was the only
extra-base hit of the game.
West Hills first baseman John Eddy (16) reaches
for a high throw as El Capitan's Vinny Nazzal
(2) approaches. (5-6-05/Photo
by Adolfo Villanueva)
EL CAPITAN 10, WEST HILLS 0: With
one round left in the Grossmont North League season,
the Vaqueros (15-11, 7-1) have to like where they stand.
Despite a 1-5 start and falling off the track last weekend
in a double-defeat at Eastlake, coach STEVE VICKERY's
crew seems to find a way to win when the value is highest.
Vickery, in fact, labeled Friday's (May 6) Grossmont
North League romp at West Hills, â¤our
best game of the year.�
Senior center fielder JOSH WALSTON broke out
of a season-long slump to lead the El Capitan offensive
charge. Beginning the afternoon with a mediocre .253
average (17 for 67), Walston served up four singles
and 6 RBI in four at-bats.
Walston's apparent resurgence sheds more positive light
on the Vaqueros who have been seeking a consistent offensive
leader.
"Today was just his day," his coach said.
"Walston was the right man at the right time."
It was Walston's 2-run single that gave the Vaqueros
an early lead in the 2nd inning. It was the 4th time
this season that he's provided the game-winning hit.
Walton added run-scoring singles in the 3rd and 5th
innings. He finished his batting bonanza with a two-run
single in the 6th.
El Capitan broke the game open with 4 runs in the 3rd
inning - a two-out rally that included five hits and
a walk.
"We did everything right," Vickery said. "We
swung the bat like we've done in the past. We had great
approaches all day. We hit the ball hard most of the
time."
"When your Nos. 5, 6 and 7 hitters are 9-for-9
with 7 runs scored and 8 RBI, you know you're having
a good day," Vickery added.
CRISTIAN GARCIA (6-3) was an overpowering starter
for the Vaqueros, blanking the Wolf Pack (7-15, 2-6)
on one hit while striking out 8 during a 5-inning stint.
Relievers KYLE KING and D.J.HENSON pitched
one scoreless inning apiece and chipped in two strikeouts
each.
"West Hills had only two base runners all day,"
Vickery noted.
West Hills coach SCOTT HOPGOOD was not pleased
by his club's performance, as the Wolf Pack was blown
out for one of the few times this season. Only a 16-2
loss to Vista was worse than what El Capitan handed
out on Friday.
"For the first time all year we were extremely
flat and didn't come out to play," Hopgood said.
Hard-luck West Hills pitcher STEPHEN STRASBURG
was cuffed around for 10 hits and 8 earned runs in 4
innings as was tagged with his 9th loss.
"Strasburg has pitched in tough luck all year,"
Hopgood said. "But this time he had northing and
El Cap took advantage of it. He got touched up quite
a bit.
"We've been in quite a few close games. But obviously
this was not one of them. I hope this was exception
and not the rule."
STEELE CANYON 1, HELIX 0: This
Grossmont South League encounter Friday (May 6) at Helix
reeked of playoff overtones for both teams.
The first three batters of the game - the Steele Canyon
trio of CODY MINICH, DANNY HARRIS and
JOE INZONE - provided the only scoring.
Minich led off with a single and raced around the third
on Harris' base hit. Inzone, who began the week as East
County's leading hitter, lifted a sacrifice fly to left
field bringing in Minich.
End of scoring.
Steele Canyon sophomore ANDREW BRUDER bested
Helix senior MIKE SCHULER in a pitching duel
the rest of the way.
Bruder, a 6-foot-1, 180-pound sophomore right-hander,
limited the Highlanders to three hits, while striking
out 7 and walking only one.
"Bruder was rested up and ready to go after the
rainout last Friday," said Steele Canyon coach
PHIL MITTRY. "He had a great game. Helix's
guy (Schuler) pitched a great game, too. "If you
like pitchers' games, today was the day to go."
Despite all of their offensive struggles over the past
15 games - 12 of them losses - the Highlanders (10-13,
2-8) were shutout for just the second time in 23 starts
this season.
"Our pitching and defense have come together for
us," Helix coach COLE HOLLAND said. We haven't
made an error in our last three games. But we just can't
seem to get any consistency with the bat, although we
did have our chances today."
Holland pointed to NICK LEDESMA's leadoff double
inn the 5th.
"We get a guy in scoring position and then roll
over 1-2-3," the coach lamented. "It's been
very frustrating."
Speaking of anemic offense . . . The Cougars (13-9,
7-3) scored only 2 runs and gave up 18 in three games
this week, yet squeezed out one win.
"After a rotten start it was a good way to end
the week," Mittry decided.
VALHALLA 19, MOUNT MIGUEL 2: The
visiting Norsemen displayed a widespread stream of offensive
fireworks in Friday's (May 6) Grossmont South League
romp over Mount Miguel.
Sure, all of Valhalla's big guns were blazing. Senior
SEAN O'SULLIVAN was 3-for-3 with a pair of doubles,
his fifth home run, four runs and 5 RBI. His pitching
wasn't too bad, either, as he registered a season-high
14 strikeouts without issuing a walk in six innings.
But this was no one-man show, as 10 Norsemen contributed
to the 17-hit onslaught.
In the case of junior JEFF SOPATA, his performance
almost comes as relief. The struggling Valhalla outfielder,
who came into Friday's game with just 4 hits in 44 at-bats,
broke loose with three singles and a double in five
trips.
Even more rewarding was Sopata was the centerpiece of
Valhalla's 7-run 4th inning. In fact, he had the only
two hits as the Matadors' pitchers went on a wild streak
issuing four walks and hitting three batters. Sopata
ignited the major rally with a single and a stolen base,
and then capped the scoring with a 3-run double.
BRENNAN BAUM drove in 3 runs with a pair of hits,
RYAN O'SULLIVAN was 2-for-3 with his third home
run and STEVEN LeVALLEY laced a grand slam in
his only at-bat.
It was the fifth straight win for the 6th-ranked Norsemen
(16-6, 8-1), who have won 38 of their last 40 league
games dating back to 2002.
For Mount Miguel (0-22, 0-9), EDDIE De ARCOS
singled off O'Sullivan to stretch his East County-best
hitting streak to 13 games. KEITH GREEN accounted
for Mount Miguel's runs with a pair of RBI singles.
FRIDAY, MAY 6, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Grossmont North League
VAQUEROS 10, WOLF PACK 0
EL CAPITAN ab r h bi WEST HILLS ab r h bi
Nazzal lf 4 0 0 0 Richardson cf 2 0 0 0
DGarcia lf 1 0 0 0 Thompson ph 1 0 0 0
Russo 2b 4 0 0 0 Stoner ss-p 2 0 0 0
Sullenger 2b 1 0 0 0 Carley ph 1 0 0 0
Rauch c 4 1 2 0 Strasburg p 1 0 0 0
McCarthy ph 1 0 1 0 Skinner p 1 0 0 0
Ksiazek ss 3 2 1 1 Hoffard p 1 0 1 0
Petrille ph 1 0 0 0 Pichette c 1 0 0 0
NGarcia 1b 3 4 3 1 Mello cf 2 0 0 0
Erickson rf 2 3 2 1 Gagnon lf 3 0 0 0
Hostetler rf 1 0 0 0 Hooper rf 1 0 0 0
Walston cf 4 0 4 6 Parker rf 2 0 0 0
Henson dh 2 0 1 1 Eddy 1b 1 0 0 0
Griffith 3b 4 0 1 0 Maldonado 1b 1 0 0 0
CGarcia p 0 0 0 0 Hall 3b 1 0 0 0
King p 0 0 0 0 Ritiyak 3b 1 0 0 0
Irvin 2b 1 0 1 0
Drescher 2b 1 0 0 0
TOTALS 35 10 15 10 TOTALS 24 0 2 0
El Capitan (15-11, 7-1) 024 022 0 - 10 15 1
West Hills (7-15, 2-6) 000 000 0 - 0 2 0
GWRBI: Walston (4).
E: Ksiazek. LOB: EC 9, WH 3. 2B: Rauch, NGarcia, Ksiazek. 3B: Erickson. SB: Rauch 2.
PITCHING SUMMARY
EL CAPITAN ip h r er bb so
CGarcia W(6-3) 5.0 1 0 0 0 8
King 1.0 0 0 0 0 2
Henson 1.0 1 0 0 0 2
WEST HILLS
Strasburg L(0-9) 4+ 10 8 8 2 4
Skinner 1.0 2 2 0 0 2
Hoffard 1.0 2 2 2 2 1
Stoner 1.0 1 0 0 0 2
Strasburg faced 2 batters in the 5th.
HBP: by Strasburg (NGarcia).
*
Grossmont South League
COUGARS 1, HIGHLANDERS 0
STEELE CANYON ab h r bi HELIX ab h r bi
Minich ss 3 1 2 0 RPerez ss 2 0 1 0
Harris 2b 3 0 2 0 Tanida c 3 0 0 0
Inzone rf 2 0 0 1 Ledesma cf 3 0 1 0
Rice c 3 0 0 0 Peterson 1b 2 0 0 0
Lange 1b 3 0 1 0 Valles lf 3 0 0 0
Lewis lf 3 0 0 0 Rosenthal dh 3 0 0 0
Jenner dh 3 0 0 0 Ponce rf 3 0 1 0
Duby c 3 0 2 0 Ritchie 3b 2 0 0 0
Jacobsmeier pr 0 0 0 0 Rohmer 2b 2 0 0 0
Epperson 3b 3 0 0 0 Schuler p 0 0 0 0
Bruder p 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 26 1 7 1 TOTALS 23 0 3 0
Steele Canyon (13-9, 7-3) 100 000 0 - 1 7 2
Helix (10-13, 2-8) 000 000 0 - 0 3 0
GWRBI: Inzone (2).
E: Duby. DP: SC 1. LOB: SC 5, H 4. 2B: Minich, Lange, Ledesma. SF: Inzone.
PITCHING SUMMARY
STEELE CANYON ip h r er bb so
Bruder W(3-2) 7.0 3 0 0 1 7
HELIX
Schuler L(1-5) 7.0 7 1 1 0 2
HBP: by Bruder (Peterson. WP: Bruder.
*
FOOTHILLERS 3, SULTANS 2
SANTANA ab r h bi GROSSMONT ab r h bi
Haley c 3 1 1 0 Ferrara 2b 3 1 0 0
Woods ss-p 4 0 0 0 Griffin 3b 4 2 1 1
Helmholtz 1b 3 1 1 0 Snow rf 2 0 1 0
Hermansen cf 2 0 0 0 Pieczynski c 4 0 3 1
Martin 3b-ss 3 0 2 2 Phillips ss 3 0 1 0
Brosnan lf 2 0 0 0 Berry cf-lf 3 0 0 0
Tippin lf 1 0 0 0 Cusumano lf 2 0 0 0
Basnight p-3b 3 0 1 0 AWilliams cf 1 0 0 0
Diaz pr 0 0 0 0 Sobel 1b 2 0 0 0
Martinez 2b 3 0 0 0 Passanisi 1b 0 0 0 0
NMiller rf 2 0 0 0 TAdams p 2 0 0 0
Wohlwend p 0 0 0 0
Medina ph 1 0 0 0
TOTALS 26 2 5 2 TOTALS 27 3 6 2
Santana (20-6, 5-3) 002 000 0 - 2 5 2
Grossmont (19-6, 6-2) 100 000 2 - 3 6 2
Two outs when winning run scored.
GWRBI: Pieczynski (3).
E: Woods, Basnight, Sobel, Griffin. DP: Gro 1. LOB: Sant 6, Gro 8. HR: Griffin (7) 1st, solo. SB: Woods.
PITCHING SUMMARY
SANTANA ip h r er bb so
Basnight 4.2 5 1 1 1 2
Woods L(7-3) 2.0 1 2 1 2 2
GROSSMONT
TAdams 5.0 4 2 2 2 4
Wohlwend W(7-0) 2.0 1 0 0 0 2
HBP: by TAdams (Haley), by Woods (Passanisi). WP: Woods.
*
NORSEMEN 19, MATADORS 2
VALHALLA ab r h bi MOUNT MIGUEL ab r h bi
JBrown ss 2 2 1 0 Newborn cf 3 0 0 0
R.OSullivan 3b-ss 3 2 2 1 Williamson 2b 4 0 0 0
S.OSullivan p 3 4 3 5 De Arcos rf 4 1 1 0
Baum 1b 2 1 2 3 White c 3 1 2 0
McClain c 2 1 0 1 Calafato ss 3 0 1 0
Moore lf 2 1 0 1 Plunkett 3b-p 3 0 0 0
GGarcia 2b 5 0 1 0 Green 2b 3 0 2 2
Melendez rf 4 1 0 1 Freeman p-3b 3 0 1 0
Sopata cf-p 5 2 4 3 Vanderhyde 3b 3 0 0 0
Smith 3b 2 0 0 0 Sandoval p 0 0 0 0
Wilson rf 1 0 0 0
ABrown cf 1 1 1 0
MYoung 1b 2 1 1 0
Wilkins c 1 1 1 0
LeValley lf 1 1 1 4
TOTALS 36 19 17 19 TOTALS 29 2 7 2
Valhalla (16-6, 8-1) 330 720 4 - 19 17 2
Mount Miguel (0-22, 0-9) 010 100 0 - 2 7 1
GWRBI: S.OSullivan (4).
E: Plunkett, Smith, MYoung. LOB: Val 4, MM 5. 2B: S.OSullivan 2, Baum, Sopata.
HR: R.OSullivan (3) 5th, solo; S.OSullivan (5) 5th, solo; LeValley (1) 7th, grand slam.
SB: Baum, Sopata, Calafato, White, Green. S: R.OSullivan.
PITCHING SUMMARY
VALHALLA ip h r er bb so
S.OSullivan W(4-0) 6.0 7 2 2 0 14
Sopata 1.0 0 0 0 0 1
MOUNT MIGUEL
Freeman L(0-6) 3.1 8 9 7 1 1
Sandoval 1.1 1 4 4 2 0
Plunkett 3.1 8 6 6 0 1
HBP: by Freeman (S.OSullivan, Moore), by Sandoval (Baum, McClain).
(05-06-05)
Pats' McGranahan uses just 91 pitches to shut down
Hoover
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON - Pitching hungry Christian High received
a much needed shot in the arm from senior southpaw JOEL
McGRANAHAN, who finally received the green light
to take to the mound in Thursday's (May 5) Harbor League
joust against Hoover. The visiting Cardinals never had
a chance in this one, as McGranahan scattered seven
hits in a complete game 9-2 victory.
McGranahan was razor sharp through the first four innings,
using just 49 pitches - 40 of them strikes - to blank
the Cardinals over four frames as the dormant Christian
bats came to life to knock out a 9-0 lead.
"Joel pitched more innings today than he had all
the rest of the season combined," Christian coach
MIKE MITCHELL said. "He was on the mark
until he started to tire in the last two innings."
McGranahan finished the job in 91 pitches.
"We really need Joel to help pick up the slack
for our thin pitching staff," Mitchell said.
The good news doesn't stop there for the Patriots (12-8,
4-3), who put up a single tally in the 1st inning for
the first time in 10 games.
ADAM PERRY supplied flint and spark with a leadoff
single and steal of second base for the Patriots. After
MATT HART blooped a single and RICKY PLUM
punched a ground rule double to right-center field,
scoring Perry. Had the fence contained Plum's
drive, the Patriots would have tallied two markers.
In the 2nd inning with two outs, Perry doubled to right
and raced home on SHANE STANOVIC's single up
the middle.
NICK ADAMS put Christian in command an inning
later when he lifted a fly ball over the center fielder's
head with the bases loaded. By the time the dust had
cleared, Adams had a triple and 3 RBI and the Patriots
were enjoying a 5-0 advantage.
Solo home runs by Stanovic and Plum along with a two-run
double by McGranahan ballooned the Patriots' lead to
9-0 in the 4th.
The top four batters in the Christian lineup - Perry,
Stanovic, Hart and Plum - were a composite 10-for-15
with 5 runs and 4 RBI.
"We had at least two guys on in every inning,"
Mitchell noted. "But we still left too many on
base."
THURSDAY, MAY 5, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Harbor League
HOOVER ab r h bi CHRISTIAN ab r h bi
Sheehan ss-p 3 0 1 1 Perry rf 4 2 2 0
Geraci p-ss 4 0 1 0 Stanovic cf 4 1 3 2
Wilkerson lf 3 0 0 0 Hart c 4 0 2 0
Torres 1b 3 0 1 0 Plum dh 3 2 3 2
Martinez c 3 0 1 0 TJones 3b 0 0 0 0
Camacho 3b-p 2 1 0 0 Allen dh 1 0 0 0
Alvarez rf 2 0 0 0 Rossitto 1b 3 1 1 0
Hyde 2b 2 0 0 0 O'Donnell 1b 0 0 0 0
EJones 2b 1 0 0 0 EYoung ss 2 2 2 0
Rios cf 3 1 3 0 AMurray 2b 0 0 0 0
Dossett lf 2 0 0 0
Schroeder lf 1 0 0 0
Abell lf 1 0 0 0
McGranahan p 3 1 1 2
NAdams 2b-ss 4 0 1 3
TOTALS 26 2 7 1 TOTALS 32 9 15 9
Hoover (8-13, 3-6) 000 001 1 - 2 7 1
Christian (12-8, 4-3) 113 400 x - 9 15 2
GWRBI: Plum (2).
E: TJones, AMurray, Geraci. DP: Hoo 1, Chr 1. LOB: Hoo 6, Chr 9. 2B: Perry, Plum. 3B: NAdams.
HR: Stanovic (1) 4th, solo; Plum (3) 4th, solo. SB: Perry, Rossitto, EYoung. SF: Sheehan.
PITCHING SUMMARY
HOOVER ip h r er bb so
Geraci L 3.0 8 5 4 2 1
Sheehan 2.0 7 4 4 2 0
Camacho 1.0 0 0 0 0 1
CHRISTIAN
McGranahan W(1-1) 7.0 7 2 2 2 5
(05-05-05)
Matadors' De Arcos: A clandestine star
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON - Only one game separates the top three
teams in the Grossmont North League race, while Valhalla
is only percentage points ahead of Granite Hills in
the run for the Grossmont South League pennant. At the
moment, El Capitan sits atop the Grossmont North thanks
to a 6-3 win over West Hills on Wednesday (May 4). Santana
knocked the Grossmont out of a share of the top spot,
8-6, while Valhalla and Granite Hills were winners over
Steele Canyon and Monte Vista, respectively.
A rough diamond in need of shining, Mount Miguel may
have found a jewel in first baseman EDDIE De ARCOS,
one of the few bright spots in an otherwise dismal 0-21
season. A multi-sport athlete, De Arcos never played
baseball full-time until this season, yet the senior
is surprising those who closely follow East County baseball.
Several scouts, often attending to watch the opposing
team, have asked more than one head coach this season
something to the effect of, "Hey, who is that first
baseman on the other team?"
"He's definitely a '5-tool' player," noted
veteran assistant coach FERDY REED, who skippered
the Matadors at Helix in the absence of head coach BYRON
GRIGSBY who was away attending to family matters
on Wednesday (May 4). "Eddie has a great physical
make-up and can hit, hit with power, run, throw - all
those things."
De Arcos displayed his smooth stroke against Helix,
although the host Highlanders posted an easy 14-0 triumph.
After getting called out on a questionable strike in
his first at-bat, the senior smoked the next two strikes
he saw, hitting a vicious drive to right field for an
out, then splitting the gap on a one-hopper to the right-centerfield
fence for a standup double.
While the East County roll-call lists a lengthy cast
of top hitters, few noticed that De Arcos entered the
week ranked sixth in batting average. He was 2-for-5
in this week's two-game set against Helix, leaving his
average at .446 (29-for-65).
De Arcos now owns an East County season-best 12-game
hitting streak, and has been held hitless in just two
contests all season. Not too bad for a ballplayer without
a long high school baseball resume.
"I was on the team last year, but I didn't get
much playing time," said De Arcos, who expressed
interest in playing for Grossmont College next season.
"It would mean a lot to me to somehow win a batting
title. I don't want anyone to say that I'm not a competitor
- I give my all."
De Arcos believes his ability to focus and think through
an at-bat aids in his developing tools at the plate.
"Everyday, I think about hitting," added De
Arcos. "I'm always thinking about getting another
hit, even on days when we don't play."
A few scouts have indicated that should De Arcos keep
developing and put in two strong seasons with the Griffins,
when coupled with his strong work habits and smarts,
he could land at a four-year college.
"No matter where you play, if you hit .440 on any
team, in any league, in any division, you have to respect
someone who hits like that," noted Helix coach
COLE HOLLAND. "To do what he's done is phenomenal."
SANTANA 8, GROSSMONT 6: Senior first
baseman KYLE HELMHOLTZ has been an unsung hero
for Santana the past two seasons.
Coming off a junior season that included a .374 batting
average, 23 RBI and 13 steals, Helmholtz is proving
those marks to be no fluke.
That is, the 6-foot-1, 215-pound senior is picking up
where he left off. Helmholtz slugged his second home
run of the year and an RBI double Wednesday (May 4)
as the visiting Sultans claimed a key Grossmont North
League nod over No. 5-ranked Grossmont.
"Actually, I've been struggling the last few games,"
Helmholtz said. "It's a matter of going out there
confident and doing what we know how to do."
Santana senior JEFF WOODS set the pace for the
Sultans, smacking his first two home runs of the season
â¤" solo shots in the 1st and 3rd
innings. After an intentional walk in the 4th inning,
Woods slashed an RBI single in the 6th inning that tied
the game 6-6.
Helmholtz, who followed Woods' lead all day, ripped
the game-winning RBI single in a 6th inning that was
fueled by a pair of Grossmont errors.
"I swung at the first pitch in my first two at-bats,"
confided Helmholtz, who generated six total bases with
those aforementioned cuts. "I didn't see many strikes."
Yet, Helmholtz finished the game 3-for-4, raising his
season average to .354 (29 for 82). And he also stole
his 10th base of the season, which is quite an achievement
for a man of his size.
"We know if we want to win the league championship
we have to run the table," Helmholtz said. "Taking
league is the first thing. We will worry about CIF after
that."
Of the three contenders for the Grossmont North flag,
Santana (20-5, 5-2) would appear to have the momentum.
The Sultans have won five in a row as they prepare to
host Grossmont (18-6, 5-2) on Friday (May 6) in Santee.
Santana coach JERRY HENSON acknowledged Helmholtz's
contributions to Santana's surge for a second straight
league title. He was equally as pleased by the offensive
punches delivered by Woods, who batted .490 as a junior
but has hovered below the .300 mark most of this season.
"Jeff has been working hard at shortening his swing
up, trying different stuff that will help him get back
to hitting like he was last year," Henson said.
"I think he got back to the level he was at last
year in today's game. He was confident and his swing
was what it used to be."
That was only half the story. Woods also pitched 3 2/3
innings of scoreless relief and was rewarded with his
7th win in nine decisions.
It was a tough loss for Grossmont, which overcame deficits
of 2-0 and 4-2 to lead 6-4 after four innings.
But the Foothillers eventually gave the game away with
a pair of errors in the 6th inning.
"Those are plays that need to be made," Grossmont
coach ROB PHILLIPS said. "But we flubbed
both of them and it cost us. But it wasn't just
that inning.
"We threw too many pitches belly-button high."
Santana sophomore DALLAS MARTIN, who was cuffed
around for 6 earned runs in 3 1/3 innings by the Hillers,
also hit a fly-ball home run to right field that cut
a then Grossmont lead to 6-5 in the 5th inning.
Grossmont's Joe Gizoni Field is the Wrigley Field of
East County. Balls hit into the air to right field have
a genuine chance of clearing the 20-foot fence. The
foul pole is only 292 feet from home plate.
"If I could hit here every day it would be awesome,"
said Woods, who hammered his first home run some 380
feet to left field, a ball that was cut down by a cross
wind from left to right. "The first one (home run)
was legit. The second one, I popped it up. But I'll
take it."
Junior A.J. GRIFFIN paced Grossmont with his
6th home run and three RBI.
EL CAPITAN 6, WEST HILLS 3: No question
the Vaqueros don't have an overall look of a champion
in terms of wins and losses (14-11, 6-1 GNL). The bottom
line, though, is coach STEVE VICKERY has his
club a full length ahead of challengers Santana and
Grossmont with five games remaining in the regular season.
The Wolf Pack (7-14, 2-5), which no doubt will play
a decisive role in determining the Grossmont North championship,
jumped in front of the Vaqueros in the opening frame.
SHAIN STONER stroked a one-out double and scored
on AARON RICHARDSON's two-base hit.
That advantage was short-lived, however.
El Capitan bullied West Hills starter JOHN EDDY
for 4 runs in the bottom of the 1st. JASSON KSIAZEK
slapped an RBI single, NIK GARCIA brought in
another run with a sacrifice fly and MICHAEL GRIFFITH
singled in a third tally. But Eddy's biggest problem
was his control (2 walks) and a lack of defensive support
(2 errors).
"We scored those four runs in the 1st inning and
then kinda went to sleep until the 6th inning,"
Vickery said. "(West Hills) really scrapped."
Back-to-back doubles by Stoner and Richardson pulled
the Pack to within 4-2 in the 6th inning. West Hills
went as far as to place the tying runs at second and
third, but El Capitan starter and winning pitcher BRYAN
PAUKOVITS got a strike out and a fly out to stuff
the Wolf Pack challenge.
"Paukovits didn't have his best stuff, but he battled,
made quality pitches when he had to," Vickery said.
"He's just been tremendous every game after that
first start of the year. He's been giving us quality
starts week after week."
El Capitan reliever KYLE KING sealed the deal
in the 7th inning despite giving up an unearned run.
GRANITE HILLS 6, MONTE VISTA 1: Sophomore
pitcher ERIC KRAUSE of Granite Hills continues
to mesmerize opponents and amaze his coach.
"I watch that kid, trying to figure what makes
him so successful," Granite Hills coach JAMES
DAVIS said. "He's gritty, fearless, confident
and all that good stuff. But it's not like he's throwing
the ball 90 mph."
Krause limited Monte Vista to 2 hits while striking
out 9 during a six-inning stint.
"From what I can tell, I think it's hard for the
batter to pick up the ball out of his hand," Davis
said. "It's like all of a sudden, the ball is on
you. It's too late to react."
Monte Vista did get in the first blow against Krause,
as DAN DeANDA - the second batter of the game
- slugged his 3rd home run of the season.
After that, though, the crafty Krause allowed only one
hit - a single to ANTHONY LOPEZ - before DARREN
GAY retired the Monarchs in order in the 7th.
Granite Hills (20-5, 8-2), ranked No. 4 in the San Diego
CIF, tied the game 1-1 in the bottom of the 1st inning
as CODY CRAWFORD launched his second home run
of the season.
Crawford's RBI double gave the Eagles a 2-1 edge in
the 3rd. Crawford eventually scored in that inning thanks
to TRAVIS TAIJERON's sacrifice fly.
BRIAN HUMPHRIES' RBI triple capped a 2-run 4th
inning as the Eagles put the game on ice.
The Monarchs (6-16, 4-6) managed to keep Granite Hills
senior hitting star NICK MONETTE somewhat in
check. Sure, Monette was 1-for-2 with a double, but
he didn't drive in any runs nor did he reach the plate
himself. Nevertheless, Monette is batting at a .529
clip (9-for-17) over the last six games.
VALHALLA 4, STEELE CANYON 1: Classic pitching,
but sub-par fielding were in contrast Wednesday (May
4) as host Valhalla skipped past Steele Canyon in a
key Grossmont South League encounter.
Of the five runs, only one was earned. That marker came
home to roost when Valhalla's Brothers O'SULLIVAN
- RYAN and SEAN - banged back-to-back
doubles in the 6th inning giving the 6th-ranked Norsemen
(15-6, 7-1 GSL) a 3-1 advantage.
Six errors between the two clubs kept Valhalla freshman
right-hander Ryan O'Sullivan and Steele Canyon senior
KYLE JOHNSON working overtime to avoid further
disaster.
Johnson, who pitched his 4th complete game, was stung
by three unearned runs and was handed his second loss
in six decisions.
"Kyle deserved better," Cougars coach PHIL
MITTRY said. "He certainly pitched well enough
to win. He has something like a 1.50 ERA in our league
games."
In two games against Valhalla, Steele Canyon was outscored
18-1.
Ryan O'Sullivan needed only 73 pitches to mow down the
Cougars (12-9, 6-3) for his 6th win in seven decisions.
"We have too many guys going up there and swinging
at the first pitch," Mittry said. "I don't
have any problem with that as long as it's a pitch they
can handle. Too often that isn⤙t
the case. It's really frustrating."
DAVID LEWIS accounted for three of the Cougars four
hits off O'Sullivan, who walked one and struck out 5.
"Ryan is a gamer who wants the ball," Valhalla
coach STEVE PERDUE said. "He just shut this
team down."
The victory gave Valhalla a 37-2 league record dating
back to the 2002 season.
HELIX 14, MOUNT MIGUEL 0: ERIK PONCE
pitched five shutout innings and knocked home the game-wining
run with an RBI double to start a 6-run rally in the
2nd inning Wednesday (May 4), lifting the Highlanders
to their second lopsided win over the Matadors in three
days.
NICK LEDESMA capped the early outburst with his
first homer of the season, then ANDREW VALLES and
ALEX ROSENTHAL homered on consecutive pitches in
the 5th to complete the rout.
"I threw only four curveballs all day, going mostly
with my fastball and changeup," said Ponce, who
struck out four Matadors. "ZACH (TANIDA,
the catcher) and I were communicating real well all
day."
Tanida also sparked the offense, pacing a 15-hit attack
by going 4-for-4 and driving in a pair of runs.
"Erik was hitting his spots all day," noted
Tanida. "He had guys off-guard and in front of
the ball all day."
Third baseman RAUL RITCHIE added three RBI. He
batted 2-for-2, including a sacrifice fly in the 2nd,
an RBI double in the 3rd, and a run-scoring single in
the 4th. RANDY PEREZ and Ledesma each knocked
in a pair of runs.
Following Ponce's pitching stint, JEREMY PETERSON
and DUSTIN RUNIONS combined to toss two innings
of 1-hit relief, including two strikeouts by Runions
in the 7th to set the Matadors down in order.
Mount Miguel second baseman DEXTER SEAVELLO registered
two of Mount Miguel´s six hits, but was
stranded in scoring position both times.
WEDNESDAY, MAY 4, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Grossmont North League
SULTANS 8, FOOTHILLER 6
SANTANA ab r h bi GROSSMONT ab r h bi
Haley c 3 0 0 0 Ferrara 2b 4 1 2 0
Woods ss-p 3 2 3 3 Griffin 3b-p 3 1 1 3
Helmholtz 1b 4 1 3 2 Snow p-rf 2 0 0 0
Hermansen cf 4 0 1 0 Pieczynski c 4 0 1 0
Martin p-ss 4 1 1 1 Phillips ss 4 1 1 0
Brosnan lf 4 2 2 0 Berry rf-lf 3 1 2 0
Basnight 3b 3 0 1 0 AWilliams cf 3 0 0 0
Martinez 2b 4 1 2 1 Passanisi 1b 4 1 2 1
NMiller rf 3 0 1 1 Medina lf 1 0 0 0
Tippin pr 0 1 0 0 TAdams p 1 1 1 1
Sobel 3b 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 32 8 14 8 TOTALS 29 6 10 5
Santana (20-5, 5-2) 201 112 1 - 8 14 1
Grossmont (18-6, 5-2) 002 400 0 - 6 10 3
GWRBI: Helmholtz (4).
E: Snow, Martin, Sobel, Passanisi. DP: Sant 1. LOB: Sant 7, Gro 8. 2B: Helmholtz, Ferrara.
HR: Woods 2:(1,2) 1st, solo, and 3rd, solo; Helmholtz (2) 1st, solo; Griffin (6) 3rd, one on; Martin (1) 5th, solo.
SB: Berry. S: Haley, TAdams, Basnight, NMiller.
PITCHING SUMMARY
SANTANA ip h r er bb so
Martin 3.1 6 6 6 2 4
Woods W(7-2) 3.2 4 0 0 3 1
GROSSMONT
Snow 3.0 6 3 3 0 1
TAdams 2.0 4 2 2 1 1
Griffin L(4-2) 2.0 4 3 1 0 2
WP: TAdams.
*
VAQUEROS 6, WOLF PACK 3
WEST HILLS ab r h bi EL CAPITAN ab r h bi
Mello cf 2 0 0 0 Hostetler lf 3 0 0 0
Stoner ss 3 2 2 0 Royer ph 1 0 1 0
Richardson dh 4 0 2 2 Russo 2b 3 2 1 1
Pichette c 3 0 1 0 Rauch c 2 1 1 1
Hooper rf 3 0 1 0 Ksiazek ss 3 1 1 1
Skinner lf 2 0 0 0 NGarcia 1b 1 0 1 1
Eddy p 2 0 0 0 DGarcia pr 0 0 0 0
Ritiyak p 1 0 0 0 Erickson rf 3 1 2 0
Maldanado 1b 2 0 0 0 Walston cf 3 0 2 1
Strasburg ph 1 0 0 0 Griffith dh 3 0 2 1
Irvin 2b 2 1 1 0 CGarcia 3b 2 0 0 0
Hoffard pr 0 0 0 0 Nazzal lf 1 1 1 0
TOTALS 25 3 7 2 TOTALS 24 6 10 5
West Hills (7-14, 2-5) 100 001 1 - 3 7 2
El Capitan (14-11, 6-1) 400 002 x - 6 10 2
GWRBI: Ksiazek (5).
E: Rauch, Russo, Mello, Hooper. DP: WH 1. LOB: WH 6, EC 6. 2B: Stoner 2, Richardson, Rauch.
3B: Russo. SB: Russo, Pichette. S: Mello. SF: Rauch, NGarcia.
PITCHING SUMMARY
WEST HILLS ip h r er bb so
Eddy L(3-3) 3.2 6 4 3 4 5
Ritiyak 2.1 4 2 2 1 5
EL CAPITAN
Paukovits W(5-2) 6.0 7 2 2 2 5
King 1.0 0 1 0 1 1
HBP: by Paukovits (Mello). WP: Eddy.
*
Grossmont South League
HIGHLANDERS 14, MATADORS 0
MOUNT MIGUEL ab r h bi HELIX ab r h bi
Seavello 2b 4 0 2 0 RPerez ss 2 0 1 2
Newborn cf 2 0 0 0 Beltran ph 1 0 0 0
Sandoval lf 3 0 0 0 Tanida c 4 1 4 2
White c 3 0 1 0 Ledesma cf 5 1 1 2
De Arcos 1b 3 0 1 0 Peterson 1b-p 4 0 0 0
Freeman p 1 0 1 0 Runions p 0 0 0 0
Freeman-Bolden 1b 2 0 0 0 Valles rf-lf 2 4 2 1
Williamson rf-p 3 0 1 0 Rosenthal lf 2 3 1 1
Plunkett 3b 3 0 0 0 Webb 1b 0 0 0 0
Calafato ss 3 0 0 0 Ponce p-rf 4 3 2 1
Ritchie 3b 2 1 2 3
Rohmer 2b 4 1 2 0
TOTALS 27 0 6 0 TOTALS 30 14 15 12
Mount Miguel (0-21, 0-8) 000 000 0 - 0 6 2
Helix (10-12, 2-7) 063 320 x - 14 15 0
GWRBI: Ponce (2).
E: Freeman, Plunkett. DP: MM 1. LOB: MM 7, Hel 9. 2B: De Arcos, Ponce, Ritchie.
HR: Ledesma (1), 2nd, 1 on; Valles (1), 5th, solo; Rosenthal (3), 5th, solo.
PITCHING SUMMARY
MOUNT MIGUEL ip h r er bb k
Freeman L(0-5) 2.0 6 6 5 2 1
De Arcos 2.0 6 6 5 4 0
Williamson 2.0 3 2 2 1 4
HELIX
Ponce W(4-1) 5.0 5 0 0 1 4
Peterson 1.0 1 0 0 0 0
Runions 1.0 0 0 0 0 2
HBP: by De Arcos (Tanida). PB: White.
*
NORSEMEN 4, COUGARS 1
STEELE CANYON ab r h bi VALHALLA ab r h bi
Minich ss 3 0 0 0 JBrown ss 3 1 1 0
Harris 2b 3 0 0 0 R.OSullivan p 1 1 1 1
Inzone rf 2 1 0 0 S.OSullivan 3b 3 0 1 1
Rice cf 3 0 0 0 Baum 1b 3 1 0 0
Duby c 3 0 0 0 McClain dh 2 0 1 0
Lange 1b 1 0 1 0 Moore c 3 0 0 0
Lewis lf 3 0 3 0 GGarcia 2b 3 0 2 0
Murray 3b 2 0 0 0 Smith lf 3 0 0 0
Jenner dh 3 0 0 0 Sopata cf 2 1 0 0
Epperson ph 1 0 0 0
TOTALS 24 1 4 0 TOTALS 18 4 6 2
Steele Canyon (12-9, 6-3) 000 001 0 - 1 4 4
Valhalla (15-6, 7-1) 101 002 x - 4 6 2
GWRBI: None.
E: Murray 2, Rice, Lewis, Sopata, GGarcia. DP: Val 1. LOB: Val 4, SC 5.
2B: R.OSullivan, S.OSullivan. SB: JBrown, Inzone. SB: R.OSullivan. SF: R.OSullivan.
PITCHING SUMMARY
STEELE CANYON ip h r er bb so
Johnson L(4-2) 6.0 6 4 1 0 2
VALHALLA
R.OSullivan W(6-1) 7.0 4 1 0 1 5
HBP: by R.OSullivan (Lange 2), by Johnson (McClain).
*
EAGLES 6, MONARCHS 1
MONTE VISTA ab r h bi GRANITE HILLS ab r h bi
Palacios 2b 3 0 0 0 Decker ss 4 0 1 1
DeAnda p 3 1 1 1 Humphries cf 3 1 2 1
Lopez 1b 3 0 1 0 Crawford dh 3 2 2 2
Rodriguez dh 3 0 0 0 Monette c 2 0 1 0
Leboffe cf 3 0 0 0 Taijeron lf 1 0 0 1
Sopher lf 3 0 0 0 Anderson 1b 3 0 0 0
Starling 3b 1 0 0 0 Boltz rf 2 0 0 0
Mendiola c 1 0 0 0 TWilliams ph 1 0 0 0
Cooper c-3b 2 0 0 0 Cazares 2b 3 2 1 0
RGarcia rf 1 0 0 0 Horner 3b 2 1 1 1
Simmons p 1 0 0 0 Coleman 3b 1 0 0 0
TOTALS 24 1 2 1 TOTALS 25 6 8 5
Monte Vista (6-16, 4-6) 100 000 0 - 1 2 2
Granite Hills (20-5, 8-2) 102 201 x - 6 8 1
GWRBI: Crawford (2).
E: Taijeron, Hale, Cooper. LOB: MV 2, GH 6. 2B: Crawford, Monette. 3B: Humphries.
HR: Crawford (2) 1st, solo; De Anda (3) 1st, solo. SB: Horner, Cazares, Monette. SF: Taijeron.
PITCHING SUMMARY
MONTE VISTA ip h r er bb so
De Anda L(1-2) 3.2 5 5 4 2 1
Simmons 2.1 2 1 1 0 0
GRANITE HILLS
Krause W(7-1) 6.0 2 1 1 0 9
Gay 1.0 0 0 0 0 0
HBP: by De Anda (Humphries).
(05-04-05)
 Christian
High's Matt Hart (10) lines a 2-run single in
the 3rd inning of Tuesday's Harbor League game against
Madison. (5-3-05/Courtesy photo)
Patriots assured of no repeat after loss to first-place
Madison
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON - This has already been an odd season for coach
MIKE MITCHELL and his Christian High Patriots.
After earning a share of the Harbor League crown a year
ago, the Patriots were all but assured that they would
not repeat on Tuesday (May 3) when they fell to the
visiting Madison Warhawks 6-3.
It was Christian's fourth straight loss.
"I don't know if I've had a team lose four in a
row in my entire career," said Mitchell, who has
been coaching baseball for 20 years. "We are struggling
right now."
Once again, the Patriots were playing catch-up from
the get-go. For the fifth time in the last six starts,
Christian fell behind early. The Warhawks (18-5, 6-1)
enjoyed leads of 2-0 and 5-2 in dealing the Patriots
their latest frustration.
"I can't remember the last time we scored in the
1st inning," Mitchell said.
For the record, the Patriots (11-8, 3-3) scored both
runs in the 1st frame of a 2-0 win over Grove City (Pa.)
in the opening round of the KSA Tournament on April
7th in Orlando, Fla. That was 10 games ago.
"We are 'Team Singles,'" Mitchell said. "We
don't have much power nor do we have great speed. So
it's tough playing catch-up when we fall behind right
off the bat."
Two of the club's top pitchers have been unable to help
on the mound due to injuries. Sort of one thing after
another.
Not that Mitchell has given up on this team or the remainder
of the season. "Magical Mike" always finds
a way to make his teams competitive. Fact is, the Patriots
still have a reasonable shot at finishing second in
the Harbor League and a shot at making waves in the
San Diego CIF Division IV playoffs.
In Tuesday's loss, a bright spot was JOEL McGRANAHAN,
who was 3-for-3.
Christian High's Chad O'Donnell (19 ) serves
up a pitch in Tuesday's game against Madison. (5-3-05/Courtesy
photo)
TUESDAY, MAY 3, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Harbor League
WARHAWKS 6, CHRISTIAN 3
MADISON ab r h bi CHRISTIAN ab r h bi
Phillips cf 3 0 1 1 Perry cf-rf 4 1 1 0
Pecina 1b 3 1 1 0 Stanovic p-cf 4 0 1 0
Planck p-ss 4 0 0 0 Hart c 4 0 1 2
Moreno ss-2b 4 1 2 1 Rossitto 1b 4 0 1 0
Webster lf 3 1 1 1 O'Donnell p 0 0 0 0
Cotton 3b 4 1 0 0 EYoung ss 2 0 0 0
McCormick dh-p 3 2 3 3 NAdams 2b 3 0 0 0
Jaime c 2 0 0 0 Plum dh 3 0 1 0
Latimer rf 2 0 1 0 Schroeder pr 0 1 0 0
McGranahan rf-1b 3 1 3 0
Dossett lf 3 0 1 1
TOTALS 28 6 9 6 TOTALS 30 3 9 3
Madison (18-5, 6-1) 200 301 0 - 6 9 1
Christian (11-8, 3-3) 002 001 0 - 3 9 2
GWRBI: McCormick.
E: Stanovic, Rossitto, McCormick. DP: Mad 1, Chr 1. LOB: Mad 6, Ch 7. 2B: McCormick, Webster.
HR: McCormick 4th, two on. SB: Webster. S: Jaime, Latimer.
PITCHING SUMMARY
CHRISTIAN ip h r er bb so
Stanovic L(1-1) 5.0 6 5 4 3 1
O'Donnell 2.0 3 1 1 0 2
MADISON
Planck 2.1 2 2 2 1 1
McCormick W(6-1) 4.2 7 1 1 0 4
WP: Stanovic 2, Planck.
(05-03-05)
Williams, Pieczynski provide late power to give
Foothillers win over Wolf Pack
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON - A pair of late homers allowed Grossmont to
thwart an upset bid by West Hills Monday (May 2), pulling
the Foothillers (18-5, 5-1) into a tie with idle El
Capitan (13-11, 5-1) for the Grossmont North League
lead. The Hillers host third-place Santana on Wednesday
(May 4), while El Capitan is entertaining West Hills.
The Grossmont North has resulted in co-champions the
past two seasons. Meanwhile, in the Grossmont South,
Valhalla (14-6, 6-1) grabbed the circuit lead with a
resounding 14-0 romp over Steele Canyon. Granite Hills
(19-5, 7-2) won its fourth straight league encounter
to slide into second place. Speaking of streaks, Helix
halted an eight-game losing streak by toppling Mount
Miguel 9-2.
GROSSMONT 3, WEST HILLS 1 (11): East County's
closest thing to a classic was the focus of Monday's
(May 2) toe-to-toe pitching duel at Grossmont's Joe
Gizoni Field.
Although West Hills was dismissed from contention in
the Grossmont North League before the first pitch was
thrown, coach SCOTT HOPGOOD's Wolf Pack continues
to make its league rivals nervous.
West Hills (7-13, 2-4) produced a solo home run by leadoff
man JOE MELLO in the 4th inning and came within
four strikes of sending the Foothillers packing behind
the superb pitching of AARON RICHARDSON.
Enter Grossmont senior DANNY PIECZYNSKI to spoil
the upset. Hanging on an 0-2 pitch with one down in
the bottom of the 7th and Foothillers trailing 1-0,
Pieczynski finally saw a pitch he couldn't refuse.
"We'd been working all of their hitters down and
away," West Hills pitching coach MICKEY DEUTSCHMAN
said. "Richardson had been on the mark all day.
Even the pitch to Pieczynski was a decent pitch, but
he dove for the ball and golfed it out."
It was Pieczynski's 7th home run of the season.
"We were struggling, that's for sure," Pieczynski
said. "Even though we had only six hits today,
it doesn't take a whole lot to win a game. We know that
with our pitching staff we don't have to score 10 runs
to win a game."
However, the bottom line in this deep pool of pitching
perfection hit the wall when sophomore AUGIE WILLIAMS
lifted a two-run home run over the right field fence
for a walk-off home run in the bottom of the 11th inning.
"It wasn't a pretty day overall for me," said
Williams, who was 0-for-3 with two strikeouts and a
walk prior to his game-winning launch. "Overall,
it was an ugly day for our team, but I'm just glad that
I changed all of that with one swing."
Williams' game-winning blast came at the expense of
sophomore reliever BRIAN RITIYAK with two down
in the bottom of the 11th.
"I came through for our team, not just me,"
Williams said of his third home run of the season. "Yeah,
it was crucial."
Indeed.
The victory locked Grossmont into a deadlock with El
Capitan for the Grossmont North League lead.
Deutschman admitted that the pitch Williams knocked
for the game-winner was off the mark.
"He got the ball up and out over the plate,"
Deutschman said of Ritiyak's decisive serve.
Despite the heart-breaking loss, West Hills head coach
Hopgood was not crushed in defeat.
"I don't consider this game a loss," Hopgood
said. "They won, but we didn't lose."
West Hills took the lead on JOE MELLO's fly-ball
home run over the short porch in right field in the
4th inning.
But Richardson, a fine junior southpaw, was not fortunate
enough to pull out a win.
"Aaron certainly pitched well enough, but just
ran out of gas," Hopgood said.
In the bottom of the 11th, Grossmont started its winning
rally on a line-drive single up the middle. That shot
no double rankled West Hills reliever STEPHEN STRASBURG,
who managed to lift his left foot to let the ball continue
through to center field. Problem was he had to
put all of his weight on his right leg, which caused
him to collapse on the mound.
That finished Strasburg, who was helped from the field
by a couple of teammates.
"His (right) leg just buckled when he lifted his
left leg to avoid being hit (by Snow's shot through
the middle)," Hopgood said. "It was tough
losing him at that point, but we are glad the injury
isn't all that serious."
Grossmont's A.J.GRIFFIN pitched 3 2/3 innings
of hitless relief to earn his 4th win in 5 decisions
for the Foothillers.
HELIX 9, MOUNT MIGUEL 2: The last
time Helix pitcher MATT WENHAM won a ballgame,
his victory propelled the Highlanders -- then sporting
a 5-1 record -- into the semifinals of the Lions Tournament's
AAAA Division. That win came on Mar. 22.
Five weeks later, in a battle among teams with higher
expectations than results, Wenham moved the Scotties
back on track. The senior right-hander scattered four
hits over six innings and did not allow an earned run,
helping Helix skip past Mount Miguel in Monday's (May
2) Grossmont South League affair.
"It felt good to finally win a game," said
Wenham, who lost three straight home-field decisions
before breaking through on the road. "We got out
of our slump and put everything together, including
our pitching, hitting and defense."
Typical of the entire season for the winless Matadors
(0-20 overall, 0-8 GSL), the Single Ugly-inning Blues
("SUB") took them out of a close ballgame.
Three defensive errors, followed by back-to-back RBI
doubles by JEREMY PETERSON and ANDREW VALLES,
allowed Helix to plate five unearned runs in the 4th
inning to mount a 7-0 advantage.
"Hopefully, this will get us on a roll so we can
get to the CIF playoffs and do some damage," noted
Peterson, who went 3-for-4 with a pair of booming doubles
(his 15th and 16th two-baggers) to the outfield fence.
The Helix first baseman also drove in a pair of runs,
including a sacrifice fly to open the scoring in the
1st.
Meanwhile, all of Mount Miguel's hard-hit balls seemed
to find leather. The Matadors slugged eight line-drives
off Wenham and the Helix bullpen, but only a 2nd-inning
drive by hot-hitting EDDIE De ARCOS landed safely
to add to the team's frustrations.
For DeArcos, his 1-for-2 outing (plus a walk) extended
his hitting streak to 11 straight contests - the longest
current stretch among East County batters. Entering
the day ranked sixth in East County in batting, De Arcos
raised his average to .452.
"It's all just playing a game of pepper -- that's
what hitting is," noted Matadors manager BYRON
GRIGSBY. "And Eddie has been doing it as well
as anybody."
Mount Miguel received consecutive RBI basehits from
KEITH GREEN and DAUNTE WILLIAMSON in the
4th, taking advantage of a Helix throwing error. However,
the Highlanders (9-12, 1-7) answered with two runs of
their own in the 6th, including a run-scoring ground-rule
double by ERIK PONCE.
DUSTIN RUNIONS then pitched a perfect 7th inning
to close out the contest. Although not credited with
an official save, Runions struck out two of the three
batters he faced.
GRANITE HILLS 10, MONTE VISTA 3: The Eagles scored
in each of the first six innings as they mowed down
host Monte Vista in Monday's (May 2) Grossmont South
League action.
At the moment, the centerpiece of the Granite Hills
offensive arsenal is senior catcher NICK MONETTE.
In the Eagles' latest conquest, the burly backstop accounted
for five runs, driving in 2 and scoring 3 as he generated
two hits in three at-bats, helping Granite Hills (19-5,
7-2) keep its pennant hopes burning.
"There is no magic to it, Monette is just in a
(hitting) groove right now," said Eagles coach
JAMES DAVIS. "As a coach you just sit back
and enjoy it. What he's done with the bat is a bonus.
What I like is how he handles the pitchers and handles
his defensive assignment around the plate."
Nevertheless, it's hard to overlook what Monette has
done with the bat, especially of late. In his last five
games, Monette is 8-for-15 with 5 home runs and 13 RBI.
"Nick is the leader of this team," Davis said.
Monette rocked a two-run home run in the 1st inning
to jumpstart the Granite Hills offense.
Monte Vista countered with a 2 runs in the bottom of
the 1st as Monarchs pitcher JESSE RODRIGUEZ tied
the game with an RBI single.
Granite Hills regained control on LOUIS CAZARES'
RBI double in the 2nd frame.
The Eagles took command with three runs in the 3rd inning
as freshman BRIAN HUMPHRIES slashed a 2-run single.
BRANDON DECKER added a solo home run for the
Eagles, while losing pitcher Rodriguez went deep for
the Monarchs.
"We have a bunch of different guys who can do a
bunch of different things," Davis said. "I
think that is what makes us a pretty good team."
SANTANA 8, EL CAJON VALLEY 2: Ten Sultans contributed
to a 15-hit assault on two El Cajon Valley pitchers
Monday (May 2) as defending Grossmont North League co-champion
Santana prepped itself for a two-game Grossmont North
League series against No. 5-ranked Grossmont Wednesday
(May 4 in El Cajon) and Friday (May 6 in Santee). Both
games start at 4 p.m.
"We feel we're in good shape," Santana coach
JERRY HENSON said. "We will certainly know
by Friday night where we stand. Either we'll be still
in the (Grossmont North) League race or preparing for
the (SDCIF) playoffs."
It was sort of like the wake before the storm for Santana,
which found the going a little choppier than expected
in Monday's first four innings at the home of the Braves.
The Sultans (19-4, 4-2) took a 1-0 lead in the 2nd inning
on a double by RYAN BROSNAN and a two-out single
by NICK MILLER.
RBI singles by DALLAS MARTIN and JOHN BASNIGHT
sandwiched around Brosnan's scoring fly ball swelled
Santana's advantage to 4-0 in the 3rd inning.
An inning later El Cajon Valley (4-19, 0-8) bit the
Santana lead in half. RAY AQUININGOC singled
up the middle and MARC GONZALES doubled down
the right field line. That set the stage for a 2-run
single by freshman ADRIAN PADILLA.
The Braves uprising was aborted in the top of the 5th
when Santana parlayed an RBI bunt single by Basnight,
a run-scoring single by RICHARD MARTINEZ and
a pair of El Cajon Valley errors into a 3-run inning
and a 7-2 lead.
VALHALLA 14, STEELE CANYON 0: When it comes to
winning games in the Grossmont South League nobody does
it better than the Valhalla Norsemen.
On Monday (May 2), the 6th-ranked Norsemen (14-6, 6-1)
capitalized on a critical 2-run error in the 1st inning
and then broke the game open with 3 runs in the 3rd
inning as TOMMY McCLAIN doubled in a pair and
eventually scored on CHRIS MOORE's suicide squeeze
bunt.
McClain later crunched a two-run home run in the 6th
inning and JAVIER BROWN added a 3-run shot later
in the same frame as Valhalla broke the game open with
a 7-run bonanza.
That was more than enough for Valhalla junior left-hander
ERIC JULIENNE, who limited the Cougars (12-8,
6-2) to three singles as he rolled to his third win
four decisions. As a bit of bonus, Julienne struck out
7 and walked none en route to his second complete game.
The Norsemen have won 36 of their last 38 league games
dating back to the latter stages of the 2002 season.
MADISON 11, CHRISTIAN 5: The visiting Patriots
(11-7, 3-2) were never in this one as Madison (16-5,
5-1) evened the season series on Monday (May 2).
The rubber match takes place on Tuesday (May 2) at Christian.
These clubs shared the Harbor League title a year ago,
but the Patriots won the season series, 2-1.
MATT HART smacked a pair of RBI singles and C.J.
SCHROEDER plated a pair with a base hit in the 6th
inning for Christian in Monday's go-round.
But Christian could never overcome the 9-1 lead Madison
builtin the first four innings of the rematch.
MONDAY, MAY 2, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Grossmont North League
FOOTHILLERS 3, WOLF PACK 1 (11 innings)
WEST HILLS ab r h bi GROSSMONT ab r h bi
Mello cf 3 1 1 1 Ferrara 2b 3 0 0 0
Stoner ss 5 0 1 0 Griffin 3b-p 4 0 2 0
Strasburg 1b-p 4 0 0 0 Phillips ss 4 0 0 0
Eddy dh 4 0 1 0 Snow rf 4 1 2 0
Hall 3b 0 0 0 0 Berry pr 0 0 0 0
Richardson p-rf 3 0 0 0 Pieczynski c 4 1 1 1
Carley pr 0 0 0 0 Passanisi 1b 5 0 0 0
Hooper rf-lf 4 0 0 0 AWilliams cf 4 1 1 2
Gagnon c 4 0 1 0 Medina lf 3 0 0 0
Thomason lf 2 0 0 0 Cusumano lf 1 0 0 0
Parker lf 0 0 0 0 Sobel dh-3b 2 0 0 0
Skinner rf-1b 2 0 0 0 TAdams ph 1 0 0 0
Irvin 2b 4 0 1 0
TOTALS 35 1 5 1 TOTALS 35 3 6 3
West Hills (7-13, 2-4) 000 100 000 00 - 1 5 1
Grossmont (18-5, 5-1) 000 000 100 02 - 3 6 1
Two outs when winning run scored.
GWRBI: A.Williams (1).
E: Hall, Phillips. DP: WH 3, Gro 2. LOB: WH 4, Gro 8. 2B: Gagnon.
HR: Mello (3) 4th, solo; Pieczynski (7) 7th, solo; A.Williams (4) 11th, one on.
PITCHING SUMMARY
WEST HILLS ip h r er bb so
Richardson 7.2 3 1 1 7 4
Strasburg L(0-8) 2.1 2 1 1 1 2
Ritiyak 0.2 1 1 1 0 1
GROSSMONT
Wohlwend 7.1 5 1 1 1 10
Griffin W(4-1) 3.2 0 0 0 2 5
Strasburg faced one batter in the 11th.
WP: Richardson.
*
SULTANS 8, BRAVES 2
SANTANA ab r h bi EL CAJON VALLEY ab r h bi
Haley c 3 0 1 0 Thomas cf 3 0 0 0
Woods ss 3 1 1 0 Vega rf 2 0 0 0
Helmholz 1b 5 0 1 0 Sotos ph 1 0 0 0
Hermansen cf 4 1 1 0 Mansfield ph 0 0 0 0
Martin 3b 4 2 2 1 Manzo lf 4 0 2 0
Brosnan lf 2 1 1 1 Abbod 3b 2 0 1 0
Basnight p 3 1 2 2 Myer 1b 2 0 0 0
Diaz ph 1 1 1 0 LPerez p 1 0 1 0
Martinez 2b 4 1 3 0 DPerez p-c 3 0 0 0
NMiller rf 4 0 2 2 Acquiningoc c-1b 3 1 1 0
Gonzales 2b 3 1 2 0
Padilla ss 3 0 1 2
TOTALS 33 8 15 6 TOTALS 27 2 8 2
Santana (19-5, 4-2) 013 030 1 - 8 15 2
El Cajon Valley (4-19, 0-8) 000 200 0 - 2 8 2
GWRBI: N.Miller (1).
E: Martinez, Helmholz, Padilla, D.Perez. LOB : Sant 10, ECV 7. 2B: Haley, Brosnan, Gonzales.
SB: Helmholz, Martin 2, Martinez 2. S: Woods. SF: Brosnan.
PITCHING SUMMARY
SANTANA ip h r er bb so
Basnight W(3-1) 4.0 5 2 2 0 4
Medrud 2.0 3 0 0 0 3
Spicer 1.0 0 0 0 1 1
EL CAJON VALLEY
D.Perez W(0-1) 4.1 12 7 6 2 0
L.Perez 2.2 3 1 1 1 0
HBP: By Basnight (Abbod);by Spicer (Thomas); by L.Perez (Woods).
*
Grossmont South League
HIGHLANDERS 9, MATADORS 2
HELIX ab r h bi MOUNT MIGUEL ab r h bi
RPerez ss 3 0 0 0 Seavello 2b 3 0 0 0
Tanida c 4 3 2 1 Newborn cf 3 1 0 0
Ledesma cf 3 1 1 0 Calafato ss 3 0 1 0
Peterson 1b-3b 4 2 3 2 White dh 3 0 0 0
Valles lf 4 1 2 1 De Arcos 1b 2 1 1 0
Rosenthal dh 4 1 1 0 Green 3b 3 0 1 1
Ponce rf 4 0 2 1 Williamson rf 3 0 1 1
Ritchie 3b 2 0 0 0 Sandoval lf 3 0 0 0
Webb 1b 2 0 0 1 Freeman c 3 0 0 0
Rohmer 2b 4 1 1 0
TOTALS 34 9 12 6 TOTALS 26 2 4 2
Helix (9-12, 1-7) 101 502 0 -- 9 12 1
Mount Miguel (0-20, 0-7) 000 200 0 -- 2 4 4
GWRBI: Peterson (1).
E: Calafato 3, Williamson, Peterson. DP: MM 2. LOB: Hel 10, MM 4. 2B: Peterson 2, Valles, Ponce.
SB: Tanida 2, Ledesma, De Arcos, Rohmer 3, Newborn, Calafato. SF: Peterson.
HELIX ip h r er bb k
Wenham W(3-3) 6.0 4 2 0 1 6
Runions 1.0 0 0 0 0 2
MOUNT MIGUEL
Vanderhyde L(0-4) 5.0 9 7 2 3 2
Freeman-Bolden 2.0 3 2 1 1 0
HBP: by Freeman-Bolden (Tanida). PB: Freeman.
*
EAGLES 10, MONARCHS 3
GRANITE HILLS ab r h bi MONTE VISTA ab r h bi
Decker ss 4 1 1 1 Palacios 2b 3 1 1 0
Harkins ph 1 0 0 0 DeAnda rf 2 1 0 0
Marquis cf 4 1 2 0 Lopez 1b 3 0 0 1
Boltz cf 1 0 1 0 Rodriguez p-1b 2 1 1 2
Crawford dh 4 3 1 0 Leboffe cf 3 0 1 0
Coleman ph-3b 0 0 0 0 Mendiola c 3 0 0 0
Monette c 3 3 2 2 Sopher dh 3 0 0 0
JMiller ph 0 0 0 0 RGarcia lf 2 0 0 0
Taijeron lf 4 1 1 1 Hale 3b 2 0 0 0
Hawley ph 1 0 0 0
Anderson p-1b 3 0 1 1
Humphries rf 2 1 2 3
Cazares 2b 1 0 1 2
Russell 1b-p 2 0 0 0
TWilliams ph 1 0 0 0
TOTALS 31 10 12 10 TOTALS 23 3 3 3
Granite Hills (19-5, 7-2) 213 112 0 - 10 12 0
Monte Vista (6-15, 4-5) 200 000 1 - 3 3 2
GWRBI: Cazares (1).
E: Mendiola, Croft. DP: GH 1. LOB: GH 11, MV 1. 2B: Humphries, Cazares.
HR: Monette (7) 1st, one on; Decker (3) 4th, solo; Rodriguez (1) 7th, solo.
SB: Marquis, Crawford, Monette. SF: Anderson.
PITCHING SUMMARY
GRANITE HILLS ip h r er bb so
Anderson W(5-1) 5.0 1 2 2 2 2
Russell 2.0 2 1 1 0 1
MONTE VISTA
Rodriguez L(2-8) 4+ 8 8 7 2 1
Simmons 3.0 4 2 2 2 2
Rodriguez faced one batter in the 5th.
HBP: by Simmons (Russell, Coleman, Miller). WP: Anderson.
*
NORSEMEN 14, COUGARS 0
VALHALLA ab r h bi STEELE CANYON ab r h bi
JBrown ss 4 2 1 3 Minich ss 2 0 0 0
R.OSullivan dh 3 2 2 0 Harris 2b 3 0 1 0
S.OSullivan 3b 4 2 1 1 Inzone rf 3 0 0 0
Baum 1b 2 2 1 2 Rice cf 3 0 1 0
McClain c 4 2 2 4 Duby c 3 0 0 0
Moore lf 3 1 1 1 Lange 1b 3 0 0 0
GGarcia 2b 3 1 0 0 Lewis lf-p 2 0 0 0
Sopata cf 2 2 1 0 Murray 3b 2 0 1 0
Wilson rf 3 0 2 1 Epperson p 1 0 0 0
Smith 3b 1 0 0 0 Jenner p 1 0 0 0
MYoung 1b 1 0 0 0 Shepard ph 1 0 0 0
LeValley lf 1 0 0 0
Melendez cf 2 0 1 0
ABrown rf 2 0 0 0
TOTALS 35 14 12 12 TOTALS 24 0 3 0
Valhalla (14-6, 6-1) 203 117 0 - 14 12 1
Steele Canyon (12-8, 6-2) 000 000 0 - 0 3 5
GWRBI: S.OSullivan (3).
E: Minich 3, Murray, J.Brown. LOB: Val 10, SC 2. 2B: Moore, Wilson 2, S.OSullivan.
HR: J.Brown (1) 6th, two on; McClain (1) 6th, one on. SB: R.OSullivan. S: Moore.
PITCHING SUMMARY
VALHALLA ip h r er bb so
Julienne W(3-1) 7.0 3 0 0 0 7
STEELE CANYON
Epperson L(3-3) 5+ 7 9 8 3 3
West 0.0 3 3 3 0 0
Jenner 1.0 1 1 1 1 2
Lewis 1.0 1 0 0 1 1
West faced 3 batters in the 6th.
HBP: by Epperson (Baum 2, Sopata).
*
Harbor League
WARHAWKS 11, PATRIOTS 5
CHRISTIAN ab r h bi MADISON ab r h bi
EYoung ss 4 1 1 0 Phillips cf 4 1 1 0
Perry rf 0 0 0 0 Pecina 1b-p 2 2 1 1
Dossett rf 2 1 1 0 Planck ss 4 2 2 2
Stanovic cf 2 1 1 0 Angle dh 3 1 1 2
Hart c 3 1 2 2 Moreno 1b 0 0 0 0
Rossitto 1b 1 0 0 0 Creeder ph 1 0 0 0
O'Donnell ph 0 1 0 0 Webster lf 3 2 1 1
McGranahan dh-p 2 0 0 0 Cotton 3b 2 1 1 1
Murray 3b 1 0 0 0 McCormick 1b 2 0 1 2
Plum 3b 2 0 0 1 Boss p 0 0 0 0
Abell lf 2 0 0 0 Jaime c 2 1 1 0
Schroeder lf 1 0 1 2 Iglesias c 1 0 0 0
N.Adams 2b 3 0 0 0 Latimer rf 3 1 0 0
TOTALS 23 5 6 5 TOTALS 27 11 9 9
Christian (11-7, 3-2) 000 104 0 - 5 6 3
Madison (16-5, 5-1) 003 602 x - 11 9 0
GWRBI: Pecina.
E: Hart, E.Young 2. LOB: Chr 3, Mad 7. 2B: Pecina. SB: Cotton. S: McCormick.
PITCHING SUMMARY
CHRISTIAN ip h r er bb so
Jones L(3-2) 3.0 4 3 3 0 2
McGranahan 0.1 2 6 5 2 0
Allen 1.2 0 0 0 0 1
Plum 1.0 3 2 2 0 1
MADISON
Pecina W(3-3) 6.0 6 5 5 5 9
Boss 1.0 0 0 0 0 0
HBP: by Jones (Pecina, Cotton), by McGranahan (Webster, Angle), by Allen (McCormick, Jaime), by Pecina (Plum).
WP: Jones, Plum, Pecina.
(05-02-05)
Vaqueros allow Eastlake to sweep doubleheader, squander
Garcia's pitching effort
EastCountySports.com
EASTLAKE - In what has traditionally been a high-scoring
late season marathon double-header, the pitchers took
control when Eastlake hosted El Capitan in a non-league
engagement Saturday (Apr. 30) in the South Bay. It proved
to be a long day for the Vaqueros who lost both games
to the Titans 2-1 and 10-4.
EASTLAKE 2, EL CAPITAN 1: Junior right-hander
CRISTIAN GARCIA certainly pitched well enough
to give the Vaqueros a victory in game one at Eastlake.
He scattered six hits and allowed only one earned run.
Eastlake, however, scored the winning run without benefit
of a hit in the 6th inning, parlaying a hit batter,
walk and an error into the magic marker.
The Titans' first run came on a solo home run by Jon
Eubanks in the 4th inning that erased a 1-0 El Capitan
advantage.
"We made too many mistakes to beat a team the caliber
of Eastlake," El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY
said. "We had two guys picked off and another
doubled off on a line drive in the first three innings."
El Capitan (13-10) took a 1-0 advantage in the 2nd inning
as JASSON KSIAZEK and JOSH WALSTON singled.
The runners advanced on GRIFF ERICKSON's swinging
bunt. MICHAEL GRIFFITH's sharp single to right
field scored Ksiazek for a 1-0 edge. But that would
be all the scoring for El Capitan in the opening game.
One strong point for El Capitan was catcher AUSTIN
RAUCH, who cut down two Titans attempting to steal.
EASTLAKE 10, EL CAPITAN 4: Outside of LOUIE
RUSSO's solo home run in the 3rd inning, the first
three frames of Saturday's nightcap belonged to Eastlake
(19-6). The Titans led 5-1 at that point and continued
on for the sweep.
Singles by GRIFF ERICKSON and D.J. HENSON
coupled with a key error by the Titans allowed the Vaqueros
to cut the deficit to 5-2 in the 4th inning.
In the 6th inning, El Capitan took a bite out of a 7-2
Eastlake lead. Back-to-back doubles by Ksiazek and DAMIAN
GARCIA plated one Vaqueros' run. A bases-loaded
walk to Russo cashed in another. It looked as if El
Capitan would get a bunch more as AUSTIN RAUCH
laced a drive to deep center field only to be robbed
of a hit by the Eastlake center fielder.
"It's been quite a while since either team has
swept this double-header," Vickery said. "And
it shouldn't have been a sweep this time, either. We
just let that first game slip through our fingers, both
literally and figuratively."
SATURDAY, APR 30, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Non-League
Game 1:
TITANS 2, VAQUEROS 1
El Capitan (13-10) 010 000 0 - 1 4 3
Eastlake (18-6) 000 101 x - 2 6 1
C.Garcia and Rauch; Antunez, Anda (6) and Lievanos. HR: Eubanks (ESL) 4th, solo.
W: Anda (2-0). L: C.Garcia (5-3).
*
Game 2:
TITANS 10, VAQUEROS 4
El Capitan (13-11) 001 102 0 - 4 5 2
Eastlake (19-6) 302 203 x - 10 13 2
N.Garcia, King (5), Petrille (6), McCarthy (6) and Rauch; Benner, West (3), Yowell (5), Avila (6) and Lievanos.
HR: Russo (EC) 3rd, solo; Eubanks (ESL) 6th, one on. W: West (1-0). L: N.Garcia (1-3).
(04-30-05)
Granite Hills's Garrett Russell (4) steals
a base as Mount Miguel's Nico Calafato makes
a futile grab for the ball. (4-29-05/Photo
by Adolfo Villanueva)
Norsemen overcome early 3-0 deficit to post 13-4
win over Monarchs
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON - For the second time in as many games this
week, Kevin Towers, General Manager of the San Diego
Padres, was on hand to watch Valhalla senior SEAN
O'SULLIVAN perform in Friday's (Apr. 29) Grossmont
South League action.
Naturally, Towers kept his thoughts to himself. But
just Towers' presence in consecutive games indicates
that O'Sullivan figures to go in the early rounds of
next month's draft. His selection won't necessarily
be made by the Padres, but obviously there is interest
in the Norsemen's multi-talented senior.
So those who believe O'Sullivan isn't the prospect he
was once touted to be had better take another look.
"Just having Towers there back-to-back at our games
shows that something is right," Valhalla coach
STEVE PERDUE said. "My telephone has been
ringing off the hook. I've had 15-to-16 (pro) clubs
call me in the last couple of days. These guys haven't
given up on Sean. They know what a talent he is."
Nevertheless, Monte Vista (6-14, 4-4) put the pressure
on O'Sullivan and the Norsemen early, taking a 3-0 lead
after three innings.
A bloop single by IAN CROFT gave the Monarchs
a 1-0 edge in the 2nd inning and a base hit by ANTHONY
LOPEZ along with an outfield miscue extended Monte
Vista's advantage to 3-0 in the 3rd.
The Monarchs were looking good at that point, considering
starting pitcher DAN DeANDA retired the first
9 Norsemen he faced.
"If we were playing with wood bats, Sean would
have broken a bunch," Perdue said of O'Sullivan,
who rolled his season record to 4-0. "This was
a typical Sean O'Sullivan game. He did what he needed
to do to win. His velocity hovered around 88-to-89 mph,
and his off-speed was on the mark."
The roof caved in on the Monarchs in the 4th.
Valhalla sent 16 batters to the plate in the 4th inning.
Twelve of them scored as the Norsemen parlayed 6 hits,
7 walks and a sacrifice fly into 12 runs.
CHRIS MOORE supplied the key blow in that uprising
by driving in 3 runs with a l-o-n-g single to left-center
field. Actually, Moore would have had a double with
ease had he not missed first base, which forced him
to retrace his tracks. None the less, Moore's blast
gave No.10-ranked Valhalla a 5-3 edge it wouldn't lose.
Later in that same inning, Moore ripped an RBI single.
Slump-ridden JEFF SOPATA closed the Valhalla
scoring with an RBI double in the 6th inning.
Croft clubbed a solo home run for the Monarchs in the
7th.
GROSSMONT 3, WEST HILLS 2 - Junior right-hander
STEPHEN STRASBURG has the worst pitching record
in East County at 0-7. Strasburg's lack of success is
not all his fault, however. A victim of poor support,
the 6-foot-4, 220-pound West Hills pitcher has lost
three one-run decisions, including Friday's (Apr. 29)
Grossmont North League 3-2 setback to the visiting Grossmont
Foothillers.
"We had him on the ropes in the 1st inning and
didn't put them away," Grossmont coach ROB PHILLIPS
said. "Give him credit. He pitched well."
No. 6-ranked Grossmont (17-5, 4-1) did all of its scoring
in the 1st inning. A.J. GRIFFIN laced a one-out
single and TRISTAN PHILLIPS and DONNIE SHOW
followed with walks to load the bases.
DANNY PIECZYNSKI punched a base hit right back
through the middle to give Grossmont the lead marker.
TREVOR BERRY's RBI single to right made it 2-0.
MATT PASSANISI tapped into a fielder's choice,
which allowed Hillers to plate a third run.
After that, Grossmont was limited to 2 hits by Strasburg
over the final six frames.
THOMAS ADAMS and DONNIE SNOW were equally
as stingy on the hill for the Foothillers.
West Hills (7-12, 2-3) countered Grossmont's fast start
in the bottom of the 1st as SHAIN STONER singled,
advance to third on KOREY HOOPER's double. Stoner
scored on Strasburg's sacrifice fly.
In the bottom of the 2nd, AARON RICHARDSON ripped
a solo home run to keep the heat on the Hillers.
Adams pitched six strong innings, striking out 7 and
walking nine. Snow came on to retire the Wolf pack in
order to record his second save.
Strasburg went the distance for the third time this
season.
"They beat us with ground-ball hits in the 1st
inning," said West Hills pitching coach MICKEY
DEUTSCHMAN. "Strasburg threw an excellent game
for us (103 pitches), but we just couldn't give him
enough help with the bat."
 Mount Miguel's Eddie De Arcos (7) races
to first base as Granite Hills' Donnie Anderson
(16) waits for the throw. (4-29-05/Photo by Adolfo Villanueva)
GRANITE HILLS 8, MOUNT MIGUEL 0: The Eagles
kept their wings flapping in the Grossmont South League
race Friday (Apr. 29) with another convincing romp over
host Mount Miguel.
No. 4-ranked Granite Hills (18-5, 6-2),which is one-half
out of the league lead, continues to rely on a steady
pitching staff and recently has received some offensive
punch to fortify their surge for the league title.
Senior catcher NICK MONETTE followed a one-out
double by freshman BRIAN HUMPHRIES to give the
Eagles a 1-0 edge in the opening frame. Monette eventually
cruised home on a Mount Miguel error.
Monette has been an offensive force for Granite Hills
over the last four games, collecting six hits in 12
at-bats while clubbing 4 home runs and driving in 11
runs.
Another major offensive contributor is senior DONNIE
ANDERSON, who has compiled a .435 batting average
(10-for-23) with three homers and six RBI over the last
nine games.
After BRANDON DECKER's RBI double gave the Eagles
a 3-0 advantage in the 2nd inning, Anderson belted a
solo home run to make it 4-0 in the 3rd.
RYAN MARQUIS contributed a 3-for-4 batting spree
to the Eagles' 14-hit attack that included a 2-run single
by AUSTIN COLEMAN in the 5th inning.
Meanwhile, sophomore ERIC KRAUSE blanked the
Matadors (0-19, 0-6) on 1 hit over the first 5 innings.
He struck out 6 before BILLY SYLVESTER spun a
pair of scoreless frames to finish off Granite Hills'
third shutout of the season.
"Our pitchers did really well today," said
Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS. "I'm happy
with that. We did nothing overly spectacular -- we competed.
Our kids were all thinking about the dodgeball game
tonight (at Granite Hills). (Mount Miguel) didn't give
up. They kept going, played hard."
Senior EDDIE DE ARCOS stretched his East County-leading
hitting streak to 10 games with a base hit in three
trips. De Arcos is batting at a .581 clip (18-for-31)
during his current hitting skein ands has failed to
garner a hit only twice in Mount Miguel's 19 games.
SANTANA 9, EL CAJON VALLEY 0: Santana
coach JERRY HENSON and wife CATHERINE HENSON
celebrated their 38th wedding anniversary Friday night
(Apr. 29) after the Sultans blanked the Braves in a
Grossmont North League game moved from Santee to El
Cajon due to wet grounds.
The Sultans (18-5, 3-2) took advantage of the dry track
at El Cajon Valley, stealing five bases and scoring
three runs without benefit of a hit in the opening frame.
It was more of the same for Santana in the 2nd inning.
NICK MILLER walked, stole second and advanced
to third on a throwing error. He scored on BRANDON
HALEY's sacrifice fly.
The Sultans kept the 2nd inning alive as KYLE HELMHOLTZ
and ROBERT HERMANSEN followed with two-out singles.
Both runners scored on a DALLAS MARTIN double,
giving Santana a 6-0 lead.
RYAN BROSNAN keyed the final two scoring thrusts
for the Sultans. He singled and came around on a pair
of errors in the 3rd. Brosnan tacked on an RBI single
in the 4th.
Martin pitched five shutout innings, limiting the Braves
to 3 hits, while racking up his 5th win in six decisions.
JEFF WOODS pitched in one scoreless inning of
relief and JOHN BASNIGHT escaped a bases-loaded
jam in the 7th to preserve Santana⤙s
4th shutout of the season.
El Cajon Valley, which committed six errors to undermine
its three pitchers, looked as if it might avoid the
shutout in the final frame. Basnight hit ALAN ABBOD
with a pitch to start the 7th inning. DEREK PEREZ
and RAY AQUININGOC followed with singles to load
the bases with nobody out.
Basnight doused the budding blaze with back-to-back
strikeouts and a groundball out.
STEELE CANYON @ HELIX: Wet grounds caused
Friday's (Apr. 29) Grossmont South League game in La
Mesa to be postponed a week. These clubs will reconvene
on the Highlanders' diamond Friday (May 6) at 4 p.m.
At the moment, Steele Canyon (12-7,6-1) leads the Grossmont
South by one-half game over Valhalla and Granite Hills.
USDHS @ CHRISTIAN: Still no makeup date for this
game, which was postponed by rain on Thursday (Apr.
28). Since this is a non-league affair, it is
conceivable that the game might not be played.
FRIDAY, APR 29, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Grossmont North League
SULTANS 9, BRAVES 0
EL CAJON VALLEY ab r h bi SANTANA ab r h bi
Thomas cf 3 0 2 0 Haley c 2 1 0 1
Sotos rf 3 0 0 0 Woods ss-p-3b 3 1 0 0
Manzo lf 3 0 0 0 Helmholtz 1b 3 2 1 0
Abbod 3b-p 2 0 0 0 Schaub 1b 1 0 0 0
D.Perez c 3 0 1 0 Hermansen cf 2 2 2 0
Vega p-3b 1 0 0 0 Diaz lf 1 0 1 0
Acquiningoc 1b-p 2 0 1 0 Martin p-ss 4 1 2 2
Myer 1b 3 0 0 0 Basnight 3b-p 3 0 0 1
L.Perez ss 0 0 0 0 Brosnan lf 3 1 2 1
Gonzales ss 2 0 1 0 Martinez 2b 2 0 0 0
Padilla 2b 2 0 0 0 N.Miller rf 1 1 0 0
Mansfield 2b 1 0 0 0 Spicer rf 1 0 0 0
TOTALS 23 0 5 0 TOTALS 26 9 8 4
El Cajon Valley (7-18, 0-7) 000 000 0 - 0 5 6
Santana (18-5, 3-2) 331 200 x - 9 8 0
GWRBI: None.
E: Abbod, L.Perez 2, Sotos, D.Perez 2. DP: ECV 1. LOB: ECV 6, Sant 5.
2B: Gonzales, Martin. SB: Haley 2, Woods 2, Helmholtz, Martin, Brosnan, N.Miller.
S: Martinez. SF: Haley.
PITCHING SUMMARY
EL CAJON VALLEY ip h r er bb so
Vega L(0-2) 0.0 0 3 2 3 0
Abbod 2.0 3 3 3 2 0
Acquininoc 4.0 5 3 2 0 2
SANTANA
Martin W(5-1) 5.0 3 0 0 1 4
Woods 1.0 0 0 0 0 2
Basnight 1.0 2 0 0 0 2
Vega faced 3 batters in the 1st inning.
HBP: by Basnight (Abbod).
*
FOOTHILLERS 3, WOLF PACK 2
GROSSMONT ab r h bi WEST HILLS ab r h bi
Ferrara 2b 3 0 1 0 Mello cf 3 0 1 0
Griffin 3b 2 1 2 0 Stoner ss 3 1 1 0
Phillips ss 2 1 0 0 Hooper lf 3 0 1 0
Snow dh-p 2 1 0 0 Strasburg p 1 0 0 1
Pieczynski c 2 0 1 1 Eddy 1b 3 0 0 0
Berry lf 3 0 2 1 Ritiyak dh 2 0 0 0
Passanisi 1b 3 0 0 1 Hall 3b 0 0 0 0
Williams cf 3 0 0 0 Gagnon ph 1 0 0 0
Longmire rf 2 0 0 0 Richardson 1b 3 1 2 1
Pichette c 3 0 0 0
Irvin 2b 3 0 0 0
TOTALS 22 3 6 3 TOTALS 25 2 5 2
Grossmont (17-5, 4-1) 300 000 0 - 3 6 1
West Hills (7-12, 2-3) 110 000 0 - 2 5 0
GWRBI: Pieczynski (2).
E: Griffin. DP: Gro 1. LOB: Gro 5, WH 4. 2B: Griffin, Hooper, Richardson.
HR: Richardson (3) 2nd, solo. SF: Strasburg.
PITCHING SUMMARY
GROSSMONT ip h r er bb so
Adams W(4-2) 6.0 5 2 2 0 7
Snow Sv(2) 1.0 0 0 0 0 1
WEST HILLS
Strasburg L(0-7) 7.0 6 3 3 6 6
HBP: by Adams (Strasburg), by Strasburg (Pieczynski). BK: Adams.
*
Grossmont South League
NORSEMEN 13, MONARCHS 4
MONTE VISTA ab r h bi VALHALLA ab r h bi
Palacios 2b 3 1 1 0 J.Brown ss 2 2 0 1
DeAnda p-rf 3 0 0 0 R.O⤙Sullivan 3b 1 2 0 1
Lopez lf 3 1 1 1 S.O⤙Sullivan p 3 2 1 1
Rodriguez 1b 2 1 2 0 Baum 1b 2 1 1 2
Leboffe cf-p 3 0 0 0 McClain dh 2 2 1 2
Haase rf-p 3 0 0 0 Moore c 4 0 2 4
Cooper c 2 0 0 0 LeValley lf 3 1 1 0
Croft ss 3 1 2 2 G.Garcia 2b 3 1 0 0
Hale 3b 2 0 0 0 Wilson rf 1 1 0 0
Starling ph 1 0 0 0 Melendez rf 1 0 0 0
Mendiola ph-c 1 0 0 0 M.Young 1b 1 1 0 0
Dawson ph 1 0 0 0 D.Smith lf-3b 1 0 0 0
Sopata cf 1 0 1 1
TOTALS 27 4 6 3 TOTALS 25 13 7 13
Monte Vista (6-14, 4-4) 012 0 0 0 1 - 4 5 2
Valhalla (13-6, 5-1) 000 (12)01 x - 13 7 0
GWRBI: Moore (1).
E: Hale, Haase. LOB: Val 3, MV 2. 2B: Sopata, Rodriquez. HR: Croft (2) 7th, solo. SB: J.Brown. S: Baum.
PITCHING SUMMARY
MONTE VISTA ip h r er bb so
DeAnda L(1-1) 3+ 2 4 4 2 3
Leboffe 0.0 2 2 2 1 0
Haase 0.1 0 5 5 4 0
Simmons 2.2 3 2 1 0 0
VALHALLA
S.O⤙Sullivan W(4-0) 6.0 4 3 3 1 11
Stangyl 1.0 1 1 1 0 1
DeAnde faced 4 batters in the 4th inning.
Leboffe faced 3 batters in the 4th inning.
*
EAGLES 8, MATADORS 0
GRANITE HILLS ab r h bi MOUNT MIGUEL ab r h bi
Decker ss 4 2 2 2 Seavello 2b 3 0 0 0
Gay ph 1 0 1 0 Newborn c 3 0 0 0
Humphries rf 3 1 2 0 Calafato ss 3 0 0 0
Williams rf 2 0 1 1 White c 3 0 1 0
Crawford dh 3 0 0 1 Array pr 0 0 0 0
Sylvester ph 1 0 0 0 De Arcos 1b 3 0 1 0
Monette c 2 1 1 1 Plunkett 3b 2 0 0 0
Roberts c 2 0 0 0 Williamson rf 2 0 0 0
Taijeron lf 2 0 0 0 Freeman-Bolden lf-ph 1 0 0 0
J.Miller lf 1 0 0 0 Freeman p 3 0 0 0
Anderson 1b 3 1 2 1
Russell 1b 1 1 0 0
Cazares 2b 1 0 0 0
Harkins 2b 2 0 1 0
Marquis cf 4 2 3 0
Horner 3b 2 0 0 0
Coleman 3b 2 0 1 2
TOTALS 36 8 14 8 TOTALS 24 0 2 0
Granite Hills (18-5, 6-2) 211 040 0 - 8 14 0
Mount Miguel (0-19, 0-6) 000 000 0 - 0 2 2
GWRBI: Monette (6).
E: Plunkett, De Arcos. LOB: GH 12, MM 5. 2B: Decker, Humphries, Monette.
HR: Anderson (3) 3rd, solo. SB: Taijeron, Russell, Marquis, De Arcos. SF: Crawford.
PITCHING SUMMARY
GRANITE HILLS ip h r er bb so
Krause W(6-1) 5.0 1 0 0 2 6
Sylvester 2.0 1 0 0 1 2
MOUNT MIGUEL
Freeman L(0-4) 4.1 9 8 7 2 3
Freeman-Bolden 2.2 2 0 0 0 2
(04-29-05)
El Capitan's Bryan Paukovits (23) pitched
a complete game 5-hitter as the Vaqueros beat Grossmont
5-1. (4-27-05/Photo by Ernie Pile)
Eagles' Monette homers twice, has seven RBI; Norse
brothers leave Monarchs seeing double
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON - Granite Hills senior catcher NICK MONETTE
put on a nifty power display, the O'Sullivan brothers
helped Valhalla snap Monte Vista's four-game winning
streak and El Capitan clipped Grossmont to turn the
Grossmont North League into a genuine pennant race during
Wednesday's (Apr. 27) East County baseball activity.
VALHALLA 10, MONTE VISTA 4: Facing possibly
the hottest squad in the Grossmont South League on Wednesday
(Apr. 27), the brothers O'SULLIVAN - RYAN and
SEAN - took it upon themselves to right a reeling
Valhalla baseball ship. The siblings slugged back-to-back
homers in the 1st inning, powering the Norsemen past
host Monte Vista with relative ease.
Following a listless performance to open the week in
a loss against Granite Hills to snap their record 29-game
league winning streak, the Norsemen (12-6, 4-1) immediately
started a new streak while ending the Monarchs' four-game
victory ride.
"We haven´t been consistent every
game," noted shortstop and East County's leading
hitter JAVIER BROWN, who belted a pair of RBI
doubles. "The intensity is up some games and down
some games. I think we all knew we had to be high-intensity
for this game."
Brown opened the game with what many thought was a mistake
of aggression, swinging at a pitch in the dirt for a
third strike. But when the ball bounced away from the
catcher allowing Brown to reach base, the mental edge
sought by Valhalla was rediscovered.
"It worked out very well," added Brown. "From
that moment on, we played as a team and swung the bats
early."
It didn't take long to register the results on the scoreboard
either. On the next pitch, RYAN O'SULLIVAN deposited
the ball over the fence in right-center field for a
2-0 lead. Sean O'Sullivan followed with a solo blast
to left - his 4th round-tripper of the year.
Meanwhile, on the mound, Ryan O'Sullivan set down the
first 10 Monarchs he faced, including the final three
on strikes. The spunky freshman right-hander went on
to pitch a complete game.
Monte Vista's offensive bright spot was No. 9 batter
MATT HALE, who lifted home runs in both the 6th
and 7th innings to drive home three of the Monarchs'
four runs.
"I just started swinging the bat again recently,"
noted Hale, a senior who missed parts of the season
or was DH'ed out because of a separated right shoulder.
"Ryan had only allowed two or three hits and we
didn't want him to come to our place and throw a shutout."
Down 9-0 at the time, Hale opened the 6th with a solo
shot to right field over the extra-tall fence down the
line. He also went the opposite way with an identical
shot for two more runs in the 7th.
Meanwhile, the Norsemen looked like their old selves,
despite the absence of head coach STEVE PERDUE
who missed the event due to a minor health matter. His
son, TROY PERDUE, handled the managing chores
for the Norsemen, stating the skipper will return for
Friday's (Apr. 29) rematch between the teams at Valhalla.
Brown's first RBI double made it 4-0 in the 2nd inning
before CHRIS MOORE registered a 2-run single
as Valhalla scored three times in the 5th for a 7-0
advantage.
The Norsemen added two more tallies in the 6th - one
on a wild pitch, another on a pinch-hit single by MICHAEL
YOUNG. Then it was Brown's turn again, as he smacked
another run-scoring two-bagger in the 7th.
Ryan O'Sullivan struck out four without issuing
a walk, finishing with a 7-hitter. At the plate, the
freshman went 3-for-5 with three runs scored and 2 RBI.
"We haven't been doing much lately, so when that
first pitch was a fastball, it was exactly what I was
looking for and I jumped on it," the younger O'Sullivan
said. "We were really down entering the game, so
we had to pick up our game and make something of it
after the loss to Granite Hills."
Moore added two hits and a pair of RBI for Valhalla.
The errorless game also saw Monte Vista with a string
of solid defensive plays. Among them was a leaping grab
at the wall for an out by left fielder RICHIE GARCIA
to take extra bases away from TOMMY McCLAIN.
A diving catch to intercept a short line drive in
right by DAN DeANDA thwarted Sean O'Sullivan,
and a catch by shortstop IAN CROFT, who backtracked
to grab a difficult pop-up denied Ryan O´Sullivan.
KEVIN TOWERS, General Manager of the San Diego
Padres, was on hand to view the proceedings. His focus
was no doubt on the older O'Sullivan. Towers had no
comment.
GRANITE HILLS 19, MOUNT MIGUEL 2: For
a while, 4 1/2 innings to be exact, the Mount Miguel
Matadors were in position to possibly upend No. 4-ranked
Granite Hills in Wednesday's (Apr. 27) Grossmont South
League action on the Eagles' turf.
"I wasn't very happy with our performance up to
that point," admitted Granite Hills coach JAMES
DAVIS, whose Eagles were hanging onto a 4-2 lead.
Finally, Granite Hills located its hitting shoes and
suddenly Mount Miguel was reliving a nightmare it has
experienced 18 times this season.
A 12-run Granite Hills 5th inning turned this game into
the rout it was predicted to be. Seventeen Eagles batted
in the inning, which also led to the ejection of Mount
Miguel coach BYRON GRIGSBY for arguing. Granite
Hills (17-5, 5-2) rapped out 7 hits, and the Matadors
added to their demise by issuing 4 walks and committing
three errors plus one passed ball.
Senior catcher NICK MONETTE led the Granite Hills
onslaught with his 5th and 6th home runs, a double and
7 RBI. In his last three games, Monette is 5-for-10
with 4 home runs and 10 RBI.
"Nick is starting to get some interest from the
pro clubs," Davis said of his strong-armed leader
behind the dish.
Eleven Eagles contributed to a 14-hit attack. Fourteen
Granite Hills players scored, including Monette who
touched the plate four times.
Granite Hills' highest scoring output of the season
gave the Eagles their 10th win in the last 12 games.
Sophomore right-hander DARREN GAY scattered 4
hits over six innings as he rolled his record to an
East County-best 6-0.
Mount Miguel's EDDIE DE ARCOS, perhaps the top
three-sport letterman on campus, stretched his hitting
streak to nine games with a pair of singles. De Arcos
is batting at a .607 clip (17-for-28) during his current
batting streak. Only twice in 18 games has De Arcos
been held hitless.
The Matadors' took the early lead when DEXTOR SEAVELLO
slapped the second pitch from Gay over the left-center
field fence. It was Seavello's second home run in as
many games.
Granite Hills' BRANDON DECKER tied the game with
a solo shot leading off the 3rd inning. Monette capped
the 3rd with a three-run blast staking Granite Hills
to a 4-1 advantage.
STEELE CANYON 9, HELIX 6: When the season
began junior MIKE LANGE was a backup catcher
for the Steele Canyon Cougars.
Lange hasn't received a whole lot of catching opportunities
since then, but he has found ways to contribute to the
Cougars' (12-7, 6-1) success. Lange dug in as a designated
hitter initially and since has found a home at first
base. His bat, however, continues to talk.
Lange laced a three-run home run to cap a 4-run 1st
inning for Steele Canyon, which scored in five of its
six turns at-bat.
Senior right-hander KYLE JOHNSON survived four
Steele canyon errors and scattered 10 Helix hits to
notch his 4th win in five decisions. Only two of the
four runs allowed by Johnson were earned.
"We played well today, booted the ball around a
little bit there at the end," Cougars' coach PHIL
MITTRY said. "Everybody was up today."
CODY MINICH produced 3 of Steele Canyon's 11
hits from his leadoff spot, while WILL MURRAY
was 2 for 4 with a pair of RBI.
Helix (8-12, 0-7) suffered its 8th straight loss and
11th in 12 starts after starting the season 7-1.
For one of the first time in eight games, the Highlanders
generated more than 3 runs. At the controls of that
surge was JEREMY PETERSON, who pounded his East
County-leading 14th double and his second home run with
a man aboard.
"We hit the ball hard all day, but just can't seem
to put a whole game together," Helix coach COLE
HOLLAND said. "Peterson has been swinging it
well the whole season, but it's pretty hard for one
guy to carry a whole team."
Helix's pitchers have seen better days, but Holland
noted that Lange's home run was only the second allowed
by the Highlanders in 20 games.
"To think our pitchers have done that well preventing
the long ball in the cracker box we play in is amazing,"
Holland said.
El Capitan's Austin Rauch (18) focuses on a pitch.
He knocked a 2-run triple in the Vaqueros' win. (4-27-05/Photo
by Ernie Pile)
EL CAPITAN 5, GROSSMONT 1: Thanks to the
sterling pitching of El Capitan senior BRYAN PAUKOVITS,
there will be a pennant race in the Grossmont North
League this season.
The 6-foot-4, 210-pound right-hander used his split-fingered
fastball to leave the visiting Grossmont Foothillers
fluttering in the breeze in Wednesday's (Apr. 27) Grossmont
North showdown won by the Vaqueros 5-1 in Lakeside.
"You can't afford to go down two to any team,"
said El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY, whose Vaqueros
lost the first of three league meetings on Monday (Apr.
25) by a 6-0 count. "So it was great to see Paukovits
beat them for the third time in three starts at a time
when we really needed a win."
Paukovits frustrated the 6th-ranked-Foothillers (16-5,
3-1) with a 5-hitter and would have a shutout had El
Capitan (13-9, 5-1) not committed its only two errors
on the same play in the 4th inning.
The El Capitan pitcher credited junior catcher AUSTIN
RAUCH for helping guide him through the Grossmont
batting order.
"The key was I threw only 80 pitches to go seven
innings," Paukovits said. "I was able to throw
my split-finger with confidence and for strikes. That
made all the difference."
The victory, which was Paukovits' 4th in six decisions,
featured 8 strikeouts.
This was a rapid-paced game that took 61 minutes to
put five innings in the books. Only one hour, 28 minutes
had passed by the time the final was recorded.
All those involved in either battery agreed that the
swift pace was beneficial.
"Before I knew it, it was already the 6th inning,"
Paukovits admitted. "I like it because it keeps
me warm, keeps me more in the game."
El Capitan burned Grossmont pitchers A.J. GRIFFIN
and DONNIE SNOW with three major hits to decide
the issue.
After the Foothillers scored an unearned run in the
top of the 4th inning, El Capitan fired back in the
bottom of the 4th.
THOMAS HOSTETLER provided the initial spark with
a leadoff single. LOUIE RUSSO followed with a
double off the left field embankment, setting the stage
for JASSON KSIAZEK's 2-run single that gave El
Capitan a lead it wouldn't lose.
The Vaqueros dealt the Foothillers two more bruising
blows in the 6th as Rauch ripped a two-run triple and
NIK GARCIA whacked an RBI double for a 5-1 El
Capitan lead.
Grossmont ace A.J. GRIFFIN issued only his 5th
and 6th walks of the season in the key 6th inning. Both
runners scored as the junior right-hander suffered his
first loss in four decisions.
For the record, all but one of the six walks by Griffin
have been converted into runs.
In his post-game lament, Grossmont coach ROB PHILLIPS
reviewed the 1st inning which began with TIM FERRARA's
lead-off double. TRISTIAN PHILLIPS followed with
a one out single, putting runners at the corners.
Cleanup hitter DONNIE SNOW ripped a groundball
up the middle that El Capitan second baseman LOUIE
RUSSO made a diving stop. Russo shuffled the ball
to shortstop Ksiazek who fired to first baseman Nik
Garcia for an inning-ending double play.
"You can't hit the ball any harder than that,"
Phillips said of Snow's crisp ground ball. â¤But
they made the play and that killed us."
Snow later added a pair of singles to right field.
Obviously, Phillips was not pleased by Grossmont's second-lowest
scoring effort of the season.
"To me we gave up three free runs," Phillips
said. "Two walks and one error (officially ruled
an infield hit) that scored. That was the difference
in the ballgame."
WEST HILLS 3, EL CAJON VALLEY 0: Thoughts
of breaking a dry spell spanning eight years without
a Grossmont North League victory, coach WAYNE WEIGHTMAN's
Braves had to be thinking Wednesday (Apr. 27) was going
to be the day that drought came to an end.
After all, senior right-hander LUIS PEREZ and
West Hills sophomore BRIAN RITIYAK - making his
first varsity start - were locked up in a scoreless
pitching duel through five innings.
"Ritiyak didn't act like a typical sophomore, he's
normally a control pitcher," West Hills coach SCOTT
HOPWOOD. "Today he showed a lot of power. (Catcher
AARON GAGNON) did a great job behind the plate
today. He kept Ritiyak in the game. Both in our battery
today were sophomores."
SHAIN STONER sparked West Hills' winning
rally with a leadoff single in the 6th inning. Stoner
stole second and KOREY HOOPER followed with a
walk. Two outs later, Gagnon connected for a base-clearing
double that spotted West Hills a 2-0 lead. JOE MELLO's
double cashed in Gagnon to make it 3-0.
"We were more aggressive with the sticks, and came
up big when we had to," said Hopgood. "Our
league is really balanced; right now, it's anybody's
title to take.�
The Wolf Pack are 2-2 in league activity and 7-11 overall.
The Braves (4-17,0-6) had a chance to break the scoreless
deadlock in the bottom of the 5th inning. ALAN ABBOD
started the inning when he was hit by a pitch and Luis
Perez followed with a single. Pinch hitter RAY AQUININGOC
launched a parachute to short right field. West Hills
second baseman TRAVIS IRVIN picked up the ball
and fired to shortstop Stoner to turn what appeared
to be a base hit into a forceout of Perez at second
base.
But the defensive play continued. Stoner wheeled and
threw to Gagnon at the plate to nail Abbod attempting
to score.
That play sapped whatever strength El Cajon Valley had
going. Five of the final eight Braves struck out.
"The double play in the bottom of the 5th was a
huge play," Weightman admitted. "If we score
there, then we're ahead and I think we go ahead and
win."
Ritiyak turned in a complete game that included 10 strikeouts.
"Ritiyak did a great job against us, and really
shut us down," Weightman said. "Gagnon's hit
broke our back."
WEDNESDAY, APR 27, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Grossmont North League
VAQUEROS 5, FOOTHILLERS 1
GROSSMONT ab r h bi EL CAPITAN ab r h bi
Ferrara 2b 3 0 1 0 Hostetler lf 3 1 2 0
Griffin p-3b 3 0 0 0 Russo 2b 2 2 1 0
Phillips ss 3 0 1 0 Rauch c 3 1 1 2
Snow rf-p 3 1 2 0 Ksiazek ss 3 0 1 2
Fox pr 0 0 0 0 N.Garcia 1b 3 0 1 1
Pieczynski c 3 0 0 0 D.Garcia pr 0 0 0 0
Berry lf-rf 3 0 0 0 Erickson dh 3 0 0 0
Passanisi 1b 2 0 1 0 Walston cf 2 0 0 0
A.Williams cf 2 0 0 0 Griffith rf 2 0 0 0
Sobel 3b 1 0 0 0 C.Garcia 3b 1 0 0 0
Medina lf 1 0 0 0 Nazzal ph 0 1 0 0
TOTALS 24 1 5 0 TOTALS 22 5 6 5
Grossmont (16-5, 3-1) 000 100 0 - 1 5 0
El Capitan (13-9, 5-1) 000 203 x - 5 6 2
GWRBI: Ksiazek (4).
E: Ksiazek, Rauch. DP: Gro 2, EC 2. LOB: Gro 5, ECa 1. 2B: Ferrara, Russo, N.Garcia. 3B: Rauch. SB: Pieczynski.
PITCHING SUMMARY
GROSSMONT ip h r er bb so
Griffin L(3-1) 5.1 4 4 4 2 8
Snow 0.2 2 1 1 0 1
EL CAPITAN
Paukovits W(4-2) 7.0 5 1 0 2 8
HBP: by Paukovits (Passanisi).
*
WOLF PACK 3, BRAVES 0
WEST HILLS ab r h bi EL CAJON VALLEY ab r h bi
Mello cf 4 0 2 1 Thomas cf 3 0 1 0
Ritiyak p 3 0 0 0 Vega rf 3 0 1 0
Strasburg 1b 4 0 3 0 Manzo lf 3 0 0 0
Parker pr 0 0 0 0 Myer 1b-p 3 0 0 0
Richardson dh 4 0 0 0 D.Perez c 2 0 0 0
Stoner ss 4 1 1 0 Abbod 3b 2 0 1 0
Hooper rf 2 1 1 0 Gonzales pr 0 0 0 0
Skinner lf 2 0 0 0 L.Perez p 3 0 1 0
Hall 3b 1 0 0 0 Mansfield dh-1b 3 0 0 0
Eddy pr 1 0 0 0 Padilla ss 0 0 0 0
Gagnon c 3 1 2 2 Aquiningoc ph 1 0 0 0
Irvin 2b 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 28 3 9 3 TOTALS 23 0 4 0
West Hills (7-11, 2-2) 000 003 0 - 3 9 0
El Cajon Valley (4-17, 0-6) 000 000 0 - 0 4 1
GWRBI: Gagnon (1).
E: Padilla. DP: WH 2. LOB: WH 8, ECV 4. 2B: Mello, Strasburg, Gagnon. SB: Thomas 2, Gagnon. S: Skinner.
PITCHING SUMMARY
WEST HILLS ip h r er bb so
Ritiyak W(1-0) 7.0 4 0 0 2 10
EL CAJON VALLEY
L.Perez L(2-4) 6.0 9 3 3 3 6
Myer 1.0 0 0 0 0 1
HBP: by Ritiyak (Abbod). WP: Ritiyak. PB: D.Perez.
*
Grossmont South League
NORSEMEN 10, MONARCHS 4
VALHALLA ab r h bi MONTE VISTA ab r h bi
J.Brown ss 5 1 2 2 Palacios 2b 4 0 0 0
R.O'Sullivan p 5 3 3 2 DeAnda rf-p 3 0 1 0
S.O'Sullivan 3b 2 2 1 1 Lopez 1b-lf 3 1 1 0
Baum 1b 2 1 0 0 Rodriguez p-1b 3 0 1 1
Young ph-1b 1 0 1 1 Starling pr 0 0 0 0
McClain c 3 0 0 0 Leboffe cf 3 0 1 0
Moore lf 3 0 2 2 Mendiola dh 3 1 1 0
D.Smith ph-1b 1 0 0 0 Cooper c 3 0 0 0
Melendez rf 3 0 0 0 Croft ss 3 0 0 0
Sopata cf 1 0 0 0 Hale 3b 3 2 2 3
G.Garcia 2b 1 0 0 0 R.Garcia lf 0 0 0 0
Wilson cf-rf 2 1 1 0
A.Brown ph-rf 1 2 0 0
TOTALS 30 10 10 8 TOTALS 28 4 7 4
Valhalla (12-6, 4-1) 310 032 1 - 10 10 0
Monte Vista (6-13, 4-3) 000 002 2 - 4 7 0
GWRBI: R.OSullivan (3).
DP: MV 1. LOB: Val 7, MV 3. 2B: J.Brown 2, Moore.
HR: R.O'Sullivan (2) 1st, 1 on; S.O'Sullivan (4) 1st, solo; Hale 2: (1,2) 6th, solo, and 7th, 1 on.
VALHALLA ip h r er bb so
R.O'Sullivan W(5-1) 7.0 7 4 4 0 4
MONTE VISTA
Rodriguez L(2-7) 4.0 6 7 6 4 3
DeAnda 3.0 4 3 3 2 2
Rodriguez faced 3 batters in the 5th.
HBP: by DeAnda (G.Garcia). WP: Rodriguez, DeAnda 3. PB: Cooper 2, McClain.
*
COUGARS 9, HIGHLANDERS 6
HELIX ab r h bi STEELE CANYON ab r h bi
R.Perez ss 4 1 1 0 Minich ss 4 1 3 0
Tanida c 4 2 2 0 Harris 2b 5 1 1 1
Ledesma cf 4 1 1 1 Inzone rf 3 1 1 0
Peterson p-1b 4 1 3 4 Rice cf 2 0 0 1
Ponce rf-p 3 0 0 0 Duby c 1 2 1 0
Rosenthal lf 2 0 1 0 Lange 1b 2 1 1 3
Ritchie 3b 3 0 1 0 Lewis lf 2 0 1 0
Webb 1b 1 0 0 0 Jacobsmeier lf 0 1 0 0
Schuler ph 1 0 0 0 Murray 3b 4 1 2 2
Beltran ph 1 1 1 0 Jenner dh 3 1 1 0
Knaust ph 1 0 0 0
TOTALS 28 6 10 5 TOTALS 27 9 11 7
Helix (8-12, 0-7) 000 201 3 - 6 10 1
Steele Canyon (12-7, 6-1) 410 112 x - 9 11 4
GWRBI: Rice (3).
E: Tanida, Lewis , Minich 2, Lange. DP: SC 2. LOB: Hel 7, SC 11. 2B: Minich, Murray, Peterson, Beltran.
HR: Lange (2) 1st, two on; Peterson (2) 4th, one on. SB: Harris 2, Rice. SF: Rice.
PITCHING SUMMARY
HELIX ip h r er bb so
Peterson L(1-4) 2.0 6 5 5 2 1
Runiors 2.0 1 1 1 3 2
Ponce 2.0 4 3 2 1 1
STEELE CANYON
Johnson W(4-1) 7.0 10 6 2 2 5
HBP: by Peterson (Rice), by Ponce (Minich, Lange). WP: Peterson, Runions.
*
EAGLES 19, MATADORS 2
MOUNT MIGUEL ab r h bi GRANITE HILLS ab r h bi
Seavello 2b 3 1 1 1 Decker ss 4 1 2 1
Newborn cf 3 0 0 0 Krause ph 1 0 0 0
Calafato ss 3 0 0 0 Humphries rf 3 1 1 0
White c 3 0 0 0 T.Williams rf 2 1 1 0
DeArcos rf 3 1 2 0 Crawford dh 2 2 1 0
Freeman 1b-p 3 0 0 0 J.Miller dh 2 2 1 1
Williamson lf 2 0 0 0 Monette c 4 4 3 7
Cannon lf 0 0 0 0 Taijeron lf 1 1 0 0
Vanderhyde p 0 0 0 0 Hawley lf 2 1 1 1
Green 3b 2 0 1 1 Anderson 1b 1 1 0 0
Sandoval p 2 0 0 0 Roberts 1b 2 1 0 0
Cazares 2b 2 1 0 0
Harkins 2b 2 1 1 1
Marquis cf 2 1 0 0
Russell cf 1 0 1 1
Horner 3b 3 0 1 1
Boltz ph 1 1 1 2
TOTALS 26 2 4 2 TOTALS 35 19 14 15
Mount Miguel (0-18, 0-5) 100 0 1 0 0 - 2 4 3
Granite Hills (17-5, 5-2) 004 1(12)3 x - 19 14 0
GWRBI: Monette (5).
E: Green, Cannon, Calafato. DP: GH 1. LOB: MM 1, GH 7. 2B: Green, Humphries, Monette, T.Williams, Horner, Crawford.
HR: Seavello (2) 1st, solo; Decker (3) 3rd, solo; Monette 2(5,6): 3rd, two on, and 6th, 2 on. SB: De Arcos, Decker.
PITCHING SUMMARY
MOUNT MIGUEL ip h r er bb so
Sandoval L(0-5) 4+ 6 6 6 4 4
Freeman 0.1 1 4 3 3 0
Vanderhyde 1.2 8 9 7 1 1
GRANITE HILLS
Gay W(6-0) 6.0 4 2 2 0 6
Sabala 1.0 0 0 0 0 1
Sandoval faced 2 batters in the 5th.
WP: Sandoval. PB: White.
(04-27-05)
Islanders' Pokorny shuts down Christian bats
EastCountySports.com
CORONADO - Christian High coach MIKE MITCHELL
didn't receive the kind of welcome he might have expected
Tuesday (Apr. 26) when he brought his Patriots to his
former coaching post at Coronado High. The Islanders
won the non-league skirmish 4-0 with little resistance
offered up by Christian.
"We didn't hit anything hard all day," said
Mitchell, who guided the Coronado baseball program a
decade ago.
Coronado freshman Kyle Pokorny blanked the Patriots
on two hits over five innings before a pair of relievers
finished the job with one scoreless inning apiece.
The Patriots' best scoring shot came in the 1st inning
when ADAM PERRY singled, stole second and advanced
to third on an infield out. RICKY PLUM drew a
two-out walk to put runners at the corners. But that's
why the budding rally wilted.
Christian's only other hit was a third-inning single
by SHANE STANOVIC.
It was the second loss in a row for Christian (11-6,
3-1), which hosts USDHS in a non-league game on Thursday
(Apr. 28) before opening a two-game series against Harbor
League-leading Madison on Monday (May 2).
TUESDAY, APR 26, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Non-League
ISLANDERS 4, PATRIOTS 0
Christian (11-6) 000 000 0 - 0 2 1
Coronado (13-9) 103 000 x - 4 6 1
McGranahan, O'Donnell (5), Allen (6) and Hart; Pokorny, Gill (6), Denson (7) and Piscatelli.
W: Pokorny.L: McGranahan (0-1).
(04-26-05)
Grossmont coach Rob Phillips congratulates
Danny Pieczynski (8) as he rounds third base
on the last leg of his 6th home run of the
season. (4-23-05/Photo
by Adolfo Villanueva)
Eagles stop Valhalla's league-record win streak
behind Anderson's four-hitter
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON - The Grossmont North and South league races
are very much alive today thanks to key victories by
Granite Hills in the South and Grossmont in the North.
The Eagles nailed the Norsemen 5-1, halting their East
County record league winning streak at 29, while Grossmont
derailed El Capitan's bid to be a runaway victor in
the Grossmont North.
GRANITE HILLS 5, VALHALLA 1: At the outset
of Monday's (Apr. 25) Grossmont South League showdown
against visiting Valhalla, it appeared that Granite
Hills starting pitcher DONNIE ANDERSON-s role
in the game was going to be short-lived.
Anderson hit Valhalla leadoff man JAVIER BROWN
to open the proceedings and then gave up a base hit
to RYAN O'SULLIVAN. The Eagles elected to intentionally
walk SEAN O'SULLIVAN to load the bases.
After TOMMY McCLAIN followed with an RBI single,
10th-ranked Valhalla (11-6, 3-1) was on the brink of
blowing out the 4th-ranked Eagles in the opening frame
and continuing on to their 8th straight win over Granite
Hills in the past three years.
That's when Anderson, a 6-foot-4, 200-pound senior right-hander
slapped the clamps on Valhalla's offense. He quelled
the opening threat with back-to-back strikeouts and
a pop-up.
Momentum from that recovery helped Anderson blank the
Norsemen on 2 hits over the final six frames for his
4th win in five decisions.
"That first inning was when the game was decided,"
Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS said. "They
had Donnie on the ropes. So I went out there (to the
mound) and told Donnie to just relax and stop trying
to throw the ball 100 mph."
Anderson heeded the call. In somewhat of a pressure
reversal, the Norsemen seemed to feel the heat as Anderson
struck out 6 batters in the first 2 1/3 innings.
"I think that's the best game he's ever pitched,"
Davis said. "He had a great playoff outing against
Montgomery last year and against Green Valley (Nev.)
and all that. But as far as the pressure of it, the
heat of it, and he could have folded, yet he never lost
his composure. I really do feel that we saw Donnie at
his best today."
Anderson checked the Norsemen on 4 hits, while walking
two, plunking a pair and striking out six en route to
his 4th complete game in five starts this season.
"I think I was a little too pumped up for the game,"
said Anderson trying to explain his slow start. "I
had to make some adjustments and settle down. The umpire
liked to call the high strike so I tried to work with
that. He told me his way of throwing the ball was right
off the tee. So wherever the tee was I tried to figure
that out and throw it there."
After the 1st inning, only once did the Norsemen get
more than one runner on base. That was in the 6th when
Valhalla placed runners at the corners. Anderson then
used the fake pick-off throw to third and wheeled around
to catch the Valhalla runner napping at first base.
The Eagles eventually nailed the runner at first in
a rundown while, for some reason, the Valhalla runner
held at third and failed to score.
"I was a little scared in that first inning because
this is the first time I've ever started against Valhalla,"
Anderson said. "Since we hadn't beaten them in
so long, I wasn't sure what to expect. But now that
we got this win, we know we can beat them and that should
help us the next time we play them (May 13 at Valhalla)."
Had Granite Hills (16-5, 4-2) buckled under Valhalla's
early heat, the Norsemen could well have secured their
third straight league championship without much difficulty
down the stretch.
"We've had some bad innings against Valhalla in
the past," Davis recalled. "Last year we had
two games against them where we were down by seven runs
by the second inning. But this year we were able to
hold that off."
Granite Hills tied the game 1-1 in the 2nd inning as
NICK BOLTZ doubled, advanced to third on a fly
ball out and scored on an ERIC JULIENNE wild
pitch.
Things would get worse for Valhalla's Julienne, who
was burned by NICK MONETTE's tie-breaking two-run
home run in the 3rd inning. Then, before Julienne could
gather his composure, two pitches later he saw TRAVIS
TAIJERON's high fly ball blown over the left-center
field fence to give Granite Hills a 4-1 advantage.
"It had a lot of hang time and the wind kind of
caught it, but it cleared the fence and that's all that
matters," Davis said.
Anderson kept the Granite Hills parade in step when
he slugged Julienne's first serve of the 4th inning
well over the left-center field fence to make it 5-1.
Anderson's sterling pitching and Granite Hills sudden
burst of power brought an end to Valhalla's three-year
Grossmont South League winning streak at 29 games. The
only team in San Diego CIF history to win more league
games in succession is Montgomery, which reeled in 37
straight wins from the 1992 and 1994 seasons.
GROSSMONT 6, EL CAPITAN 0: A year ago Grossmont
High sophomore TAYLOR WOHLWEND was a catcher
for the Foothillers' freshman squad.
So why is that such big news this year?
Consider this: Wohlwend, a 6-foot-2, 180-pound right-hander,
is the top pitcher in East County.
"I don't know about the league, but right now,
he's our No.1," Grossmont coach ROB PHILLIPS
said. "Every time we send him out there he gets
the job done. He goes deep into the game and almost
refuses to come out."
Wohlwend held the visiting Vaqueros hitless through
five innings of Monday's (Apr. 25) Grossmont North League
showdown.
With No. 6 Grossmont (16-4,3-0) leading 4-0, El Capitan
(12-9, 4-1) finally broke Wohlwend's spell as THOMAS
HOSTETLER singled to open the 6th inning. LOUIE
RUSSO followed with a base hit.
That's where the El Capitan comeback stalled. AUSTIN
RAUCH laced a shot that found the glove of Grossmont
third baseman A.J.GRIFFIN, who made the grab
and fired to second baseman TIM FERRARA to double
off Russo.
"Rauch's ball was the hardest they hit all day,"
Phillips said.
After JASSON KSIAZEK singled to keep the Vaqueros'
6th inning alive, Phillips went to the mound to make
a pitching change.
"Wohlwend didn't want to give me the ball,"
Phillips admitted. "He wanted to stay in
and finish."
Small wonder considering Wohlwend (6-0, 0.48) has allowed
only 12 hits and 2 earned runs in 29 1/3 innings.
Phillips admired his sophomore's gumption, but brought
in closer Griffin to silence the Vaqueros. Three of
the four outs recorded by Griffin came via strikes.
Griffin, who started at third base, also contributed
a solo home run - his 5th of the season - in the 3rd
inning.
Phillips is quick to point the finger at Ferrara as
the Foothillers' leadoff man and catalyst. Despite not
playing baseball to concentrate on soccer the previous
two years, Ferrara has come on to bat .431 as a senior.
"Tim is the missing link we didn't have last year,"
Phillips said.
Ferrara was in the middle of Grossmont's early rallies.
He doubled and scored on a wild pitch in the 1st inning.
His two-run single in the 2nd gave the Foothillers a
3-0 edge.
Meanwhile, DONNIE SNOW continued to be a heavy
hitter for Grossmont, raising his average to .647 over
the last five games (11 for 17) with a pair of singles
in three at-bats against El Capitan.
"When I saw Wohlwend's name on Robbie's lineup
card, I ran back to my (travel) bag and grabbed the
EastCountySports.com statistics list to see just
who we were facing," El Capitan coach STEVE
VICKERY said. "The guy did a good job of keeping
us off balance. But, at the same time, we did a poor
job of adjusting to his pitches."
Grossmont and El Capitan will tangle again on Wednesday
(Apr. 27) in Lakeside at 4 p.m.
WEST HILLS 6, EL CAJON VALLEY 3: Unintentionally
following an unorthodox strategy utilized by Granite
Hills earlier in the season, the Wolf Pack parlayed
a mere three hits into six runs after the Braves pitching
staff issued eight walks and hit three batters.
Two of the hits came in the 2nd inning, when, after
a pair of lead walks, a grounder off the bat of TRAVIS
IRVIN was misplayed to allow the tying run to score.
KOREY HOOPER then drilled a two-run single as
West Hills scored four times to secure the lead for
keeps.
"We didn't come out with any intensity and maybe
took El Cajon a little lightly," noted Hooper.
"So we only scratched out a win."
The Pack added an important insurance run in the 6th
when pinch-hitter BRIAN RITIYAK doubled into
the left-field corner to score JOE MELLO, who
reached base on a single.
Meanwhile, West Hills pitcher JOHN EDDY (3-2)
scattered eight hits over six innings, with STEPHEN
STRASBURG pitching a perfect 7th with two strikeouts
to register the save.
"The defense made some nice plays behind me,"
noted Eddy. "Hoop made a nice diving catch in left
for me, then MICHAEL HALL started a double play
for us."
The Braves (4-16, 0-4) received two hits each from ALAN
ABBOD and CLIFTON THOMAS. One of Abbod's
hits was a double in the 4th, followed by consecutive
RBI singles by DEREK PEREZ and MARCUS VEGA
to cut the lead to 4-3.
MONTE VISTA 6, HELIX 3: Not that Monte Vista
coach LARRY RINEHART is in the mood to sound
the trumpets, but his Monarchs have suddenly won four
games in a row. Not bad for a team that staggered out
of the gate to a 1-10 start.
"The kids are playing some good ball right now,"
said Rinehart after Monte Vista's Grossmont South League
conquest on Monday (Apr. 25). "But we still
have a lot of work to do to keep improving and keep
it going."
The Monarchs (6-12, 4-2) staged a two-out rally fueled
by consecutive doubles by ANTHONY LOPEZ, JESSE RODRIGUEZ
and ERIC LEBOFFE to take a 2-0 lead in the 1st
inning.
After Helix cut the Monarchs' lead in half on RAUL
RITCHIE's RBI single in the 2nd, DAVID PALACIOS'
two-run single extended Monte Vista's edge to 4-1 in
the 3rd.
Helix (8-11,0-6), which has lost 10 of its last 11,
scrambled back on JEREMY PETERSON's 13th
double and ZACH TANIDA's home run to left center
in the 4th inning.
RBI doubles by DAN DeANDA in the 6th and 7th
innings sealed the victory for Monte Vista. DeAnda also
hurled two scoreless innings to earn the save.
"It was another typical game like we've been playing
all year." said Helix skipper COLE HOLLAND.
STEELE CANYON 8, MOUNT MIGUEL 4: JOE INZONE
hoisted his batting average a few more notches above
the .500 mark in Monday's (Apr. 25) Grossmont South
League conquest of visiting Mount Miguel.
Inzone followed singles by ROSS EPPERSON and
DANNY HARRIS with his third home run of the season,
steering Steele Canyon (11-7) to a 7-2 lead and into
first place in the Grossmont South.
The Cougars hold a one-game lead over Valhalla, Granite
Hills and Monte Vista.
The 3-for-4 effort raised Inzone's season batting average
to an East County-best .527.
Harris was 3-for-3 with 3 runs and 2 RBI, which included
his second home run of the campaign.
Mount Miguel's EDDIE DE ARCOS was 3-for-3, raising
his batting line to .444. DEXTOR SEAVELLO slugged
a solo home run in the 3rd inning for the Matadors.
EastCountySports.com
Grossmont North League
WOLF PACK 6, BRAVES 3
EL CAJON VALLEY ab r h bi WEST HILLS ab r h bi
Thomas p-cf 4 1 2 0 Mello cf 2 2 1 0
Manzo cf-p 3 0 0 0 Hooper lf 4 0 1 2
L.Perez ss 3 0 0 1 Strasburg 1b-p 1 0 0 1
Myer 1b 3 0 1 0 Ritiyak ph 1 0 1 1
Abbod 3b 3 1 2 0 Richardson rf 2 1 0 0
D.Perez c 2 1 1 1 Stoner ss 3 0 0 0
Vega lf 3 0 2 1 Eddy p-1b 1 1 0 0
Aquiningoc dh 3 0 0 0 Pichette c 2 1 0 0
Padilla 2b 3 0 0 0 Gagnon dh 1 0 0 0
Sotos rf 0 0 0 0 Irvin 2b 2 1 0 1
Hall 3b 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 27 3 8 2 TOTALS 19 6 3 5
El Cajon Valley (4-16, 0-5) 100 200 0 - 3 8 2
West Hills (6-11, 1-2) 040 011 x - 6 3 1
GWRBI: Hooper (2).
E: Richardson, Padilla, Abbod. DP: WH 1. LOB: ECV 4, WH 6. 2B: Abbod, Ritiyak. SB: Thomas, D.Perez.
EL CAJON VALLEY ip h r er bb k
Thomas L(0-2) 4.0 2 4 4 6 7
Monzo 2.0 3 2 1 2 2
WEST HILLS
Eddy W(3-2) 6.0 8 3 3 1 1
Strasburg Sv(1) 1.0 0 0 0 0 2
HBP: by Thomas 2 (Strasburg, Mello), by Monzo (Irvin). PB: D.Perez.
*
FOOTHILLERS 6, VAQUEROS 0
EL CAPITAN ab r h bi GROSSMONT ab r h bi
Hostetler lf 2 0 1 0 Ferrara 2b 3 1 2 2
Russo 2b 3 0 1 0 Griffin 3b-p 3 0 1 0
Rauch c 2 0 0 0 Phillips ss 3 0 0 0
Ksiazek 1b 3 0 0 0 Snow dh 3 0 2 0
N.Garcia 1b 3 0 0 0 Sobel 3b 0 1 0 0
Erickson dh 3 0 0 0 Pieczynski c 3 0 0 0
Walston cf 2 0 1 0 Berry rf 2 2 1 1
Griffith rf 2 0 0 0 Passanisi 1b 2 1 2 1
Henson ph 1 0 0 0 Cusumano lf 2 0 0 0
C.Garcia 3b 1 0 0 0 Medina lf 0 0 0 1
Royer ph 1 0 0 0 Williams cf 3 0 0 0
TOTALS 23 0 4 0 TOTALS 24 6 8 5
El Capitan (12-9, 4-1) 000 000 0 - 0 4 3
Grossmont (16-4, 3-0) 121 002 x - 6 8 0
GWRBI: None.
E: Rauch, Hostetler, McCarthy. DP: Gro 2. LOB: EC 5, Gro 3. 2B: Passanisi, Ferrara.
HR: Griffin (5) 3rd, solo. SB: Berry. SF: Medina.
PITCHING SUMMARY
EL CAPITAN ip h r er bb so
McCarthy L(1-3) 6.0 8 6 6 2 4
GROSSMONT
Wohlwend W(6-0) 5.2 3 0 0 3 4
Griffin Sv(2) 1.1 1 0 0 0 3
WP: McCarthy, Wohlwend.
*
Grossmont South League
EAGLES 5, NORSEMEN 1
VALHALLA ab r h bi GRANITE HILLS ab r h bi
J.Brown ss 3 1 0 0 Decker 2b 2 0 1 0
R.O'Sullivan 2b 3 0 1 0 Marquis cf 2 1 0 0
S.O'Sullivan 3b 2 0 0 0 Crawford dh 3 0 0 0
McClain 1b-c 2 0 2 1 Russell 1b 0 0 0 0
Moore c-lf 2 0 0 0 Monette c 3 1 1 2
LeValley dh 3 0 0 0 Taijeron lf 3 1 1 1
Smith lf 2 0 0 0 Boltz rf 3 1 1 0
Baum 1b 1 0 0 0 Anderson p 3 1 1 1
Sopata cf 3 0 0 0 Cazares 2b 3 0 1 0
Wilson rf 3 0 1 0 Horner 3b 2 0 0 0
T.Williams ph 1 0 0 0
TOTALS 24 1 4 1 TOTALS 25 5 6 4
Valhalla (11-6, 3-1) 100 000 0 - 1 4 1
Granite Hills (16-5, 4-2) 013 100 x - 5 6 0
GWRBI: Monette (4).
E: R.O'Sullivan. LOB: Val 6, GH 7. 2B: Boltz.
HR: Monette (4) 3rd, one on; Taijeron (5) 3rd, solo; Anderson (2) 4th, solo.
SB: Decker, Cazares 2, Marquis, Crawford.
PITCHING SUMMARY
VALHALLA ip h r er bb so
Julienne L(2-1) 4.0 5 5 5 1 5
Stangyl 2.0 1 0 0 3 3
GRANITE HILLS
Anderson W(4-1) 7.0 4 1 1 2 6
HBP: by Anderson (J.Brown, McClain); by Julienne (Marquis). WP: Julienne.
*
MONARCHS 6, HIGHLANDERS 3
HELIX ab r h bi MONTE VISTA ab r h bi
R.Perez ss 3 0 1 0 Haase cf-rf 4 0 0 0
Rosenthal lf 1 0 0 0 DeAnda rf-p 4 1 3 2
Ledesma cf 2 0 0 0 Lopez lf 4 2 2 0
Ponce rf 3 0 0 0 Rodriguez 1b 3 1 2 1
Peterson 1b 3 0 1 0 Leboffe p-cf 3 0 1 1
Webb dh 3 1 0 0 Palacios 2b 3 0 2 2
Tanida c 2 2 1 2 Cooper c 2 0 0 0
Ritchie 3b 3 0 1 1 Sopher ph 1 0 0 0
Rohmer 2b 2 0 0 0 Croft ss 3 2 1 0
Wenham ph 1 0 0 0 Dawson 3b 2 0 0 0
Hale 3b 1 0 0 0
TOTALS 23 3 4 3 TOTALS 30 6 11 6
Helix (8-11, 0-6) 010 200 0 - 3 4 2
Monte Vista (6-12, 4-2) 202 101 x - 6 11 1
GWRBI: Rodriguez (1).
E: Ritchie, Rohmer, Croft. DP: MV 1, Helix 1. LOB: Helix 4, MV 5.
2B: Peterson, DeAnda 2, Lopez, Rodriguez, Leboffe, Croft. HR: Tanida (1) 4th, one on.
SB: R.Perez, Croft, Tanida. S: Rosenthal.
PITCHING SUMMARY
HELIX ip h r er bb so
Schuler L(1-4) 6.0 11 6 5 0 7
MONTE VISTA
Leboffe W(3-3) 5+ 4 3 3 3 4
DeAnda 2.0 0 0 0 0 3
Leboffe faced 2 batters in the 6th.
*
COUGARS 8, MATADORS 4
MOUNT MIGUEL ab r h bi STEELE CANYON ab r h bi
Seavello 2b 3 1 1 1 Epperson ss 2 3 1 0
Newborn cf 3 0 0 0 Minich ss 1 0 0 0
Calafato ss 4 0 2 1 Harris 2b 3 3 3 2
White c 3 0 1 0 Inzone rf 4 1 3 4
De Arcos 1b 3 2 3 0 Rice cf 3 0 1 1
Green 3b 4 0 1 1 Duby c 4 0 1 0
Williamson lf 4 0 0 1 Lange 1b 3 0 0 0
Sandoval rf 2 1 1 0 Lewis lf 2 1 1 0
Plunkett p 1 0 0 0 Murray 3b 3 0 0 0
Freeman p 1 0 0 0 Jenner dh 2 0 0 0
TOTALS 28 4 9 4 TOTALS 27 8 10 7
Mount Miguel (0-17, 0-6) 011 011 0 - 4 9 1
Steele Canyon (11-7, 5-1) 220 301 x - 8 10 2
GWRBI: Harris (2).
E: Green, Minich, Lewis. LOB: MM 8, SC 3. 2B: Rice, De Arcos. 3B: Lewis.
HR: Seavello (1) 3rd, solo; Inzone (3) 4th, two on; Harris (2) 6th, solo. SF: Rice.
PITCHING SUMMARY
MOUNT MIGUEL ip h r er bb so
Plunkett L(0-2) 4.0 8 7 6 4 1
Freeman 2.0 2 1 1 0 1
STEELE CANYON
Bruder W(2-2) 4.0 4 2 2 2 2
Jenner 2.0 4 2 1 1 2
Johnson 1.0 1 0 0 1 0
HBP: by Jenner (Plunkett, Seavello). WP: Plunkett, Jenner. BK: Plunkett, Bruder.
(04-25-05)
Foothillers have field day in dominating doubleheader
against San Ysidro
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON - Looking ahead to next week's crucial two-game
series against Grossmont North League leading El Capitan,
the Grossmont Foothillers tuned up by slapping around
youthful San Ysidro for a pair of lopsided victories
16-0 and 11-1 in a non-league double-header Saturday
(Apr.23) at Joe Gizoni Field. The No. 7-ranked Foothillers
(15-4, 2-0) host El Capitan (12-8, 4-0) on Monday (Apr.
25) at 4 p.m. The same two teams meet again in Lakeside
on Wednesday (Apr. 27) at 4 p.m.
Game 1: GROSSMONT 16, SAN YSIDRO 0: Ugly
knockout No. 1 featured five Foothiller home runs, including
Nos.11 and 12 by senior first baseman/pitcher DONNIE
SNOW.
Snow finished this affair 3-for-5 with 5 RBI and 3 runs
scored.
Grossmont catcher DANNY PIECZYNSKI powdered his
6th home run as part of a 3-for-3 batting spree, while
TREVOR BERRY belted his second homer and finished
with 3 RBI.
TONY CUSUMANO laced a 2-run homer and MATT
PASSANISI was 2-for-3 with 2 runs and one RBI for
Grossmont.
THOMAS ADAMS blanked the first-year Cougars on
one hit over five innings as he pumped up his pitching
mark to 3-2. BRANDON KINSELLA spun two shutout
innings in relief to complete the 5th shutout by the
Grossmont staff.
Game 2: GROSSMONT 11, SAN YSIDRO 1: Bottom line
in this rout is DONNIE SNOW's 2-run homer in
the 2nd inning was his 13th circuit clout, tying the
Grossmont High season record shared by MARK DOBBINS
(2003) and JUSTIN BAUM (2004).
It's been some kind of 24 hours for Snow. Not only has
the left-hand hitting senior stroked 5 home runs in
10 at-bats, he's driven in 14 runs and batted at a .700
clip.
It's been a wild week for Grossmont, which has outscored
its opposition 59-4 over the past five games.
Leadoff man TIM FERRARA, who was hit by pitches
in three of his 8 at-bats, finished the double-dip 3-for-4
with 5 runs and 3 RBI.
Grossmont junior NICK SOBEL was 3-for-4
with a pair of doubles in the second game against visiting
San Ysidro (2-18). Snow accounted for 8 runs, scoring
3 and drove in 5 with a 3-for-4 effort.
Game 1: SANTANA 9, SAN DIEGUITO 2: Senior
right-hander JEFF WOODS pitched a powerful
5 innings and relievers CHRISTIAN SPICER and
CHRIS SCHAUB twirled one scoreless inning apiece
as the Sultans mailed the visiting Mustangs Saturday's
(Apr. 23) in a key battle of San Diego CIF Division
III teams.
Woods (6-2) surrendered just 4 hits and no earned runs
while striking out 7 en route to his East County-leading
6th win after working 5 innings.
KYLE HELMHOLTZ and ROBERT HERMANSEN drove
in two runs apiece to pace the Sultans.
Game 2: SANTANA 5, SAN DIEGUITO 3: Junior
CHRIS DIAZ enjoyed a banner day, driving in 3
runs with a 2-for-3 effort including a home run to propel
Santana to the sweep.
ERIK MEDRUD and Spicer shared the pitching chores,
scattering 6 hits allowing reliever Medrud (3-0) to
collect the win.
CASTLE PARK 5, WEST HILLS 1: Obviously,
West Hills first-year head coach SCOTT HOPGOOD
was less than elated by the Wolf Pack's South Bay pratfall
at Castle Park on Saturday (Apr.23).
Yet, there was no panic in the ranks.
West Hills (5-11) struck first when BRIAN RITIYAK
doubled and scored on SHAIN STONER's single in
the 3rd inning.
IVAN CASTRO cracked a 2-run home run in the bottom
of the 3rd inning to give the Trojans (8-11) a lead
they would not lose.
"Our pitching was OK," Hopgood said. "And
if we catch a routine fly ball in the 5th they probably
don't score 3 more runs at our expense. It's still anybody's
ballgame if we make the play."
Stoner was the only West Hills (5-11) player with more
than one hit as he finished his rare start 2-for-3.
SATURDAY, APR 23, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Non-League
Game 1:
SULTANS 9, MUSTANGS 2
San Dieguito Academy (7-12) 001 000 1 - 2 5 2
Santana (16-5) 201 330 x - 9 12 2
Taft, Schaller (5) and Whalen; Woods, Spicer (6), Schaub (7) and Martin. W: Woods (6-2). L: Taft.
*
Game 2:
SULTANS 5, MUSTANGS 3
San Dieguito Academy (7-13) 000 120 0 - 3 6 1
Santana (17-5) 011 102 x - 5 6 4
Podgorski and O⤙Connell; Medrud, Spicer (5) and Haley. HR: Diaz (Sant) 4th, solo, #1.
W: Spicer (3-0). L: Podgorski.
*
Game 1:
FOOTHILLERS 16, COUGARS 0
San Ysidro (2-17) 000 000 0 - 0 2 2
Grossmont (14-4) 421 612 x - 16 15 0
Moreno, Mendiolo (4) and Benitez; Adams, Kinsella (7) and Pieczynski, Schroeder (6).
HR: Berry (G, #2) 4th, one on; Cusumano (G, #1) 4th, one on; Pieczynski (G, #6) 5th, solo;
Snow (G, #11, #12) 2: 6th, one on, and 4th, one on. W: Adams (3-2. L: Moreno.
*
Game 2:
FOOTHILLERS 11, COUGARS 1
San Ysidro (2-18) 000 100 0 - 1 4 0
Grossmont (15-4) 164 000 x - 11 12 0
Enriquez, Ruiz (3) and Lozada; Mattson, Passanisi (5)and Schroeder.
HR: Snow (G, #13) 2nd, one on. W: Mattson (1-0). L: Enriquez. Sv: Passanisi (1).
*
TROJANS 5, WOLF PACK 1
West Hills (5-11) 001 000 0 - 1 8 1
Castle Park (8-11) 002 030 x - 5 6 0
Richardson, Skinner (5), Strasburg (6) and Gagnon, Pichette;
Escalante, Castro (3), Sanabia (6) and Romero, Wanamaker (5). W: Castro. L: Richardson (3-3).
(04-23-05)
A Grossmont player dives back into first base as a San
Ysidro player waits for the ball.
(4-23-05/Photo by Adolfo Villanueva)
 Valhalla's Ryan O'Sullivan
(15) hit a game-winning 3-run double to lead the Norsemen
to their 29th consecutive Grossmont South League victory.
(4-22-05/Photo by Ernie Pile)
Rain can't slow Norsemen, Vaqueros from recording
league victories
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON - Valhalla took command of the Grossmont South
League race, Santana coach JERRY HENSON dug into
his wallet to keep Friday's (Apr. 22) Grossmont North
League game afloat, and Steele Canyon made a record
run at Mount Miguel's expense. Grossmont and El Capitan
posted victories setting up Monday's (Apr. 25) Grossmont
North League showdown of unbeatens, while the one-time
forgotten Monte Vista Monarchs posted a third straight
win. The one thing these teams had in common was rain
did pelt the proceedings.
VALHALLA 5, GRANITE HILLS 2: The baseball
gods often play cruel and painful tricks on those who
play and coach the game. And when milestones can be
obtained, those barriers become even higher.
So when Valhalla third baseman RYAN O'SULLIVAN
stepped to the plate with a chance to be a hero in the
bottom of the 6th inning, he had to eliminate four difficult
situations from his mind.
"Actually, I wasn't thinking about any of that,"
explained O'Sullivan. "I just swung and it went
my way."
Earlier in the game, the freshman O'Sullivan struck
out three times and committed a throwing error. But
he put all that behind him and rebounded with a three-run
double in the 6th inning Friday (Apr. 22), giving the
Norsemen an historic 5-2 victory over arch-rival Granite
Hills.
"Amazing," deadpanned Valhalla coach STEVE
PERDUE. "The kids strikes out three straight
times, then he hits a 3-run double so now he's the happiest
kid on the planet."
The triumph gave Valhalla a Grossmont South League record
29 consecutive victories, snapping the old East County
mark of 28 straight set by Grossmont (1990-92).
 Valhalla's Sean O'Sullivan
(12) pitched six innings to earn his 3rd win without
a loss as the Norsemen clipped the Eagles in a key Grossmont
South league game. (4-21-05/Photo by Ernie Pile)
O'Sullivan and the Norsemen were no doubt pleased to
reach the milestone. More importantly, though, is they
are 3-0 in this year's league race.
"Sounds sweet," O'Sullivan said. "I like
it."
The Norsemen trailed or were outplayed by the Eagles
all afternoon before Valhalla (11-5, 3-0) erased a 2-1
deficit with a 4-run burst in the 6th.
Left fielder CHRIS MOORE, who went 2-for-3, tied
the contest with a hot roller to left for an RBI single,
scoring catcher TOMMY McCLAIN, who reached after
getting hit by a pitch for the third time - only two
counted - in the ballgame.
JEFF SOPATA and JAVIER BROWN both walked,
setting the stage for O'Sullivan's two-base shot to
the fence in left-center field.
Valhalla's SEAN O'SULLIVAN checked No. 3-ranked
Granite Hills (15-5, 3-2) on 3 hits over six innings,
surrendering just one earned run. The much celebrated
right-hander came away with his third win in as many
decisions as senior reliever COREY STANGYL pitched
a shutout 7th inning to earn his 3rd save.
Stangyl survived a double by BRET HORNER and
a hit batsman (LOUIS CAZARES) to secure Valhalla's
5th win in the last six starts.
"We played them even most of the game, but they
got the big hit and we didn't," Granite Hills coach
JAMES DAVIS said.
Moore was part of both rallies for the Norsemen, who
scored once in the 5th to tie the game. After Granite
Hills reclaimed the lead in the 6th, Moore helped the
Norsemen answer back once again.
"Coach has been working with me to not try to jack
the ball and go with it," noted Moore. "Sure,
thirty (actually 29 in a row) is big, but right now
we want another shot at CIF."
Valhalla, the two-time Grossmont South League champions,
lost in last year's SDCIF Division II finals. The Norsemen
will be going after the SDCIF Division III crown this
spring.
Moore opened the 5th with a line single to left, JEFF
SOPATA sacrificed him to second, then JAVIER
BROWN singled to center to tie the game at 1-all.
The Eagles broke a scoreless contest when catcher NICK
MONETTE turned on a Sean O'Sullivan fastball, short-hopping
the football bleachers in deep left field for a monster
blast. It was his third homer of the season.
In the 6th, BRANDON DECKER laced his second double
of the game. Two batters later, CODY CRAWFORD
hit a grounder to the right side of the infield, but
the ball was misplayed for an error and Granite Hills
took a 2-1 advantage.
"We gotta feel good that we didn't beat ourselves
on defense -- they just out-hit us," noted Decker.
"It was a really good game, so we'll see what happens
Monday (in the second of three league meetings between
these squads)."
The ballgame started as a pitcher's duel, as Sean O'Sullivan
struck out three Eagles in the first inning, part of
his game-total of seven.
However, Granite Hills starter ERIC KRAUSE, a
sophomore without the imposing fastball of his counterpart,
equaled the feat by also amassing three quick strikeouts
with his offspeed offerings. Krause finished with eight
Ks.
EL CAPITAN 3, SANTANA 0: Santana coach JERRY
HENSON wasn't sure what was more irritating in Friday's
(Apr. 22) Grossmont North League duel with rival El
Capitan.
The rain and what it took to combat it; El Capitan's
pitching; or his ballclub's lack of offensive production.
Henson didn't hesitate spelling out the costs caused
by intermittent rain that fell from the first pitch
through the 5th inning. Three times the game was delayed
so quick dry could be applied to the soggy Santana diamond.
Henson assessed the costs as follows: $50 for quick
dry; $50 for wet and lost baseballs; and $114 for the
two umpires.
"That's $214 in expenses and all we got out of
it was a goose egg," Henson said. "Some how
that just doesn't add up."
At least not in Santana's favor.
"It's not a question of the weather and expense
to combat the elements, we wanted to play that ballgame,"
Henson said. "But they got their batters to do
what they wanted them to do and we didn't."
Suddenly, No. 5-ranked Santana (15-5, 2-2) finds itself
in third place in the Grossmont North behind El Capitan
(12-8, 4-0) and Grossmont (13-4, 2-0).
After being held hitless for five innings by El Capitan
starting pitcher CRISTIAN GARCIA, the Sultans
loaded the bases in the 6th and 7th innings.
"We had our chances, but did nothing with them
and that's frustrating when the stakes are as high as
they were today," Henson said.
Even as the rain fell at its heaviest, El Capitan received
the key blow of the game in the 3rd inning when NIK
GARCIA doubled off the glove of the Santana center
fielder to score THOMAS HOSTETLER (walk) and
LOUIS RUSSO (walk) for a 2-0 lead.
"I didn't think Garcia's ball had a chance of going
out because the air was too heavy," El Capitan
coach STEVE VICKERY said. "I was just happier
than heck that the guy didn't catch it and we got a
couple of runs out of it."
Henson, on the other hand, thought the ball should have
been caught despite the heavy flurry of rain drops.
Hostetler's RBI single extended El Capitan's advantage
to 3-0 in the 6th inning.
Junior CRISTIAN GARCIA blanked the Sultans on
no hits through the 5th inning before NICK MILLER
broke the spell with a leadoff single to open the 6th.
DALLAS MARTIN followed with a basehit to left
and eventually Santana would bring the tying run to
the plate with one out.
Garcia (5-2) got the next two Sultans to fly out to
end that threat.
Santana came right back to load the bags with one out
in the 7th. That's when the younger Garcia gave way
to the older (Nik) Garcia to secure the victory.
"I had a pretty good hunch that Nik wouldn't let
his younger brother down," Vickery said.
And that was the case as Martin rapped into a game-ending
double play.
"Santana has had our number the last couple of
years." Nik Garcia said. "They've beaten us
2 out of 3 the last two years, and we didn't want that
to happen again."
It can't now, as El Capitan has won two straight league
games with one remaining.
"Hopefully, we can get the brooms out and sweep
them the final time we play them (May 11 in Lakeside),"
the older Garcia said.
GROSSMONT 11, EL CAJON VALLEY 3: Credit
the visiting El Cajon Valley Braves for not backing
down in Friday's (Apr. 22) Grossmont North League endeavor
at the Foothillers' Joe Gizoni Field.
After suffering an embarrassing 20-run loss two days
earlier, the Braves (4-15, 0-4) used the long ball to
take a 3-0 lead.
SHANE MYER mashed a two-run homer in the opening
frame and DEREK PEREZ pounded a solo shot in
the 2nd inning to put Grossmont ace left-hander DONNIE
SNOW on the ropes. It easily could have been 4-0
at that point had Grossmont pitcher not picked CLIFTON
THOMAS off second base in the 1st inning prior to
Myer's second home run of the year.
Grossmont (13-4, 2-0) refused to fold. DANNY PIECZYNSKI
uncorked the Hillers offense with his 5th home run leading
off the 2nd inning. Base hits by TREVOR BERRY, MATT
PASSANISI and TONY CUSUMANO tacked on a second run,
cutting the Braves edge 3-2 after two.
An inning later Snow launched the first of his two home
runs - a 2-run shot - giving Grossmont a 4-3 advantage
it would not lose. Snow crashed his 10th home run of
the season - an East County high â¤"
with two men aboard to run the Foothillers' lead to
10-3.
STEELE CANYON 23, MOUNT MIGUEL 2: Senior
TAYLOR WEST, who had pitched only five innings
in the Cougars first 16 games, turned in a powerful
complete-game effort, scattering six hits in Friday's
(Apr. 22) record-breaking Steele Canyon Grossmont South
League rout at Mount Miguel.
West's performance was only part of the story for the
Cougars (10-7, 4-1), who kept their hopes burning for
a league pennant.
Leadoff man CODY MINICH set the tone for the
Steele Canyon onslaught, collecting 5 hits, scoring
6 runs and notching one RBI in 7 at-bats.
Most impressive of Minich's totals is his 6 runs scored,
which ties the all-time Grossmont Conference record
set by Helix's RICK PAGE in 1988 against Valhalla.
The all-time San Diego CIF mark of 7 was set by Mt.
Carmel's Darren Abrams against Western Las Vegas
in 1984.
It rained during the first four innings, stopped for
two frames and then started again in the 7th. The inclement
weather hardly cooled the Cougars' molten aluminum.
Steele Canyon stung four Mount Miguel pitchers for 27
hits, tying the Grossmont Conference record set by Santana
against West Hills in 1991. The Cougars' count ranks
8th on the all-time San Diego CIF books.
"Everybody that was healthy got in today,"
said Steele Canyon coach PHIL MITTRY. "Everything
we hit found a way to fall in. We didn't hit one thing
at them. I give (the Matadors) credit - their kids were
diving for balls and hustling all the way through."
JOE INZONE was 3-for-5 with 4 RBI and seven other
Cougars contributed two RBI.
MONTE VISTA 7, HELIX 3: Unsung heroes are
hard to find, but Monte Vista coach LARRY RINEHART
may have found one in sophomore second baseman DAVID
PALACIOS.
Batting at the top of the order for one of the few times
this season, Palacios sparked rallies in the 1st and
2nd innings with leadoff singles that led to a total
of six runs and ultimately Monte Vista's third Grossmont
South League win in a row.
"Palacios is coming along nicely," Rinehart
said. "We have five sophomores on this club, so
we know its going to take time to get where we want
to be."
Senior southpaw ERIC LEBOFFE drove in two runs
and pitched three powerful innings of relief to earn
his second win in five decisions.
DAN DeANDA swatted a pair of singles and scored
in the 1st and 2nd innings as Monte Vista (5-12, 3-2)
marched in front 6-0.
"We know we still have a lot of work to do,"
Rinehart said. "But maybe we can smile just a little
bit over the progress we've made so far."
The Highlanders (8-10, 0-5) have lost nine of their
last 10 games.
Granite Hills' Eric Krause (15) suffered his
first loss of the season despite striking out 8 Friday
at Valhalla. (4-22-05/Photo by Ernie Pile)
FRIDAY, APR 22, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Grossmont North League
FOOTHILLERS 11, BRAVES 3
EL CAJON VALLEY ab r h bi GROSSMONT ab r h bi
Thomas cf 4 1 3 0 Ferrara 2b 4 1 0 0
Manzo lf-p 3 1 1 0 Griffin 3b-p 3 2 1 1
L.Perez p-1b 3 1 1 2 Phillips ss 3 2 2 5
Myer p-1b 3 1 1 2 Snow p-rf 3 2 2 5
Aquiningoc 1b-3b 3 0 0 0 Pieczynski c 3 2 2 1
DPerez c 3 1 1 1 Berry cf 4 1 1 0
Mansfield dh 3 0 0 0 Passanisi 1b 4 1 2 0
Abbod 3b-p 2 0 0 0 Cusumano lf 3 0 1 1
Vega p 1 0 0 1 Sobel 3b 1 0 0 0
Padilla 2b 3 0 0 0 Longmire lf-rf 3 0 1 0
TOTALS 27 4 7 3 TOTALS 31 11 12 9
El Cajon Valley (4-15, 0-4) 210 010 0 - 4 7 3
Grossmont (13-4, 2-0) 024 410 x - 11 12 3
GWRBI: Snow (5).
E: Abbod, LPerez, Padilla, Phillips, Pieczynski, Sobel. LOB: ECV 4, Gro 8. 2B: Thomas, Phillips.
HR: Myer (2) 1st, one on; D.Perez (1) 2nd, solo; Pieczynski (5) 2nd, solo; Snow 2(9,10): 3rd, one on, and 4th, two on.
PITCHING SUMMARY
EL CAJON VALLEY ip h r er bb so
Myer L(1-3) 2.2 6 6 4 1 1
Manzo 0.1 2 3 3 1 0
Abbod 1.2 3 2 2 4 0
Vega 1.1 1 0 0 0 1
GROSSMONT
Snow W(3-2) 4.0 5 3 3 1 3
Griffin Sv(1) 3.0 2 1 0 0 6
WP: Myer, Griffin.
*
VAQUEROS 8, SULTANS 0
EL CAPITAN ab r h bi SANTANA ab r h bi
Hostetler rf 3 1 2 1 Martin 3b-p 3 0 1 0
Russo 2b 3 1 1 0 Woods ss 3 0 0 0
Rauch c 3 0 0 0 Helmholtz 1b 2 0 0 0
Ksiazek ss 4 0 0 0 Haley c 2 0 0 0
N.Garcia 1b-p 2 0 1 2 Basnight p-3b 3 0 0 0
Erickson dh 2 0 0 0 Hermansen cf 2 0 0 0
C.Garcia p-3b 0 0 0 0 Brosnan lf 3 0 0 0
Walston cf 3 1 1 0 Martinez 2b 3 0 1 0
Griffith 3b 1 0 0 0 N.Miller rf 2 0 1 0
Sullenger ph 0 0 0 0 Tippin pr 0 0 0 0
McCarthy 1b 0 0 0 0 Diaz pr 0 0 0 0
Nazzal lf 2 0 0 0
Royer ph 1 0 0 0
TOTALS 24 3 5 3 TOTALS 23 0 3 0
El Capitan (12-8, 4-0) 002 001 0 - 3 5 1
Santana (15-5, 2-2) 000 000 0 - 0 3 1
GWRBI: N.Garcia (5).
E: Martin, N.Garcia. DP: EC 2, Sant 1. LOB: EC 8, Sant 7. 2B: N.Garcia. SB: Rauch. S: Sullenger.
PITCHING SUMMARY
EL CAPITAN ip h r er bb so
C.Garcia W(5-2) 6.1 3 0 0 2 3
N.Garcia Sv(1) 0.2 0 0 0 0 0
SANTANA
Basnight L(2-1) 4.0 2 2 2 4 5
Martin 3.0 3 1 1 2 3
HBP: by Basnight (Erickson); by C.Garcia (Martin, Haley, Helmholtz).
*
Grossmont South League
NORSEMEN 5, EAGLES 2
GRANITE HILLS ab r h bi VALHALLA ab r h bi
Decker ss 3 1 2 0 Brown ss 2 1 1 1
Marquis cf 3 0 0 0 R.OSullivan 3b 4 0 1 3
Crawford dh 3 0 0 0 Stangyl p 0 0 0 0
Montette c 3 1 1 1 S.OSullivan p-3b 2 0 0 0
Taijeron lf 3 0 0 0 Baum 1b 3 0 1 0
Humphries rf 3 0 0 0 Young 1b 0 0 0 0
Anderson 1b-p 2 0 0 0 McClain c 1 1 0 0
Harkins pr 0 0 0 0 D.Smith rf 3 0 1 0
Horner 3b 1 0 1 0 G.Garcia 2b 3 0 0 0
Boltz ph 1 0 0 0 Moore lf 3 2 2 1
Cazares 2b 2 0 0 0 Sopata cf 0 1 0 0
Krause p 0 0 0 0
Russell 1b 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 24 2 4 1 TOTALS 21 5 6 5
Granite Hills (15-5, 3-2) 000 101 0 - 2 4 0
Valhalla (11-5, 3-0) 000 014 x - 5 6 2
GWRBI: R.O'Sullivan (2).
E: R.O'Sullivan, G.Garcia. DP: Val 1. LOB: GH 5, Val 7. 2B: Decker 2, R.O'Sullivan, Horner.
HR: Monette (3), 4th, solo. SB: Decker, S.O'Sullivan, Crawford, McClain, Horner. S: Brown, Sopata.
GRANITE HILLS ip h r er bb k
Krause L(5-1) 5.2 5 5 5 4 8
Anderson 0.1 1 0 0 1 0
VALHALLA
S.O'Sullivan W(3-0) 6.0 3 2 1 2 7
Stangyl Sv(3) 1.0 1 0 0 0 0
HBP: by Krause 2 (McClain 2); by S.O'Sullivan (Horner); by Stangyl (Cazares). WP: Krause.
*
MONARCHS 7, HIGHLANDERS 3
MONTE VISTA ab r h bi HELIX ab r h bi
Palacios 2b 3 2 2 0 R.Perez ss 4 0 0 0
Starling ph 1 0 0 0 Rosenthal lf 4 1 1 1
DeAnda p-rf 4 2 2 0 Ledesma cf 3 1 1 0
Lopez lf-1b 4 1 0 1 Peterson 1b 3 1 1 0
Rodriguez 1b-p 2 0 0 1 Ponce rf 2 0 0 0
Leboffe cf-p 4 1 1 2 Tanida c 3 0 1 0
Mendiola dh 4 1 2 1 Webb dh 1 0 0 0
Cooper c 0 0 0 0 Ritchie 3b 3 0 1 1
Haase rf 2 0 1 0 Rohmer 2b 3 0 0 0
Croft ss 3 0 0 1
Hale 3b 4 0 0 0
TOTALS 32 7 8 7 TOTALS 26 3 5 3
Monte Vista (5-12, 3-2) 420 000 1 - 7 8 0
Helix (8-10, 0-5) 000 210 0 - 3 5 5
GWRBI: None.
E: Rohmer, Ritchie 2, Peterson. LOB: MV 8, Hel 6. 2B: Haase. HR: Rosenthal (2) 5th, solo.
SB: Croft, Tanida. SF: Rodriguez, Croft.
PITCHING SUMMARY
MONTE VISTA ip h r er bb so
DeAnda 3+ 2 2 2 2 2
Leboffe W(2-3) 3.0 3 1 1 1 2
Rodriguez 1.0 0 0 0 1 0
HELIX
Wenham L(2-3) 5.0 6 6 4 0 3
Mendoza 2.0 2 1 0 0 0
DeAnda faced 3 batters in the 4th.
HBP: by DeAnda (Ledesma). WP: Wenham. PB: Cooper.
*
COUGARS 23, MATADORS 2
STEELE CANYON ab r h bi MOUNT MIGUEL ab r h bi
Minich ss 7 6 5 1 Newborn 4 1 2 0
Harris 2b 3 1 1 2 Calafato 2b-ss 1 0 0 0
Shepard 2b 2 3 2 0 Freeman 1b-p-2b 4 0 1 1
Inzone rf 5 2 3 4 White c 4 0 0 0
Rice cf 2 0 2 2 De Arcos rf 3 1 1 0
Jacobsmeier cf 2 2 2 2 Green 3b 3 0 1 1
Duby c 6 3 2 2 Williamson ss 3 0 0 0
Lange 1b 3 0 2 2 Bolden-Freeman dh 2 0 0 0
Knaust 1b 2 1 0 2 Plunkett 1b-p 1 0 0 0
Lewis lf 2 0 2 1 Sandoval lf 1 0 0 0
Klopp lf 2 1 1 1 Cannon lf 1 0 0 0
Murray 3b 6 1 2 1
Jenner dh 3 1 1 0
Epperson dh 3 2 2 2
TOTALS 48 23 27 22 TOTALS 26 2 5 2
Steele Canyon (10-7, 4-1) 104 331 (11) - 23 27 2
Mount Miguel (0-16, 0-3) 000 001 1 - 2 5 3
GWRBI: Rice (2).
E: Minich, Klopp, Williamson 3. LOB: SC 10, MM 7. 2B: Minich, Harris. 3B: Murray. SB: Minich 2, Duby. SF: Rice.
PITCHING SUMMARY
STEELE CANYON ip h r er bb so
West W(1-0) 7.0 5 2 2 0 6
MOUNT MIGUEL
Vanderhyde L(0-3) 3.1 4 4 4 1 1
Freeman 4.0 13 8 8 4 2
Newborn 0.1 8 11 7 2 0
Plunkett 0.1 2 0 0 0 0
HBP: by West (Calafato 3, De Arcos); by Freeman (Inzone, Rice, Duby). PB: White 2.
(04-22-05)
Patriots undefeated league lead up in smoke with
loss to Cardinals
EastCountySports.com
SAN DIEGO - It wasn't a very good day for the Harbor
League-leading Christian High Patriots Thursday (Apr.
21) as they were sunk by host Hoover 7-3. The loss to
the Cardinals, who were winning for only the second
time in 10 starts, dropped Christian (11-5, 3-1) into
a tie with defending champion Madison (14-5, 3-1) for
the league lead.
Hoover (6-10, 1-3) didn't get a hit after the 2nd inning.
The only Hoover base runner over the final four innings
reached on an error in the 4th.
It's what happened in the first two innings that sent
the Patriots reeling. The key blow was Jeff Martinez's
three-run home run to right field that propelled Hoover
into a 7-2 lead.
Before Martinez's back-breaking homer, Christian coach
MIKE MITCHELL had some issues with the umpires.
"I have never complained about an umpire,"
Mitchell said. "But the guy behind the plate today
was really, really bad. In the big second inning we
throw a guy out at first and our first baseman is called
for dragging his foot off the bag. The (Hoover) base
coach complained to the base ump, who asked for help
and the home ump reversed the call, called him 'safe.'"
Had the Hoover runner been ruled out, the whole 2nd
inning would have taken on a different result. Bottom
line is Hoover would not have scored, eventually leaving
the bases loaded. In reality, though, Hoover did score
4 runs turning a 3-2 edge into a comfortable 5-run cushion.
It doesn't stop there.
"The plate ump lost track of the count at least
four times during the game," Mitchell fumed. "One
time he struck ADAM PERRY out with two strikes!"
After spotting Hoover a 3-0 lead in the opening inning,
the Patriots bounced back for a pair in the 2nd. JOEL
McGRANAHAN and RICKY PLUM singled and moved
into scoring position on a double steal.
McGranahan scored on NICK ADAMS' sacrifice fly
and Plum rode home on SHANE STANOVIC's base hit.
Christian scored its final run in the 6th inning. After
Plum walked, Stanovic and Perry followed with two-out
singles to cut the deficit to 4 runs.
THURSDAY, APR 21, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Harbor League
CARDINALS 7, PATRIOTS 3
CHRISTIAN ab r h bi HOOVER ab r h bi
Stanovic cf 4 0 2 1 Sheehan ss 4 2 1 0
Perry rf 4 0 2 1 Geraci p-3b 2 2 1 1
EYoung ss 4 0 1 0 Wilkerson lf 2 2 1 0
Rossitto 1b 3 0 1 0 Martinez c 3 1 1 3
Hart c 3 0 1 0 Torres 1b 2 0 0 1
McGranahan dh 4 1 1 0 Camacho dh 2 0 0 0
AMurray p 0 0 0 0 Hyde 3b 0 0 0 0
TJones p 0 0 0 0 Alvarez rf 2 0 0 1
Plum 3b 2 2 1 0 Richards 2b 2 0 1 1
Dossett lf 3 0 0 0 EJones 2b 1 0 0 0
Adams 2b 1 0 0 1 Rios cf 3 0 0 0
TOTALS 28 3 9 3 TOTALS 23 7 5 7
Christian (11-5, 3-1) 020 001 0 - 3 9 3
Hoover (6-10, 1-3) 340 000 x - 7 5 0
GWRBI: Geraci.
E: Plum 2, Dossett. LOB: Chr 10, Hoov 3. HR: Martinez 2nd, two on.
SB: Geraci, Sheehan, Adams, Plum, McGranahan, EYoung. SF: Adams, Torres.
PITCHING SUMMARY
CHRISTIAN ip h r er bb so
AMurray L(0-1) 1.0 4 3 3 1 1
Jones 4.0 1 4 0 1 4
HOOVER
Geraci W 5.0 7 2 2 2 2
Camacho 2.0 2 1 1 1 3
HBP: A.Murray (Camacho); Geraci (Adams).
(04-19-05)
El Capitan's Bryan Paukovits (23) pitched the
Vaqueros into sole possession of the Grossmont North
League lead. (4-20-05/Photo by Ernie Pile)
Norsemen equal conference record for consecutive
league wins with 28th-straight
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON - Valhalla tied one of the toughest records
on the Grossmont Conference books, while Granite Hills
brought upstart Steele Canyon back into the pack with
a resounding 15-5 romp in the Grossmont South League
on Wednesday (Apr. 20). Meanwhile, defending co-champion
El Capitan continues on the upswing after a dismal start
and now holds the league lead in the Grossmont North
by virtue of Wednesday's 8-3 triumph over visiting Santana.
VALHALLA 4, HELIX 0: This one was all about
pitching and defense as the visiting Norsemen (10-5,
2-0) blanked the Highlanders Wednesday (Apr. 20) for
their 28th consecutive Grossmont South League
victory. That is a milestone triumph as it matches the
Grossmont Conference record for consecutive league wins
established by Grossmont (1990-92).
The Norsemen, who are on the mark for their third straight
league title, need nine more victories in succession
to tie the San Diego Section CIF mark of 37 set by Montgomery
during the 1992-94 seasons.
"Those records are nice to have, but we have to
focus on one game at a time," Valhalla coach STEVE
PERDUE acknowledging that his statement was a cliche.
"We never look further ahead than our next game."
In this case, Valhalla's next game is against No. 3-ranked
Granite Hills on Friday (Apr. 22) on Norsemen soil.
Although Helix out-hit the Norsemen 5-4 in Wednesday's
league encounter, the Highlanders' bats remained dormant.
Much of the reason for that was the pitching of freshman
RYAN O'SULLIVAN and senior COREY STANGYL.
O'Sullivan labored through 4 1/3 innings, permitting
just 4 hits while striking out 3.
When Stangyl arrived on the hill, it was lights out
for the Highlanders (8-9, 0-4). Stangyl, who included
22 strikes among his 29 pitches, gave up just 1 hit,
walked none and fanned three to earn his second save.
"Stangyl is quite a success story," Perdue
said. "He's a kid we cut last year as a junior.
But he refused to give up and came back for a tryout
this year. He worked hard in the weight room, never
gave up and made himself the player he is today."
Valhalla broke a scoreless deadlock in the 4th inning
as SEAN O'SULLIVAN singled, stole second and
eventually scored on a base hit by DAVID SMITH.
Walks, hit batters, passed balls and errors helped the
Norsemen pad their lead.
"We hung in there against one of the best teams
in our league," Helix coach COLE HOLLAND
said. "Still it is so frustrating. I think we are
taking better approaches at the plate. We just need
one big inning to get a breath of fresh air and turn
this thing around."
GRANITE HILLS 15, STEELE CANYON 5: LOUIS
CAZARES doesn't mind batting ninth for the third-ranked
Granite Hills Eagles.
The Eagles are kind of happy that the 5-foot-7, 147-pound
second baseman is stationed in that No. 9 batting slot
as well.
Cazares was at the pinnacle of his game in Wednesday's
(Apr. 20) romp over host Steele Canyon (9-7, 3-1), which
knocked the Cougars out of the Grossmont South League
lead and left them tied with the Eagles for second place.
"I like batting ninth because it's kinda like a
second leadoff batter," said Cazares, who cracked
three doubles and a single in four at-bats. "I
mostly see fastballs, but I'm ready for that occasional
curveball."
Cazares scored in all four of his at-bats and picked
up an RBI with an opposite field double in the Eagles'
7-run 7th inning.
Cazares spread four hits all over the field at Steele
Canyon's Rattlesnake Ridge. He yanked a ground rule
double to left field in the 3rd inning. He doubled to
right in the 4th, reached on an infield single in the
6th and slashed a ground ball just inside the first
base in the 7th.
"It depends where the ball is pitched as to where
I hit it," said Cazares, who elevated his season
average to .349 (15 for 43). â¤If I get
ahead of it, I just snap the bat."
A slow start by Cazares at the beginning of the season
caused Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS to wonder
if his youthful second baseman was mature enough to
face varsity pitching.
"Every young guy is going to struggle at the start,
but I got the jitters out and I'm ready to go now,"
Cazares said.
TRAVIS TAIJERON drilled a mammoth home run over
the left field fence to extend Granite Hills' advantage
to 7-5 in the 5th inning.
"How far was that ball hit?" Davis asked out
loud. "It wasn't cheap. I'd say that was the best
ball he's hit all year. That's the best ball I've seen
in a couple years by anybody."
Davis was pleased, but not surprised.
"He does it in practice all the time, but we've
been waiting for him to do it in a game," Davis
said of Taijeron, who has three home runs as a varsity
sophomore.
Granite Hills rallied from 2-0 and 5-4 deficits to curb
the Cougars (9-7, 3-1), who dealt the Eagles a 3-2 defeat
on Monday (Apr.18).
"Steele Canyon is a scrappy team that was fired
up to beat us again," Davis admitted. "They
are no pushover. That wanted to beat us again in the
worst way."
The Eagles (15-4, 3-1) unleashed a 16-hit attack and
survived the lost contact of starting pitcher DARREN
GAY to snub the Cougars' upset bid.
Gay, who lost the contact out of his left eye during
a premature celebration of teammates in the early innings,
struggled through 4 2/3 frames to earn his 5th win without
a loss.
Reliever BILLY SYLVESTER held the Cougars hitless
over the final 2 1/3 innings to secure the save. He
retired the last six Steele Canyon batters without incident.
"The strength of our team is our depth." Davis
said. "If somebody is struggling, I feel so confident
putting somebody else in. We have so many role players
ready to go."
Steele Canyon coach PHIL MITTRY was disappointed
but not decimated by the Cougars latest defeat.
"We missed a couple of steal signs when we were
down by three (8-5) after six innings," Mittry
said. "We had opportunities, but didn't take advantage."
Despite the disappointing loss, Steele Canyon did have
its offensive heroes. Designated hitter MIKE LANGE
helped the Cougars take the early lead with an RBI triple
in the 2nd inning and a two-run home run in the 3rd.
EL CAPITAN 8, SANTANA 3: A lackluster 1-5 start
might have caused many a team to fold its proverbial
tent. Such talk and thought is prohibited at El Capitan
where winning baseball is a tradition.
"We played a real good game today, our pitching
was good and we got a couple of clutch hits," said
Vaqueros coach STEVE VICKERY, who recently celebrated
his 400th win and now holds a 403-223-4 record in 21
seasons at El Capitan.
Overall, Vickery has compiled a 26-year mark of 471-272-4
- including a 5-year stint at Valhalla in the early
1980s - and ranks among the San Diego CIF's all-time
biggest baseball winners.
The key inning against the 5th ranked Sultans (15-4,
2-1 GNL) was the 3rd. Santana jumped on top 3-0 on the
strength of an RBI double by JEFF WOODS and a
two-run homer by KYLE HELMHOLTZ.
El Capitan (11-8, 3-0 GNL) didn't skip a beat as it
counter-punched with 5 tallies in the bottom of the
3rd inning.
Singles by AUSTIN RAUCH and JASSON KSIAZEK
along with a crippling Santana error plated one run.
GRIFF ERICKSON's RBI single cut Santana's edge
to 3-2. Then MICHAEL GRIFFITH unloaded an opposite
field three-run homer to right field, lifting the Vaqueros
into a lead they wouldn't lose.
"Griffith had a great day," Vickery said.
"He hit his first high school home run to put us
back into the lead and went 3 for 4 with a run and 4
RBI. He's worked so hard to get into the starting lineup.
He is such a great competitor. And it was his sister's
birthday. I was really proud of his performance today."
Senior BRYAN PAUKOVITS gave up only 4 hits and
struck out 11 as he posted his third win in five decisions
for the Vaqueros.
"He just got stronger as the game wore on,"
Vickery said, noting that Paukovits struck out six of
the last nine batters he faced.
Ksiazek was 2-for-2 against the Sultans, raising his
average to .700 (14-for-20) over the last seven games.
Santana's Woods, who entered the game with a 0.96 ERA,
was cuffed around for 7 hits and 4 earned runs in suffering
his second loss in seven decisions. Even JOHN BASNIGHT
- East County's ERA leader - was tagged for 3 hits and
one earned run in a single inning of relief.
MONTE VISTA 14, MOUNT MIGUEL 11: Even with composite
totals of 25 runs, 30 hits and two dozen runners stranded
on base, a long, wild battle between Spring Valley rivals
Monte Vista and Mount Miguel came down to just two influential
plays: a hustle effort and a lackadaisical play,
creating the decisive 8-run, 5th-inning rally allowing
the visiting Monarchs to prevail.
"Man, what a game," exclaimed the Monarchs'
ALAN SOPHER, who gained the victory with 2 2/3
innings of 1-hit relief. â¤"t was
like a roller-coaster of a game."
Catcher CORY COOPER extended himself sprinting
down the first-base line, severely twisting an ankle
when landing on the bag. However, Cooper's effort resulted
in an infield hit to allow the game-tying run to score
in the 5th.
Three batters later, a Mount Miguel pitcher failed to
cover the same base on a grounder to the first baseman
by Sopher, who also beat out the play to extend the
inning. And when DAN DeANDA followed with a two-run
single on the next pitch, Monte Vista (4-12 overall,
2-2 GSL) extended its lead to 12-5. Single runs in the
6th and 7th innings ballooned the Monarchs advantage
to 14-6 heading into the bottom of the final frame.
Mount Miguel nearly pulled out a miracle win in the
7th, scoring five times and bringing the potential tying
run to the plate. However, BRET HAASE, who pitched
the final two innings, coaxed a grounder for a fielder's
choice to end the ballgame -- the longest in the East
County this season at 3 hours, 3 minutes.
The Matadors collected five of their 14 hits in their
final turn at the plate, including RBI singles by BUD
NEWBORN and EDDIE De ARCOS (3-for-4), plus
a two-run double by KEITH GREEN.
"We played hard and it came down to the last at-bat,"
noted Matadors first baseman CHRIS FREEMAN, who
kept the late-inning rally going with a line-drive single.
"We played like champions and will break through
soon."
Although winless in 15 starts, it has not been for a
lack of offense. The 11 runs were the third time Mount
Miguel scored in double figures this season, yet lost.
However, six errors resulted in three unearned runs,
while soft defense extended other innings.
Sopher and DeAnda each finished 2-for-4 with two runs
and three RBI to pace the Monarchs.
Sopher started a string of three straight run-scoring
hits by the Monarchs in the pivotal 8-run 5th inning
that erased a 5-4 Mount Miguel advantage. DeAnda drove
home a pair with a liner to center field, then ANTHONY
LOPEZ found the gap in right for a 10-5 lead.
Finally, ERIC LEBOFFE slugged a two-run double
to left. He later added a stand-up triple and scored
an important insurance run in the 7th. Leboffe also
pitched the first 2 1/3 innings, but left with no decision.
Mount Miguel (0-15, 0-2) led early, 1-0, on an RBI basehit
by freshman NICO CALAFATO in the 2nd, but the
Matadors missed on early opportunities.
In the 1st, the team collected four hits but failed
to score when DeAnda, the Monte Vista right fielder,
threw a runner out at the plate. An inning later, the
Matadors put down a pair of successful sacrifice bunts,
but neither resulted in a run.
Both teams scored four times in the 3rd inning, which
took 57 minutes to complete. Included were back-to-back
homers by Sopher - a two-run shot to left - and DeAnda's
solo shot to center. However, Calafato and JAMIE
SANDOVAL, the eighth and ninth hitters in the Mount
Miguel lineup, smashed consecutive two-run doubles to
reclaim the lead.
GROSSMONT 21, EL CAJON VALLEY 1: The 7th-ranked
Foothillers (12-4,1-0) pulverized host El Cajon Valley
in their Grossmont North League opener on Wednesday
(Apr. 20).
Not only did the Hillers hammer five El Cajon Valley
hurlers for 26 hits, Grossmont pitchers TAYLOR WOHLWEND,
DONNIE SNOW and A.J. GRIFFIN combined to
spin a 1-hitter at the Braves (4-14, 0-3).
Wohlwend (5-0) surrendered the only El Cajon Valley
hit when ALAN ABBOD blooped a fly ball into shallow
left field for a single with one out in the 5th inning.
Abbod eventually scurried around the bases to score
on a Grossmont error. That cut the Hillers lead to 14-1.
TRISTAN PHILLIPS and Griffin combined for 8 hits
and 6 RBI to direct the Grossmont onslaught.
Seven Hillers enjoyed multiple-hit games.
WEDNESDAY, APR 20, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Grossmont North League
VAQUEROS 8, SULTANS 3
SANTANA ab r h bi EL CAPITAN ab r h bi
Martin ss 3 1 1 0 Hostetler lf 2 0 0 0
Woods p 3 1 1 1 Russo 2b 3 1 1 0
Wylie 3b 0 0 0 0 Rauch c 3 1 1 0
Helmholtz 1b 3 1 1 2 Ksiazek ss 2 2 2 0
Haley c 3 0 0 0 N.Garcia 1b 4 1 0 0
Basnight 3b-p 3 0 0 0 Erickson dh 3 2 1 1
Hermansen cf 1 0 0 0 Walston cf 4 0 2 0
Brosnan lf 2 0 0 0 Griffith rf 4 1 3 4
Martinez 2b 3 0 0 0 C.Garcia 3b 3 0 0 0
Miller rf 3 0 1 0 Paukovits p 0 0 0 0
Tippin pr 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 24 3 4 3 TOTALS 28 8 10 5
Santana (15-4, 2-1) 003 000 0 - 3 4 5
El Capitan (11-8, 3-0) 005 102 x - 8 10 0
PITCHING SUMMARY
SANTANA ip h r er bb so
Woods L(5-2) 5.0 7 6 4 4 5
Basnight 1.0 3 2 1 1 2
EL CAPITAN
Paukovits W(3-2) 7.0 4 3 3 2 11
HBP: Woods (Rauch); Paukovits (Hermansen). WP: Paukovits, Woods 3. PB: Rauch, Haley.
*
FOOTHILLERS 21, BRAVES 1
GROSSMONT ab r h bi EL CAJON VALLEY ab r h bi
Ferrara 2b 3 3 3 2 Thomas cf 2 0 0 0
Kinsella ph 1 0 0 0 Dyer cf 1 0 0 0
Griffin 3b-p 5 2 4 3 Manzo p-lf 3 0 0 0
Matson ph 1 0 0 0 D.Perez c-p 2 0 0 0
Phillips ss 6 3 4 3 Myer 1b 3 0 0 0
Snow dh-p 4 3 1 0 L.Perez p 3 0 0 0
Passanisi 1b 3 0 0 0 Abbod 3b-p 3 1 1 0
Sobel 3b 2 1 1 1 Padilla ss 3 0 0 0
Pieczynski c 4 2 3 3 Vega 2b 1 0 0 0
Schroeder ph 1 1 1 2 Sotos rf-c 1 0 0 0
Berry cf 3 2 2 1 Aquiningoc ph 1 0 0 0
Medina lf 3 0 2 0
Cusumano lf-cf 4 3 2 1
Fox rf 2 1 1 0
Longmire rf 3 0 1 1
TOTALS 46 21 26 18 TOTALS 23 1 0 0
Grossmont (12-4, 1-0) 020 482 5 - 21 26 2
El Cajon Valley (4-14, 0-3) 000 010 0 - 1 1 2
GWRBI: Berry (1).
E: Wohlwend, Phillips, D.Perez, Vega. DP: ECV 1. LOB: Gro 11, ECV 1. 2B: Griffin, Berry, Ferrara.
3B: Pieczynski. SB: Pieczynski. SB: Pieczynski, Ferrara.
PITCHING SUMMARY
GROSSMONT ip h r er bb so
Wohlwend W(5-0) 5.0 1 1 0 2 6
Snow 1.0 0 0 0 0 3
Griffin 1.0 0 0 0 0 2
EL CAJON VALLEY
L.Perez L(2-3) 4.2 12 10 10 1 2
Monzo 0.0 4 4 4 2 0
D.Perez 1.1 4 2 2 0 2
Mansfield 0.1 6 5 5 2 1
Abbod 0.2 0 0 0 0 0
HBP: by L.Perez (Ferrara, Pieczynski). WP: L.Perez.
*
Grossmont South League
NORSEMEN 4, HIGHLANDERS 0
VALHALLA ab r h bi HELIX ab r h bi
J.Brown ss 3 2 1 0 R.Perez ss 2 0 1 0
R.O'Sullivan p 2 1 0 0 Valles rf-lf 3 0 1 0
Stangyl p 0 0 0 0 Ledesma cf 3 0 1 0
S.O'Sullivan 3b 3 1 2 0 Peterson 1b-p 3 0 0 0
Baum 1b 1 0 0 1 Ponce p-rf 2 0 0 0
Moore c 3 0 0 0 Peterson p 0 0 0 0
Smith lf 3 0 1 1 Rosenthal dh 3 0 0 0
Garcia 2b 3 0 0 0 Tanida c 3 0 1 0
Wilson rf 3 0 0 0 Ritchie 3b 3 0 1 0
Sopata cf 3 0 0 0 Rohmer 2b 2 0 0 0
Mendoza lf 0 0 0 0
Webb 1b 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 24 4 4 2 TOTALS 24 0 5 0
Valhalla (10-5, 2-0) 000 120 1 - 4 4 1
Helix (8-9, 0-4) 000 000 0 - 0 5 3
GWRBI: Smith (1).
E: Ponce, Ritchie, Moore, Stangyl, R.Perez. DP: Val 1. LOB: Val 6, Hel 4. 2B: J.Brown.
SB: J.Brown 2, S.O'Sullivan. S: Stangyl.
PITCHING SUMMARY
VALHALLA ip h r er bb so
R.O'Sullivan W(4-1) 4.1 4 0 0 2 3
Stangyl Sv(2) 2.2 1 0 0 0 3
HELIX
Ponce L(3-1) 4.1 3 3 3 4 5
Peterson 2.2 1 1 1 1 0
HBP: by R.O'Sullivan (Ponce); by Ponce (Baum). WP: Ponce. PB: Tanida. BK: R.O'Sullivan.
*
EAGLES 15, COUGARS 5
GRANITE HILLS ab r h bi STEELE CANYON ab r h bi
Decker ss 4 1 1 1 Minich ss 4 0 1 0
Marquis cf 3 2 2 1 Harris 2b 3 1 1 0
Crawford dh 4 1 1 2 Inzone 1b-p-lf 4 1 1 0
Monette c 4 2 1 0 Rice rf 2 0 0 1
Taijeron lf 4 3 2 3 Shepard ph 1 0 0 0
Humphries rf 4 0 1 0 Duby c 3 1 1 0
Williams ph 1 0 1 1 Murray ph 1 0 0 0
Anderson 1b 4 0 2 0 Lange dh-1b 3 2 2 3
Russell 1b 1 1 0 1 Knaust ph 1 0 0 0
Horner 3b 3 0 0 0 Jenner 3b 3 0 1 0
Cazares 2b 4 4 4 1 Lewis lf 0 0 0 0
Klopp cf 2 0 0 0
TOTALS 38 15 16 11 TOTALS 29 5 9 5
Granite Hills (15-4, 3-1) 004 211 7 - 15 16 3
Steele Canyon (9-7, 3-1) 023 000 0 - 5 9 5
GWRBI: Marquis (1).
E: Decker, Klopp, Lewis 2, Anderson, Jenner 2, Monette. DP: SC 1. LOB: GH 8, SC 7.
2B: Cazares 3, Marquis, Jenner, Anderson, Williams. 3B: Lange. HR: Lange (1) 3rd, one on; Taijeron (3) 5th, solo.
SB: Minich, Inzone, Boltz. SF: Rice.
PITCHING SUMMARY
GRANITE HILLS ip h r er bb so
Gay W(5-0) 4.2 9 5 5 1 2
Sylvester Sv(1) 4.1 0 0 0 1 0
STEELE CANYON
Epperson L(3-2) 5+ 10 8 7 2 3
Inzone 1.1 4 5 3 2 0
Taylor 0.2 2 2 0 0 0
*
MONARCHS 14, MATADORS 11
MONTE VISTA ab r h bi MOUNT MIGUEL ab r h bi
Sopher lf-p 4 2 2 3 Seavello 2b 3 0 2 0
DeAnda rf 4 2 2 3 Newborn cf 3 1 1 1
R.Garcia rf 1 0 1 1 Freeman 1b-3b-1b 5 1 1 0
Lopez 1b 4 2 1 1 White c 3 2 1 0
Rodriguez dh 3 0 2 0 De Arcos rf-lf 4 2 3 1
Croft ss-pr 2 2 1 0 Green 3b 5 0 1 2
Leboffe p-cf 3 1 2 2 Vanderhyde p 0 0 0 0
Mendiola 2b-c 4 0 1 1 Williamson lf-ss 4 2 1 0
Dawson ph 0 0 0 0 Calafato ss-p 3 2 2 3
Cooper c 3 0 2 1 Sandoval p-1b-lf 1 0 1 2
Palacios pr-2b 2 1 0 0 Cannon rf 3 1 1 0
Haase cf-lf-p 4 2 1 1
Messenger ph 1 1 0 0
Hale 3b 2 1 1 0
Starling ph 1 0 0 0
TOTALS 38 14 16 13 TOTALS 34 11 14 9
Monte Vista (4-12, 2-2) 004 081 1 - 14 16 2
Mount Miguel (0-15, 0-2) 014 010 5 - 11 14 6
GWRBI: Haase (1).
E: Green 3, Seavello, Hale, De Arcos 2, Croft. LOB: MV 11, MM 13.
2B: Calafato, Sandoval, Rodriguez, Leboffe, Cannon, Green. 3B: Haase, Leboffe.
HR: Sopher (1), 3rd, 1 on; DeAnda (2), 3rd, solo. SB: Williamson, Sopher 2, Hale.
S: Sandoval, Newborn, Hale, Leboffe.
MONTE VISTA ip h r er bb so
Leboffe 2.1 8 5 5 2 1
Sopher W(1-0) 2.2 1 1 0 3 2
Haase 2.0 5 5 5 2 2
MOUNT MIGUEL
Sandoval L(0-5) 4.2 8 8 7 3 2
Vanderhyde 0.0 3 3 3 0 0
Calafato 2.1 5 3 1 1 1
Vanderhyde faced 3 batters in the 5th.
HBP: by Sandoval (Lopez), by Sopher (Calafato), by Calafato (Sopher). WP: Sandoval, Sopher 2, Haase.
T: 3:03.
(04-20-05)
Patriots club Komets with anchors in lineup
EastCountySports.com
SAN DIEGO - For the second Harbor League game in a row,
the Christian High Patriots bottomed out. That is, the
bottom third of the Patriots' batting order came up
big Tuesday (Apr. 19) as Christian clubbed Kearny 10-3
on the Komets' turf.
RICKY PLUM, RYAN ABELL and NICK ADAMS,
the Nos. 7, 8 and 9 batters in Christian's offensive
alignment, were a combined 7 for 9, with a double, 7
RBI, 3 runs scored and one stolen base. That same trio
is 13 for 16 with 10 RBI and 7 runs over the last two
games.
"It's always nice to get that kind of production
from any part of our lineup," Christian coach MIKE
MITCHELL said.
The red-hot threesome staged Christian's first rally
with two outs and nobody on in the 2nd inning. Plum
and Abell rapped back-to-back singles to left field.
Adams brought both runners home with a double into the
same area of the Kearny ballpark to make it 2-0.
KELLEN ROSSITTO keyed a three-run 3rd inning,
driving in ADAM PERRY and SHANE STANOVIC
with a base hit. Rossitto then worked his way around
to third base with a pair of steals and trotted home
on JOEL McGRANAHAN's sacrifice fly.
After that nifty interlude, Christian's Mighty Trio
returned to productivity in the 5th frame. With one
out and the bases loaded, Plum ripped a 2-run single
giving the Patriots a 7-1 bulge. Plum then stole second
and followed MATT HART across the plate courtesy
of Abell's 2-run single.
Abell stretched his personal hitting streak to seven
games. He is batting at a .647 clip (11 for 17) over
that span.
Not to be overlooked was TODD JONES, who got
one cut in the No. 8 slot. And Jones, Christian's top
pitcher, came through with a 7th-inning double. Jones
scored on an Adams single.
CHAD O'DONNELL and BRAD ALLEN shared the
pitching chores for the Patriots (11-4, 3-0), who have
won five in a row and hold a slim lead over Madison
in the Harbor League.
TUESDAY, APR 19, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Harbor League
PATRIOTS 10, KOMETS 3
CHRISTIAN ab r h bi KEARNY ab r h bi
EYoung ss 3 0 0 0 Reed ss 3 0 1 1
Dossett rf 2 0 2 0 KRichey 2b 3 1 0 0
Perry rf 3 1 2 0 Neeleman c 3 0 1 1
Schroeder lf 2 0 0 0 Marsh p-lf 4 0 1 0
Stanovic cf 2 2 1 0 RWhyte rf 3 1 1 0
Murray 1b-2b 1 0 0 0 TRichey cf 3 1 1 1
Rossitto 1b-c 4 2 1 2 Johnson 1b 3 0 0 0
Hart c-ss-3b 3 1 0 0 Heyenga lf-p 1 0 0 0
McGranahan dh 2 0 0 1 JWhyte p 0 0 0 0
O'Donnell p-1b 0 0 0 0 Stantopolous 3b 2 0 0 0
Plum 3b 3 2 3 2
Allen 1b-p 1 0 0 0
Abell lf 3 1 2 2
Jones 2b-ss 1 1 1 0
Adams 2b-cf 3 0 2 3
TOTALS 33 10 14 10 TOTALS 25 3 5 3
Christian (11-4, 3-0) 023 040 1 - 10 14 2
Kearny (2-13, 1-2) 001 002 0 - 3 5 1
GWRBI: Adams (1).
E: O⤙Donnell 2, Marsh. LOB: Chr 9, Kearny 10. 2B: Jones, Adams. SB: Perry 3, Stanovic 2, Rossitto 2, Plum.
SF: McGranahan, Reed.
PITCHING SUMMARY
CHRISTIAN ip h r er bb so
O'Donnell W(1-1) 6.0 4 3 3 6 4
Allen 1.0 1 0 0 1 1
KEARNY
Marsh L 4.1 10 9 9 3 1
Heyenga 1.2 1 0 0 3 1
JWhyte 1.0 3 1 1 0 1
HBP: O'Donnell (RWhyte). WP: Allen.
(04-19-05)
Cougars take place atop South standings by stunning
Eagles
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON - Guess who's leading the Grossmont South League
pennant race? Steele Canyon. The Cougars
(9-6, 3-0) stunned No. 3-ranked Granite Hills 3-2 Monday
(Apr. 18) in the Eagles' lair. Meanwhile, defending-champion
Valhalla stretched its Grossmont South winning streak
to 27 - one win shy of the Grossmont Conference record
held by Grossmont (1990-92) - and 10 victories short
of the San Diego Section CIF mark of 37 set by
Montgomery during the 1992-94 season).
STEELE CANYON 3, GRANITE HILLS 2: Situation
normal, right on course. Or so the host Granite Hills
Eagles thought after four innings of Monday's (Apr.
18) Grossmont South League contest against visiting
Steele Canyon.
The Eagles (14-4, 2-1) were cruising 2-0 after four
innings with senior pitcher DONNIE ANDERSON well
in control.
Suddenly, Steele Canyon (9-6, 3-0) got the break it
needed with a two-out error in the 5th inning. The miscue
followed one-out singles by GARRETT JENNER and
DAVID LEWIS and permitted Jenner to score Steele
Canyon's first run.
Steele Canyon came right back in the 6th inning as DANNY
HARRIS ignited a one out rally with a base hit.
A critical error by the Granite Hills shortstop put
runners at the corners for the Cougars, who received
a game-winning two-run double from CHRIS RICE that
gave Steele Canyon an edge it wouldn't lose.
That offensive burst was all Steele Canyon starter and
winner KYLE JOHNSON would need to earn his 3rd
win in four decisions.
"Talk about a huge win," Steele Canyon coach
PHIL MITTRY said. "This is so big considering
how poorly we played in our last couple of games in
the Grossmont Conference Tournament. In those two tournament
games (losses to El Capitan and Santana) our dugout
was like a morgue."
The dismal atmosphere disappeared in Monday's joust
at Granite Hills.
"Our intensity was good for the whole seven innings,"
Mittry said. "Seniors Rice and Johnson came to
throw when we really needed it."
While Mittry's squad sits alone atop the Grossmont South
League standings, he realizes how easily this pivotal
game against the Eagles could have gone the other way.
The Cougars had lost three of their previous four decisions.
"If we had let them pound on us today it could
have been a real downward spiral," Mittry said.
"This is our second season. We are 3-0 and nothing
else matters."
BRANDON DECKER went 4-for-4 for Granite Hills,
which saw its seven-game winning streak come to an end.
"We sleep-walked, didn't execute when we should
have," Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS said.
"Their pitcher kept us off balance. We didn't play
very intense. We deserved to lose, the way we played
the game today."
Granite Hills had taken the early lead on a sacrifice
fly by RYAN MARQUIS in the 3rd inning and Anderson⤙s
RBI single in the 4th.
After that, the Eagles went flat.
SANTANA 10, WEST HILLS 2: The Santana Sultans
took advantage of a couple of early mistakes by host
West Hills and continued on for a sleigh ride in Monday's
(Apr. 18) Grossmont North League encounter between Santee
rivals.
The Sultans (15-3, 2-0) scored 7 unearned runs in the
first 3 innings to defuse any upset plans the host Wolf
Pack might have had. Fact is, all but two of Santana's
runs were unearned.
"You can't give a team like Santana eight outs
in the first two innings," West Hills coach SCOTT
HOPGOOD said. "Not only did those keep
their innings alive, it added to the pitch count of
our starter (STEVEN STRASBURG).
"It came down to they played defense and we didn't."
The Sultans also played pretty good offense, too.
Starting and winning pitcher DALLAS MARTIN capped
a 5-run second with a fly ball double that the West
Hills left fielder thought would land foul, but was
stunned when the westerly winds held the ball up long
enough to let it land fair for a 2-run double.
Martin was even more effective on the mound, rationing
West Hills (5-10, 0-2) to 5 hits and two runs while
striking out 9 in a 6-inning stint. JOHN BASNIGHT
pitched a shutout 7th to complete the win that keeps
the Sultans tied with El Capitan for the Grossmont North
League lead. The Sultans and Vaqueros will meet on Wednesday
(Apr. 20) and Friday (Apr. 22) at 4 p.m.
"They couldn't hit my off-speed stuff," said
Martin, who won his 3rd game in 4 starts. "My fastball,
I snuck a couple by them, but I wasn't relying on that
pitch very much. I kept going more with changeups than
I did with my fastball. My ball was moving a lot today."
NICK MILLER, batting in the No. 9 position, was
2-for-2 with a pair of sacrifices and 4 RBI for Santana,
which has won 4 straight and 5 out of six.
"This was a huge win for us getting back into league,"
said Miller. "We needed to get this first one under
our belt (actually second). So it's kinda nice to come
out hitting again."
Miller swatted an RBI single in the 2nd inning and two-run
single in the 3rd.
"It doesn't matter where I bat, really," Miller
said. "I like that they (pitchers) think I can't
hit because I'm 'just a No. 9' hitter. So I just sit
there waiting for my pitch."
Santana's ROBERT HERMANSEN, who missed a week
due to injuries, robbed AARON GAGNON of an extra-base
hit and an RBI with a big-league catch in center field
in the 2nd inning when the game was still close. On
top of that, Hermansen stroked 3 hits in 4 at-bats.
JEFF WOODS was 2-for-5 with a double and 2 RBI
for Santana.
VALHALLA 12, HELIX 2: Although the Norsemen
(9-5, 1-0) have struggled at times this season, they
seem to have found their comfort zone within the boundaries
of the Grossmont South League.
Valhalla's 27 consecutive league victories, includes
Monday's (Apr. 18) verdict over the visiting Highlanders
(8-8, 0-3), a perfect 15-0 loop mark last year and 11
straight circuit wins to wrap up the 2003 Grossmont
South pennant. The last time Valhalla lost a league
game was Apr. 24, 2003, ironically enough against Helix
by a 5-2 count.
Only Montgomery (37), Mt. Carmel (29 in parts of the
1985, 1986, 1987 seasons), St. Augustine (28 from 1993-94),
Mt. Carmel (28 from 1988-89) and Grossmont (28) have
stacked up more league wins in succession than Valhalla.
For good measure, the Norsemen are 31-1 against league
foes dating back to the latter stages of the 2002 season
Helix, which has lost four straight and 7 of its last
8, took a 1-0 lead over the Norsemen in the top of the
4th inning and then Valhalla's offense began to click
in the bottom of the inning.
JAVIER BROWN walked, stole second and scored
the tying run on RYAN O'SULLIVAN's double. O'Sullivan
carried across the go-ahead run on a BRENNAN BAUM
single. Consecutive singles by STEVEN LeVALLEY, MICHAEL
YOUNG, DAVID SMITH and CHAD WILSON
stretched the Valhalla lead to 5-1.
Senior catcher CHRIS MOORE's 2-run single made
it 7-1 in the 5th inning.
A two-base error, a passed ball and RBI singles by Brown,
SEAN O'SULLIVAN, Moore and Smith keyed a 5-run
6th for Valhalla.
"We shook up the lineup a little bit and it seemed
to pay off for us," Valhalla coach STEVE PERDUE
said. "The confidence was there today. And it showed
in our play on the field."
ERIC JULIENNE (2-0) pitched a complete-game 4-hitter
for the Norsemen. The junior left-hander needed only
83 pitches to finish off the Highlanders, who were led
by NICK LEDESMA's two hits in three at-bats.
Despite the recent slide by his team, Helix coach COLE
HOLLAND hasn't written off the season.
"I wasn't too disappointed," Holland said.
"Offensively, we had better approaches at the plate
and only struck out twice. We put the ball in play and
they made the plays they needed to get us out."
MONTE VISTA 4, MOUNT MIGUEL 0: In one of their strongest
efforts of the season, the Monte Vista Monarchs rode
the durable arm of JESSE RODRIGUEZ to a four-hit
shutout of Mount Miguel in Monday's (Apr. 18) Grossmont
South League contest.
Rodriguez carried a no-hitter into the 5th inning before
yielding a bad-hop, leadoff single to EDDIE De ARCOS.
However, Monarchs catcher CODY COOPER later picked
off the runner at first, while the rest of the defense
turned in a season-best 3 double plays to back the senior
southpaw pitcher's winning effort.
"You can't do nothing about the bad hop, but it
felt good to get a win," noted Rodriguez. "It
was a bleeder and things like that happen -- it's always
a bleeder or a bloop which does it."
Meanwhile, the offense was carried by center fielder
ERIC LEBOFFE, who batted 2-for-3 with three RBI,
including a two-run homer in the 5th to break open a
close ballgame for Monte Vista (3-12 overall, 1-2 GSL).
"After we started slow this season, we'll take
whatever they give us," noted Leboffe, who will
play for Point Loma Nazarene University next season.
"I just got it up in the wind a little bit more
than Jesse did."
Leboffe actually used the wind to his advantage twice.
In the 3rd inning after Rodriguez lined out to deep
center to allow base-runner DAN DeANDA to advance
to third base, the left-handed hitting Leboffe went
the opposite way to left field, lifting the ball just
enough to get over the shortstop to break open a scoreless
tie.
Two innings later, Leboffe hoisted a drive into the
wind in deep right-centerfield, as the ball carried
over the fence and halfway up the hill leading to the
football stadium for his second homer of the season,
as ANTHONY LOPEZ also scored.
"For a small guy (huh?), Eric (6-1, 175) is putting
up the numbers -- it's unexpected," noted Rodriguez.
"I believe in these guys and I believe in our defense."
Lopez added some insurance in the 6th with a sacrifice
fly to left, allowing BRET HAASE to score an
unearned run after he reached on an error.
Meanwhile, Rodriguez allowed just one base-runner to
reach second base. He struck out seven and walked only
one in his 3rd complete-game effort, facing just three
batters above the minimum.
After Rodriguez struck out 3 Matadors in the opening
frame, shortstop IAN CROFT started the first
of the three double plays in the 3rd. Rodriguez fielded
a come-backer in the 4th, throwing to Croft at second
for another twin-killing.
Then in the 6th, Mount Miguel (0-14,0-1) failed on a
hit-and-run attempt when the ball was popped-up to first
baseman Lopez, who caught the ball in foul territory
then quickly tossed to a hustling Rodriguez covering
at first.
"Our defense has been stable all year," Monte
Vista coach LARRY RINEHART said. "It came
up big for us again today. That, plus a great job on
the hill by Rodriguez and some timely hitting made this
a nice game for us."
However, the defensive gem of the day was turned in
by Mount Miguel right fielder DANTE WILLIAMSON,
who charged in to grab a blooper by LANCE MENDIOLA
to end the 3rd before colliding with second baseman
DEXTER SEAVELLO.
Williamson did a full somersault on the crash, which
left Seavallo with a bloody mouth when he struck his
teammate's knee. Fortunately, both players remained
in the game
EL CAPITAN 16, EL CAJON VALLEY 2: Senior
shortstop JASSON KSIAZEK has been a sort of stealth
offensive leader for the El Capitan Vaqueros this season.
Not flashy, but consistent.
Ksiazek, who is batting at a .667 clip (12 for 18) with
10 runs and 6 RBI over the Vaqueros' last seven games,
smacked a run-scoring single to spark a 3-run 1st inning
as El Capitan (10-8, 2-0) blistered the Braves in Monday's
(Apr. 18) Grossmont North League contest in Lakeside.
The Vaqueros, who have won 6 of their last 7, featured
a balanced 13-hit attack against a quartet of El Cajon
Valley pitchers. Furthermore, the Vaqueros reached base
on 12 walks, 4 hit batters and three errors. Nevertheless,
they left 14 runners on base, which did not please El
Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY.
"I can't get too excited about this game because
we struck out 4 times with the bases loaded and hit
into a double play with the bases loaded," Vickery
said. "It's a win and we'll take it, Ksiazek continues
to do the job at plate as does NIK (GARCIA)."
Garcia was only 1-for-1 against the Braves (4-13, 0-2),
but walked 3 times, scored twice and drove in a pair.
Garcia has 14 RBI in his last five games.
Junior NICK McCARTHY rationed the Braves to two
hits and did not allow an earned run in a 5-inning stint
that earned him his first varsity victory.
MONDAY, APR 18, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Grossmont South League
COUGARS 3, EAGLES 2
STEELE CANYON ab r h bi GRANITE HILLS ab r h bi
Minich ss 3 0 0 0 Decker ss 4 0 4 0
Harris 2b 3 1 1 0 Marquis cf 3 0 0 0
Inzone 1b 3 1 1 0 Crawford dh 3 0 1 0
Rice rf 3 0 1 2 Monette c 3 0 0 0
Duby c 3 0 0 0 Taijeron lf 3 1 1 0
Lange dh 3 0 0 0 Humphries rf 3 0 1 0
Jenner 3b 3 1 1 0 Anderson p 3 0 1 1
Lewis lf 3 0 2 0 Russell 1b 2 0 0 0
Klopp cf 3 0 0 0 Boltz ph 1 0 0 0
Cazares 2b 2 1 0 0
TOTALS 27 3 6 2 TOTALS 27 1 8 1
Steele Canyon (9-6, 3-0) 000 012 0 - 3 6 0
Granite Hills (14-4, 2-1) 001 100 0 - 2 8 2
GWRBI: Rice (1).
E: Anderson. LOB: SC 4, GH 5. 2B: Rice. SB: Decker 2, Harris, Inzone. SF: Marquis.
PITCHING SUMMARY
STEELE CANYON ip h r er bb so
Johnson W(3-1) 7.0 8 2 2 0 3
GRANITE HILLS
Anderson L(3-1) 7.0 5 3 1 1 9
HBP: by Johnson (Russell, Cazares).
*
NORSEMEN 12, HIGHLANDERS 2
HELIX ab r h bi VALHALLA ab r h bi
Rohmer 2b 4 0 0 0 J.Brown ss 2 2 1 1
Valles lf 3 0 0 0 R.O'Sullivan 2b 4 1 2 1
Ledesma cf 3 2 2 0 S.O'Sullivan 3b 4 2 2 1
Ponce rf 3 1 1 0 Baum 1b 2 3 1 1
Peterson 1b 2 0 0 1 LeValley rf 3 1 1 0
Tanida c 3 0 0 0 MYoung dh 4 1 1 2
Rosenthal dh 2 0 1 1 Moore c 4 0 2 3
Ritchie 3b 2 0 0 0 Smith lf 4 0 2 2
RPerez ss 2 0 1 0 Wilson cf 3 1 1 1
Melendez ph 0 1 0 0
TOTALS 24 3 4 2 TOTALS 30 12 13 12
Helix (8-8, 0-3) 000 101 0 - 2 4 1
Valhalla (9-5, 1-0) 525 000 0 - 12 13 0
GWRBI: Baum (2).
E: Ritchie. DP: Helix 1. LOB: Helix 5, Valhalla 5. 2B: R.O'Sullivan, Ledesma.
SB: J.Brown 2, S.O'Sullivan 2, R.Perez. S: Rosenthal.
PITCHING SUMMARY
HELIX ip h r er bb so
Schuler L(1-3) 4.0 7 5 5 1 0
Beltran 2.0 6 7 3 1 0
VALHALLA
Julienne W(2-0) 7.0 4 2 2 2 2
HBP: by Beltran (Baum). PB: Tanida. BK: Beltran.
*
MONARCHS 4, MATADORS 0
MOUNT MIGUEL ab r h bi MONTE VISTA ab r h bi
Seavallo 2b 3 0 0 0 Sopher lf 3 0 0 0
Newborn cf 3 0 0 0 Haase lf 0 1 0 0
Sandoval lf-p 2 0 0 0 DeAnda rf 3 1 1 0
Freeman-Bolden 1b 0 0 0 0 Lopez 1b 3 1 1 1
White c 3 0 1 0 Rodriguez p 4 0 1 0
DeArcos 1b-rf 3 0 1 0 Leboffe cf 3 1 2 3
Calafato ss 3 0 0 0 Mendiola dh 3 0 0 0
Williamson rf 2 0 1 0 Cooper c 2 0 1 0
Plunkett 3b 1 0 0 0 Croft ss 2 0 0 0
Freeman p-1b 2 0 1 0 Palacios 2b 3 0 1 0
Cannon pr 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 22 0 4 0 TOTALS 26 4 7 4
Mount Miguel (0-14, 0-1) 000 000 0 - 0 4 3
Monte Vista (3-12, 1-2) 001 021 x - 4 7 1
GWRBI: Leboffe (1).
E: Croft, Freeman, Calafato 2. DP: MV 3. LOB: MM 3, MV 9. HR: Leboffe (2), 5th, one on.
SB: Croft, Palacios, Williamson, Haase, DeAnda. SF: Lopez.
MOUNT MIGUEL ip h r er bb so
Freeman L(0-4) 5.0 7 3 3 2 2
Sandoval 1.0 0 1 0 0 0
MONTE VISTA
Rodriguez W(2-6) 7.0 4 0 0 1 7
HBP: by Rodriguez (Plunkett), by Freeman (Croft). WP: Freeman 2.
*
Grossmont North League
VAQUEROS 16, BRAVES 2
EL CAJON VALLEY ab r h bi EL CAPITAN ab r h bi
Thomas cf-p 3 1 1 0 Hostetler rf 4 2 2 0
Manzo lf 3 0 1 1 Royer rf 1 0 1 0
D.Perez c 3 0 0 0 Russo 2b 3 1 1 2
Myer 1b 3 0 1 0 D.Garcia lf 1 0 0 1
L.Perez ss 2 0 0 0 Rauch c 5 2 2 1
Abbod p 1 0 0 0 Ksiazek ss 3 3 2 1
Dyer rf 2 0 0 0 N.Garcia 1b 1 2 1 2
Acquiningoc 3b 2 0 0 0 Erickson dh 3 1 1 2
Vega ph 0 0 0 0 Henson p 1 1 1 1
Sotos rf-p 2 0 0 0 King p 0 0 0 0
Mansfield ph 1 0 1 0 Walston cf 1 1 0 0
Padilla 2b-p 2 1 0 0 Nazzal cf 1 0 0 0
Sullenger 2b 1 1 0 2
C.Garcia 3b 2 2 1 0
Griffith 3b 1 0 1 1
TOTALS 24 2 4 1 TOTALS 28 16 13 13
El Cajon Valley (4-13, 0-2) 002 000 0 - 2 4 1
El Capitan (10-8, 2-0) 310 075 x - 16 13 3
GWRBI: Ksiazek (3).
E: Hostetler 2, Russo, D.Perez. DP: ECV 2, EC 1. LOB: ECV 3, EC 14. 2B: Rauch, Russo.
SB: Hostetler 2, Rauch. S: Nazzal, Sullinger.
PITCHING SUMMARY
EL CAJON VALLEY ip h r er bb so
Abbod L(0-2) 0.1 2 3 2 2 0
Sotos 1.2 2 1 1 4 4
Thomas 2.1 2 6 6 4 1
Padilla 1.2 7 5 5 3 1
EL CAPITAN
McCarthy W(1-2) 5.0 2 2 0 2 5
Henson 1.0 1 0 0 0 0
King 1.0 1 0 0 1 0
Sotos faced 3 batters in the 3rd inning.
HBP: by Sotos (Erickson); by Padilla (D.Garcia, Walston); by Thomas (N.Garcia).
WP: Abbod, Padilla, Sotos, Thomas. PB: D.Perez.
*
SULTANS 10, WOLF PACK 2
SANTANA ab r h bi WEST HILLS ab r h bi
Martin p-3b 4 1 1 2 Mello cf 3 0 0 0
Woods ss 5 0 2 2 Hooper lf-rf 3 0 0 0
Helmholtz 1b 4 0 1 0 Strasburg p 1 0 0 0
Tippin pr 0 0 0 0 Ritiyak p-3b 2 1 1 0
Haley c 3 2 1 0 Richardson rf-p 2 0 0 0
Bashnight 3b-p 4 0 0 0 Eddy 3b-1b 2 1 1 0
Diaz pr 0 1 0 0 Pichette c 3 0 1 1
Hermansen cf 4 2 3 1 Skinner 1b-lf-p 2 0 1 1
Brosnan lf 3 2 1 0 Stoner ph 1 0 0 0
Martinez 2b 2 1 1 0 Gagnon dh 3 0 1 0
N.Miller rf 2 1 2 4 Parker pr 0 0 0 0
Hoffard ss 0 0 0 0
Marcellus ss 0 0 0 0
Irvin 2b 3 0 0 0
TOTALS 31 10 12 9 TOTALS 25 2 6 2
Santana (15-3, 2-0) 052 000 3 - 10 12 0
West Hills (5-10, 0-2) 010 100 0 - 2 5 3
GWRBI: Hermansen (1).
E: Hoffard, Pichette, Eddy. DP: WH 1. LOB: Sant 8, WH 4. 2B: Hermansen, Martin, Woods, Ritiyak.
3B: Eddy. SB: Haley 2, Diaz, Woods. S: Martinez, N.Miller. SF: N.Miller.
PITCHING SUMMARY
SANTANA ip h r er bb so
Martin W(4-1) 6.0 5 2 2 1 9
Basnight 1.0 1 0 0 0 2
WEST HILLS
Strasburg L(0-6) 2.2 6 7 0 1 4
Ritiyak 1.1 1 0 0 1 2
Richardson 2.0 2 0 0 2 1
Skinner 1.0 3 3 2 0 0
PB: Pichette.
(04-18-05)
Crawford's James Newman (17) and Christian's
Nick Adams (12) with the ball in a close play
at second base. Eddie Young (3) watches the action.
(4-16-05/Photo
by Adolfo Villanueva)
Garcia has field day with eight RBI as Vaqueros
rebound
EastCountySports.com
CHULA VISTA - Credit the El Capitan Vaqueros for not
taking the time to sulk following Friday's (Apr. 15)
disappointing loss to Granite Hills in the Grossmont
Conference North-South Tournament championship game.
The Vaqueros rebounded by scoring 7 runs in the 1st
inning and continued to blast host Bonita Vista 19-5
in a non-league encounter Saturday (Apr.16) in South
Bay.
EL CAPITAN 19, BONITA VISTA 5: Senior
NIK GARCIA tied a school record by driving in
8 runs with three doubles as the visiting Vaqueros (9-8)
bowled over the Barons (7-7-2).
Garcia drilled 3-run doubles in the 1st and 3rd innings
to help stake El Capitan to an 11-3 lead. The 6-foot-1,
195-pound senior doubled in two more runs in the 4th
inning to help inflate the Vaqueros' cushion to 16-3.
"It's nice to come back after such a frustrating
day on Friday," Garcia said. "Both of the
(bases-loaded) doubles I hit came on off-speed pitches."
Bonita Vista, which employed six pitchers, challenged
Garcia with a fastball in the 4th inning and the muscular
senior ripped a two-bagger that plated 2 runs.
"Eight RBIs in a game, heck, I don't think I've
even hit three doubles in the same game," said
Garcia.
THOMAS HOSTETLER was 4-for-5 with two doubles
and 4 runs scored, while AUSTIN RAUCH was 2-for-5
with a home run and 5 RBI for El Capitan.
JASSON KSIAZEK was 2-for-2 with 3 runs and one
RBI. LOUIE RUSSO chimed in with two hits, 2 runs
and one RBI.
"Our record doesn't show how good a team we are,"
said Garcia of the Vaqueros, who have won 8 of their
last 12. "Come playoff time people are going to
know what kind of team we are."
Garcia tied the El Capitan record for most RBI in a
game set by TATE VELAU against Christian in 1981.
CHRISTIAN 7, CRAWFORD 5: The Patriots
(10-4, 2-0) took charge of the Harbor League lead Saturday
(Apr. 16) as they clipped the visiting Colts of Crawford
to stand alone in first place. They began the day tied
with upstart Kearny, but the Komets crumbled in a lopsided
loss to Madison.
This was a bittersweet victory for the Patriots, who
rode the 6-hit pitching of GRANT "General"
MILLS (5-1) to victory. Just as Mills established
himself as the top winner on the Christian High pitching
staff, his season has come to an end. Mills will undergo
surgery to correct a malady in his right ankle on Tuesday
(Apr. 19).
Mills also plays football and that sport appears to
be his favorite.
"He has a bone chip floating around in his ankle
and the doctors think it should be remedied immediately,"
Christian baseball coach MIKE MITCHELL said.
"Mills' parents postponed surgery so Grant could
go to Florida with the team, but this is something that
needs to be dealt with as soon as possible. We hate
to lose Grant, but we also want what is best for him."
In the final pitching performance of his junior season,
Mills allowed just 6 hits and 3 earned runs.
The loss of Mills will no doubt be costly to the Patriots.
Yet Mitchell "the Magician" will no doubt
come up with a formula to keep the Patriots on the winning
track.
After Crawford took a 2-0 lead in the 2nd inning, the
Patriots fired back with 3 runs in the 3rd frame. EDDIE
YOUNG's 2-run triple tied the game and Young coasted
home on ADAM PERRY's sacrifice fly to give Christian
the lead.
The Colts tied the game in the 4th inning, but the Patriots
regained control with 2 runs in the 5th and 6th innings
to salt away the victory.
The turning point of the game came in the bottom of
the 5th inning when Mitchell decided to send up RICKY
PLUM to pinch-hit for Mills.
"It was hot and I didn't want Mills to have to
run around the bases should he get on," Mitchell
said. "At the same time I didn't want to give Ricky
a whole lot of advance notice that I wanted him to pinch
hit."
It was a plan of perfection. Plum blasted a 2-0 pitch
from Crawford starter and loser Donte Wright well over
the left field fence for his second home run of the
season and a 3-2 Christian lead.
"Plum hit the ball on top of the weight room roof
and had it bounce into the swimming pool," Mitchell
said. "It was quite a shot, probably went 375 feet."
NICK ADAMS added an RBI single later in the 5th
to give the Patriots a 5-3 edge.
A solo home run by MATT HART and an RBI double
by RYAN ABELL stretched Christian's advantage
to 7-3 in the bottom of the 6th.
CHULA VISTA 2, EL CAJON VALLEY 1:
Coach WAYNE WEIGHTMAN isn't upset that his El
Cajon Valley Braves should have won Saturday's (Apr.
16) non-league game at Chula Vista. Disappointed, yes,
but rather than dwelling on the negative Weightman believes
his Braves are ready to break into the Grossmont North
League win column for the first time in eight years.
The Braves (4-12) have suffered two tough losses to
Chula Vista, the latest coming when they out-hit the
Spartans 8-5 but let five errors cost them the nod Saturday
in South Bay.
For the record, Chula Vista won the game on Josh Goldilla's
solo home run leading off the 5th inning. The Spartans
won an earlier meeting from the Braves 7-5 in El Cajon.
Fours errors in the first two innings gave Chula Vista
(8-9) a 1-0 edge that carried to the 5th inning when
the Braves finally strung together singles by JONATHAN
MANZO, SHANE MYER and DAVID PEREZ to tie
the game 1-1.
Myer clearly pitched well enough to win.
But the Braves missed too many scoring chances on this
afternoon. They left runners at first and second in
the opening inning, had a runner thrown out at the plate
and then failed to cash in on a bases-loaded situation
in the same frame.
The Braves staged a two-out rally in the 6th inning,
but came up empty when Manzo lined out to left field
with two runners on.
"We had runners on base all day, but just couldn't
get that one hit into the gap," Weightman said.
Myer turned in El Cajon Valley's third complete game
pitching effort of the season, striking out 5 and allowing
just one earned run.
Manzo and David Perez had two hits apiece for
the Braves.
SATURDAY, APR 16, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Harbor League
PATRIOTS 7, COLTS 5
CRAWFORD ab r h bi CHRISTIAN ab r h bi
Ventura 3b 3 1 2 0 E.Young ss 3 1 1 2
Preciado cf 3 0 0 0 Perry rf 2 0 0 1
Love c 3 0 0 0 Stanovic lf-cf 3 0 0 0
JiNewman 1b 3 1 1 0 Rossitto 1b 3 0 0 0
Laster pr 0 0 0 0 Hart c 3 1 1 1
CBurkhead rf 4 0 0 0 McGranahan cf-lf-p 2 0 0 0
Wright p 3 2 2 1 Schroeder lf 1 0 0 0
Jacobs ss 3 0 0 1 Mills p 2 1 0 0
JaNewman dh 3 0 1 1 Plum ph 1 1 1 1
Carrillo lf 0 0 0 0 Dossett lf 0 0 0 0
Jackson 2b 2 0 0 0 Abell 3b 3 2 3 1
BBurkhead ph 1 1 0 0 Adams 2b 3 1 2 1
TOTALS 28 5 6 3 TOTALS 26 7 8 7
Crawford (4-11, 1-2) 020 100 2 - 5 6 3
Christian (10-4, 2-0) 003 022 x - 7 8 4
GWRBI: Plum (1).
E:JiNewman, Jacobs, Ventura, Schroeder, MGranahan, E.Young, Stanovic. DP: Chr 1. LOB: Craw 5, Chr 2.
2B: Wright, JiNewman, Abell. 3B: Wright, E.Young. HR: Plum (2) 5th, solo. Hart (1) 6th, solo. SB: Adams. SF: Perry.
PITCHING SUMMARY
CRAWFORD ip h r er bb so
Wright L 6.0 8 7 6 0 3
CHRISTIAN
Mills W(5-1) 6+ 6 5 3 3 2
McGranahan Sv(1) 1.0 0 0 0 0 0
Mills pitched to 2 batters in the 7th.
WP: Wright.
*
VAQUEROS 19, BARONS 5
El Capitan (9-8) 704 530 0 - 19 17 0
Bonita Vista (7-7-2) 300 110 0 - 5 10 0
Petrille, Henson (6), King (7) and Rauch;
Warlop, Gonzales (1), Martinez (3), Knudson (4), Tapia (5), Dennis (6) and Borman, Gallegos (6).
HR: Rauch (EC) 5th, two on, #1. W: Petrille (1-0). L: Warlop.
*
SPARTANS 2, BRAVES 1
El Cajon Valley (4-12) 000 010 0 - 1 8 5
Chula Vista (8-9) 100 010 x - 2 5 1
Myer and D.Perez; Berdeski and Yoquigua. HR: Goldilla (CV) 5th, solo. W: Berdeski (2-2). L: Myer (1-2).
(04-16-05)
 Granite Hills relief pitcher Bret Horner (7) pitched
the final 4.2 innings, allowing just 2 hits and one
run as the Eagles clobbered El Capitan 11-3 in the Grossmont
North-South Tournament in Lakeside. (4-15-05/Photo
by Ernie Pile)
Fourth-ranked Eagles land Grossmont Conference Tournament
title
EastCountySports.com
LAKESIDE - The Granite Hills Eagles left no doubt as
to which team is East County's supreme bunch at the
moment. Ranked No. 4 in the San Diego CIF's only baseball
poll, coach JAMES DAVIS' Eagles overcame an early
2-0 deficit and ran roughshod over host El Capitan,
dismantling the Vaqueros 11-3 in Friday's (Apr. 15)
Grossmont Conference North/South Tournament championship
game. It was the 7th straight win for Granite Hills
(14-3), which has captured 12 of its last 13 decisions.
"This was a lot of fun," Davis mused.
Granite Hills crashed a pair of 3-run home runs by MATT
ROBERTS and TRAVIS TAIJERON, giving the Eagles
6 home runs in their last two games.
"The power has come all of a sudden," said
Davis, whose Eagles hit only four home runs in their
first 15 games. "I thought it was there, and I
still think it's there and we are hitting good pitches
right now. We are doing a better job of battling at
the plate."
Granite Hills has not used the long ball as its primary
power source. Pitching has been the key ingredient for
the Eagles, who received 4 2/3 innings of sparkling
relief from senior BRET HORNER in Friday's finale.
Normally the Eagles' starting 3rd baseman, Horner toed
the rubber and came up a winner against the Vaqueros.
"I guess I have more than one talent," said
Horner (2-1) who rationed El Capitan to one run on two
hits. "My sophomore year I was the top pitcher
on our junior varsity team. I pitched like every other
game. I think I won 8 or 9 games."
When Horner was promoted to the varsity as a junior,
he was ticketed for back-up duty at shortstop and on
the mound. But his slick fielding ability locked him
as the regular third baseman. Pitching was merely an
afterthought back then.
"This year coach Davis told me if I pitched it
would be in a 6th inning or 7th inning kind of thing,"
Horner said.
Horner knew he was going to pitch in the tournament
championship game as a back up to starter GARRETT
RUSSELL. When Russell struggled with his control,
walking five batters in 2 1/3 innings, Horner was summoned
to the mound. He faced one batter and coaxed an inning-ending
double play ball.
"I was hoping to get at least three innings in,
and I was happy that I got to finish," Horner said.
Roberts, who was pinch hitting in only his 5th at-bat
of the season, gave Granite Hills a 3-2 lead when he
launched the first pitch from junior reliever NICK
McCARTHY into the parking lot beyond the left field
fence in the 4th inning.
Granite Hills continued its offensive blitzkrieg in
the 5th inning. CODY CRAWFORD tripled off the
short porch in center field with one out. NICK MONETTE
then reached base on an error. Taijeron took over from
there, hoisting a three-run homer over the left-center
field fence, giving Granite Hills a 6-2 cushion.
The Eagles buried the Vaqueros (8-8) with a 5-run spread
in the 6th inning. Key hits in that flurry included
an RBI double by RYAN MARQUIS, a run-scoring
single by NICK MONETTE and a pinch hit two-run
single by BRENT BOLTZ.
"I know he'd rather be starting, but Brent has
to be the best pinch hitter in the county," Davis
said of Boltz, who has delivered hits in four of his
5 pinch-hitting opportunities.
Crawford paced Granite Hills' 11-hit assault on four
El Capitan pitchers with a single, double and a triple.
The junior DH missed his shot at hitting for the cycle
when he grounded out weakly to the Vaqueros' third baseman
in the 6th inning.
"We are doing a lot of things right, playing hard
baseball right now which is what I like to see,"
said Davis, whose Eagles resume Grossmont South League
play on Monday (Apr. 18), hosting Steele Canyon at 4
p.m. These two teams are tied for the league lead.
El Capitan started the conference finale in decent form
as LOUIE RUSSO's two-out single with the bases-loaded
gave the Vaqueros a 1-0 edge in the 2nd inning. Poor
base-running denied El Capitan a second tally on Russo's
clutch hit.
An inning later, AUSTIN RAUCH doubled and eventually
scored on a balk to make it 2-0 for El Capitan after
three innings.
"We had a couple chances to pull away early-on,"
El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY said. "But
our poor base-running and the fact that we couldn't
come up with that one big hit, killed us."
El Capitan, which has won 7 of its last 10 outings and
is tied with Santana for the early lead in the Grossmont
North League, travels to Bonita Vista for Saturday's
(Apr. 16) non-league encounter at 11 a.m. The
Vaqueros resume league activity on Monday (Apr. 18)
by hosting El Cajon Valley at 4 p.m.
Granite Hills' Travis Taijeron (18) slides into
third with coach James Davis signalling 'get
down.' El Capitan's Michael Griffith (10) waits
for the throw. (4-16-05/Photo
by Adolfo Villanueva)
FRIDAY, APR 15, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Grossmont North/South Tournament
Championship
EAGLES 11, VAQUEROS 3
GRANITE HILLS ab r h bi EL CAPITAN ab r h bi
Decker ss 4 1 1 0 Russo 2b 4 1 2 1
J.Miller ph 0 0 0 0 Rauch c 3 1 1 0
Marquis cf 4 1 1 1 N.Garcia p-1b 4 0 0 1
Coleman ph 1 0 0 0 Erickson 1b-rf 2 0 0 0
Crawford dh 4 1 3 0 Royer pr 0 0 0 0
Horner 3b-p 0 0 0 0 Ksiazek ss 3 1 1 0
Monette c 4 2 1 1 Walston cf 3 0 0 0
Taijeron lf 3 3 2 3 Nazzal lf 1 0 1 0
Humphries rf 2 0 0 0 D.Garcia ph 1 0 0 0
Boltz ph 1 0 1 2 Griffith 3b 2 0 0 0
Anderson 1b 2 1 0 0 C.Garcia 3b 0 0 0 0
Russell p 1 0 0 0 Hostetler rf 1 0 0 0
Roberts 3b 3 1 1 3 McCarthy p 1 0 0 0
Cazares 2b 3 1 1 0 King p 1 0 0 0
Harkins ph 1 0 0 0
TOTALS 33 11 11 10 TOTALS 26 3 5 2
Granite Hills (14-3) 000 335 0 - 11 11 1
El Capitan (8-8) 011 000 1 - 3 5 4
GWRBI: Roberts (1).
E: Decker, Erickson, King, Griffith 2. DP: EC 1, GH 1. LOB: GH 6, EC 8.
2B: Crawford, Rauch, Russo, Taijeron, Marquis. 3B: Crawford.
HR: Roberts (1) 4th, two on; Taijeron (3) 5th, two on. SB: Nazzal, Cazares, Decker, Rauch. S: Humphries.
PITCHING SUMMARY
GRANITE HILLS ip h r er bb so
Russell 2.1 3 2 1 5 1
Horner W(2-1) 4.2 2 1 1 2 2
EL CAPITAN
N.Garcia 3.1 3 2 2 2 1
McCarthy L(0-2) 1.2 4 4 3 0 0
King 0.2 3 5 0 0 0
Henson 1.1 1 0 0 0 1
HBP: by N.Garcia (Anderson); by Henson (J.Miller). WP: N.Garcia, King. BK: Russell, King, Horner.
(04-15-05)
 El Capitan's Cristian
Garcia (11) allowed only one earned run over six
innings as the Vaqueros defeated visiting Valhalla in
the final round of Grossmont North/South Tournament
pool play in Lakeside. (4-13-05/Photo by Ernie Pile)
Vaqueros try for fourth conference tournament title
in-a-row against high-flying Eagles
Patriots surprise Madison with McGranahan's called
shot
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON - While Christian High celebrated a key 3-2
victory over defending Harbor League champion Madison
on Thursday (Apr.14), two of East County's hottest teams
were preparing for Friday's (Apr.15) Grossmont Conference
North/South Tournament championship game in Lakeside
at 4 p.m. The Granite Hills Eagles (13-3), ranked No.
4 in the San Diego CIF and winner of six straight and
11 of 12, visits El Capitan (8-7). The Vaqueros have
won 7 of their last 9 games.
GRANITE HILLS @ EL CAPITAN: This marks Granite
Hills' second straight appearance as the Grossmont South
League representative to the conference tournament finals.
The Eagles rallied from a 9-1 deficit to tie Grossmont
12-12 in a game played under threatening skies and was
eventually called after 7 innings due to darkness.
Prior to last year's slugfest, El Capitan had captured
the Grossmont Conference Tournament championship three
years in a row.
CHRISTIAN 3, MADISON 2: Senior JOEL
McGRANAHAN doesn't claim to have psychic powers.
Nor does he view himself as a power hitter. Yet, the
left-hand hitting right fielder used a little of both
to club what proved to be a game-winning home run that
helped the Patriots win their Harbor League opener over
the heavily favored Madison Warhawks.
McGranahan's premonition was disclosed after 6th period
class where he is a teacher's assistant in chemistry.
"I told (teammate) RYAN ABELL that I felt
I had a home run in me today," said McGranahan,
who has only two homers this season. "Then I called
it again before the (actual) at-bat.
"I was just joking around with (teammate) JIMMY
DOSSETT and I told him 'I'm going to go yard' this
time," McGranahan said. "And Jimmy said, '"Just
work on trying to get a base hit.'"
McGranahan's confidence was tested to the maximum as
he received only two at-bats against Madison pitcher
Lance McCormick, who rationed the Patriots to
3 hits. But it took only one pitch in his 4th-inning
at-bat for McGranahan to deliver.
"You can kind of tell with this fence if (the ball)
is going out," McGranahan said. "(McCormick's
pitch) was a hanging curveball out over the plate and
I knew I got all of it."
A leadoff single by MATT HART ignited a two-run
2nd inning for the Patriots (9-4, 1-0). Madison (12-5,1-1)
chipped in a pair of errors, Abell smacked a ground
rule double and NICK ADAMS hit a sacrifice fly.
Albeit the Patriots were by no means on a hitting spree,
the offensive sparks were enough to support the 4-hit
pitching of TODD JONES (3-1, 1.44 ERA).
"Todd has always thought of himself as a shortstop,
but I think he has a chance to be a better pitcher,"
Christian coach MIKE MITCHELL said. "He
likes to hit, but I think he's only had one or two at-bats.
I told him to enjoy those two chances to hit because
"You're a pitcher now."
Jones, who has logged back-to-back complete victories,
has suddenly established himself as the Patriots' ace.
"I've always liked infield," Jones said. "But
it looks like I have something more to look forward
to as a pitcher. I'm starting to enjoy it a lot more
now."
No doubt Madison was caught by surprise by the scrappy
Patriots.
"Madison has been predicted to win league, so basically
we are the only ones in their way," McGranahan
said. "Since we play (Madison) three times, we
knew we had to get this first win."
Knocking off Madison in round one certainly helped boost
Christian's confidence. But Mitchell isn't ordering
any championship patches just yet.
"They played in the Classic Division of the Lions
Tournament, so it's not like they played a bunch of
slouch teams," Mitchell said. "This was a
huge win, but it's only a start."
THURSDAY, APR 14, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Harbor League
PATRIOTS 3, WARHAWKS 2
MADISON ab r h bi CHRISTIAN ab r h bi
Moreno 2b 3 0 0 0 E.Young ss 2 0 0 0
Phillips cf 3 1 1 0 Perry cf 2 0 0 0
Pecina 1b 3 0 1 0 A.Murray cf 1 0 0 0
Planck ss 2 0 0 0 Rossitto 1b 3 0 0 0
Cotton 3b 1 0 0 0 Plum 3b 3 0 0 0
Angle ph 1 0 0 0 Hart c 3 1 1 0
McCormick p 3 0 0 0 Stanovic dh 2 0 0 0
Jaime c 3 0 0 0 McGranahan rf 2 2 1 1
Webster lf 3 1 1 0 Abell lf 2 0 1 0
Latimer rf 2 0 1 0 Adams 2b 1 0 0 1
TOTALS 24 2 4 0 TOTALS 21 3 3 2
Madison (11-5, 1-1) 000 110 0 - 2 4 2
Christian (9-4, 1-0) 020 100 x - 3 3 1
GWRBI: None.
E: Cotton 2, Plum. DP: Chr 1. LOB: Mad 4, Chr 2. 2B: Abell.
HR: McGranahan (2) 4th, solo. SB: Phillips, Webster, Moreno. S: Planck. SF: Adams.
PITCHING SUMMARY
MADISON ip h r er bb so
McCormick L(4-1) 6.0 3 3 1 0 6
CHRISTIAN
Jones W(3-1) 7.0 4 2 1 2 1
(04-14-05)
Vaqueros' big inning gets them into conference tournament
title game
EastCountySports.com
LAKESIDE - Of the El Capitan High players asked, to
a man they stated that the Vaqueros' big inning on Wednesday
(Apr. 13) against visiting Valhalla was more eventful
than gaining a berth in Friday's (Apr. 15) Grossmont
Conference North-South Tournament championship game.
The Vaqueros were talking about a 7-run 6th inning at
the expense of Valhalla ace SEAN O'SULLIVAN that
sealed a 12-4 victory and a ticket to the tournament
title bout against Granite Hills.
El Capitan, which rebounded from a 1-5 start to win
seven of its last 9 starts, will host No. 4-ranked Granite
Hills (13-3) Friday in Lakeside at 4 p.m. The Eagles
have won six in a row and 10 of their last 11.
But the Vaqueros didn't want to look ahead. They wanted
to celebrate.
"The seven-run rally was definitely better - it
felt good," said El Cap shortstop JASSON KSIAZEK,
who batted 4-for-4 and drove in a pair of runs. "We
just pumped up in the dugout and put it out on the field."
The rally was even sweeter coming against O'Sullivan,
who posted his poorest outing since last season's San
Diego CIF Division II championship contest, when the
Vaqueros also scored seven runs in the 1st inning en
route to a 10-2 conquest for the San Diego Section crown.
Entering the game in the 6th inning with the Norsemen
trailing 5-4 and still within striking distance, O'Sullivan
appeared to have matters in hand as he used his wicked
curveball to strike out the first two batters he faced.
But when THOMAS HOSTETLER connected on an 0-2
pitch, barely landing a shot inside the right field
line for a double, the wheels started to fall off.
"O'Sullivan tried to go after us with his fastball
after that," noted Ksiazek. "So we took it
to him."
Hostetler's hit started a run of eight consecutive Vaqueros
reaching base.
LOUIE RUSSO followed with a line single to left
for an RBI, then AUSTIN RAUCH, was plunked in
the helmet by a pitch; the ball caromed some 40 yards
away over the Valhalla dugout.
Obviously frustrated, O'Sullivan then reared back and
fired his 90-plus miles-per-hour fastball much to the
delight of the fastball-hitting Vaqueros.
NIK GARCIA followed with a booming two-run double
which missed by inches from clearing the centerfield
fence into the Black Hole at Hostetler Field. Then GRIFF
ERICKSON, Ksaizek and JOSH WALSTON smacked
line drives up the middle for basehits, with Walston's
blow driving home two runs. VINNY NAZZAL then
completed the batting blitz with an infield single,
followed by an error that posted the inning's 7th run.
"We were all just locked in right there,"
said El Cap coach STEVE VICKERY. "It was
great to see our kids play and keep up their intensity
level."
Meanwhile, CRISTIAN GARCIA turned in six strong
innings to collect the victory. His only downfall was
a 4-run rally by Valhalla in the 4th that tied the game
when he allowed three of his six hits. However, three
of the runs were unearned.
Unbeknown to the ballclub, the final inning of shutout
work by NICK McCARTHY proved to be decisive.
It kept El Capitan's runs-allowed total for the tournament
at 17, which is the first tie-breaker to determine the
division champion after the Vaqueros and Santana finished
with identical records against Grossmont South League
opposition in the tournament.
Thus, conference officials needed to go to the second
tie-breaker (most runs scored), where El Capitan's big
inning gave the Vaqueros a 38-34 edged over Santana.
The Vaqueros (8-7) placed their first three batters
of the game on base. Erickson lifted a sacrifice fly
to open the scoring. Ksiazek singled for another run
and the third tally crossed on an error.
In the 3rd, Walston singled to left, but when the ball
was booted, another unearned run scored.
Valhalla's offense, limited to two hits through four
frames, came to life in the 5th on a single by JAVIER
BROWN, a double by RYAN O'SULLIVAN and the
second of two intentional walks to Sean O'Sullivan to
load the bases.
A BRENNAN BAUM hot grounder to third was misplayed
to allow two runs to score, then STEVEN LeVALLEY
and pinch-hitter DAVID SMITH lifted consecutive
sacrifice flies to pull the Norsemen even.
However, Ksiazek immediately answered with an RBI double
to regain the lead in the home half of the 5th, although
he was thrown out attempting to stretch his hit to left-center
field into a triple.
"We just passed the .500 (mark) and we're not going
to look into the rear-view mirror anymore," added
Ksiazek. "We want to win a championship, too."
Valhalla center-fielder CHRIS WILSON made the
throw from the outfield to nail Ksiazek. He was also
the only player on Valhalla (8-5) to get more than one
hit, going 2-for-3 with a second-inning double into
the left-field corner.
Garcia, Erickson and Walston each registered two hits
and a pair of RBI for the Vaqueros, while Russo also
recorded a pair of base hits.
GRANITE HILLS 8, GROSSMONT 5: The visiting
Granite Hills Eagles beat Grossmont at its own game
in Wednesday's (Apr. 13) final round of pool play in
the Grossmont Conference North/South Tournament at Joe
Gizoni Field.
It was a day of the long ball, which is not uncommon
at the cozy confines of Gizoni Field. Only it was Granite
Hills that turned Grossmont's home ballpark into a launching
pad, blasting 4 balls beyond the stadium borders to
just one for the Hillers.
DONNIE ANDERSON's solo homer leading off the
7th inning gave the Eagles a 5-4 edge. After LOUIS
CAZARES reached base on his third single, BRANDON
DECKER drilled a ball over the left-center field
fence to give Granite Hills a 3-run cushion it wouldn't
lose.
"It was kind of refreshing to see us exhibit some
power for a change," Granite Hills coach JAMES
DAVIS. "I knew we had been hitting the ball
better in practice, but to see us do it in a game is
gratifying. Maybe now we can take some pressure off
our pitchers."
It took Granite Hills' top three pitchers to hold down
No. 8-ranked Grossmont (11-4). As it was, the Hillers
peppered ERIC KRAUSE, DARREN GAY (4-0) and Anderson
for a dozen hits, including a game-tying two-run home
run by AUGIE WILLIAMS that capped a 4-run 6th
inning.
"Three of those (home run) balls would have been
out of any yard," Grossmont coach ROB PHILLIPS
said. "Granite Hills came in here intending to
win. They wanted it more than our kids did. That's why
I believe Granite Hills is the best team in the Grossmont
South."
Hard-nosed senior catcher NICK MONETTE gave the
Eagles a 1-0 lead with a booming home run to right-center
field in the 2nd inning.
The Eagles came back for more an inning later against
Grossmont southpaw DONNIE SNOW. After Decker
walked and RYAN MARQUIS blooped an opposite field
single to left, CODY CRAWFORD hoisted a high
fly ball down the right field line that dunked inside
the foul pole for a 3-run home run.
Suddenly, the Eagles led 5-0 with their ace 5-0 Krause
on the mound.
Williams, a sophomore, sparked the Grossmont comeback.
He doubled home a run in the 3rd inning and eventually
tied the contest with his third homer of the season
in the 6th.
Gay gained his 4th pitching win in as many decisions,
despite allowing a run and 3 hits in a single frame
of work. Anderson did an admirable job as a closer,
blanking the Hillers for his second save of the season.
Steele Canyon pitcher KYLE JOHNSON has announced
that he will attend George Fox University and play baseball
for the NCAA Division III institution in Newberg, Ore.
The senior right-hander, a three-year starter for the
Cougars, is 2-1 with a 5.08 ERA in 30 2/3 innings this
season.
George Fox is a Division III baseball power. The Bruins
are currently 24-6 with a 14-game winning streak. They
lead the Northwest Conference with a 16-2 mark.
(04-13-05)(Photo by Ernie Pile)
SANTANA 3, STEELE CANYON 1: Senior
JEFF WOODS of Santana pitched a complete game
6-hitter and struck out 8 to stymie Steele Canyon and
earn his 5th win in six decisions as the Sultans rolled
their season record to an East County-best 14-3 in the
final round of Grossmont Conference North/South Tournament
pool play.
Woods, who pitched the 9th perfect game in San Diego
CIF history last month in Las Vegas, struggled at the
start and at the finish, yet managed to log his 4th
complete game in six starts.
A shortstop by nature, Woods said he "likes to
pitch."
"Yeah, pitching is fun," he said. "They
need me to pitch and I'm willing to do whatever helps
our team win."
Despite his flashy pitching statistics (5-1, 0.96 ERA,
45 strikeouts in 36 1/3 innings), Woods admits that
playing every day as a shortstop is his first choice.
His focus against Steele Canyon was as a pitcher. Although
he appeared to be in command, Woods, a senior right-hander,
was frustrated by his inconsistent control. Yet, he
walked only 2.
"My off-speed stuff was working good, but I was
leaving too many pitches up in the zone," Woods
said. "Honestly, I didn't think I had one pitch
that was working better than the other. I was leaving
everything up today. I couldn't make the adjustment."
Superb play by outfielders NICK MILLER and RYAN
BROSNAN helped keep Woods out of danger's way. Brosnan
gunned down a Steele Canyon runner at the plate in the
1st inning and Miller made a nifty running catch to
rob CHRIS RICE of an extra-base hit leading off
the 4th inning. Miller made an encore performance with
a game-saving shoestring catch to thwart a budding Steele
Canyon rally in the top of the 7th inning with the tying
runners on base.
"We've been talking about getting a quick prep
all week," Miller said. "So I started doing
that and I got a better jump on the ball."
That philosophy didn't pan out for Miller, who got a
late start on DANNY HARRIS' sinking line drive
in the 7th inning with the tying runs on base and two
outs.
"I didn't read it off the bat," Miller admitted.
"Then I heard people yelling 'In,' so I came in
as fast as I could and luckily I got there in time."
After Woods held the Cougars (8-6) to one hit over the
middle 5 innings, Steele Canyon pinch-hitter MIKE
LANGE laced a one-out single in the top of the 7th.
DAVID LEWIS followed with a base hit to
put the tying runs on base.
Woods was up the challenge.
"When we come to play like we did today, we are
tough to beat," said Miller, who was 2-for-3 for
Santana.
The Sultans overcame a 1-0 edge in the 2nd inning with
RICHARD MARTINEZ's RBI single and JONATHAN
TIPPIN's fly ball lost in the sun by the Cougars
right fielder that went for an RBI triple.
Haley's RBI single gave Santana a 3-1 advantage in the
5th inning.
CODY MINICH accounted for 2 of Steele Canyon's
six hits.
EL CAJON VALLEY 5, MONTE VISTA 4: The Braves
of El Cajon Valley have posted only two complete game
pitching performances since the 2002 season. Senior
right-hander LUIS PEREZ has been the author of
both wire-to-wire efforts, including Wednesday's (Apr.13)
come-from-behind knockout of visiting Monte Vista in
the final round of Grossmont Conference North/South
Tournament pool play.
Perez, who is headed to Whittier College to play football
in the fall, scattered 10 Monte Vista hits while allowing
just 3 earned runs and striking out 7 to balance his
record at 2-2.
The Braves (4-11) overcame a 3-1 deficit with a 4-run
rally in the bottom of the 6th inning.
CLIFTON THOMAS keyed the comeback with a leadoff
single and stole his 11th base of the season to reach
second base. Pinch-hitter SHANE MYER singled
to put runners at the corners with nobody out. After
Myer stole the first base of his varsity career, NICK
DYER took over for him at second as a pinch runner.
DEREK PEREZ, pinned down with a 1-2 count, hung
tough as he slashed a two-run single over the first
baseman's head to tie the game 3-3. ALAN ABOOD
and JONATHAN MANZO followed with RBI singles
to give the Braves the lead.
But the Monarchs (2-12) weren't ready to rollover. After
all, Monte Vista rocked El Cajon Valley 11-0 earlier
this season.
In the top of the 7th, BRET HAASE hammered a
lead-off double to left field. Two outs later, JESSE
RODRIGUEZ ripped an RBI single. But the Monarchs'
rally stalled after that.
"We've been preaching to our kids that they need
to be mentally tough, and that confidence creates success,"
El Cajon Valley coach WAYNE WEIGHTMAN said.
"After we got slam dunked by Valhalla (17-1) on
Monday - we helped them kick our teeth in - the kids
showed a lot of character by fighting back today,"
Weightman added.
WEST HILLS 6, MOUNT MIGUEL 2:
Wolf Pack leadoff man JOE MELLO is known for
his ability to get on base. The junior center fielder
isn't afraid to steal a bag or two, either.
What Mello hasn't been known for is hitting the long
ball. Until Wednesday (Apr. 13), that is.
Mello blasted his first home run of the season in the
bottom of the 1st inning and then slugged a 2-run shot
an inning later staking West Hills pitcher JOHN EDDY
to a 5-0 advantage.
While Mello's power came as a pleasant surprise, he
was not a solo effort. AARON RICHARDSON stepped
into the long ball parade with a 2-run homer in the
opening frame.
The three home runs doubled West Hills' long ball output
for the season.
"We did everything we had to do today," said
West Hills coach SCOTT HOPGOOD. "Eddy threw
a great game today, he threw strikes and was in complete
command. The power display today really surprised me.
It's something we've been looking for all season."
West Hills' 5-9 start - which includes a 3-2 mark in
the Grossmont Conference Tournament - has pumped new
optimism into the Wolf Pack dugout. This is a club that
finished 7-21 and out of the Grossmont North League
race a year ago. It's a team without prominent seniors.
"I was told when I took this job that 13 players
had graduated and I should plan on my first season being
a rebuilding year," Hopgood said. "The first
day I walked on the field and saw the talent we had,
I thought 'no way is this going to be a rebuilding year.'
We have the ability to challenge for (Grossmont North)
League title right now."
For Mount Miguel, which has not won a game in 13 starts
under first-year coach BYRON GRIGSBY, the prospect
of breaking into the win column is no small task given
the competition that remains on the Matadors' docket.
"I'm teaching a different style of playing the
game than the team is used to and it's taken the players
some time to get used to it," Grigsby said. "I
do feel the team is finally getting familiar with how
I like the game to be played."
"We start league on Monday (Apr. 18). Our league
is really tough and will be a stern challenge. This
event (Grossmont North/South Tournament) has been really
competitive. I do believe it has helped get us ready
for our league play. We will be ready, despite our record."
WEDNESDAY, APR 13, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Grossmont North/South Tournament
EAGLES 8, FOOTHILLERS 5
GRANITE HILLS ab r h bi GROSSMONT ab r h bi
Decker ss 2 2 1 2 Ferrara 2b 4 0 1 0
Marquis cf 4 1 1 0 Griffin 3b 4 0 2 0
Crawford dh 3 1 1 3 Phillips ss 4 0 1 0
Monette c 4 1 1 1 Snow p-rf 4 0 2 0
Taijeron lf 3 0 0 0 Fox lf 0 1 0 0
Humphries rf 3 0 0 0 Pieczynski c 2 2 1 0
Anderson 1b-p 3 1 2 1 Passanasi 1b 4 1 3 1
Harris 3b 2 0 0 0 Berry rf-lf 3 0 0 1
Boltz ph 1 0 0 0 Williams cf 3 1 2 3
Cazares 2b 3 2 3 0 Medina cf 2 0 0 0
Adams p 1 0 0 0
TOTALS 28 8 9 7 TOTALS 31 5 12 5
Granite Hills (13-3) 014 000 3 - 8 9 1
Grossmont (11-4) 000 104 0 - 5 12 0
GWRBI: Anderson (1).
E: Horner. DP: GH 1, Gro 1. 2B: Williams, Passanisi 2.
HR: Monette (2) 2nd, solo; Crawford (1) 3rd, two on; Williams (3) 6th, one on; Decker (2) 7th, one on;
Anderson (1) 7th, solo. SF: Berry.
PITCHING SUMMARY
GRANITE HILLS ip h r er bb so
Krause 5.0 9 4 4 1 2
Gay W(4-0) 1.0 3 1 1 0 0
Anderson Sv(2). 1.0 0 0 0 1 0
GROSSMONT
Snow 4.0 4 5 5 1 4
Adams L(2-2) 2.1 4 3 3 1 1
Wohlwend 0.2 0 0 0 1 2
WP: Snow. BK: Anderson.
*
WOLF PACK 6, MATADORS 2
MOUNT MIGUEL ab r h bi WEST HILLS ab r h bi
Calafato 3b 3 0 2 0 Mello cf 3 2 2 3
Newborn cf 1 1 1 0 Carley cf 1 0 0 0
Sandoval lf-p 2 1 1 0 Hooper rf 4 0 1 0
Carmon lf 1 0 0 0 Strasburg 1b 4 1 1 0
White c 3 0 1 1 Maldonado 1b 1 0 0 0
De Arcos rf 3 0 1 1 Richardson dh 2 1 1 2
Plunkett p 2 0 0 0 Stoner dh 1 0 1 0
Vanderhyde p 1 0 0 0 Pichette c 2 0 0 0
Williamson ss 3 0 1 0 Skinner lf 1 0 0 0
Seavello 2b 3 0 0 0 Parker lf 1 0 0 0
Freeman 1b 3 0 1 0 Eddy p 3 0 0 0
Hall 3b 3 1 1 0
Hoffard ss 2 1 1 0
Irvin ph 1 0 0 0
TOTALS 25 2 8 2 TOTALS 29 6 8 5
Mount Miguel (0-13) 000 002 0 - 2 8 1
West Hills (5-9) 320 100 x - 6 8 1
GWRBI: Mello (2).
E: Williamson, Hutchings. DP: WH 3. LOB: MM 6, WH 6. 2B: White, Seavello, Strasburg.
3B: Williamson, De Arcos, Sandoval. HR: Mello 2:(1,2) 1st, solo and 2nd, one on; Richardson (2) 1st, one on.
SB: Hoffard, Newborn.
PITCHING SUMMARY
MOUNT MIGUEL ip h r er bb so
Plunkett L(0-1) 1.1 5 5 4 1 1
Vanderhyde 3.2 3 1 0 1 1
Sandoval 1.0 0 0 0 0 2
WEST HILLS
Eddy W(2-2) 5.0 5 0 0 1 1
Hall 1.0 1 2 1 1 1
Hoffard 1.0 2 0 0 0 0
*
SULTANS 3, COUGARS 1
STEELE CANYON ab r h bi SANTANA ab r h bi
Harris 2b 4 1 1 0 Brosnan lf 3 0 0 0
Minich ss 3 0 2 0 Martin ss 3 0 1 0
Inzone 1b 2 0 0 0 Woods p 2 0 0 0
Rice rf 3 0 0 0 Haley c 2 1 1 1
Duby c 3 0 1 1 Helmholtz 1b 3 0 0 0
Epperson p 2 0 0 0 Diaz dh 2 0 0 0
Bruder p 0 0 0 0 Hermansen ph 1 0 0 0
Murphy 3b 2 0 0 0 Wylie 3b 0 0 0 0
Lange ph 1 0 1 0 Martinez 2b 2 1 1 1
Jacobsmeier pr 0 0 0 0 Tippin cf 3 0 2 1
Lewis lf 3 0 1 0 Miller rf 3 1 2 0
Klopp cf 3 0 0 0
TOTALS 26 1 6 1 TOTALS 24 3 7 3
Steele Canyon (8-6) 100 000 0 - 1 6 0
Santana (14-3) 020 010 x - 3 7 0
GWRBI: Tippin (1).
E: None. DP: SC 1. LOB: SC 6, Sant 7. 2B: Martin. 3B: Tippin. SB: Harris, Minich, Woods, Tippin.
PITCHING SUMMARY
STEELE CANYON ip h r er bb so
Epperson L(3-1) 5.0 5 3 3 2 4
Bruder 1.0 2 0 0 0 0
SANTANA
Woods W(5-1) 7.0 6 1 1 2 8
HBP: by Epperson (Haley, Woods). WP: Epperson. PB: Duby.
*
BRAVES 5, MONARCHS 4
MONTE VISTA ab r h bi EL CAJON VALLEY ab r h bi
Sopher p 3 2 2 0 Carreon rf 4 1 1 0
Haase p 1 1 1 0 Thomas cf 2 1 1 0
Mandiola c 4 0 0 0 Dyer lf 2 1 1 0
Lopez lf 4 1 2 1 Myer ph 1 0 1 0
Rodriguez 1b 3 0 2 2 L.Perez p 3 0 0 1
Dawson ss 3 0 0 0 Aquiningoc 1b 3 0 0 0
Croft ss 1 0 0 0 D.Perez c 3 1 2 2
R.Garcia cf 2 0 0 0 Abbod 3b 3 1 1 1
Leboffe cf 1 0 0 0 Padilla ss 2 0 0 0
Messenger rf 2 0 1 0 Sotos 2b 0 0 0 0
DeAnda rf 1 0 1 0 Manzo 2b 3 0 3 1
Hale 3b 3 0 1 0
Starling 2b 2 0 0 0
Palacios 2b 1 0 0 0
TOTALS 31 4 10 3 TOTALS 26 5 10 5
Monte Vista (2-12) 201 000 1 - 4 10 0
El Cajon Valley (4-11) 100 004 x - 5 10 4
GWRBI: Abbod (1).
E: Aquiningoc, Sotos 3. DP: MV 1. LOB: MV 7, ECV 5. 2B: Lopez, Haase. 3B: Sopher. SB: Lopez, Thomas, Myer.
PITCHING SUMMARY
MONTE VISTA ip h r er bb so
Sopher 4.0 4 1 1 1 4
Haase L(0-2) 2.0 6 4 4 1 2
EL CAJON VALLEY
Luis Perez W(2-2) 7.0 10 4 3 1 7
PB: Mendiola, D.Perez.
*
VAQUEROS 12, NORSEMEN 4
VALHALLA ab r h bi EL CAPITAN ab r h bi
Brown ss 3 1 1 0 Russo 2b 4 2 2 1
R.O'Sullivan dh-2b 4 1 1 0 Rauch c 3 2 1 0
S.O'Sullivan 3b-p 2 1 0 0 N.Garcia 1b 3 2 2 2
Baum 1b 3 1 0 1 Sullenger pr 0 1 0 0
McClain c 2 0 0 0 Erickson dh 3 1 2 2
Young p 1 0 1 0 D.Garcia pr 0 1 0 0
Sopata ph 1 0 1 0 Ksiazek ss 4 1 4 2
LaValley rf 3 0 1 1 Walston cf 4 1 2 2
G.Garcia 2b 1 0 0 0 Nazzal lf 4 0 1 0
Smith oh-2b-3b 0 0 0 1 Griffith 3b 2 0 0 0
Moore lf-c 3 0 0 0 Royer ph 2 0 0 0
Wilson cf 3 0 2 0 Hostetler rf 2 1 1 0
TOTALS 26 4 7 3 TOTALS 31 12 14 9
Valhalla (8-5) 000 040 0 - 4 7 4
El Capitan (8-7) 301 017 x - 12 15 3
GWRBI: Ksiazek (2).
E: Julienne, G.Garcia, Ksiazek, Russo, Moore, Griffith, R.O'Sullivan. DP: EC 2. LOB: Val 8, EC 5.
2B: Wilson, R.O'Sullivan, Hostetler, N.Garcia. SB: Brown, S.O'Sullivan, Rauch, N.Garcia, Hostetler.
SF: Erickson, LaValley, Smith.
VALHALLA ip h r er bb so
Julienne 3.0 6 4 2 2 2
M.Young L(1-1) 2.0 2 1 1 0 1
S.O'Sullivan 1.0 7 7 6 0 2
EL CAPITAN
C.Garcia W(4-2) 6.0 6 4 1 3 2
McCarthy 1.0 1 0 0 1 1
Julienne faced 2 batters in the 4th.
WP: S.O'Sullivan. HBP: by S.O'Sullivan (Rauch).
(04-13-05)
El Capitan's Michael Griffith (10) singles up
the middle in Monday's game with Steele Canyon won by
the Vaqueros. (Photo by Ernie Pile)
Vaqueros putting wins together in time for league
campaign
EastCountySports.com
LAKESIDE - STEVE VICKERY has been coaching
long enough to know a pennant race isn't decided at
the starting gate. The veteran El Capitan mentor can
feel the Vaqueros' momentum building as they approach
the start of the Grossmont North League campaign. Six
wins in eight starts following a 1-5 beginning will
do that.
EL CAPITAN 5, STEELE CANYON 3 - This one was
a baseball odyssey in that it featured 7 hit batters
and five double plays. The bottom line was clutch hitting,
wherein the Vaqueros had superior delivery service.
With the score knotted at 1-1, GRIFF ERICKSON
led off the bottom of the 3rd inning with a single.
Pinch runner DAMIAN GARCIA advanced to second
on a wild pitch and darted home on a single by JASSON
KSIAZEK for a 2-1 edge El Capitan would never lose.
El Capitan starting pitcher BRYAN PAUKOVITS
limited the visiting Cougars (8-5) to 2 hits over 6.1
innings as he balanced his pitching ledger at 2-2.
"He went out tentative in the last inning, and
I have no idea why he would do that," El Capitan
coach STEVE VICKERY said.
Of course, Paukovits (2-2) had plenty of support, which
included 4 double plays and three would-be stealers
cut down by throws from catcher AUSTIN RAUCH.
El Capitan's Bryan Paukovits (23) rationed the Cougars
to 2 hits and 3 runs as he picked up the victory for
the Vaqueros on Monday. (4-11-05/Photo by Ernie
Pile)
"We're starting to play a little better defense,"
Vickery said. "We can still make the game interesting.
The bottom line is we are still finding ways to win.
I'm not sure we hit the ball out of the infield (in
a 4-run 3rd inning) when we got those 4 runs. But we
are still just a bit away from busting loose."
Vickery was gauging the difference in pressure.
"Our guys have to learn how to put pressure on
instead of feeling pressure in those situations,"
Vickery said. "Until we can turn that around, it's
going to be a coin flip."
Paukovits' performances have been better than his 2-2
record.
"He is a little unorthodox in the way he pitches,"
Vickery said. "He's effectively wild. But he's
been able to get his 'get-over curveball' consistently.
So you can't just sit on one pitch. He's as tough a
kid as we have - he wants to be out there."
Paukovits dished out a bevy of ground balls, while striking
out 4 in 6.1 innings.
"What counts is we got the win," Paukovits
said. "I'm always trying to hit the corners, never
throwing the same pitch twice - at least not in the
same location. That philosophy seems to be working good
for me."
GROSSMONT 11, MONTE VISTA 0: In the
early 1990s, the San Diego Padres had a quartet of hitters
- Tony Fernandez, Tony Gwynn, Gary Sheffield
and Fred McGriff - that headed their batting
order and were fondly known by the local media as the
"Four Tops."
Grossmont High would like to introduce the Foothillers'
version of "The Four Tops."
Here they are: Messrs TIM FERRARA, A.J. GRIFFIN,
TRISTAN PHILLIPS and DONNIE SNOW. In their
latest performance, the Foothillers' foursome was a
combined 10-for-12, with 3 doubles, 3 home runs, 7 runs
scored and 9 RBI in Monday's (Apr. 11) Grossmont
Conference North/South Tournament dismantling of visiting
Monte Vista.
In addition to lacing a pair of doubles, scoring twice
and plating a pair, Griffin fired a complete-game 2-hit
shutout for his third win without a loss. He needed
only 77 pitches to complete the job, which included
6 strikeouts.
DONNIE SNOW let Rancho Bernardo's John Drennen
know that the San Diego CIF home run race isn't over.
Snow launched his 7th and 8th round-trippers at Monte
Vista's expense, collecting 3 RBI in the process. Drennen
is the leader at the moment with 10 home runs.
Snow's first home run followed a Phillips single, giving
Grossmont (11-3) a 2-0 edge in the 1st inning.
No. 8-ranked Grossmont broke the game open with three
runs in the 2nd inning as MICHAEL MEDINA singled
in one run and Griffin and Phillips followed with RBI
doubles.
Snow smacked a monster solo home run in the 5th and
Phillips pounded a 2-run shot in the 5th.
JESSE RODRIGUEZ and ERIC LEBOFFE accounted
for the only hits for Monte Vista (2-11).
The Foothillers are the front-runners for a berth in
Friday's (Apr. 15) Grossmont North/South Tournament
finals at 4 p.m. No. 4 Granite Hills (12-3), which meets
the Foothillers in the final round of pool play Wednesday
(Apr. 13) at Joe Gizoni Field, most likely will meet
the Hillers for the tournament title two days later.
WEST HILLS 3, HELIX 2: Coach SCOTT HOPGOOD's
Wolf Pack has posted a 4-4 mark after an 0-5 start,
which certainly has caught the attention of those in
the Grossmont North League.
At the crest of the Pack's resurgence is junior southpaw
AARON RICHARDSON, who won his third straight
pitching nod. Richardson, who received late-inning help
from MICHAEL HALL, passed the endurance test
of throwing 138 pitches, striking out 7, walking 6,
and hitting one while allowing 6 hits.
"Richardson threw way too many pitches, but he
was a real bulldog," said Hopgood. "He was
tired, but battled all day."
Hopgood was equally as pleased with his defense.
"The play of the game was when we threw (Helix
catcher ZACH) TANIDA out at the plate in the
4th inning," Hopgood said. "Our defense kept
us in it."
Helix coach COLE HOLLAND couldn't say the same
thing about the Highlanders, who made key miscues that
led to the club's 6th loss in seven starts.
"How do we get 6 hits, 6 walks, a hit batter and
score only 2 runs?" Holland wondered. "I don't
know how many runners we left on, but it must have been
a bunch." Eleven to exact.
RBI by JOE MELLO, STEPHEN STRASBURG and JOSH PICHETTE
staked West Hills (4-9) to a 3-0 lead.
"We drop a fly ball in the 3rd inning and that
gives them 2 runs," Holland said. "Our right
fielder loses a fly ball in the sun and gives them another
run in the 4th inning. You can't give away anything
when you hit like we do."
Helix (8-7) made a game of it with 2 runs in the 5th
inning. STEVEN ROHMER singled and scored on an
ERIK PONCE double. Ponce scurried home on a base
hit by NICK LEDESMA.
"We left runners on all over the place," Holland
said. "We left the bases loaded in the 5th."
VALHALLA 17, EL CAJON VALLEY 1: The
sixth-ranked Norsemen have been looking for a little
more offensive firepower from their outfielders. Senior
STEVEN LeVALLEY may be part of the answer.
LeValley has been in the Valhalla starting lineup for
the last two games, producing 6 hits in 9 at-bats to
raise his season batting average to .500 (7 for 14).
That includes a 4-for-4 burst with 5 RBI in Monday's
(Apr. 11) Grossmont Conference North/South Tournament
romp over host El Cajon Valley. LeValley teed off on
the Braves for a double, three singles and a sacrifice
fly.
Freshman RYAN O'SULLIVAN stroked a solo home
run in the 1st inning and drove in 2 more with a base-hit
in the 2nd inning as Valhalla (8-4) registered 17 runs
against El Cajon Valley for the second time this season.
O'Sullivan also pitched four innings to nab his third
pitching win in four decisions.
Senior SEAN O'SULLIVAN rocketed a 3-run home
run in the 5th inning to highlight one of his better
days, which included two stolen bases, 3 runs and a
single.
CHRIS MOORE went 2-for-4 with a double and 2
RBI for the Norsemen.
MICHAEL YOUNG scored 3 runs and pitched a shutout
inning of relief, while BOBBY WILKINS twirled
2 shutout frames and scored 2 runs.
FEDERICO CARREON accounted for 2 of El Cajon
Valley's five hits.
SANTANA 16, MOUNT MIGUEL 4: EDDIE De
ARCOS' RBI single capped a 2-run 1st inning for
the visiting Matadors, but it was all downhill from
there as Santana stuffed Mount Miguel in Monday's (Apr.11)
Grossmont Conference North/South Tournament clash in
Santee.
Unsung senior second baseman RICHARD MARTINEZ
went 4-for-4, drove in 4 runs and stole a base as Santana
mauled the Matadors.
"Martinez is a real upbeat competitor," Santana
coach JERRY HENSON said. "He did some good
things with the bat like going the opposite way instead
of trying to pull everything."
RYAN BROSNAN was the sparkplug in Santana's 8-run
4th inning. The junior left fielder led off with a triple
and scored and later doubled in two and scored his second
run. He was 3-for-5 for the game.
BRANDON HALEY broke out of a mild slump with
three hits and 3 runs, while JEFF WOODS drove
in three runs and scored twice for No. 5 Santana (13-3).
De Arcos finished 3-for-3 at the dish for Mount Miguel
(0-12), which now has been outscored 125-53. BUD
NEWBORN was 2-for-2 with a double, a pair of steals
and 2 runs.
MONDAY, APR 11, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Grossmont North/South Tournament
SULTANS 16, MATADORS 4
MOUNT MIGUEL ab r h bi SANTANA ab r h bi
Calafato ss 4 0 0 0 Brosnan lf 5 3 3 2
Newborn cf 2 2 2 0 Woods ss 3 1 2 3
Sandoval lf 0 2 0 0 Helmholtz 1b 5 2 2 1
Cannon lf 2 0 0 0 Haley c 5 3 3 1
White c 3 0 0 2 Martin dh 2 0 0 0
De Arcos 1b-cf 3 0 3 1 Schaub dh-p 1 1 1 0
Green 3b 3 0 1 1 Diaz rf 2 1 1 2
Williamson rf-cf-p 3 0 0 0 Miller rf 1 1 0 0
Seavello 2b 2 0 0 0 Martinez 2b 4 2 4 4
Freeman-Bolden p 2 0 0 0 Tippin cf 4 1 1 0
Freeman p 0 0 0 0 Wylie 3b 2 1 1 0
TOTALS 24 4 6 4 TOTALS 34 16 18 13
Mount Miguel (0-12) 201 010 0 - 4 6 2
Santana (13-3) 403 810 X - 16 18 1
PITCHING SUMMARY
MOUNT MIGUEL ip h r er bb so
Freeman-Bolden L(0-1) 3.0 9 7 4 1 2
Freeman 0.2 5 8 8 3 0
Williamson 1.1 4 1 1 0 0
Plunkett 1.0 0 0 0 0 0
SANTANA
Spicer 2.1 3 3 2 2 1
Medrud W(2-0) 3.2 3 1 1 1 0
Schaub 1.0 0 0 0 1 1
HBP: by Spicer (Sandoval 2). WP: Freeman-Bolden, Freeman, Spicer.
*
FOOTHILLERS 11, MONARCHS 0
MONTE VISTA ab r h bi GROSSMONT ab r h bi
Sopher lf 1 0 0 0 Ferrara 2b 4 1 2 1
Messenger lf 1 0 0 0 Griffin P 4 2 2 2
De Anda rf 2 0 0 0 Phillips ss 4 2 3 3
R.Garcia rf 1 0 0 0 Snow rf 4 2 3 3
Lopez 1b-lf 3 0 0 0 Pieczynski c 3 0 0 0
Rodriguez p-1b 3 0 1 0 Williams cf 2 1 1 0
Leboffe cf-p 3 0 1 0 Fox ph 1 0 0 0
Croft ss 2 0 0 0 Passanisi 1b 3 2 2 0
Palacios 2b 1 0 0 0 Longmire ph 1 0 1 0
Mendiola 2b-c 1 0 0 0 Sobel 3b 3 0 0 0
Cooper c 2 0 0 0 Schroeder ph 1 0 0 0
Haase dh 2 0 0 0 Medina lf 3 1 1 1
Hall 3b 0 0 0 0 Berry ph 1 0 0 0
Dawson 2b 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 22 0 2 0 TOTALS 34 11 15 10
Monte Vista (2-11) 000 000 0 - 0 2 3
Grossmont (11-3) 232 120 x - 11 15 0
GWRBI: Snow (4).
E: Lopez, Croft, Leboffe. DP: Gro 1. LOB: MV 2, Gro 7. 2B: Leboffe, Ferrara, Passanisi, Griffin 2.
HR: Phillips (4) 5th, one on; Snow 2:(7,8) 1st, one on, 4th, solo.
PITCHING SUMMARY
MONTE VISTA ip h r er bb so
Rodriguez L(1-6) 3.0 8 7 3 2 2
Leboffe 3.0 7 4 4 0 1
GROSSMONT
Griffin W(3-0) 7.0 2 0 0 0 6
HBP: by Griffin (Sopher).
*
WOLF PACK 3, HIGHLANDERS 2
HELIX ab r h bi WEST HILLS ab r h bi
Rohmer 2b 3 1 0 0 Mello cf 3 0 1 1
Ponce rf 3 1 1 1 Hooper rf 2 0 1 0
Rosenthal pr 0 0 0 0 Strasburg 1b 2 0 0 1
Ledesma cf 3 0 2 1 Richardson p 3 0 0 0
Peterson p-1b 4 0 0 0 Hall p 0 0 0 0
Valles lf 2 0 0 0 Skinner lf 3 0 0 0
Tanida c 3 0 1 0 Gagnon c 3 1 1 0
Ritchie 3b 2 0 0 0 Eddy 3b 3 1 3 0
Webb 1b 2 0 0 0 Hoffard ss 2 0 0 0
Schuler p 1 0 0 0 Pichette dh 2 1 1 1
Wenham p 0 0 0 0 Drescher 2b 0 0 0 0
Perez ss 3 0 2 0
TOTALS 26 2 6 2 TOTALS 23 3 7 3
Helix (8-6) 000 020 0 - 2 6 1
West Hills (4-9) 002 100 x - 3 7 1
GWRBI: Mello (1).
E: Strasburg, Ledesma. DP: Hel 1. LOB: Hel 11, WH 5. 2B: Ponce. SB: Rosenthal, Pichette, Mello. S: Hoffard.
PITCHING SUMMARY
HELIX ip h r er bb so
Peterson L(1-3) 2.1 2 2 1 2 2
Schuler 2.2 4 1 1 1 3
Wenham 1.0 1 0 0 0 1
WEST HILLS
Richardson W(3-2) 6.2 6 2 2 6 7
Hall Sv (1) 0.1 0 0 0 0 0
HBP: by Richardson (Ritchie).
*
NORSEMEN 17, BRAVES 1
VALHALLA ab r h bi EL CAJON VALLEY ab r h bi
J.Brown ss 4 1 1 0 Carreon cf 3 1 2 0
R.O'Sullivan p-1b 3 2 2 3 Abbod c 1 0 1 0
S.O'Sullivan 3b 3 3 2 2 Manzo p 3 0 0 0
Baum 1b 2 1 0 0 L.Perez ss 2 0 0 0
McClain c 2 1 2 1 Aquiningoc rf 2 0 0 0
D.Garcia 2b 3 0 0 1 Mansfield 1b 3 0 1 0
LeValley cf-2b 4 1 4 5 Sotos 2b 3 0 0 0
Moore lf-c 4 0 2 2 Vega p 1 0 0 0
Wilson cf 1 1 1 0 Myer 1b-p 2 0 1 0
Smith ss 2 0 1 0 Padilla lf-p 3 0 0 0
Stangyl p 1 1 0 0
A.Brown 3b 1 1 0 0
M.Young p 2 3 1 0
Wilkins c-p 2 2 1 1
Sopata cf 2 0 0 0
TOTALS 36 17 17 15 TOTALS 23 1 5 0
Valhalla (8-4) 240 244 1 - 17 17 1
El Cajon Valley (3-11) 100 000 0 - 1 5 3
GWRBI: R.O'Sullivan (1).
E: Padilla, Aquiningoc, Abbod, Wilkins. DP: Val 2, ECV 1. LOB: Val 13, ECV 7. 2B: LeValley.
HR: R.O'Sullivan (1) 1st solo; S.O'Sullivan (3) 5th, two on. SB: S.O'Sullivan 2, Brown, Wilson.
SF: Moore, LeValley.
PITCHING SUMMARY
VALHALLA ip h r er bb so
R.O'Sullivan W(3-1) 4.0 4 1 1 1 3
Young 1.0 1 0 0 0 2
Wilkins 2.0 0 0 0 1 0
EL CAJON VALLEY
Vega L(0-1) 1.1 5 6 6 4 0
Myer 3.2 7 6 5 1 2
Padilla 0.0 2 4 3 3 0
Manzo 2.0 3 1 1 0 2
Padilla faced 7 batters in the 6th inning.
HBP: by Padilla (Stangyl); by Manzo (Young); by Vega (McClain, D.Garcia); R.O'Sullivan (Abbod, Young).
*
VAQUEROS 5, COUGARS 3
STEELE CANYON ab r h bi EL CAPITAN ab r h bi
Harris 2b 3 0 0 0 Russo 2b 3 1 2 1
Minich dh 2 0 0 0 Rauch c 4 0 0 0
Inzone 1b 3 0 1 0 N.Garcia 1b 4 0 1 1
Rice rf 3 1 1 0 Erickson dh 3 0 1 0
Duby c 1 1 0 0 D.Garcia pr 0 1 0 0
Epperson ss 2 0 0 1 Ksiazek ss 1 1 1 1
Murray 3b 2 0 0 0 Royer rf 3 0 1 0
Lange ph 0 0 0 0 Nazzal lf 2 1 0 0
Jacobsmeier pr 0 1 0 0 Griffith 3b 2 0 1 1
Lewis lf 2 0 0 0 Hostetler cf 2 1 0 0
Klopp cf 2 0 1 1
TOTALS 20 3 3 2 TOTALS 24 5 7 4
Steele Canyon (8-5) 010 000 2 - 3 3 0
El Capitan (7-7) 104 000 x - 5 7 4
GWRBI: Ksiazek (1).
E: Russo 2, Royer, Paukovits. DP: SC 1, EC 4. LOB: SC 4, EC 7. 2B: N.Garcia, Royer. 3B: Rice, Klopp.
SB: Russo. SF: Griffith.
PITCHING SUMMARY
STEELE CANYON ip h r er bb so
Johnson L(2-1) 6.0 7 5 4 1 3
EL CAPITAN
Paukovits W(2-2) 6.1 2 3 3 5 4
King Sv(1) 0.2 1 0 0 0 1
HBP: by Johnson (Russo, Ksiazek 2, Nazzal); by Paukovits (Lewis, Harris, Minich). WP: Johnson 2, Paukovits 2.
PB: Rauch.
(04-11-05)
Valhalla's Sean O'Sullivan (12) pitched six
shutout innings, allowed 6 hits, walked none and struck
out 9. (4-8-05/Photo by Ernie Pile)
After 'tape ball' shenanigans, Patriots go out and
beat Pennsylvania team in KSA finale
EastCountySports.com
ORLANDO, FL. - Senior KELLEN ROSSITTO is East
County's best-kept secret. And, at 6-foot-3, 250 pounds,
going stealth isn't all that easy. None of that seems
to bother Rossitto, who drove in 5 runs with a double
and a triple Saturday (Apr. 9) to help Christian claim
a 7-4 victory over Shenango (PA) in the final round
of the KSA Tournament. The victory gave the Patriots
(8-4) a 2-1 record in the Central Florida event.
Rossitto, who stretched his season-long hitting streak
to 11 games, hoisted his batting average to .390 with
a two-run triple in the 2nd inning and a plated three
more runs with a bases-loaded triple in the 6th inning.
"He's making contact and hitting the ball hard,"
Christian coach MIKE MITCHELL said. "He
doesn't have any home runs yet, but that's because he's
ripping line drives into the gaps. I'm afraid that if
he concentrated on trying to get more elevation, he'd
pop the ball up more often than not. He's doing fine
with what he's doing now."
ADAM PERRY returned to the Patriots' lineup after
a three-game absence following an injury suffered during
a collision with a teammate a week ago at Mission Bay.
Perry showed no signs of rust, banging out three hits
in as many at-bats against the Shenango Wildcats, which
calls home New Castle, PA.
The week-long trip to Florida has become a bi-annual
event for the Christian High baseball team. A bonding
experience.
"The biggest game of the tournament took place
in the hotel parking lot," Mitchell said. "It's
11 p.m. and I hear all this noise. Then I look out the
window and there is our team in the parking lot, squared
off in a 9-on-9 'tape-ball' game."
Mitchell told his players to cease and come inside.
"They told me the game was tied and they were in
extra innings," Mitchell said. "I told them
to turn down the noise. But when the game ended 14-13
in nine innings, the kids went wild again.
"It's amazing what pleases kids most. Here they
have six days to do all these amusement parks and all
they want to talk about is that 'tape ball' game."
The Christian entourage returns home Sunday (Apr. 10)
and must focus on the start of Harbor league play. The
opener pits the Patriots against favored Madison on
Thursday (Apr. 14) in El Cajon at 3 p.m.
SATURDAY, APR 9, 2005
EastCountySports.com
KSA Tournament (Orlando, Fla.)
PATRIOTS 7, WILDCATS 4
Christian (8-4) 022 003 0 - 7 14 1
Shenango (PA) 001 020 1 - 4 4 0
Mills, Allen (7) and Hart; Stelter, Curry (4) and Senko. W: Mills (4-1). L: Stelter (0-1).
(04-09-05)
Eagles take lead amongst east's elite
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON - Granite Hills, winner of 10 of its last 11
games, has established itself as the unofficial kingpin
of East County baseball. The Eagles, who rallied to
clip West Hills 9-6 on Friday (Apr. 8), are the only
unbeaten team left in the Grossmont Conference North/South
Tournament. The Grossmont North side of the tournament
is a logjam, with three teams - Santana, Grossmont and
El Capitan - sitting at 2-1. Two games remain. Ties
following the pool-play/round robin format are decided
first by head-to-head meetings (if there two teams deadlocked)
and then by fewest runs allowed (if more than two squads
are locked up). The tournament championship game is
slated for Friday (Apr. 15) at the site of the Grossmont
North pool winner.
GRANITE HILLS 9, WEST HILLS 6 - The members of
the Granite Hills bullpen knew they would be pressed
into service, but not under this scenario.
"I knew I'd get into the game, but not that early,"
said reliever GARRETT RUSSELL, who was called
upon after the Eagles' starter could retire only one
batter. "But we kept the team in the game."
After allowing West Hills to jump out of the gates with
four quick runs -- all without the aid of a basehit
-- the Eagles' relief corps tossed 6 innings of shutout
ball, allowing the 7th-ranked Eagles (12-3) to rally
for their third straight Grossmont Conference North-South
Tournament win.
West Hills, which upset No. 2 Valhalla on Monday (Apr.
4), slipped to 3-9.
While Russell and DARREN GAY, who went 2 1/3
frames to collect his second victory of the week and
third of the season, were throwing zeros at the Wolf
Pack, they had to be concerned when the cavalry would
finally arrive.
And just like a Western motion picture from the 1950s,
the Eagles offense waited until the final, decisive
moment to make the rescue, scoring seven times in the
6th to secure the victory.
Limited to just three weak singles by West Hills starter
STEPHEN STRASBURG through five innings, the Eagles
busted loose with 7 hits in pivotal frame, including
doubles by TRAVIS TAIJERON, pinch-hitter BRENT
BOLTZ, BRANDON DECKER and RYAN MARQUIS.
"It was because we finally kept our hands back
and got a good look at the ball," noted Marquis,
who drove in two runs with his liner into the right-field
corner. "Coach (JAMES DAVIS) was telling
us that all game -- to work on going to the opposite
field."
The first pair of doubles were sandwiched around a walk,
ending Strasburg's strong effort. After his depature,
the West Hills relievers couldn't record an out.
"I was looking to hit the first pitch and he came
at me with a fastball," said Boltz, who lined the
initial offering over the first baseman's head to raise
his pinch-hitting totals to 2-for-2 this season. "And
it was outside, too, so I just went with it. Otherwise,
we finally became more patient at the plate."
Boltz' double cut the deficit to 4-3, then BRIAN
HUMPHRIES drilled an 0-2 pitch to right to drive
home a pair to secure the lead.
West Hills mounted its own comeback in the 7th. Strasburg
notched his second hit of the contest, and then scored
on a home run by AARON RICHARDSON. The shot deep
over the wall in right capped a three-RBI performance
by Richardson. He also walked with the bases loaded
in the 1st during the game⤙s wild
start.
The first two Pack batters walked to open the contest,
then moved 90 feet on a balk. KOREY HOOPER was
then hit by a pitch to load the bases, but the Eagles
nailed a lead runner at the plate on an ensuing groundball.
Richardson then walked for the first run, followed by
a sacrifice fly to center from TRAVIS IRVIN.
MICHAEL HALL walked to re-load the bases, and a
wild pitch would score both Strasburg and Richardson,
as the ball was misplayed in an attempt to get the lead
runner. A second error was also given to allow Hall
to reach third.
However, Russell allowed just one hit in his relief
stint, striking out three. Gay followed with a two-hit
effort with two strikeouts, and DONNIE ANDERSON
tossed the final inning, striking out three despite
allowing the homer.
Valhalla's Ryan O'Sullivan (15) slides
into second base as Grossmont's Tim Ferrera
(6) waits for the throw. (4-8-05/Photo by Ernie
Pile).
VALHALLA 6, GROSSMONT 0: Make no
mistake about it. Valhalla's SEAN O'SULLIVAN
continues to be one of the premier pitchers in Southern
California.
The senior right-hander dazzled the No. 6-ranked Foothillers
for six innings, striking out 9, walking none and scattering
six hits as No. 2-ranked Valhalla attempted to re-establish
itself as a San Diego Section power.
"It's a lot bigger to pitch in a game with so much
more on the line like this one here today with Grossmont,"
said O'Sullivan who raised his pitching ledger to 2-0
and lowered his ERA to 2.06. "I was so mentally
focused that I didn't allow room to miss."
O'Sullivan and catcher TOMMY McCLAIN formed a
combination that kept the visiting Foothillers guessing
more often than not.
"It was just one of those days where everything
I threw seemed to find its way into Tommy's glove,"
O'Sullivan said. "He called a pretty good game,
and we were semi on the same page, but there were some
at-bats where we had to go through the signs a few extra
times to figure out what we wanted to do."
Some pro scouts have become naysayers in terms of O'Sullivan's
wealth and ability. Still others maintain that the 6-foot-2,
225-pound right-hander has the tools to toil at the
major league level.
"I'm throwing well and I feel fine," O'Sullivan
said.
Key statistic - O'Sullivan has an 18-to-1 strikeouts-to-walk
ratio.
"Sean had a great game, but there was more to this
game than just his pitching," Valhalla coach STEVE
PERDUE said.
Such as the hitting of leadoff man JAVIER BROWN
and sophomore RYAN O⤙SULLIVAN.
The duo was a combined 5-for-6 with 3 RBI and 2 runs
scored in the top two slots of the Valhalla batting
order.
"We came out here as a team and showed what we
can do," Ryan O'Sullivan said.
Perdue made it clear he is pleased by the efforts of
the two hitters, who bat in front of Sean O'Sullivan.
Brown is batting a team best .563, which includes a
single, double, walk and being hit by a pitch in the
Grossmont game. He scored twice and drove in one run.
"Javy and Ryan are doing a great job of getting
on base," Perdue said. "Now, if we can only
get Sean to relax and break loose offensively we are
going to be dangerous."
Ryan O'Sullivan delivered a key bunt single that set
up Valhalla's second run in the 3rd inning, doubled
in the 5th and drove in two runs with a base hit in
Valhalla's 4-run 6th.
"It was a good confidence booster for Ryan, proving
that he belongs here, and that he can contribute the
rest of the season," Sean O'Sullivan said.
Perdue agreed.
"It's like I told Ryan, if I didn't think he belonged
on the varsity, that he wasn't one of the best nine
players, then he wouldn't be here," the veteran
coach said. "He's right up there at the top in
terms of our batting leaders."
It was a frustrating outing for Grossmont (10-3), which
left runners in scoring position in the first five innings.
"Anytime you can beat those guys, it's sweet,"
Perdue said. "Because they are intense, they're
scrappy and hate to lose."
Grossmont coach ROB PHILLIPS agreed that beating
Sean O'Sullivan is no small task.
"Any time they put O'Sullivan on the mound, they
have an excellent chance to win," Phillips said.
"But more than that, we gave them way too much
respect. We can compete with these guys, but we didn't
today."
SANTANA 3, HELIX 1: Sophomore DALLAS
MARTIN gave the suddenly struggling Sultans a lift
on Friday (Apr. 8) as he came within one out of spinning
Santana's 4th shutout of the season.
Helix sophomore JEREMY PETERSON foiled Martin's
bid with a booming home run into the trees beyond the
right field fence with two outs in the bottom of the
7th inning.
While impressed by Peterson's mammoth home run, Helix
coach COLE HOLLAND continued to express his concern
about the Highlanders' offensive slump.
"We didn't hit the ball again," Holland said.
Helix has scored 2 or fewer runs in its last six starts.
The Highlanders (8-6) have produced 2 or fewer tallies
in half of their 14 games.
"Our offense is putting too much pressure on our
defense," Holland said. "We need to get somebody
hitting the ball."
Third-ranked Santana (12-3) didn't produce much on the
offensive end at Helix, either. It took an error to
set up KYLE HELMHOLTZ's RBI single in the 3rd
inning.
A one-out double by JEFF WOODS set the Sultans'
offense in motion in the 5th. A dropped fly ball coupled
with RBI singles by BRANDON HALEY and RYAN
BROSNAN extended Helix's advantage to 3-0.
Helix pitchers MATT WENHAM and DUSTIN RUNIONS
pitched well enough to win, as they surrendered just
7 hits and one earned run.
EL CAPITAN 15, MOUNT MIGUEL 4: Ever
so slowly the El Capitan Vaqueros are picking up steam.
A 7-run 4th inning in Friday's (Apr. 8) Grossmont Conference
North/South Tournament propelled the visiting Vaqueros
to their highest scoring output of the season and their
4th win in five games.
JASSON KSIAZEK went 3-for-3 with 3 RBI, including
a 2-run home run in the blowout 4th inning. LOUIE
RUSSO was 2-for-4 with a triple, 2 runs and a pair
of RBI for El Capitan (6-7).
NIK GARCIA was 2-for-4 with 2 runs and 2 RBI,
while pitching 4 shutout innings to earn his first win
in three decisions.
"Nik had his best performance on the mound this
year," said El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY.
"He faced a minimum of 12 batters in four innings.
That to me was the biggest plus of the game."
The Vaqueros tattooed three Mount Miguel pitchers for
15 hits, including a double and a triple by AUSTIN
RAUCH.
STEELE CANYON 7, EL CAJON VALLEY 1: Talk
about a role reversal . . . El Cajon Valley was coming
off a 17-run outburst two days earlier and the Cougars
of Steele Canyon produced just one hit in seven innings.
Coach PHIL MITTRY's Cougars received a superb
pitching effort from ROSS EPPERSON and ANDREW
BRUDER as they shut down the Braves on 3 hits in
Friday's (Apr. 8) Grossmont Conference North/South Tournament
win at Steele Canyon's Rattlesnake Ridge.
"Epperson pitched a great game," Mittry said.
"He gave us what we needed. After Wednesday (when
the Cougars suffered a 14-0 drubbing by Grossmont),
we needed somebody to step up. Duby came up with a couple
of clutch hits today and so did Rice.
"This win got Wednesday out of everyone's system."
The Cougars struck first as junior DANNY HARRIS
led off the bottom of the 1st inning with his first
home run of the season. Catcher DEVON DUBY added
an RBI single later in the inning.
Duby wasn't done as he drilled a 2-run double in the
5th inning staking Steele Canyon to a 4-0 lead. An inning
later, CHRIS RICE ripped a two-run double to
give Steele Canyon (8-4) a 6-1 bulge. WILL MURRAY
plated Rice with the Cougars' fifth double of the afternoon.
El Cajon Valley (3-10) avoided the shutout in the 6th
inning. FEDERICO CARREON singled to give the
Braves a start. LUIS PEREZ walked and JONATHAN
MANZO singled to load the bases. ALAN ABBOD
brought home Carreon with a sacrifice fly, but the Braves
could do no more damage.
FRIDAY, APR 8, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Grossmont North/South Tournament
SULTANS 3, HIGHLANDERS 1
SANTANA ab r h bi HELIX ab r h bi
Martin p 4 0 0 0 Ledesma cf 3 0 1 0
Woods ss 4 1 2 0 Rohmer 2b 4 0 0 0
Helmholtz 1b 4 0 1 1 Ponce rf 3 0 0 0
Haley c 3 1 1 1 Valles lf 4 0 1 0
Basnight 3b 3 0 0 0 Beltran dh 3 0 0 0
Brosnan lf 2 0 2 1 Tanida c 2 0 1 0
Tippin dh-lf 3 0 0 0 Ritchie 3b 2 0 0 0
Martinez 2b 3 0 0 0 Foy ph 1 0 0 0
Miller rf 3 1 1 0 R.Perez ss 2 0 1 0
Peterson 1b 3 1 1 1
TOTALS 30 3 7 3 TOTALS 27 1 5 1
Santana (12-3) 001 102 0 - 3 7 1
Helix (8-6) 000 000 1 - 1 5 4
GWRBI: Helmholtz (3).
E: Woods, Ritchie 2, Rohmer, Ponce. LOB: Sant 8, Hel 11. 2B: Woods, Valles. HR: Peterson (1), 7th, solo. SB: Ledesma, Diaz.
PITCHING SUMMARY
SANTANA ip h r er bb so
Martin W(3-1) 7.0 5 1 1 4 5
HELIX
Wenham L(2-2) 6.0 7 3 1 2 4
Runions 1.0 0 0 0 0 0
HBP: by Martin (Ponce, Peterson). WP: Martin 2.
*
NORSEMEN 6, GROSSMONT 0
GROSSMONT ab r h bi VALHALLA ab r h bi
Ferrara 2b 4 0 0 0 J.Brown ss 2 2 2 1
Griffin 3b-p 4 0 0 0 R.O'Sullivan 3b 4 0 3 2
Phillips ss 3 0 1 0 Julienne p 0 0 0 0
Snow p 3 0 0 0 S.O'Sullivan p-3b 3 0 1 1
Sobel 3b 0 0 0 0 Baum 1b 4 0 0 0
Pieczynski c 3 0 2 0 McClain c 3 1 2 0
Passanisi 1b 2 0 1 0 G.Garcia 2b 2 1 1 0
Longmire 1b 1 0 0 0 LeValley lf 3 1 1 0
Williams cf 3 0 1 0 A.Brown rf 1 0 0 0
Cusumano lf 2 0 0 0 Sopata rf 1 0 0 0
Fox lf 1 0 0 0 Wilson cf 3 1 0 0
Berry rf 2 0 1 0
Medina ph 1 0 0 0
TOTALS 29 0 6 0 TOTALS 26 6 10 4
Grossmont (10-3) 000 000 0 - 0 6 1
Valhalla (7-4) 011 004 X - 6 10 2
GWRBI: None.
E: J.Brown, Ferrara, R.O'Sullivan. DP: Gro 1. LOB: Gro 8, Val 7.
2B: J.Brown, R.O'Sullivan, McClain, S.O'Sullivan. SB: Phillips, Piecynski, McClain, Berry, Ferrara.
PITCHING SUMMARY
GROSSMONT ip h r er bb so
Snow L(2-2) 5+ 7 3 2 3 4
Griffin 1.0 3 3 3 1 0
VALHALLA
S.O'Sullivan W(2-0) 6.0 6 0 0 0 9
Julienne 1.0 0 0 0 0 1
Snow faced 2 batters in the 6th inning.
HBP: by Snow (J.Brown, G.Garcia).
*
COUGARS 7, BRAVES 1
EL CAJON VALLEY ab r h bi STEELE CANYON ab r h bi
Carreon rf-p 3 1 1 0 Harris 2b 3 1 1 1
L.Perez ss 1 0 0 0 Minich ss 4 1 2 0
Manzo p-rf 2 0 1 0 Inzone 1b 3 3 2 0
Mansfield 1b 3 0 0 0 Rice rf 3 2 1 2
Abbod 3b 1 0 0 1 Duby c 4 0 2 3
D.Perez c 3 0 0 0 Knaust dh 2 0 0 0
Watson cf 3 0 1 0 Jenner dh 2 0 0 0
Vega lf 3 0 0 0 Murray 3b 4 0 1 1
Sotos 2b 2 0 0 0 Lewis lf 4 0 3 0
Hopwood ph 1 0 0 0 Klopp cf 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 22 1 3 1 TOTALS 29 7 12 7
El Cajon Valley (3-10) 000 001 0 - 1 3 2
Steele Canyon (8-4) 200 023 x - 7 12 1
GWRBI: Harris (1).
E: Abbod, D.Perez, Minich. LOB: ECV 5, SC 9. 2B: Inzone, Rice, Duby, Murray, Lewis.
HR: Harris (1) 1st, solo. SB: Duby, Lewis. SF: Abbod.
PITCHING SUMMARY
EL CAJON VALLEY ip h r er bb so
Manzo L(0-1 4.0 6 4 4 3 2
Carreon 2.0 6 3 1 1 1
STEELE CANYON
Epperson W(3-0) 6.0 3 1 1 2 7
Bruder 1.0 0 0 0 0 2
HBP: by Manzo (Harris; by Carreon (Inzone); by Epperson (L.Perez, Manzo). BK: Carreon.
*
VAQUEROS 15, MATADORS 4
EL CAPITAN ab r h bi MOUNT MIGUEL ab r h bi
Russo 2b 4 2 2 3 Calafato 3b 4 0 0 0
Rauch c 5 2 2 2 Newborn cf 3 1 0 0
Henson ph 0 0 0 0 Sandoval p 3 1 2 1
N.Garcia p 4 2 2 2 White c 2 1 2 1
King p 1 0 1 0 DeArcos rf 2 1 1 0
Petrille p 0 0 0 0 Cannon rf 1 0 0 0
Erickson 1b 1 1 0 0 Williamson 2b 3 0 1 0
McCarthy 1b 1 0 0 1 Bilden 1b 0 0 0 0
Kziazek ss 3 2 3 3 Seavello ss 3 0 1 0
Sullenger ss 2 0 0 0 Avery lf 0 0 0 0
Walston cf 4 0 0 0 Plunkett 3b 1 0 0 0
Nazzal lf 2 1 1 1 Vanderhyde 1 2 0 0 0
D.Garcia 2 2 2 0 Freeman 1b 3 0 1 0
Griffith 3b 2 1 1 2
Hostetler rf 2 1 0 0
Royer rf 2 1 1 0
TOTALS 37 15 15 14 TOTALS 27 4 8 3
El Capitan (6-7) 301 702 2 - 15 15 2
Mount Miguel (0-11 000 022 0 - 4 8 2
GWRBI: N.Garcia (3).
E: D.Garcia, C.Garcia, Newborn, Seavello. DP: EC 2. LOB: EC 11, MM 3.
2B: Sandoval, White, DeArcos, Williamson, Freeman, Rauch, N.Garcia, Ksiazek. 3B: Russo, Rauch.
HR: Ksiazek (1) 4th, one on. SB: Rauch, Hostetler, Newborn.
PITCHING SUMMARY
EL CAPTAN ip h r er bb so
N.Garcia W(1-2) 4.0 1 0 0 1 3
King 2.0 6 4 3 0 1
Petrille 1.0 1 0 0 0 0
MOUNT MIGUEL
Sandoval L(0-4) 3+ 7 10 9 4 0
Vanderhyde 2.2 5 3 3 2 1
Green 1.1 3 2 2 1 2
Sandoval faced 4 batters in the 4th inning.
HBP: by Sandoval (Walston, Erickson); by Vanderhyde (Nazzal). WP: Sandoval, Vanderhyde. BK: Vanderhyde 2.
*
EAGLES 9, WOLF PACK 6
WEST HILLS ab r h bi GRANITE HILLS ab r h bi
Mello cf 2 0 1 0 Decker ss 3 1 1 1
Skinner 1b-rf 2 1 0 0 Marquis cf 3 2 1 2
Eddy dh 0 0 0 0 Crawford dh 3 0 2 2
Hooper lf 2 1 0 0 Monette c 3 1 0 0
Strasburg p-1b 4 1 2 0 Taijeron lf 3 1 1 0
Carley pr 0 0 0 0 Anderson 1b 2 1 1 1
Parker pr 0 1 0 0 Roberts 1b 0 0 0 0
Richardson rf-p 3 2 1 3 Horner 3b 1 0 0 0
Irvin 2b 3 0 0 1 Boltz ph 1 1 1 1
Hall 3b 3 0 0 0 Humphries rf 3 1 1 2
Pichette c 2 0 0 0 Cazares 2b 3 1 2 0
Hutchins dh-p 3 0 1 0
Marcelis ss 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 25 6 5 4 TOTALS 25 9 10 9
West Hills (3-9) 400 000 2 - 6 5 1
GRANITE HILLS (12-3) 100 107 x - 9 10 4
GWRBI: Humphries (1).
E: Russell, Monette, Horner 2, Marcelis. DP: WH 1. LOB: WH 7, GH 5. 2B: Taijeron, Boltz, Decker, Marquis.
HR: Richardson (1), 7th, 1 on. SB: Marquis, Mello 2, Pichette, Richardson. S: Horner, Mello. SF: Irvin.
WEST HILLS ip h r er bb so
Strasburg L(0-5 5.1 5 5 4 4 2
Richardson 0.0 3 3 3 0 0
Hutchins 0.2 2 1 1 1 0
GRANITE HILLS
Sylvester 0.1 0 4 3 3 0
Russell 3.1 1 0 0 4 3
Gay W(3-0) 2.1 2 0 0 0 2
Anderson 1.0 2 2 2 0 3
HBP: by Sylvester (Hooper). WP: Russell 2. BK: Sylvester.
(04-08-05)
Pats' Jones pitches shutout against Pennsylvania
team at Florida event
EastCountySports.com
ORLANDO, Fla. - Christian High baseball coach MIKE
MITCHELL wanted to talk about the rain. He had plenty
to discuss as thunderstorms hammered Florida Thursday
(Apr. 7) afternoon and evening. Fortunately, the storms
hit 10 minutes after the final pitch of Christian's
KSA Tournament doubleheader. "I've never
seen anything like it," said Mitchell. "First
the wind, then thunder and lightning, followed by an
instant downpour. I've never seen it rain so hard, so
fast."
G1: CALVARY CHAPEL (SANTA ANA) 10, CHRISTIAN
8: The Patriots failed to hold a 4-0 lead as they
dropped the opening round game in Central Florida. Calvary
Chapel raked three Christian pitchers for 10 unanswered
runs before junior BRAD ALLEN and sophomore
JOHN FERREIRA pitched one shutout inning apiece
to restore order.
"Putting people on base by hitting them or walking
them is killing us," Mitchell said. "In this
game we walked six and hit one. Five of those guys scored."
Retiring the opponent's leadoff batter has been another
Achilles Heel for the Patriots. In the last 16 innings,
Christian pitchers have permitted the first batter to
reach base 14 times.
"That's no way to win a ballgame," Mitchell
exclaimed.
Christian's offense was in high gear against the Eagles
from Santa Ana. JIMMY DOSSETT's two-run single
and freshman EDDIE YOUNG's 2-run double staked
the Patriots to the 2nd inning lead.
After Calvary Chapel launched its major comeback, the
Patriots made one final charge with 4 runs in the 5th
inning. NICK ADAMS' two-run double was the key
blow. The Pats had a chance for more, but left the bases
loaded as the final batter struck out.
G2: CHRISTIAN 2, GROVE CITY (PA.) 0: Junior
TODD JONES blanked the Pennsylvania bunch on
3 hits in Thursday's nightcap, giving Christian a split
of the twinbill at the Atlanta Braves' Wide World Sports
Park spring training facility.
Jones, who struck out 9 and walked none, turned Christian's
first complete game of the season.
"I might have found my ace," Mitchell said
of Jones.
The Patriots did all of their scoring in the 1st inning.
RYAN ABELL led off with a double and EDDIE
YOUNG followed with a walk.
KELLEN ROSSITTO ripped a single to score Abell
and stretch his season-long hitting streak to an East
County best 10 games. Young scooted home on a wild pitch.
End of scoring.
The only other hit Christian produced was JIMMY DOSSETT's
single to left with one out in the 2nd inning.
Christian's other base runners reached on walks.
Abell walked in the 5th and stole second, while MATT
HART drew his free pass and pinch-runner C. J.
SCHROEDER swiped second in the 6th .
THURSDAY, APR 7, 2005
EastCountySports.com
KSA Tournament (Orlando, Fla.)
Game 1:
EAGLES 10, PATRIOTS 8
Christian (6-4) 040 040 0 - 8 10 3
Calvary Chapel (Santa Ana) 025 300 x - 10 12 1
Mills, O'Donnell (3), Murray (4), Allen (5), Ferreira (6) and Hart; Rickerts, Persinger (7) and Wilson.
W: Rickerts. L: O'Donnell (0-1).
*
Game 2:
PATRIOTS 2, EAGLES 0
Grove City (PA) 000 000 0 - 0 3 0
Christian (7-4) 200 000 x - 2 3 0
Alfredo, Jaskowak (7) and Moore; Jones and Hart. W: Jones (2-1). L: Alfredo.
(04-07-05)
Soon-to-be Poet Perez wields wild complete-game
win for Braves
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON - When LUIS PEREZ meets his new Whittier
College football teammates in the fall, the El Cajon
Valley senior can tell the story of his unorthodox and
unlikely complete-game baseball pitching performance.
Perez yielded 11 runs and 14 hits while allowing runs
in all seven innings Wednesday (Apr. 6), yet his effort
was good enough for a 17-11 victory over visiting Mount
Miguel in a Grossmont North/South Tournament encounter.
While the Matadors (0-10) were taking their best shots
at Perez, the Braves (3-9) teed off on four Mount Miguel
pitchers for 17 hits to nail down the victory.
"It definitely was a strange game," stated
Perez, who struck out seven and was tagged with four
unearned runs. "I wasn't very good to start off,
but the team picked me up. I couldn't have done it without
them."
Perez, a strong-armed quarterback who guided El Cajon
Valley's football fortunes for the past two seasons,
hopes to make an impact on the gridiron for the NCAA
Division III Whittier College Poets next year.
Meanwhile, 13 runs in the game that featured 31 hits
and a dozen errors between the two squads were unearned.
Trailing 6-2, the Braves rallied back with nine runs
in the 4th inning to turnaround the lead. El Cajon
Valley collected seven hits in that frame, then took
advantage of 5 of Mount Miguel's 8 errors in the 54-minute
barrage.
"It wasn't just me -- everybody was hitting the
ball," said El Cajon Valley second baseman SHAUN
SOTOS, who collected two of his three hits in the
big inning, including a leadoff single. "Everything
is coming together on our team -- we're no longer down
on each other."
Sotos was sacrificed to second on a STEVE HOPWOOD
bunt, then scored when NICK DYER blooped a double
inside the right-field line.
Then the snowball of mistakes avalanched on Mount Miguel,
as four of the next five Braves batters either reached
base or took an extra base due to miscues in the field.
Included was a ground ball by DEREK PEREZ which
was booted, allowing Luis Perez to score the go-ahead
run at 7-6.
ALLEN ABOOD, who matched Derek Perez with a 3-for-4,
three-RBI performance, added a two-run single in the
5th. CLIFTON THOMAS slugged a two-run triple
in the 6th, although he was gunned down at the plate
in an attempt for an inside-the-park home run.
But who could blame him? The teams were running on each
other all afternoon, combining for 17 stolen bases,
including three each by FEDERICO CARREON and
Luis Perez of the Braves and Mount Miguel's BUD NEWBORN.
Newborn's three thefts came on consecutive plays, initially
stealing second and third bases, then racing home on
a 1-1 pitch to JEREMIAH WHITE, sliding safely
without a play being made on him to open the scoring
in the first.
The Matadors extended their early lead to 3-0 on a two-run
triple by CHRIS FREEMAN in the 2nd. Mount Miguel
made it 4-0 an inning later when Newborn scored from
third while JAMIE SANDOVAL was nailed trying
to steal second.
Sandoval finished 3-for-4, including an RBI single in
the 6th to trim El Cajon Valley's lead to 14-9.
JONATHAN MANZO went 3-for-5 with three runs scored
for the Braves, as every El Cajon Valley player -- starter
and reserve -- collected at least one hit. KEVIN
MANSFIELD was a pair of hits and an RBI.
GRANITE HILLS 4, SANTANA 3: One thing Granite
Hills sophomore pitcher ERIC KRAUSE has proven
in his two seasons in the Eagles' baseball program -
he knows how to win.
After compiling an 8-1 record as a freshman on the Granite
Hills junior varsity, Krause has stacked up 5 straight
victories without a loss as a varsity starter.
"That kid is amazing," Granite Hills coach
JAMES DAVIS said. "Even when he doesn't
have his best stuff, as was the case today, he manages
to find a way to win. His defense let him down, and
his control wasn't as sharp as it usually is."
Krause, with solid relief help from DONNIE ANDERSON,
combined to check the Sultans on two hits. None of Santana's
runs were earned thanks to three infield errors by a
Granite Hills defense that had been spotless in three
previous outings.
Small wonder Granite Hills (11-3) has won four straight
and nine of its last 10.
Santana ace JEFF WOODS was a hard-luck loser
on this afternoon. However, had the Eagles been forced
to use wooden bats instead of the customary aluminum,
the outcome might have been different.
Woods, who had not allowed an earned run in 22.1 innings,
was tagged for 3 runs in the opening frame by the Eagles
(11-3).
"They barely hit a ball out of the infield,"
Santana coach JERRY HENSON said. "I mean
not a single ball was hit hard."
BRANDON DECKER sparked an opening rally with
a high chopper off the Santana third baseman's glove
for a double. RYAN MARQUIS followed with an infield
single to place runners at the corners. One out later,
NICK MONETTE blooped a base hit into short left
field, scoring Decker.
TRAVIS TAIJERON rolled a single through the right
side of the infield to cash in Marquis for a 2-0 lead.
BRET HORNER plated a third run with a popup that
landed behind the mound for a base hit.
"Woods was pretty unlucky in that inning,"
Henson understated.
Santana (11-3) fought back with a pair of runs in the
5th inning. The Eagles were major contributors in that
rally, committing two errors around a walk for one run.
Woods blistered an RBI double to make it 3-2.
Woods' extra-base blow was Santana's first hit of the
game.
To make the loss even more stinging for Santana was
how Granite Hills scored its winning run in the 7th
inning.
Sophomore LOUIS CAZARES drew a leadoff walk to
set the Eagles' wheels in motion. Cazares advanced to
second on Decker's groundout. Marquis slapped a single
to put runners at first and third with one down.
CODY CRAWFORD tapped a roller about 20 feet in
front of the plate. Crawford did not run, however, as
he was certain the ball had hit his foot.
Foul ball?
Not in the plate umpire's eye's. Fortunately for the
Eagles, Marquis raced home on the play to score The
Sultans failed to field the ball, thinking it was foul.
Both coaches agreed that the ball should have been ruled
foul. Instead, the run that Marquis scored was the game
winner.
Thus, Woods was tagged with his first loss in five decisions.
"It was a frustrating loss," Henson said.
"They had all those seeing-eye hits in the first
inning and held us to 2 hits, well, I guess we didn't
deserve to win. Give their pitchers credit, especially
Krause. He was throwing pitches in a location where
our guys couldn't do anything but pop them up."
MONTE VISTA 6, WEST HILLS 3: Monte
Vista coach LARRY RINEHART took a different approach
in preparation for this week's games.
"I met with the kids in center field before practice
and asked them what I needed to do as a coach to make
us a better team," Rinehart said. "They said
a lot of interesting things, one of which was to face
'live' batting practice."
Rinehart provided that for his team. And the Monarchs
responded by pounding out 10 hits, including victory-clinching
home runs by DAN DeANDA and ERIC LEBOFFE
in the 5th inning as Monte Vista (2-10) snapped an 8-game
losing streak.
Rinehart also summoned former assistant coach JOHN
LOMBARDI to work the Monte Vista pitchers.
"He worked with the kids on Saturday and plans
to do so again this weekend," Rinehart said. "He
does a great job and the kids really respond to him."
Indeed.
Leboffe hurled no-hit ball for 4.1 innings, but struggled
with his control, leading Rinehart to bring in GOLDIE
SIMMONS to finish the job.
Despite surrendering 3 runs, Leboffe earned his first
varsity win after suffering three losses. Simmons gave
up 2 hits, but allowed no runs as he earned the save.
Monte Vista sophomore catcher CORY COOPER drove
in runs with an RBI single in the 2nd inning and a double
in the 4th.
The offense for West Hills (3-8) consisted of a double
by KOREY HOOPER and a single by AARON RICHARDSON.
The Pack's 2 runs scored when Hooper and STEPHEN
STRASBURG were plunked by pitches with the bases
loaded in the 5th inning.
"I'm disappointed with our effort and intensity
today," West Hills coach SCOTT HOPGOOD said.
"We were flat."
EL CAPITAN 6, HELIX 1: Consider the El
Capitan Vaqueros back on their feet.
Following a slow start, the 5-7 Vaqueros have won four
of their last six starts and appear ready to challenge
for a third straight San Diego CIF Division II championship.
"We are getting outstanding pitching and that makes
things a whole lot easier," El Capitan coach STEVE
VICKERY said. "Our pitchers are giving us a
chance to win ballgames."
One of those pitchers is junior CRISTIAN GARCIA,
who twirled a nifty 2-hitter as the Vaqueros breezed
past the visiting Highlanders in Wednesday's (Apr. 6)
Grossmont Conference North/South Tournament game.
One of three brothers on the team, Cristian Garcia struck
out 6 and walked one as he improved his record to 3-2.
"Cristian has been dominating in all of his starts
this year," Vickery said.
This was no exception. The extent of Helix's offensive
output consisted of ERIK PONCE's line-drive single
to left in the 4th and STEVEN ROHMER's pop fly
single in the 6th.
El Capitan touched up Helix starter MIKE SCHULER
for 9 hits, including doubles by GRIFF ERICKSON
and JOSH WALSTON and triples by LOUIE RUSSO
and THOMAS HOSTETLER.
"I try to be aggressive," said Erickson, who
was 2-for-3 including an RBI double in the 1st inning.
"I think people haven't anticipated what we can
do, but I think we are going to come back and show them
what we've got."
GROSSMONT 14, STEELE CANYON 0: This turned
out to be a stunning mismatch, considering the visiting
Steele Canyon Cougars had won 70 percent of their 10
games coming in.
Apparently, Grossmont was not impressed.
The Foothillers whacked five home runs and scored 10
of their 14 runs after two outs in Wednesday's (Apr.
6) Grossmont Conference North/South Tournament blowout
at Joe Gizoni Field.
Of course, the long ball has always been a major part
of Grossmont's offensive scheme. The Foothillers have
hammered an East County-best 20 home runs in 12 games
this season.
Senior DONNIE SNOW paced the Foothillers' latest
onslaught, driving in four runs with a pair of singles
and his East County-leading 6th home run. Snow slashed
an RBI single in the 1st inning, scoring A.J. GRIFFIN
with what would be all the run support sophomore
TAYLOR WOHLWEND (4-0) would need.
Wohlwend limited Steele Canyon to one hit over six innings,
while striking out 6 and walking 2. Griffin twirled
a perfect 7th as No. 6-ranked Grossmont improved to
10-2.
The Hillers broke the game open with 6 runs in the 2nd
inning. TREVOR BERRY belted a 2-run homer as
did Griffin. Snow and DANNY PIECZYNSKI chipped
in with RBI singles.
AUGIE WILLIAMS and Pieczynski also clubbed solo
homers for the Hillers.
CODY MINICH accounted for Steele Canyon's only
hit.
WEDNESDAY, APR 6, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Grossmont North/South Tournament
MONARCHS 6, WOLF PACK 3
MONTE VISTA ab r h bi WEST HILLS ab r h bi
Sopher lf 3 1 2 0 Mello cf 2 0 0 0
R.Garcia lf 1 0 0 0 Skinner lf-p 2 1 0 0
DeAnda rf 4 1 2 2 Parker lf 1 0 0 0
Lopez 1b 4 0 1 0 Hooper rf 3 0 1 1
Rodriguez dh 4 1 1 0 Strasburg 1b 2 0 0 2
Hale 3b 0 0 0 0 Irvin 2b 3 0 0 0
Leboffe p 2 2 2 1 Eddy p 2 0 0 0
Simmons p 0 0 0 0 Hutchings p 1 0 0 0
Croft ss 3 0 0 0 Hall 3b 2 1 0 0
Palacios 2b 1 1 0 0 Richardson dh 2 1 1 0
Mendiola 2b 1 0 0 0 Marcellus ss 3 0 0 0
Cooper c 3 0 2 2 Thomason c 0 0 0 0
Haase cf 3 0 0 0 Pichette c 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 29 6 10 5 TOTALS 23 3 2 2
Monte Vista (2-10) 010 230 0 - 6 10 1
West Hills (3-8) 100 020 0 - 3 2 1
GWRBI: Palacios (1).
E: Croft, Hall. DP: WH 1. LOB: MV 3, WH 7. 2B: DeAnda, Rodriguez, Cooper, Hooper.
HR: DeAnda (1) 5th, one on; Leboffe (1) 5th, solo. SB: Hall, Richardson, Palacios.
PITCHING SUMMARY
MONTE VISTA ip h r er bb so
Leboffe W(1-3) 4.1 0 3 3 4 3
Simmons Sv(1) 2.2 2 0 0 0 2
WEST HILLS
Eddy L(1-3) 4+ 7 5 5 1 0
Hutchings 2.1 2 1 1 0 2
Skinner 0.2 1 0 0 0 0
Eddy faced 3 batters in the 5th inning.
HBP: by Simmons (Hooper, Strasburg). WP: Leboffe. PB: Cooper.
*
EAGLES 4, SULTANS 3
GRANITE HILLS ab r h bi SANTANA ab r h bi
Decker ss 3 1 1 0 Martin ss 4 1 0 0
Marquis cf 3 1 2 0 Woods p 3 0 1 1
Crawford dh 4 0 1 1 Helmholtz 1b 3 0 0 0
Monette c 4 1 2 1 Haley c 4 0 0 1
Taijeron lf 3 0 1 1 Basnight 3b 3 0 0 0
Humphries rf 3 0 0 0 Hermansen cf 3 0 0 0
Horner 3b 3 0 2 1 Brosnan lf 2 1 0 0
Russell 1b 2 0 0 0 Martinez 2b 1 1 1 0
Cazares 2b 2 1 1 0 Miller rf 2 0 0 0
Diaz pr 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 27 4 10 4 TOTALS 25 3 2 2
Granite Hills (11-3) 300 000 1 - 4 10 3
Santana (11-3) 333 020 1 - 3 2 1
GWRBI: Monette (3).
E: Horner, Cazares, Martin. DP: Sant 1, GH 1. LOB: GH 6, Sant 8. 2B: Decker, Woods. S: Martinez.
PITCHING SUMMARY
GRANITE HILLS ip h r er bb so
Krause W(5-0) 4.2 1 2 0 4 5
Anderson 2.1 1 1 0 2 0
SANTANA
Woods L(4-1) 7.1 1 1 0 2 0
HBP: by Krause (Helmholtz).
*
FOOTHILLERS 14, COUGARS 0
STEELE CANYON ab r h bi GROSSMONT ab r h bi
Harris 2b 2 0 0 0 Ferrara 2b 4 2 3 0
Shepard 2b 1 0 0 0 Schroeder ph 0 0 0 0
Minich ss 2 0 1 0 Griffin 3b-p 4 2 2 3
Epperson ss 0 0 0 0 Adams ph 1 0 0 0
Inzone 1b 3 0 0 0 Phillips ss 5 2 2 2
Rice rf 2 0 0 0 Snow dh 4 2 3 4
Duby c 3 0 0 0 Pieczynski c 4 1 2 2
Lange dh 3 0 0 0 Passanisi 1b 2 0 0 0
Murray 3b 2 0 0 0 Sobel 3b 2 0 0 0
Lewis lf 2 0 0 0 Cusumano lf 2 0 0 0
Klopp cf 1 0 0 0 Fox lf 2 0 0 0
Jacobsmeier lf 0 0 0 0 Williams cf 2 2 1 1
Berry rf 1 2 1 2
Medina rf 1 1 1 0
TOTALS 21 0 1 0 TOTALS 34 14 15 13
Steele Canyon (7-4) 000 000 0 - 0 1 2
Grossmont (10-2) 164 210 x - 14 15 0
GWRBI: Snow (3).
E: Minich 2. DP: Gro 1. LOB: SC 3, Gro 7. 2B: Phillips 2.
HR: Berry (1) 2nd, one on; Griffin (4) 2nd, one on; Williams (2) 4th, solo; Pieczynski (4) 5th, solo;
Snow (6) 3rd, one on. SB: Minich, Epperson, Williams, Ferrara.
PITCHING SUMMARY
STEELE CANYON ip h r er bb so
Bruder L(1-2) 1.2 7 7 7 1 1
Johnson 2.2 6 6 6 1 2
West 2.0 2 1 1 0 0
GROSSMONT
Wohlwend W(4-0) 6.0 1 0 0 2 6
Griffin 1.0 0 0 0 0 1
HBP: by Johnson (Berry); by West (Schroeder); by Wohlwend (Klopp). WP: Bruder.
*
VAQUEROS 6, HIGHLANDERS 1
HELIX ab r h bi EL CAPITAN ab r h bi
Ledesma cf 3 0 0 0 Russo 2b 4 0 1 0
Rohmer 2b 2 0 1 0 Rauch c 4 0 0 0
Ponce rf 3 1 1 0 N.Garcia 1b 3 1 1 0
Peterson 1b 3 0 0 0 Erickson dh 3 0 2 1
Valles lf 2 0 0 1 D. Garcia pr 0 1 0 0
Rosenthal dh 1 0 0 0 Ksiazek ss 2 0 0 0
Tanida c 3 0 0 0 Walston cf 2 2 1 1
Ritchie 3b 2 0 0 0 Nazzal lf 3 1 2 0
R.Perez ss 2 0 0 0 Griffith 3b 3 0 1 1
Hostetler rf 3 1 1 2
TOTALS 21 1 2 1 TOTALS 27 6 9 5
Helix (8-5) 000 100 0 - 1 2 1
El Capitan (5-7) 100 203 x - 6 9 2
GWRBI: Walston (3)
E: C.Garcia, Ritchie, Nazzal. DP: EC 1. LOB: Helix 4, EC 5. 2B: Erickson, Walston. 3B: Russo, Hostetler.
SB: Russo. S: Rosenthal, Ksiazek. SF: Valles.
PITCHING SUMMARY
HELIX ip h r er bb so
Schuler L(1-2) 6.0 9 6 5 0 4
EL CAPITAN
C.Garcia W(3-2) 7.0 2 1 0 1 6
HBP: by Schuler (Walston); by C.Garcia (Rosenthal). BK: C.Garcia.
*
BRAVES 17, MATADORS 11
MOUNT MIGUEL ab r h bi EL CAJON VALLEY ab r h bi
Calafato ss 2 1 0 0 Carreon rf 4 2 1 1
Freeman-Bolden p 0 0 0 0 Manzo lf-1b 5 3 3 1
Escalante p 1 1 1 0 L.Perez p 3 3 2 0
Newborn cf 2 2 1 2 Abbod 3b-c 4 3 2 3
Sandoval lf-p 4 1 3 1 D.Perez c-3b 4 2 2 3
White c 4 0 1 0 Mansfield 1b 3 1 2 1
Array pr 0 0 0 0 Thomas 1b-cf 1 0 1 2
DeArcos c-lf-rf 4 1 2 1 Sotos 2b 4 2 3 1
Plunkett 3b 3 1 1 0 Hopwood cf-lf 3 0 1 1
Green 3b 1 1 0 0 Dyer ss 3 1 1 1
Williamson rf-ss 4 1 1 0
Seavello 2b 3 2 2 1
Freeman p-1b 4 0 1 2
Shimizo pr 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 32 11 13 7 TOTALS 37 17 17 14
Mount Miguel (0-10) 121 212 2 - 11 13 8
El Cajon Valley (3-9) 002 933 x - 17 17 4
GWRBI: D.Perez (1).
E: Plunkett 2, Dyer 2, Sandoval 2, Newborn, Calafato 2, White, D.Perez 2. LOB: MM 5, ECV 7.
2B: DeArcos, Seavello, D.Perez. 3B: Freeman, Thomas.
SB: Newborn 3, Carreon 3, Seavello 2, L.Perez 3, Thomas 2, Calafato, Dyer, Abbod, Hopwood, Escalante, Array.
SF: D.Perez, Dyer.
MOUNT MIGUEL ip h r er bb so
Freeman 3.1 5 6 2 2 2
Sandoval L(0-3) 0.0 4 5 0 0 0
Freeman-Bolden 0.2 4 3 3 0 0
Escalante 2.0 4 3 3 2 1
EL CAJON VALLEY
L.Perez W(1-2) 7.0 13 11 7 4 7
Sandoval faced 6 batters in the 4th inning.
Freeman-Bolden faced 4 batters in the 5th.
WP: Freeman, Freeman-Bolden.
(04-06-05)
Wolf Pack's Richardson throws Norsemen for a curve
in complete-game win
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON - West Hills junior AARON RICHARDSON
threw so many curveballs that he left host Valhalla
lost around the bend. That is, the Wolf Pack pitcher
befuddled the 2nd-ranked Norsemen to the brink of madness
as visiting West Hills earned a 2-1 victory in Monday's
(Apr. 4) opening round of the Grossmont North/South
Tournament.
Dealing a steady diet of breaking balls, the 6-foot-3,
175-pound Richardson silenced the aggressive Norsemen
for his second straight win and complete game. The curveball
was Richardson's bread-and-butter on this afternoon.
Approximately 70 of his pitches were breaking balls,
which resulted in five Norsemen taking third strikes.
"I had everything going my way today," said
Richardson (2-2), who rationed the Norsemen to 3 hits
while walking 2 and striking out 8. "I was locked
in all game."
The pinnacle of Richardson's effort came in the 6th
inning with West Hills (3-7) leading 2-1 and SEAN
O'SULLIVAN coming to the plate.
O'Sullivan, who hit Richardson's first pitch on the
concrete adjacent to the football bleachers in left
field, was frustrated in all three of his at-bats.
"I think I did a pretty good job of keeping him
off-balance," Richardson said.
Few have handled O'Sullivan more effectively than Richardson
did in the 6th inning Monday. The West Hills southpaw
was bold enough to challenge O'Sullivan with three fastballs
in this at-bat. O'Sullivan took the first one for a
strike, fouled a 1-2 pitch straight back and then went
down swinging on a shoulder-high heater.
"I knew he was anxious, because when I threw my
change-up he was waiting for it," Richardson said
of O'Sullivan. "But I threw my fastball up in the
zone and he chased it."
Richardson continued on to strike out the side in the
bottom of the 7th inning.
"We got the job done and that's all that matters,"
said Richardson, who lowered his season ERA to 3.96.
It was his second complete game in as many starts. Over
his last 14 innings, Richardson has compiled a 1.50
ERA.
Valhalla coach STEVE PERDUE acknowledged Richardson's
sterling pitching performance, which required 97 pitches
to finish the job.
"That's the best anyone has pitched against us
since Patrick Henry's Mark Triolo beat us (2-0) in the
2003 playoffs," Perdue said. "The guy (Richardson)
was just masterful. And credit (pitching coach) MICKEY
DEUTSCHMAN for calling a great game."
West Hills capitalized on a 1st inning error and STEPHEN
STRASBURG's RBI single to put the pressure on Valhalla
(6-4) from the get-go.
The Pack could easily have padded its early advantage
in the 2nd and 3rd innings, but shaky base-running and
heads-up defense by the Norsemen kept the game tight.
Valhalla catcher TOMMY McCLAIN picked a West
Hills runner off second base as part of an inning-ending
double play in the 2nd inning. An inning later, a Wolf
Pack runner was ruled out for leaving second base (tagging
prematurely) on a fly ball to center field.
The Norsemen tied the game in the 3rd inning. JAVIER
BROWN whistled a ground ball inside the third base
bag for a one-out double. Brown stole third and eventually
scored on GREG GARCIA's infield groundout.
West Hills, which has lost three games by 2 runs or
less, broke a 1-1 tie by manufacturing the winning run
in the 6th inning. KOREY HOOPER stroked
a one-out double and BRET SKINNER followed with
a walk. Strasburg's single loaded the bases against
Valhalla reliever COREY STANGYL.
TRAVIS IRVIN rolled what appeared to be a double-play
grounder to second baseman Garcia, who flipped the ball
to shortstop Brown for the second out in the inning.
But Brown was unable to deliver the throw to first base
to complete the twin-killing and Hooper scored what
proved to be the winning run.
"Aaron stuck with what we were doing and was just
phenomenal today," West Hills first-year head coach
SCOT HOPGOOD said. "He was on all day. Other
than three or four pitches, he was dialed in."
What amazed Hopgood was Richardson's 8-to-2 strikeouts-to-walks
ration.
"Aaron is usually a 10-strikeouts, 6-walks guy,"
Hopgood said. "His control was on all day in this
game."
GRANITE HILLS 5, EL CAPITAN 0: Pitching depth
continues to expand in the Granite Hills camp as the
Eagles logged their third consecutive complete game
in Monday's (Apr. 4) opening round of the Grossmont
North/South Tournament.
Four of the last 5 Granite Hills starting pitchers have
logged complete games, all of which have resulted in
victories. Two of those wire-to-wire efforts have
been coined by sophomore DARREN GAY (2-0), who
blanked the visiting Vaqueros on six hits in the Grossmont
North/South Tournament encounter.
"Gay was in control from start to finish,"
Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS said.
The No.1 statistic for Gay was he did not walk a batter.
His teammates supported his effort with their third
straight error-free outing.
"Knock on wood, but this is the way baseball was
meant to be played," said Davis, whose Eagles have
won 8 of their last 9.
El Capitan starter BRYAN PAUKOVITS made the Eagles
take a couple steps backward as he struck out the first
two hitters he faced. After that, though, CODY CRAWFORD
doubled and eventually scored on a pair of passed balls
in the 1st inning. But the Eagles weren't through as
NICK MONETTE walked and scored on a double by
TRAVIS TAIJERON.
A dropped fly ball opened the door to three Granite
Hills runs in the 6th inning. Pinch-hitter NICK BOLTZ
ripped a two-run single on a 3-2 pitch, propelling the
Eagles into a 4-0 lead. A wild pitch plated Granite
Hills' final tally.
"Defensively, we just let down," El Capitan
coach STEVE VICKERY said. "I'm disappointed
in our effort."
SANTANA 9, MONTE VISTA 7: Not even an iron
man performance by Monte Vista's JESSE RODRIGUEZ
could snap the Monarchs' 8-game losing streak in Monday's
(Apr. 4) Grossmont North/South Tournament opener at
Monte Vista.
Rodriguez went 2-for-4 with a 2-run double and delivered
a complete-game pitching effort, firing 142 pitches
along the way.
"That kid put up quite a fight," acknowledged
Santana coach JERRY HENSON, who's Sultans slaughtered
the Monarchs 12-0 last month in Santee. "We got
to him a bit, but he never gave in."
After Santana struck first on a double by DALLAS
MARTIN and a single by JEFF WOODS, Rodriguez
keyed a 4-run bottom of the 1st inning with a two-run
double and scored on a base hit by IAN CROFT.
The Sultans (11-2), ranked No. 3 in the San Diego Section's
only poll, took the lead with a 5-spot in the 2nd inning.
JONATHAN TIPPIN and KYLE HELMHOLTZ hammered
2-run doubles and BRANDON HALEY chimed in with
a run-scoring two-base hit.
RYAN BROSNAN slugged a one-out triple and scored
on Tippin's suicide squeeze, extending Santana's
advantage to 7-4 in the 5th. Martin added an RBI single
in the same inning.
Haley's second double and ROBERT HERMANSEN's
RBI single made it 9-4 in the 6th.
Monte Vista countered with a two-out double by sophomore
DAVID PALACIOS and BRET HAASE's triple
for a run in the 6th. An inning later ERIC LEBOFFE
slashed an RBI single and Croft arched a sacrifice fly
before reliever Martin put out the Monte Vista fire
for the save.
Santana racked up 14 hits off Rodriguez, six of them
going for extra bases.
"We shook up our batting order a little bit and
it seemed to make a difference," Henson said. "Sure,
we lost a couple of games that we should have won. But
our spirits are high."
Reliever CHRISTIAN SPICER pitched a powerful
5.1 innings to log his second win without a loss. He
struck out 8 and walked none.
"I have to commend Spicer for being patient,"
Henson said. "He hasn't got to pitch that much,
but he was ready when his turn came. He did a real good
job."
GROSSMONT 14, MOUNT MIGUEL 3: It's no secret
that Grossmont's A.J. GRIFFIN is one of the top
pitching prospects in San Diego County. But the 6-foot-4,
205-pound junior can inflict damage with his bat, too.
Griffin accounted for six runs, driving in three and
scoring three in five at-bats. He belted his 3rd home
run of the season, a double and a single as the Foothillers
(9-2) breezed in the Grossmont North/South Tournament
opener at Mount Miguel.
That batting spree hoisted Griffin's season batting
average to .486. He has a dozen RBI.
The winless Matadors (0-9) handed the Hillers 2 unearned
runs in the 1st inning. Griffin's RBI double made it
3-0 in the 2nd and set the stage for TRISTAN PHILLIPS'
3rd home run with a man aboard.
Phillips added a run-scoring single in the 5th inning
after MICHAEL MEDINA's sacrifice fly ballooned
Grossmont's advantage to 8-0. DONNIE SNOW capped
the 5-run frame with a 3-run home run, his East County-leading
5th of the season.
Grossmont's THOMAS ADAMS held the Matadors
hitless for four innings before KEITH GREEN yanked
a 2-2 pitch into the parking lot beyond the left field
fence for his 1st home run. That was the only hit allowed
by Adams, who struck out 6 batters in 5 innings while
running his record to 2-1.
Strangest statistical line of the game goes to Grossmont
leadoff man TIM FERRARA, who scored 4 runs without
getting hit.
HELIX 7, EL CAJON VALLEY 3: Shoddy
defensive play by the Highlanders (8-4) helped the visiting
Braves grab a 2-0 lead in the 3rd inning of Monday's
(Apr. 4) Grossmont North/South Tournament game in La
Mesa.
But Helix scrambled back with 7 runs over the 3rd and
4th inning to take command and never looked back.
Junior ERIK PONCE checked the Braves on 2 hits
over the first six innings to run his pitching mark
to 3-0. He walked only one and struck out 6. DUSTIN
RUNIONS spun a hitless 7th to enable Helix to snap
a 3-game losing streak.
After Ponce drove in Helix's first run with a single,
the Braves issued back-to-back bases loaded walks to
give the Highlanders a one-run edge.
STEVEN ROHMER ripped an RBI double in a 4-run
4th inning capped by sophomore catcher ZACH TANIDA's
two-run triple. Rohmer also stole 2 bases for the Highlanders.
This was Helix's second win over the Braves. The Scotties
opened the season with an 11-0 romp last month. The
road to victory wasn't so easy this time around, although
El Cajon Valley damaged its cause by issuing 11 walks.
Four of those walks were cashed in four runs.
ALAN ABBOD drove in two runs and CLIFTON THOMAS
scored twice and stole a pair of bases for the Braves
(2-9).
POINT LOMA 9, CHRISTIAN 4: Despite missing their
top three hitters and ace pitcher due to previous injuries,
the Patriots were tied with the visiting Pointers heading
into the bottom of the 6th inning of their City Conference
Tournament game Monday (Apr. 4) afternoon.
That's when Point Loma received the pivotal call of
the game. Christian right fielder JIMMY DOSSETT
caught a fly ball in his glove for the apparent second
out of the inning. Dossett had a bona fide shot to double
off a Point Loma base-runner for an inning-ending double
play. But the ball bounced out of his glove. Still Dossett
was able to make a bare-handed save (catch).
Or so he thought. The base umpire said the ball had
hit the ground and ruled everybody safe. One runner
scored from third with the go-ahead run and the bases
remained loaded with one out.
The roof fell in from there as Zach Larson belted
a grand slam.
Game over.
"Not having our Nos. 2, 3, and 4 hitters in there
certainly didn't help us, but that call on Dossett's
catch killed us," Christian coach MIKE MITCHELL
said.
Christian's RYAN ABELL, starting in place of
injured catcher MATT HART, enjoyed the best day
of his varsity career. Abell doubled in a run for a
2-1 lead in the 2nd inning and drove in two more with
a single in the 6th to tie the game 4-4.
JOEL McGRANAHAN also had a pair of singles for
Christian (6-3), which travels to Orlando, Fla. for
four games in the KSA Tournament beginning Thursday
(Apr. 7).
(04-04-05)
MONDAY, APR 4, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Grossmont North/South Tournament
FOOTHILLERS 14, MATADORS 3
GROSSMONT ab r h bi MOUNT MIGUEL ab r h bi
Ferrara 2b 3 4 0 1 Calafato ss-p 4 1 0 0
Griffin 3b-1b 5 3 3 3 Newborn rf 3 0 1 1
Phillips ss 5 2 2 3 Sandoval lf 3 0 0 0
Snow dh 3 2 2 3 White 3b 1 0 0 0
Wohlwend 1b 0 0 0 0 Green 3b 2 1 1 1
Pieczynski c 3 0 0 0 DeArcos p-1b 3 0 0 0
Schroeder c 1 0 0 0 Plunkett dh-p 3 0 1 0
Passanisi 1b-p 3 0 0 0 Array cf 0 0 0 0
Sobel 3b 2 0 0 0 Seavello 2b 3 0 0 0
Cusumano lf 2 1 0 0 Freeman-Bolden 1b 1 0 0 0
Fox lf 2 1 1 0 Williamson p-ss 1 0 0 0
Williams cf 2 1 1 0 Freeman c 1 0 0 0
Longmeier cf 1 0 0 0 Shimizu pr 0 1 0 0
Berry rf 2 0 1 0
Medino rf 1 0 0 1
TOTALS 36 14 10 11 TOTALS 25 3 3 1
Grossmont (8-2) 241 050 2 - 14 10 4
Mount Miguel (0-9) 000 012 0 - 3 3 5
GWRBI: None.
E: Calafato 2, Seavello, White, Green, Fox, Passanisi, Schroeder, Ferrara.
DP: Gro 1. LOB: Gro 7, MM 4. 2B: Griffin, Fox.
HR: Phillips (3) 2nd, one on; Snow (5) 5th, two on; Green (1) 5th, solo; Griffin (3) 7th, one on.
SB: Ferrara, Williams, Calafato. SF: Medina.
PITCHING SUMMARY
GROSSMONT ip h r er bb so
Adams W(2-1) 5.0 1 1 1 0 6
Mattson 1.0 1 2 0 1 1
Kinsella 0.2 1 0 0 2 0
Passanisi 0.1 0 0 0 0 1
MOUNT MIGUEL
DeArcos L(0-1) 1+ 0 3 1 2 0
Vanderhyde 3.0 3 4 3 1 1
Plunkett 0.2 5 5 5 0 0
Williamson 1.2 2 2 2 0 1
Calafato 0.2 0 0 0 0 0
DeArcos faced 1 batter in the 2nd inning.
HBP: by DeArcos (Williamson, Pieczynski), by Williamson (Ferrara). WP: Kinsella, DeArcos.
*
HIGHLANDERS 7, BRAVES 3
EL CAJON VALLEY ab r h bi HELIX ab r h bi
Thomas cf-p 4 2 1 0 R.Perez ss 3 1 0 0
L.Perez ss 1 1 1 0 Rohmer 2b 3 1 2 1
Abbod 3b 2 0 0 2 Ponce p-rf 3 2 1 1
Manzo lf 3 0 0 0 Peterson 1b 3 1 1 0
Aquiningoc 1b 1 0 0 0 Schuler pr 0 1 0 0
Dyer 1b 1 0 0 0 Valles rf-lf 2 1 1 0
Myer dh-p 3 0 0 0 Rosenthal lf 2 0 0 1
D.Perez c 2 0 0 0 Tanida cf 2 0 1 3
Vega 3b-2b 3 0 0 0 Ritchie 3b 1 0 0 1
Watson p-rf 3 0 0 0 Foy c 3 0 0 0
TOTALS 23 3 2 2 TOTALS 22 7 6 7
El Cajon Valley (2-9) 002 010 0 - 3 2 3
Helix (8-4) 003 400 x - 7 6 2
GWRBI: Tanida (1).
E: Tanida, Peterson, D.Perez, Thomas, Dyer. LOB: ECV 5, Hel 10. 2B: Rohmer, Peterson. 3B: Tanida.
SB: Rohmer 2, Thomas 2. SF: Rosenthal.
PITCHING SUMMARY
EL CAJON VALLEY ab h r er bb so
Watson L(0-2) 2.2 2 3 1 6 1
Thomas 0.2 1 1 1 2 1
Vega 0.2 2 3 3 3 1
Myer 2.0 1 0 0 0 1
HELIX
Ponce W(3-0) 6.0 2 3 1 1 6
Runions 1.0 0 0 0 0 1
HBP: by Ponce (Aquiningoc, L.Perez).
*
WOLF PACK 2, NORSEMEN 1
WEST HILLS ab r h bi VALHALLA ab r h bi
Mello cf 2 0 0 0 J.Brown ss 3 1 1 0
Hooper lf 3 2 1 0 G.Garcia 2b 3 0 0 1
Skinner rf 2 0 0 0 S.O'Sullivan 3b 3 0 0 0
Strasburg 1b 3 0 2 1 Baum 1b 2 0 1 0
Parker pr 0 0 0 0 A.Brown pr 0 0 0 0
Irvin 2b 3 0 0 1 McClain c 2 0 0 0
Gagnon c 2 0 0 0 R.O'Sullivan dh 3 0 1 0
Hall 3b 2 0 1 0 D.Smith lf 3 0 0 0
Hoffard ss 2 0 0 0 Sopata cf 3 0 0 0
Stoner ph 1 0 0 0 Wilson rf 2 0 0 0
Hutchings dh 3 0 0 0
TOTALS 23 2 4 2 TOTALS 24 1 3 1
West Hills (3-7) 100 001 0 - 2 4 1
Valhalla (6-4) 001 000 0 - 1 3 1
GWRBI: Irwin (2).
E: G.Garcia, Hall. DP: WH 1, Val 2. LOB: WH 4, Val 4. 2B: Hall, J.Brown, Hooper.
SB: R.O'Sullivan, D.Smith, J.Brown, Mello, Hooper. S: Hall.
PITCHING SUMMARY
WEST HILLS ip h r er bb so
Richardson W(2-2) 7.0 3 1 1 2 8
VALHALLA
Julienne 5.0 2 1 0 2 4
Stangyl L(0-2) 2.0 2 1 1 1 1
*
EAGLES 5, VAQUEROS 0
EL CAPITAN ab r h bi GRANITE HILLS ab r h bi
Russo 2b 3 0 0 0 Decker ss 2 0 0 0
Rauch c 3 0 0 0 Marquis cf 3 0 0 0
N.Garcia 1b 3 0 1 0 Crawford dh 2 2 1 0
Walston cf 2 0 0 0 Monette c 1 2 1 0
Ksiazek ss 3 0 1 0 Taijeron lf 3 0 1 1
Nazzal lf 3 0 1 0 Humphries rf 2 1 0 0
Henson dh 2 0 0 0 Horner 3b 3 0 0 0
Royer ph 1 0 0 0 Russell 1b 2 0 0 0
Erickson rf 3 0 2 0 Boltz ph 1 0 1 2
Griffith 3b 3 0 1 0 Cazares 2b 2 0 0 0
Roberts 2b 1 0 0 0
TOTALS 27 0 6 0 TOTALS 22 5 4 3
El Capitan (4-7) 000 000 0 - 0 6 2
Granite Hills (10-3) 200 003 x - 5 4 0
GWRBI: None.
E: N.Garcia, Erickson. LOB: EC 6, GH 6. 2B: Crawford, Taijeron, Monette.
PITCHING SUMMARY
EL CAPITAN ip h r er bb so
Paukovits L(1-2) 6.0 4 5 2 3 7
GRANITE HILLS
Gay W(2-0) 7.0 6 0 0 0 4
HBP: by Paukovits (Crawford, Decker); by Gay (Walston). PB: Rauch 4.
*
SULTANS 9, MONARCHS 7
MONTE VISTA ab r h bi SANTANA ab r h bi
Sopher lf 3 1 1 0 Martin 3b-p 3 2 2 1
Haase lf 1 0 1 1 Woods ss 5 0 2 1
DeAnda rf 4 1 1 0 Helmholtz 1b 5 1 1 2
Lopez 1b 3 2 1 0 Haley c 4 1 2 1
Rodriguez p 4 1 2 2 Basnight dh 4 0 1 0
Starling pr 0 1 0 0 Hermansen cf 3 1 2 1
Leboffe cf 4 0 1 1 Brosnan lf 2 2 2 0
Croft ss 3 0 2 2 Martinez 2b 3 1 0 0
Cooper c 3 0 0 0 Tippin rf 1 1 1 3
Mendiola ph 1 0 0 0 Miller rf 1 0 1 0
Simmons 3b 2 0 0 0
Dawson 3b 1 0 0 0
Palacios 2b 3 1 2 0
TOTALS 32 7 11 6 TOTALS 31 9 14 9
Monte Vista (1-10) 400 001 2 - 7 11 1
Santana (11-2) 150 021 0 - 9 14 3
GWRBI: Helmholtz (2).
E: Medrud, Helmholtz, Haley, Croft. DP: MV 1. LOB: MV 7, Sant 10.
2B: Rodriguez, Palacios, Martin, Helmholtz, Haley 2, Tippin. 3B: Sopher, Haase, Brosnan.
SB: Woods, Helmholtz. S: Tippin. SF: Croft.
PITCHING SUMMARY
MONTE VISTA ip h r er bb so
Rodriguez L(1-5) 6.0 14 9 9 6 4
SANTANA
Medrud 0.2 3 4 2 2 0
Spicer W(2-0) 5.1 5 1 1 0 8
Martin 1.0 3 2 2 0 1
HBP: by Rodriguez (Martin, Tippin). WP: Rodriguez 2, Medrud.
*
City Conference Tournament
At Christian
POINTERS 9, PATRIOTS 4
Christian (6-3) 020 002 0 - 4 6 2
Pt. Loma (5-6) 010 215 x - 9 9 1
O'Donnell, Plum (5) and Abell; Rodriguez, Wilson (6) and Larson. W: Wilson. L: Plum (0-1).
(04-04-05)
Norsemen find power stroke, but lose third-place
tourney game to El Dorado
EastCountySports.com
FULLERTON - Valhalla coach STEVE PERDUE would
have a right to be upset with the play of his Norsemen
in the final two games of the Phil Nevin/El Toyo Tire
National Classic. While the veteran skipper was obviously
disappointed after the Norsemen suffered back-to-back
losses, including an 11-8 setback to host El Dorado
in Thursday's (Mar. 31) third place game, he was pleased
to see the Valhalla offense come alive.
Senior SEAN O'SULLIVAN, who clubbed 16 home runs
as a junior, went deep twice against El Dorado as the
Norsemen (6-3) fought back from an early 9-0 deficit.
O'Sullivan's first home run was a 450-foot shot over
the center field fence with two runners aboard. But
the hungry third baseman wasn't done. O'Sullivan launched
a 2-run homer in the 5th inning that cut the Golden
Hawks (8-6) lead to 11-5.
"Both of Sean's home runs were bombs," Perdue
said. "It's great to see him finally break out."
CHAD WILSON joined the Valhalla home run parade
with a solo shot in the 6th inning.
The Norsemen had not hit a single home run in their
first eight games.
The top third of the Valhalla batting order - JAVIER
BROWN (3-for-4), GREG GARCIA (2-for-3) and
Sean O'Sullivan (2-for-3) - accounted for all but two
of the Valhalla hits, scored seven of the eight runs
and logged six of the team's seven RBI.
Valhalla employed 5 pitchers in an attempt to ground
the Golden Hawks. Starter MIKE PETRIVELLI couldn't
get out of the 1st inning as he surrendered six runs
on four hits, two walks and a pair of hit batters.
"We didn't get much pitching and our defense was
poor," Perdue said. "That's too bad, because
we got more than enough offense to win."
HORIZON 5, SANTANA 0: Coach JERRY
HENSON said his Santana Sultans were still on spring
break even though they were hosting Horizon in a non-league
game Thursday afternoon (Mar. 31).
"Our kids looked like they were just going through
the motions," said Henson after his Sultans (10-2)
saw their six-game winning streak come to an end. "We've
scored 2 runs in our last 14 innings. That kind of offense
isn't going to win you too many ballgames."
Santana could muster but 6 singles against Horizon starter
and winner David Guillent (1-0), who has not allowed
an earned run in 13 innings.
The Sultans' best chance to break through came in the
4th inning when they loaded the bases with two outs.
Guillent was up to the challenge as he logged an inning-ending
strikeout.
ROBERT HERMANSEN collected two of Santana's hits.
Sultans' reliever ERIK MEDRUD blanked the Panthers
(5-4) on 3 hits over the final three frames.
Santana's two losses - including a one-run setback to
Marian Catholic - have come to teams with a combined
record of 7-11.
THURSDAY, MAR 31, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Phil Nevin/El Toyo Tire National Classic
GOLDEN HAWKS 11, NORSEMEN 8
El Dorado (8-6) 621 200 0 - 11 9 3
Valhalla (6-3) 003 023 0 - 8 9 2
Petrovelli, Azevedo (1), Wilkins (4), Stangyl (5), Julienne (7) and McClain; Lane and N/A.
HR: S.O'Sullivan (V) 2(1,2): 3rd, two on, and 5th, one on; Wilson (V) (1), 6th, solo. W: Lane. L: Petrovelli (0-1).
*
PANTHERS 5, SULTANS 0
Horizon (5-4) 003 200 0 - 5 11 5
Santana (10-2) 000 000 0 - 0 6 0
Guillent, Regner (6) and Powers; Martin, Medrud (5) and Haley. W: Guillent (1-0). L: Martin (2-1).
(03-31-05)
Doubleheader sweeps give Eagles, Cougars early South
lead
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON - The two teams atop the Grossmont South League
standings might not be the ones expected to be there.
That is, Granite Hills and Steele Canyon share the South
league lead at 2-0 following doubleheader sweeps in
Wednesday's (Mar. 30) opening round of loop play. Favorites
Santana and El Capitan claimed victories in the Grossmont
North, while Valhalla took a pratfall in the Phil Nevin/El
Toyo Tire Classic semifinals.
STEELE CANYON 3-13, MONTE VISTA 2-4 -- Typically
the table setters to the Cougars' lineup, second baseman
DANNY HARRIS and center fielder KENNY KLOPP
came through with the clutch hits, propelling Steele
Canyon to a doubleheader sweep of the visiting Monarchs
in the Grossmont South League opener for both teams.
Klopp punched home the game-winning run in the opener,
giving the Cougars a 3-2 victory in eight innings. In
the nightcap, Harris found the bases loaded in the 2nd
inning, then promptly cleared them with a triple to
highlight a 7-run rally to as the Cougars cruised to
the second game win and a sweep.
"Both of us have some speed and we get on base,"
noted Harris, who went 3-for-3 in the second game. "Then
we have some great hitters, so we can hit-and-run and
do some things."
After Steele Canyon's No. 8 hitter DAVID LEWIS
stroked an RBI single to open the second game scoring,
Klopp walked to load the bases. That brought up Harris,
who found the gap in right-center field. The hit opened
a stretch of four consecutive extra-base hits by the
Cougars, as shortstop CODY MINICH, right fielder
CHRIS RICE and catcher DEVON DUBY each
followed with run-scoring doubles to blow the game open
early to clinch the sweep.
Along with Harris' three RBI, the bottom third of the
lineup -- third baseman WILL MURRAY, Lewis and
Klopp - each knocked home two runs each.
The onslaught of offense made a winner of starting pitcher
ROSS EPPERSON, who tossed five innings without
a walk, before ANDREW BRUDER tossed the final
two shutout innings for the close.
In the opener, Monte Vista struck for two early runs,
then Cougars pitcher KYLE JOHNSON outdueled the
Monarchs' JESSE RODRIGUEZ, as both starters tossed
complete games.
"This is the first year that we've won our league
opener," said Steele Canyon coach PHIL MITTRY,
who is guiding the Cougars into their third season of
varsity competition. "We'd like to think we have
a chance to contend in our league this year."
After allowing three hits, including doubles to ALAN
SOPHER and ANTHONY LOPEZ in the 1st frame,
Johnson scattered 7 other hits over the final seven
innings. Included was a bases-loaded situation in the
8th that the right-handed pitcher escaped damage with
a pair of strikeouts.
Johnson's complete game was surprising considering he
is still pitching with an injured ankle.
"I rolled it against Bonita Vista," noted
Johnson, who plans to play for defending NCAA Division
III champion George Fox University (Ore.) next season.
"It didn't hurt on the mound, but now I'm feeling
it."
The game's lone error led to the deciding run in the
home-half of the 8th. With one out, a ground ball was
thrown wide of first to allow Murray to reach first,
then the bottom of the order quickly took charge.
Lewis followed with a single to right field. Klopp sent
a basehit to center to score pinch-runner GARRETT
JENNER.
"It's good to have two leadoff hitters," noted
Klopp. "We just want to put the ball in play, then
we have some good hitters to follow to produce some
runs."
Rodriguez struck out six and walked six, but got out
of difficulties several times, as Steele Canyon stranded
11 baserunners.
Monte Vista center fielder ERIC LEBOFFE was 2-for-4
for the Monarchs, finishing the twin bill with four
hits in seven at-bats.
Steele Canyon lost its top hitter in the opener, as
JOE INZONE twisted an ankle landing on first
base awkwardly after beating out a scratch single in
the 7th. Although Inzone did not play in the second
game, he is not expected to miss any additional time.
The sweep places Steele Canyon into an early deadlock
for first place with Granite Hills, which swept a pair
from Helix, a team the Cougars would love to face.
"They've seemed to have our number the last few
years," stated Harris. "But we can't wait
to play them because this year will be different."
GRANITE HILLS 5-3, HELIX 2-2: Pitchers
took command in this Grossmont South League doubleheader
Wednesday (Mar. 30) at Helix. It was complete-game efforts
all around, with the visiting Eagles gaining the edge.
The high-flying Eagles received complete game performances
from sophomore ERIC KRAUSE (4-0) and steadfast
senior DONNIE ANDERSON (3-0) as they proved themselves
worthy of a No. 8 ranking in the San Diego CIF ratings.
The surprise package in the Granite Hills stable is
the 5-foot-8, 147-pound Krause, who has turned his 4
starts into victories as well as 3 complete games.
"The kid is a bulldog," Granite Hills coach
JAMES DAVIS said. "He always wants the ball."
Krause rationed the Highlanders to 5 hits as he struck
out 9 and walked 2.
"At first I just wanted to make the (varsity) team,"
said Krause, who was 8-1 as a freshman hurler on the
Granite Hills junior varsity squad. "Now that they've
given me the ball, I just try my best."
So far that's been top drawer.
Krause was approaching the high end of pitches after
six innings, but received the nod to finish the job
from Davis as he walked to the mound to being in the
7th.
"Coach Davis gave me a little look and I responded
with 'I've got this,'" said Krause, who has a 0.81
ERA. "I felt strong and I went after them
(the Helix hitters)."
And the Highlanders (7-4, 0-2) were aggressive at the
plate. Perhaps too aggressive.
"I was kinda nervous for the first four or five
innings, considering this was our league opener,"
Krause said. "But I calmed down in 6th and I knew
I had things in control after that."
Davis, albeit surprised, is pleased by Krause's sterling
start.
"He's such a grinder," Davis said of Krause.
"What he's done so far is shocking. I knew he was
a good pitcher, but the teams that he's beaten are no
slouches (RBV, St. Augustine, Green Valley-Nevada and
Helix)."
Anderson gave Granite Hills a nifty encore. The Eagles'
senior stalwart used just 72 pitches to stuff Helix
in the nightcap, retiring the final 12 batters he faced.
This was a long afternoon for hitters although BRETT
HORNER hammered a solo home run in the opening game
for Granite Hills (9-3,2-0).
Helix received standout pitching from MIKE SCHULER
and MATT WENHAM. Both hurlers turned in complete
game performances.
"It was a shame to waste an effort like that,"
Helix coach COLE HOLLAND said. "We were
just atrocious on offense. We continuously put ourselves
in a pitcher's count by taking strikes on the outer
half."
The Highlanders totaled 7 hits in the twinbill.
SANTANA 2, WEST HILLS 1: Senior right-hander
JEFF WOODS ran his string of perfect innings
to 10 before West Hills leadoff man JOE MELLO
lined a single to left-center field on the first pitch
of the 4th inning of Wednesday's (Mar. 30) Grossmont
North League opener between Santee rivals.
Woods (4-0) settled for a complete-game 2-hitter and
struck out 12 as he out-dueled West Hills' STEPHEN
STRASBURG (0-4) in a game that featured a mere 5
hits.
"Honestly, I thought we were going to get them,"
West Hills coach SCOTT HOPGOOD said. "They
were doing a lot of talking at first, but they quieted
down about the 4th when they knew they were in a ballgame."
Strasburg, perhaps the most unlucky pitcher in the San
Diego Section, suffered his 4th loss without reward.
"He's the best 0-4 pitcher (with a 3.67 ERA) in
the state," Hopgood offered. "He's given us
a chance to win in every game he's pitched. We
just haven't given him any run support."
Certainly, Santana made its 3 hits against Strasburg
count. Both of the Sultans scoring innings came after
two outs.
In the opening frame, Strasburg pegged KYLE HELMHOLTZ
with a pitch. The West Hills 6-foot-4, 220-pound junior
then uncorked a wild pitch advancing Helmholtz to second
base. BRANDON HALEY hoisted a fly ball over the
head of the West Hills center fielder for an RBI double
and a 1-0 Santana lead.
RYAN BROSNAN stroked a two-out single to give
Santana life in the 3rd inning. Brosnan stole second
and scored on a base hit by Helmholtz.
West Hills cut the lead in half with an unearned tally
in the 6th inning. MICHAEL HALL reached base
on an error, stole second and scored when Mello slapped
a ground ball that caught the lip of the infield grass
and kangarooed over the head of 6-foot-1 Santana first
baseman Helmholtz for a double.
"We've come to expect a tough game from West Hills
every time," Santana coach JERRY HENSON
said.
Woods, who has suddenly become one of the San Diego
CIF's top pitchers, has not allowed an earned run in
22.1 innings this season. The senior right-hander has
surrendered just 5 hits and 8 walks while striking out
34.
EL CAPITAN 7, EL CAJON VALLEY 1: This Grossmont
North League opener was closer than the final score
indicates. The visiting Vaqueros (4-6, 1-0), winners
of two straight San Diego CIF Division II championships,
were locked up in a 1-1 deadlock through five innings
Wednesday (Mar. 30) at El Cajon Valley High.
El Capitan snapped the tie with 4 runs in the 6th inning.
LOUIE RUSSO ignited the scoring parade with a
double and AUSTIN RAUCH followed with a walk.
The runners moved up on a wild pitch. NIK GARCIA's
fly ball to right brought home Russo with what proved
to be the winning run.
JOSH WALSTON lofted a flare down the right field
line for a double that chased home Rauch. JASSON
KSIAZEK followed with an RBI single and D.J.
HENSON's double scored Ksiazek, giving El Capitan
a 5-1 advantage.
A two-run double by Rauch in the 7th gave the Vaqueros
what appeared to be an easy win.
The late support was more than enough for CRISTIAN
GARCIA (2-2), who scattered 5 hits, walked
none and struck out 8 in a route-going performance.
"We are playing a little better ball right now,"
El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY said. "We
had another outstanding pitching performance by Cristian
Garcia. Our pitching continues to be our strength. We've
had no earned runs given up in our last 14 innings of
baseball."
After a throwing error gave El Capitan a 1st inning
lead, the upstart Braves (2-8, 0-1) tied the game with
an unearned run in the 4th frame. JONATHAN MANZO
and RAY AQUININGOC began the 4th with back-to-back
singles. One out later, an El Capitan error loaded the
bases. ALAN ABBOD's groundout scored Manzo
with the equalizer.
El Cajon Valley coach WAYNE WEIGHTMAN was pleased
by the pitching of Manzo.
"He threw his best, holding El Cap to one unearned
run until he ran into a snag in the 6th inning,"
the coach said. "Walston had a big hit cue ball
double to shallow right that broke our backs!"
ESPERANZA 6, VALHALLA 1: For the
first time in three starts, the Valhalla Norsemen did
not live up to their lofty rating in Wednesday's (Mar.
30) third round of the Phil Nevin/El Toyo Tire National
Classic in Placentia. The No. 2 ranked team in the San
Diego CIF Section, produced just 3 hits and hit into
three double plays as they fell to the host Esperanza
Aztecs (11-2), who won their 11th straight game.
The Norsemen (6-2), who will play El Dorado in Thursday's
(Mar. 31) third place game of the tournament at 2 p.m.,
were listless to say the least. Esperanza advances to
the championship game opposite Mater Dei, which downed
El Dorado 13-4 in Wednesday's semifinals.
"It was still anybody's ballgame until we gave
them 3 runs in the 7th inning," Valhalla coach
STEVE PERDUE said. "We just weren't sharp."
Valhalla wasted a strong pitching effort by freshman
RYAN O'SULLIVAN, who limited the Aztecs to 3
hits and one earned run over five innings.
Perdue wanted to emphasize the positive - look ahead
to a possible 3-1 finish in this tournament of powerhouses.
"If we can finish in third place at 3-1, I'll be
happy with that," Perdue said.
Esperanza's Kelby Aase, the son of former major leaguer
Don Aase, checked the Norsemen on three hits through
five innings before handing the game over to the bullpen.
Nevertheless, Aase was awarded his 3rd win in four decisions.
Valhalla missed a chance in the 6th inning after placing
runners at first and second with nobody out. Esperanza
reliever Joe Dickerson coaxed SEAN O'SULLIVAN
to hit into his second double play and the budding rally
wilted.
WEDNESDAY, MAR. 30, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Grossmont North League
VAQUEROS 7, BRAVES 1
EL CAPITAN ab r h bi EL CAJON VALLEY ab r h bi
Russo 2b 3 3 2 0 Carreon rf 4 0 1 0
Rauch c 3 1 1 2 Thomas cf 3 0 0 0
N.Garcia 1b 2 0 1 1 Manzo p-1b 3 1 2 0
Walston cf 3 1 1 1 Aquiningoc dh 3 0 1 0
Ksiazek ss 3 1 2 1 Leon lf 0 0 0 0
Henson dh 2 0 1 1 Myer 1b-p 3 0 1 0
Sullenger ph 0 0 0 0 D.Perez c 3 0 0 0
McCarthy 3b 3 0 0 0 Abbod 3b 3 0 0 1
Nazzal lf 3 0 1 0 Dyer ss 1 0 0 0
Hostetler rf 3 1 1 0 Mansfield ph 1 0 0 0
C.Garcia p 0 0 0 0 L.Perez ss 0 0 0 0
Sotos 2b 3 0 0 0
TOTALS 25 7 10 6 TOTALS 27 1 5 1
El Capitan (4-6) 100 004 2 - 7 10 1
El Cajon Valley (2-8) 000 100 0 - 1 5 1
GWRBI: N.Garcia (3).
E: Ksiazek, D.Perez. LOB: EC 2, ECV 4. 2B: Myer, Russo, Rauch, Henson, Walston. SB: Russo 2. S: Sullenger. SF: N.Garcia.
PITCHING SUMMARY
EL CAPITAN ip h r er bb so
C.Garcia W(2-2) 7.0 5 1 0 0 8
EL CAJON VALLEY
Manzo L(0-1) 5.2 5 5 4 3 1
Myer 1.1 5 2 2 0 1
HBP: by C.Garcia (L.Perez). WP: Manzo.
*
SULTANS 2, WOLF PACK 1
WEST HILLS ab h r bi SANTANA ab h r bi
Mello cf 3 0 2 1 Woods p 3 0 0 0
Hooper lf 3 0 0 0 Brosnan lf 3 1 1 0
Skinner 1b 3 0 0 0 Helmholtz 1b 1 1 1 1
Strasburg p 3 0 0 0 Haley c 2 0 1 1
Gagnon c 3 0 0 0 Hermanson cf 1 0 0 0
Richardson rf 2 0 0 0 Tippin cf 2 0 0 0
Irvin 2b 2 0 0 0 Basnight 3b 3 0 0 0
Eddy ph 1 0 0 0 Martin ss 2 0 0 0
Hall 3b 2 1 0 0 Martinez 2b 2 0 0 0
Stoner dh 2 0 0 0 Miller rf 2 0 0 0
TOTALS 24 1 2 1 TOTALS 23 2 3 2
West Hills (2-7) 000 001 0 - 1 2 1
Santana (10-1) 101 000 x - 2 3 1
GWRBI: Haley (2).
E: Martin, Irvin. DP: WH 1. LOB: WH 3, Sant 5. 2B: Mello, Haley. SB: Hall, Brosnan, Helmholtz.
PITCHING SUMMARY
WEST HILLS ip h r er bb so
Strasburg L(0-4) 6.0 3 2 2 2 4
SANTANA
Woods W(4-0) 7.0 2 1 0 1 12
HBP: by Strasburg (Martin, Helmholtz). WP: Strasburg.
*
Grossmont South League
Game 1:
EAGLES 5, HIGHLANDERS 2
GRANITE HILLS ab r h bi HELIX ab r h bi
Decker ss 4 0 1 0 Rohmer 2b 4 0 0 0
Marquis cf 3 0 0 0 Tanida c 4 0 0 0
Crawford DH 4 1 2 0 Ledesma cf 2 1 0 0
Monette c 3 1 1 0 Ponce rf 3 0 1 1
Taijeron lf 3 0 0 0 Rosenthal dh 3 0 0 0
Boltz ph-lf 1 0 0 0 Peterson 1b 3 1 2 0
Humphries rf 3 0 1 2 Valles lf 3 0 1 1
Horner 3b 2 1 1 1 Ritchie 3b 2 0 0 0
Russell 1b 3 1 1 0 R.Perez ss 1 0 0 0
Cazares 2b 3 1 2 1 Webb ph 1 0 1 0
Krause p 0 0 0 0 Schuler p 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 29 5 9 4 TOTALS 26 2 5 2
Granite Hills (8-3, 1-0) 010 002 2 - 5 9 0
Helix (7-3, 0-7) 100 100 0 - 2 5 3
GWRBI: Humphries (1).
E: Tanida, Schuler, Ritchie. 2B: Crawford, Ponce, Peterson, Valles. HR: Horner (1) 2nd, one on. SB: Decker.
PITCHING SUMMARY
GRANITE HILLS ip h r er bb so
Krause W(4-0) 7.0 5 2 2 2 9
HELIX
Schuler L(1-2) 7.0 9 5 4 1 5
HBP: by Krause (R.Perez); by Schuler (Monette, Horner).
*
Game 2:
EAGLES 3, HIGHLANDERS 2
GRANITE HILLS ab r h bi HELIX ab r h bi
Decker ss 4 1 2 1 Ledesma cf 3 0 1 1
Marquis cf 3 0 0 0 Rohmer 2b 3 0 0 0
Crawford dh 3 0 1 0 Ponce rf 2 1 0 0
Russell 1b 0 0 0 0 Peterson 1b 3 0 1 0
Monette c 3 0 1 1 Valles lf 3 0 0 0
Taijeron lf 2 0 0 0 Webb dh 3 0 0 1
Humphries rf 3 1 1 0 Tanida c 2 0 0 0
Horner 3b 3 0 1 0 Beltran ph 1 0 0 0
Anderson p 2 1 1 1 Ritchie 3b 1 1 0 0
Cazares 2b 3 0 0 0 R.Perez ss 2 0 0 0
TOTAL 26 3 7 3 TOTAL 23 2 2 2
Granite Hills (9-3, 2-0) 002 100 0 - 3 7 0
Helix (7-4, 0-2) 001 100 0 - 2 2 4
GWRBI: Decker (2).
E: Rohmer, Valles, Ritchie 2. DP: Hel 3. LOB: GH 5, Hel 2. 2B: Ledesma, Humphries, Peterson.
SB: Horner, Taijeron. SF: Anderson.
PITCHING SUMMARY
GRANITE HILLS ip h r er bb so
Anderson W(3-0) 7.0 2 2 2 1 4
HELIX
Wenham L(2-1) 7.0 7 3 3 1 5
HBP: by Wenham (Taijeron); by Anderson (Ponce). WP: Wenham.
*
Game 1:
COUGARS 3, MONARCHS 2 (8 Inn.)
MONTE VISTA ab r h bi STEELE CANYON ab r h bi
Sopher lf 4 1 2 0 Minich ss 3 0 0 0
DeAnda 2b 4 0 1 0 Inzone 1b 3 1 1 0
ALopez 1b 4 1 1 1 Jacobsmeier pr 0 0 0 0
Rodriguez p 4 0 2 0 Lange 1b 0 0 0 0
Freeman pr 0 0 0 0 Rice rf 4 0 2 0
Leboffe cf 4 0 2 0 Duby c 2 1 2 0
Croft ss 3 0 1 0 Knaust dh 4 0 1 1
Haase ph 1 0 0 0 Epperson 2b 2 0 0 0
Dawson dh 2 0 0 0 Harris 2b 2 0 0 0
Hale 3b 2 0 0 0 Murray 3b 3 0 0 0
Cooper c 4 0 0 0 Jenner pr 0 1 0 0
Starley 2b 2 0 1 0 Lewis lf 3 0 2 1
Palacios 2b 1 0 0 0 Klopp cf 3 0 1 1
TOTALS 35 2 10 1 TOTALS 25 3 9 3
Monte Vista (1-8, 0-1) 200 000 00 - 2 10 1
Steele Canyon (6-3, 1-0) 101 000 01 - 3 9 0
One out when winning run scored.
GWRBI: Klopp (1).
E: Croft, Johnson, Minich. LOB: MV 9, SC 11. 2B: Sopher, A.Lopez. SB: Inzone, Lewis.
MONTE VISTA ip h r er bb so
Rodriguez L(1-5) 7.1 9 3 2 6 6
STEELE CANYON
Johnson W(2-0) 8.0 10 2 2 0 5
HBP: by Rodriguez (Inzone).
*
Game 2:
COUGARS 13, MONARCHS 4
MONTE VISTA ab r h bi STEELE CANYON ab r h bi
Haase rf-cf 4 1 2 0 Harris 2b 3 1 3 3
DeAnda p-rf 3 0 1 0 Shepard 2b 0 0 0 0
Cogley rf 1 0 0 0 Minich ss 4 1 2 1
ALopez 1b 4 1 1 0 Rice rf 4 2 2 1
Rodriguez dh 4 1 1 0 Duby c 2 2 1 1
Leboffe cf-p 3 1 2 1 Lange dh 2 1 1 0
Sopher p 0 0 0 0 Knaust 1b 3 1 0 0
Hale cf 0 0 0 0 Murray 3b 3 2 2 2
Simmons 3b-p 4 0 2 1 Lewis lf 4 2 2 2
Croft ss 3 0 0 0 Klopp cf 2 1 1 2
Messenger ph 1 0 1 1
Palacios 2b 3 0 0 0
Dqawson ph 1 0 0 0
RGarcia lf 3 0 0 0
Cooper c 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 35 4 10 3 TOTALS 27 13 14 12
Monte Vista (1-9, 0-2) 103 000 0 - 4 10 2
Steele Canyon (7-3, 2-0) 070 051 x - 13 14 3
GWRBI: Lewis (1).
E: Knaust, Minich, Murray, Garcia, Cooper. DP: MV 2. LOB: MV 10, SC 4. 2B: Minich 2, Rice, Duby. 3B: Harris. SB: Harris.
MONTE VISTA ip h r er bb so
DeAnda L(0-1) 1.2 5 6 6 3 0
Leboffe 3.1 7 6 5 2 3
Sopher 0.1 1 1 1 1 0
Simmons 0.2 1 0 0 0 1
STEELE CANYON
Epperson W(2-0) 5.0 8 4 3 0 4
Bruder 2.0 2 0 0 0 0
HBP: by Sopher (Lange), by Bruder (Hale).
*
PHIL NEVIN/EL TOYO TIRE NATIONAL CLASSIC
AZTECS 6, NORSEMEN 1
Esperanza (11-2) 010 010 3 - 5 6 0
Valhalla (6-2) 000 001 0 - 1 3 2
R.O'Sullivan, Stangyl (7) and McClain; Aase, Dickerson (6) and Larson. W: Aase (3-1). L: R.O'Sullivan (2-1).
(03-30-05)
Norsemen, Sultans and Madison rate as teams to beat
EastCountySports.com
Two-time defending Valhalla gets a slight edge over
challengers Granite Hills and Helix in what should be
an interesting race in the Grossmont South League. Across
town in the Grossmont North, Santana gets the nod over
a solid Grossmont club. El Capitan, which has
won back to back SDCIF Division II titles, can't be
counted out despite a 3-6 start. In the Harbor League,
Madison is a sure-thing to take the gold, while Christian
hones in on the runner-up spot.
GROSSMONT SOUTH
1. Valhalla: Only the wildest of gamblers would
bet against Sean O'Sullivan and the Norsemen,
who have won 29 of 30 league games over the past two
seasons.
2. Granite Hills: The 7-3 Eagles are probably
better than their record indicates, since two of their
three losses are to top-ranked Rancho Bernardo.
3. Helix: Coach Cole Holland's club has grown
from hapless also-ran to bona fide contender in less
than a year.
4. Steele Canyon: This club has enough offensive
firepower to challenge for the top spot, but lacks the
pitching.
5. Monte Vista: Losing two of its top three pitchers
has all but eliminated Monte Vista from playoff contention.
6. Mount Miguel: First-year coach Byron Grigsby
is hoping his club can notch a couple of wins and play
spoiler.
GROSSMONT NORTH
1. Santana: A fast start has the Sultans thinking
league championship for the second year in a row. The
Sultans shared the league laurels with El Capitan a
year ago, but they have no plans of spreading the wealth
this time around.
2. Grossmont: The Foothillers arguably have the
best pitching depth in East County, which makes Grossmont
a primary contender for the crown.
3. El Capitan: The defending co-champions haven't
impressed in the preseason, but should never be counted
out when coach Steve Vickery is calling the shots.
4. West Hills: Everything is new at West Hills,
which means the Wolf Pack is a year away from making
a move for the top.
5. El Cajon Valley: Gallant as these Braves have
been at times, escaping the cellar should be the primary
goal.
HARBOR LEAGUE
1. Madison: A veteran pitching staff gives the
Warhawks the nod here.
2. Christian: The Patriots lack the pitching
to capture the Harbor League flag, but somehow generate
enough runs and chaos to make their muscle felt.
3. Hoover: Remember, the Cardinals were 0-26
a year ago. A new coach has brought new life and hope.
4. Crawford: The Colts can swing the bat a bit,
but lack the pitching to be considered a serious contender.
5. Kearny: Just finishing the season is
the goal for the short-handed Komets.
Hart attack leads Christian past Crawford
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON - Finding runners in scoring position during
his first three at-bats Tuesday (Mar. 29), Christian
High catcher MATT HART collected four RBI with
three hits to spur a 14-hit attack, then the host Patriots
(6-1) staved off a late rally to best Crawford, 12-9,
in the City Conference Tournament.
Hart drove home two runs in the 1st inning, then scored
on a double by KELLEN ROSSITTO for a quick 3-0
lead, as Christian posted multiple-run innings over
four of the team's six trips to the plate to mount an
8-run lead.
The Colts (3-5) rallied late and brought the tying run
to the plate in the 7th. However, reliever TODD JONES
entered to strikeout the only batter he faced to collect
the save, leaving Crawford clean-up batter James Newman
-- who earlier slammed a 2-run homer in the 5th -- on
deck to make a winner of starting pitcher GRANT MILLS.
It was the third win in four decisions for Mills, who
suffered a broken ankle during football and is ticketed
for surgery on April 19.
Mills was backed by a 14-hit attack against Crawford.
The Patriots, in fact, have scored 26 runs in their
first City Conference Tournament games.
"We had a lot of hits falling, and we have a lot
of people who can hit," said Hart, who added an
RBI double in the 3rd, then singled home another run
in the 4th. "And Grant did well for us throwing
hard "
While the Patriots slugged six extra-base hits, including
a solo homer by designated hitter JOEL McGRANAHAN
in the 2nd, the Colts stayed in the game thanks to eight
walks and two hit batters.
Jones quelled the storm, needing just 4 pitches for
his game-ending strikeout.
Hart was forced into espionage mode when he noticed
Crawford batters seeking a peek on his signs to the
pitcher.
"We definitely needed to change things up,"
said Hart. "I actually enjoy that part of the game,
because we're always changing (the signs) all the time."
Rossitto capped a three-RBI performance with a bloop
single in the 5th, scoring two runners for a 12-4 advantage.
Among those crossing home was ADAM PERRY, who
scored three times despite batting just 1-for-4, yet
reaching twice on Colts errors.
Mills struck out three and yielded just four hits over
his five innings.
Freshman shortstop EDDIE YOUNG, third baseman
RICKY PLUM and second baseman NICK ADAMS all
had doubles for the Patriots.
VALHALLA 14, DEER VALLEY 2: The Norsemen, ranked
No. 2 in the San Diego CIF's only poll, snapped a scoreless
tie with an 8-run 4th inning in Tuesday night's (Mar.
29) second round of the Phil Nevin/El Toyo Tire National
Classic in Placentia.
Valhalla put up the eight runs before Deer Valley, which
used seven pitchers in the rout, could get an out.
"I could tell after taking our best pre-game infield
of the season that we were ready to play," Valhalla
coach STEVE PERDUE said. "We were aggressive
and took it to them as a team. This is the first complete
game we've played all year."
Senior MICHAEL YOUNG pitched 2.1 innings of shutout
relief to earn the victory. He did not allow a hit,
while striking out 3 and walking one. Young also contributed
a hitter, drawing a bases-loaded walk giving the Norsemen
a 1-0 edge. Young later drove in a run with a base hit.
JEFF SOPATA, BRENNAN BAUM and SEAN O'SULLIVAN
all had 2-run doubles in the decisive 8-run breakout
4th inning.
Baum finished the night 3 for 4 with 3 RBI. Sean O'Sullivan
drove in 3 runs and scored 3.
ERIC JULIENNE, Young and MIKE PETRIVELLI
combined to spin a 2-hitter for the Norsemen.
Valhalla (6-1) takes on the host Esperanza Aztecs (10-2)
on Wednesday (Mar. 30) at 2 p.m. The winner advances
to Thursday night's (Mar. 31) championship game at 7
p.m.
TUESDAY, MAR. 29, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Harbor League
PATRIOTS 12, COLTS 9
CRAWFORD (3-5) 020 022 3 - 9 8 3
CHRISTIAN (6-1) 330 240 x - 12 14 3
Jacobs, Wright (5) and Jas. Newman; Mills, Murray (6), T.Jones (7) and Hart.
HR: McGranahan (Chr), 2nd, solo (#1); Jam. Newman (Cr), 5th, 1 on. W: Mills (3-1). L: Jacobs. Sv: T.Jones (1).
*
El Dorado-El Toyo Tire Tire National Classic
NORSEMEN 14, DEER VALLEY 2
Valhalla (6-1) 000 841 1 - 14 11 0
Deer Valley 000 200 0 - 2 2 3
Julienne, Young (4), Petrivelli and McClain, Wilkins (7). W: Young (1-0). Deer Valley battery not available.
(03-29-05)
 Valhalla's Sean
O'Sullivan picked up his first win of the season
against Covenant High of Charlottesville, VA in the
El Dorado-El Toyo Tire National Classic. (Photo by
R. L. Young)
O'Sullivan has first win of year, while Perdue has
100th win of career
EastCountySports.com
PLACENTIA: It was hardly a thing of beauty, but
it was a landmark of sorts for the Valhalla Norsemen
who handed coach STEVE PERDUE his 100th coaching
victory in Monday's (Mar. 28) opening round of the El
Toyo Tire National Classic at El Dorado High School.
The Norsemen, behind the pitching of senior SEAN
O'SULLIVAN, defeated Covenant High of Charlottesville,
Va. 8-4.
Perdue, who was 27-5 a year ago, is 5-1 in this, his
sixth season at the Valhalla helm. But the Norsemen
skipper wasn't popping champagne corks. He wanted to
talk about Valhalla's latest performance.
Hordes of professional scouts surrounded the diamond
to watch Sean O'Sullivan pitch 5 innings to gain
his first win of the season.
"The bleachers were full of scouts," said
O'Sullivan, who gave up 4 runs and 8 hits, while striking
out 5 and walking one.
"I didn't have my "A" game going, but
I did alright. They only hit two balls hard, but we
had some mental errors. Bottom line, though, is we won
the game."
Perdue agreed that O'Sullivan's outing was better than
the statistics indicate.
"Had the two balls they hit hard been with wooden
bats, Sean would have broken them," Perdue said.
"He was in the high 80s and low 90s (mph). He had
more than a dozen pitches in the low 90s. Sure, I've
seen him pitch better. But the season is young and he's
still building his stamina."
O'Sullivan has pitched only 10 innings, yet is averaging
one strikeout per frame.
"I didn't go out there and throw gas on every pitch,"
O'Sullivan said. "But I brought it when I needed
it."
COREY STANGYL picked up for O'Sullivan and pitched
two hitless innings.
BRENNAN BAUM was 2 for 4 with a double, 2 runs
and one RBI to pace the Valhalla offense. CHAD WILSON
also had 2 hits with a double.
Covenant committed 4 errors that handed Valhalla 7 unearned
runs. Five of those tallies were a direct result of
those miscues, as Valhalla had only 3 RBI.
The Norsemen take on Deer Valley of Antioch in Tuesday's
(Mar. 29) second round at 6 p.m. Deer Valley clubbed
Villa Park 16-6 in the first round of the El Toyo Tire
National Classic.
CHRISTIAN 12, MIRA MESA 5: After a 10-day
layoff, Christian High returned to the winning track
in Monday's (Mar. 28) first round of the City Conference
Tournament by mauling the visiting Marauders.
SHANE STANOVIC pitched 5.1 innings to pick up
his first win. The junior southpaw blanked Mira Mesa
(4-4) on 2 hits over the first 4 innings before the
Marauders broke through for two runs in the 5th, and
a misjudged fly ball set the stage for a potential big
inning in the 6th.
"I was throwing a combination of fastballs, curves
and knuckleballs," Stanovic said. "My curveball
was my best pitch. I kinda changed my arm slot a little
bit, a little lower. And that worked out a little better
for me. They were fishing for the curve all day, so
gotta love that."
CHAD O'DONNELL took over for Stanovic with the
bases loaded and one out in the 6th inning. The Patriots
were in control 9-3 at the time, but Mira Mesa had its
top hitter, Pat Akers at the plate. Akers earlier
smacked a 2-run home run in the 5th inning. Not this
time.
O'Donnell, who delivered three straight balls to Akers,
suddenly found the strike zone, spinning three consecutive
strikes past Akers for the second out. Deryk Hooker
then lofted a fly ball out to center field to end the
inning.
Mitchell has high hopes for Stanovic.
"He doesn't know it yet, but he's going to end
up being our ace," Christian coach MIKE MITCHELL
said. "He throws decent hard, has a good curveball.
He has a little bit of a knuckleball.
"When he's throwing strikes, he's good. But there
are sometimes that he just loses it. He's all over the
place."
Case in point was the late innings against Mira Mesa.
"We are kinda bringing Shane along slowly,"
Mitchell said.
Christian is going to lose the services of junior GRANT
MILLS, who is batting .600 and owns a 2-1 record
as a left-handed starting pitcher. Mills suffered a
broken ankle during football and is ticketed for surgery
on April 19.
"I still haven't figured this out," Mitchell
said. "He can't run, but they are going to let
him pitch (until he has surgery). He can't play in the
field, but he can hit. If he gets on base, we have to
run for him."
No matter, Mills is done in three weeks.
ADAM PERRY sparked an 11-hit attack with a 4
for 4 effort and 3 runs scored against Mira Mesa. MATT
HART and KELLEN ROSSITTO drove in 2 runs
apiece for the Patriots (5-1).
Eight Mira Mesa errors helped the Patriots pad their
totals.
MONDAY, MAR 28, 2005
EastCountySports.com
City Conference Tournament
PATRIOTS 12, MARAUDERS 5
Mira Mesa (4-4) 000 021 2 - 5 7 8
Christian (5-1) 101 163 x - 12 11 1
Akers, Black (5), Bradley (6) and O'Mary; Stanovic, O'Donnell (6) and Hart.
HR: Akers (M) 5th, one on. W: Stanovic (1-0). L: Akers.
*
El Dorado-El Toyo Tire National Classic
NORSEMEN 8, COVENANT (VA) 4
Valhalla (5-1) 103 013 0 - 8 8 0
Covenant 102 010 0 - 4 8 4
S.O'Sullivan, Stangyl (6) and McClain; Enos, Dernick (7).
W: S.O'Sullivan (1-0). L: Enos.
(03-28-05)
 Steele Canyon's Kyle
Johnson pitches against Bonita Vista in a game won
by the Barons. (Courtesy photo)
Top-ranked Broncos deck Decker-less Eagles in Lions
Classic final
EastCountySports.com
POINT LOMA - Defensive lapses have no doubt cost Granite
Hills a couple of ballgames this season. A bigger problem
for these Eagles, however, has been finding a way to
defuse the explosive Rancho Bernardo Broncos.
When the Eagles had to play Thursday's (Mar. 24) Classic
Division championship of the 55th annual Lions Tournament
without catalyst BRANDON DECKER, it certainly
didn't help matters. Decker missed the
contest after spraining a knee in the semifinal-round
victory over Vista earlier in the day.
In the end, though, this game wasn't decided by defense
or a lack of it. The bats of undefeated and top-ranked
Rancho Bernardo (11-0) proved to be too much. The Broncos
scored six times in the 3rd inning to build an 8-run
lead, racing to the easy victory on a soggy afternoon
at Point Loma Nazarene University's Carroll Land Stadium.
"They came to play and swung the bats," said
Eagles senior catcher NICK MONETTE. "They
don't give away any at-bats. If you make any little
mistake, they capitalize on it."
Granite Hills (7-3), after a defensive disaster in a
Hilltop Tournament setback to the Broncos two weeks
ago, only committed one small mistake in the rematch.
But it opened the flood gates.
After third baseman BRET HORNER made a solid
throw to the plate to cut down the lead runner after
Rancho Bernardo loaded the bases, the relay to first
in an attempt for a double play wasn't caught. That
extended the 4th inning. Suddenly, a one-run rally expanded
to five runs to place the Broncos in position to run-rule
the Eagles.
"The defense has got to pick-up if we want to beat
a team like Rancho Bernardo," added Granite Hills
head coach JAMES DAVIS. "They don't beat
themselves and we have to learn to do the same."
Granite Hills rebounded with three runs in the 3rd,
as LOUIS CAZARES and Monette hit ground balls
to score a run each, then TRAVIS TAIJERON ripped
a line single to left for another run.
In the 5th, the Eagles collected their lone extra-base
hit when CODY CRAWFORD slammed a double over
the right-fielder's head to score GARRETT RUSSELL.
In the end, though, it was far too little too late.
Rancho Bernardo has outscored Granite Hills 24-6 in
12 innings. The Eagles are 7-1 against their other opponents.
Davis was not disappointed by the Eagles' 4-1 showing
in the tournament. Granite Hills applied the domino
theory, knocking off La Costa Canyon, Fallbrook, Green
Valley (NV) and Vista is succession.
"That's pretty impressive," Davis noted. "We
won four games against some of the better programs in
the San Diego CIF Section. We have to be pleased, but
not satisfied where we are."
SEMIFINALS
CLASSIC DIVISION
GRANITE HILLS 5, VISTA 2: CODY CRAWFORD
and NICK MONETTE batted home the go-ahead runs
to snap a 2-all tie in the 7th, powering the Eagles
past the Panthers in Thursday's (Mar. 24) semifinals
at Mesa College.
A defensive mistake finally went the Eagles' way. With
the bases loaded, the score tied and nobody out in the
7th inning, the Vista third baseman threw to first base
rather than to home plate after fielding a ground ball.
That decision allowed LOUIS CAZARES to score
the go-ahead run and Crawford to pick up the-winning
RBI.
Monette ripped a single to deep shortstop to plate a
second Granite Hills run for a 4-2 lead. In his haste,
the Vista shortstop threw the ball away to hand the
Eagles additional insurance run.
The other Granite Hills runs came in the 1st when both
RYAN MARQUIS and Crawford scored after coaxing
one-out walks, as TRAVIS TAIJERON and BRIAN
HUMPHRIES rattled consecutive RBI singles.
Meanwhile, pitcher DARREN GAY, who picked up
a key save earlier in the week, tossed a complete game
at Vista, striking out five without issuing a single
walk as he scattered 7 hits and logged a complete game
victory.
"Mony (Monette) called a great game and I was able
to hit my spots," said Gay, a sophomore, who survived
three Eagles errors that allowed Vista to knot the game
with unearned runs in the 5th and 6th. The team turned
it up when they had to."
The top six batters in the Eagles' lineup produced either
a run, hit or RBI.
5A DIVISION
MT. CARMEL 7, GROSSMONT 5: The visiting Sundevils
stormed in front 5-0 before Grossmont was afforded its
third at-bat Thursday (Mar. 24) and continued on to
deal the third-ranked Foothillers (8-2) their second
loss of the Lions Tournament.
Three Grossmont errors handed Mt. Carmel three unearned
runs. The Foothillers further added to their demise
when they issued a season high 5 walks.
"Two of those walks turned into runs," Grossmont
coach ROB PHILLIPS said. "That's something
we haven't been doing."
Mt. Carmel also out-hit the Hillers 10-8, although Phillips
insisted that was a misleading statistic.
"We hit the ball harder than they did," the
Grossmont coach said. "But that doesn't really
matter when you sort things out. The bottom line is
we didn't do the things you need to do to win.
"When you get into the latter stages of a tournament
like this, when you are mentally tired and physically
tired, it's a matter of who wants it more."
Garrett Roth, the third batter of the game, ripped a
3-run home run and Grossmont was playing catch-up from
there on in.
AUGIE WILLIAMS swatted a two-run home run for
the Foothillers.
4A DIVISION
SAN MARCOS 2, HELIX 1: Both pitchers
settled down after allowing runs in the 1st inning,
as a two-run double by Michael Lozano proved to be the
difference for the Knights (5-4) at Hilltop's Baumgarten
Field.
San Marcos starter Cameron Aspaas allowed only three
hits over five innings, outdueling Helix starter JEREMY
PETERSON, who yielded just four hits in four frames.
The bullpens from each team were a perfect 6-for-6 in
retiring batters, including the Highlanders' senior
MIKE SCHULER, who got two of his three outs on
strikeouts.
The Scotties' lone run came on a two-out walk to STEVEN
ROHMER, who took second on a wild pitch, then circled
the bases on a double by NICK LEDESMA.
The only other hits for Helix (7-2) came from the bottom
of the lineup, when RAUL RITCHIE and ANDREW
VALLES collected consecutive one-out singles in
the 5th, but the baserunners were left stranded.
EL CAPITAN 7, COOPER CITY (FLA.) 0:
Victories have not materialized as swiftly as they normally
do for the tradition-rich Vaqueros of El Capitan. However,
after a sluggish start, coach STEVE VICKERY's crew
appears to be peeking around the corner if not turning
in that direction following a four-game stint in the
Cleats National Invitational in Scottsdale, AZ.
El Capitan didn't do anything spectacular, splitting
four games during the four-day stay in Arizona. But
Vickery had to be pleased by the pitching of BRYAN
PAUKOVITS in Thursday's (Mar. 24) finale against
Cooper City (Fla.). The senior right-hander struck out
10, walked one and scattered six hits as he logged his
first win.
"Key to this game was no errors," said Vickery.
"We put the pressure on the other team this time."
"(BRYAN) PAUKOVITS had a tremendous performance
today. He has now pitched 13 scoreless innings in a
row," Vickery said. "(JASSON) KSIAZEK
hit the ball hard three times. Everything today went
right for him."
Indeed. Ksiazek was 4 for 4 with 2 RBI.
Vickery mused that the last game of this tournament
was a family affair.
"We started all three GARCIA brothers today
-- senior NIK and junior twins CRISTIAN
and DAMIAN," Vickery said. "That's
a first for me, to have three brothers on a team."
As back-page as this win was in general, it could be
the emotional spark the two-time San Diego CIF Division
II champions need to jump-start the 2005 season.
Las Vegas Perfecto: A second look
WEDNESDAY, MAR 23, 2005
Blazer SportCo Spring Bash
MOHAVE (NV) ab r h bi SANTANA ab r h bi
Wachter c 3 0 0 0 Woods p 3 0 0 1
Blazek 3b 3 0 0 0 Brosnan lf 3 0 0 0
Sweat p 3 0 0 0 Helmholtz 1b 2 1 1 0
Tilsat ss 2 0 0 0 Haley c 2 0 0 0
Rios 1b 2 0 0 0 Hermansen cf 3 0 1 0
Brickerhoff lf 2 0 0 0 Basnight 3b 3 1 1 0
Whitehead cf 2 0 0 0 Martin ss 2 0 1 1
Gloria 2b 2 0 0 0 Martinez 2b 1 0 1 0
Schwess rf 2 0 0 0 Miller rf 3 0 1 0
TOTALS 18 0 0 0 TOTALS 22 2 6 2
Mojave 000 000 0 - 0 0 0
Santana (9-1) 011 000 x - 2 6 0
GWRBI: Woods.
E: Tilsant, Gloria. LOB: Mojave 0, Santana 5. SB: Helmholtz, Hermansen. S: Martin. SF: Woods.
PITCHING SUMMARY
MOHAVE ip h r er bb so
Sweat L 6.0 6 2 1 4 3
SANTANA
Woods W(2-0) 7.0 0 0 0 0 12
*
THURSDAY, MAR 24, 2005
EastCountySports.com
55th Lions Invitational Tournament
CLASSIC DIVISION
Finals:
BRONCOS 13, EAGLES 4
RANCHO BERNARDO ab h r bi GRANITE HILLS ab r h bi
Cable rf 4 2 3 4 Russell 1b-p 2 2 1 0
Drennen cf 1 2 1 0 Marquis cf 3 1 1 0
Dykstra 1b 4 1 2 2 Crawford dh 2 0 2 1
Wilson lf 3 1 2 2 Monette c 3 0 0 1
Kuehl ss 3 1 2 1 Taijeron lf 3 0 1 1
Palmer ph 1 0 0 0 Humphries rf 2 0 0 0
Jusino 2b 3 0 1 2 Horner 3b 2 0 0 0
Navarro ph 0 0 0 0 Harkins 2b 2 1 1 0
Robinson dh 1 0 0 0 Cazares ss 2 0 0 1
Haynal dh 3 2 2 1 Coleman p-1b 0 0 0 0
Buckley 3b 3 2 1 0
Laws c 0 1 0 0
Alarcon ph 1 1 0 0
TOTALS 27 13 14 12 TOTALS 21 4 6 4
RANCHO BERNARDO (11-0) 206 50 - 13 15 1
GRANITE HILLS (7-3) 003 01 - 4 6 1
Called after five innings, rain.
GWRBI: Wilson.
E: Peabody, Coleman. DP: GH 1. LOB: RB 6, GH 4. 2B: Harkins, Crawford, Kuehl, Cable, Drennen. SB: Wilson. SF: Wilson.
RANCHO BERNARDO ip h r er bb so
Peabody W 3.0 4 3 3 1 1
Zabel 2.0 2 1 1 0 3
GRANITE HILLS
Sylvester L(0-1) 2.0 5 4 4 1 3
Coleman 1.1 7 7 7 3 1
Russell 1.2 2 2 1 1 4
Sylvester faced two batters in the third.
HBP: by Peabody (Russell), by Russell (Drennen). WP: Zabel 2, Russell.
*
SEMIFINALS:
Classic Division
EAGLES 5, PANTHERS 2
Granite Hills (7-2) 200 000 3 - 5 6 3
Vista (6-2) 000 011 0 - 2 8 1
Gay and Monette; Lewis, Richardson (1), Cahill (7) and Carroll, Craig (5). W: Gay (1-0). L: Richardson (1-1).
*
5A Division
SUNDEVILS 7, FOOTHILLERS 5
Mt. Carmel (6-3) 302 200 0 - 7 10 1
Grossmont (8-2) 002 210 0 - 5 8 3
Findley, Ferguson (5) and Ferguson, Rehkopf (5); Adams, Kinsella (4), Mattson (4), Passanisi (6) and Pieczynski.
HR: Roth (MC) 1st, two on; Williams (G, #1) 4th, one on. W: Findley (3-0). L: Adams (1-1). Sv: Ferguson (3).
*
4A Division
KNIGHTS 2, HIGHLANDERS 1
Helix (7-2) 100 000 0 - 1 3 0
San Marcos (5-4) 200 000 x - 2 4 0
Peterson, Schuler (5) and Tanida; Aspaas, Hays (6) and K.Cooper. W: Aspaas (2-1). L: Peterson (1-2). Sv: Hays (3).
*
Cleats National Invitational (Scottsdale, AZ)
VAQUEROS 7, COOPER CITY (FLA) 0
El Capitan (2-6) 001 130 2 - 7 7 0
Cooper City 000 000 0 - 0 6 5
Paukovits and Rauch; Kahn, Javins (5), Pilkey (7), Nelson (7) and Housey. W: Paukovits (1-1). L: Kahn.
(03-24-05)
Santana's Woods deals perfect game at Las Vegas
tournament
EastCountySports.com
SAN DIEGO: Known more for his play as a shortstop, Santana
senior JEFF WOODS proved he's not too bad as
a pitcher either. The senior right-hander recorded only
the sixth perfect game in Grossmont Conference history
and just the 9th on the 45-year San Diego CIF charts
Wednesday (Mar. 23) as the Sultans edged Mojave 2-0
in the semifinals of the Blazer's SportCo. Spring Bash
in Las Vegas. Santana went on to capture the tourney
title, defeating Boulder City (NV.) 9-3. ELSEWHERE,
three East County teams advanced to Thursday's (Mar.
24) semifinals of the 55th annual Lions Baseball Invitational.
Granite Hills (6-2) takes on Vista in the Classic Division
semifinals at Point Loma Nazarene University, while
Grossmont (8-1) hosts Mt. Carmel in the 5A Division
semifinal and Helix (7-1) travels to South Bay to meet
San Marcos in the 4A Division semis. All start at 10
a.m. A win will put these teams in the division championship
games at 2 p.m.
SANTANA 2, MOJAVE (NV) 0: This game was
all about JEFF WOODS.
Woods' perfect game was completed by a combination of
12 strikeouts, eight ground outs, and a pop-up to the
pitcher.
Woods also accounted for the game-winning RBI with a
sacrifice fly in the 2nd inning and DALLAS MARTIN
singled in a run to make it 2-0 in the 3rd inning.
SANTANA 9, BOULDER CITY (NV) 3: Sophomore
DALLAS MARTIN was 3 for 3 with 2 doubles and
a pair of RBI in Wednesday's (Mar. 23) Blazer's SportCo
Spring Bash championship game in Las Vegas, NV.
Martin's 2-run double ignited a 3-run 2nd inning as
Santana completed a 5-game tournament sweep. On top
of that, the youthful right-hander pitched 3 shutout
hitless innings while striking out 3.
While Santana coach JERRY HENSON was pleased
by his Sultans' domination, he was not happy by the
tournament's postseason awards ceremony.
The presentation of the tournament's championship trophy
consisted of the following:
"Their coach walked out to the mound and put the
(championship) trophy on the mound," Henson said.
"And then the guy walks away to talk to his team
without saying a thing to me or my kids."
Somewhat angered by the hosts' rude behavior, Henson
picked up the trophy and hoisted it above his head to
the cheers of his players and fans.
GRANITE HILLS 2, GREEN VALLEY (NV) 0: Sophomore
ERIC KRAUSE flirted with a no-hitter in Wednesday's
(Mar. 23) Classic Division semifinals against Green
Valley (NV) under the lights at Helix High.
In fact, the Eagles' 5-foot-8,147-pounder came within
one out of spinning a no-hitter against one of Nevada's
traditional powerhouses.
"That kid is a bulldog," Granite Hills coach
JAMES DAVIS said. "He had great placement
all night long. I doubt if he threw more than five breaking
balls."
Krause, who struck out 9 and walked only one, threw
perhaps one fastball too many.
"The guy who broke it (the no-hitter) up hit a
first-pitch fastball with 2 outs in the 7th," Davis
said. "It was a clean hit, a one-hopper to my left
fielder."
The Eagles (6-2) scored the only run they needed when
TRAVIS TAIJERON drilled a solo home run over
the center field fence in the 4th inning. Granite Hills
plated its second run in the 6th when Eagles catcher
NICK MONETTE reached base on a fielder's choice,
stole second and scored on back-to-back balks.
WEST HILLS 2, Santa Cruz HARBOR 1: For
the longest time, AARON RICHARDSON's strong pitching
effort seemed like it would be wasted. The junior
left-hander allowed just three hits in seven innings
of Wednesday (Mar. 23) Lions Invitational 3A Division
contest. However, KOREY HOOPER came to
the rescue, giving West Hills its second win in three
starts.
Hooper deposited the first pitch of the 6th inning over
the fence in straightaway center field to snap a 1-1
tie, as the Wolf Pack outlasted Harbor High of Santa
Cruz in a Division 3A contest to finish second in their
pool
"I was just looking for a fastball to try to take
it up the middle," said the junior right-fielder.
"The pitcher got it up and it went out."
Two years earlier, Hooper's fly ball would've been a
deep out, with the closest fence located a pair of football
fields in length away. However, host Clairemont High
installed an outfield barrier last season at Ernie Beck
Field, as the ball went over right at the 400-foot marker.
Meanwhile, Richardson cruised along without his best
stuff, especially early when the Pirates (7-5) placed
their first three batters on base on a hit, a walk,
and an error on a sacrifice bunt. However, the only
run Richardson would allow came on the first of two
double plays turned in by the Wolf Pack defense.
"My fastball was nothing today," said Richardson,
who threw 106 pitches and walked four in the first two
innings. "It was 15 miles per hour slower than
I normally throw it. So I had to rely on my curveball
about 90 percent of the time, then the defense stuck
with me and made the plays."
Both double plays occurred immediately after the team
posted errors, allowing Richardson to escape potential
big innings. For the contest, he allowed three hits
(two singles and a two-out double in the sixth) while
striking out six Pirates.
West Hills tied the contest in the 4th as MICHAEL
HALL roped a double off the base of the center field
fence for the RBI.
HELIX 6, NARBONNE 1: Senior MANUEL
MENDOZA and junior DUSTIN RUNIONS ganged
up on the visiting Gauchos from Harbor City to spin
a 5-hitter in Wednesday's (Mar. 23) Lions Tournament
4A Division semifinals in La Mesa.
"Yeah, I think we have decent pitching depth,"
said Helix coach COLE HOLLAND. "Those two
guys proved that again today."
Mendoza worked the first 5 frames, scattering 4 hits
while striking out 2 to earn his first win.
A two-run single by ALEX ROSENTHAL followed by
an RBI double by JEREMEY PETERSON staked Mendoza
and the Highlanders to a 3-0 lead in the 1st inning.
ANDREW VALLES' RBI triple keyed a 2-run 2nd inning
as Helix forged in front 5-0.
Peterson finished with a pair of doubles, giving him
an East County high 9 for the season.
Valles was 2 for 2, including a double.
Helix (7-1), which won only 8 games in 28 starts a year
ago, could surpass that total with a sweep to the Lions
4A crown.
GROSSMONT 5, LOMPOC 0: A.J. GRIFFIN is
looked upon as the closer for the No. 3-ranked Grossmont
Foothillers. But the 6-foot-4, 205-pound right-hander
proved he has what it takes to go the distance when
called upon.
Griffin got the call in Wednesday's (Mar. 24) semifinals
of the 5A Division of the Lions Invitational. And, as
usual, he answered the bell, mowing down 10 Braves on
strikes as he coined a complete-game 2-hitter.
Griffin retired the final 10 batters, striking out the
side in the 7th.
Grossmont shortstop TRISTAN PHILLIPS fueled a
13-hit attack with a 3 for 3 performance at the plate.
The Foothillers' senior catalyst doubled and scored
in the 2nd inning, slugged a solo home run in the 4th
and singled in a run in the 5th.
After TONY CUSUMANO's RBI single gave Grossmont
(8-1) a 1-0 edge in the 2nd inning, DONNIE SNOW's
solo home run made it 2-0 in the 3rd.
TIM FERRARA chipped in three hits and NICK
SOBEL and Cusumano pitched in 2 apiece, as Grossmont
totaled 13 safeties in the game.
EL CAJON VALLEY 14, SAN YSIDRO 5: The Braves
made it back-to-back wins and they did it in style,
knocking out 20 hits in Wednesday's (Mar. 23) romp over
host San Ysidro in the final round of Lions Tournament
Division 2A pool play.
ECV coach WAYNE WEIGHTMAN promoted sophomore
RAY AQUININGOC to the varsity and the young man
delivered in a major way, driving in 6 runs with a pair
of triples and a double.
FEDERICO CARREON was 2 for 5 with a triple and
3 RBI, and SHANE MYER blasted a home run for
El Cajon Valley (2-7).
DEREK PEREZ was 3 for 4 with a pair of RBI, while
CLIFTON THOMAS contributed a double and two singles,
scoring twice and stealing once.
The Braves broke the game open with 5 runs on 7 hits
in the 5th inning, giving El Cajon Valley a 10-0 advantage.
BROPHY PREP (AZ) 7, EL CAPITAN 3: A dropped
fly ball in the 2nd inning helped the Broncos score
4 runs that wiped out El Capitan's fast start in Wednesday's
(Mar. 23) third round of the Cleats National Invitational
in Scottsdale, AZ.
"The story of this ballgame is we were 1 for 13
with runners in scoring position," El Capitan coach
STEVE VICKERY said.
NIK GARCIA stroked 3 singles to account for nearly
half of El Capitan's eight hits. AUSTIN RAUCH
was 2 for 4 with 2 runs scored, a double, a stolen base
and one RBI.
El Capitan junior reliever KYLE KING, who notched
Tuesday's pitching win, blanked Brophy on 3 hits over
the final 2.2 innings. He struck out 2 and walked one.
ESCONDIDO 6, STEELE CANYON 1: The Cougars
probably lost this game before they ever set foot on
the field in Wednesday's (Mar. 23) final round of Lions
Invitational Division 4A pool play.
Rainy weather throughout the night left many playing
surfaces unfit for Wednesday's activity. Thus, Steele
Canyon coach PHIL MITTRY and his players were
virtual nomads until they final were informed by the
Lions Club when and where they would play.
The lack of information and communication did not sit
well with Mittry.
"My kids were driving all over the flippin' county
and then waiting around two hours before their game,"
Mittry said. "That certainly didn't help us."
Neither did the hitting of Escondido catcher Buck
Afenir. The Cougars senior receiver went 4 for 4
with a two-run home run as Escondido improved to 7-1.
The Cougars (5-3) were limited to five singles.
OTAY RANCH 4, MOUNT MIGUEL 2: The Mustangs
scored 3 runs in the bottom of the 6th inning to deny
the Matadors their first victory of the season in Wednesday's
(Mar. 23) Lions Invitational 3A Division encounter.
Despite generating only 3 hits, Mount Miguel (0-8) took
a 2-1 lead on RBI by JEREMIAH WHITE and EDDIE
DeARCOS.
Ricky Alvarez foiled Mount Miguel's victory celebration
with a 2-run triple in the decisive 6th frame.
JAIME SANDOVAL, who allowed only 2 earned runs
in 5.1 innings, was the hard-luck loser for the Matadors.
"Sandoval threw well enough to win," Mount
Miguel coach BYRON GRIGSBY said.
SWEETWATER 3, MONTE VISTA 2: Things were looking
good for the Monarchs (1-7) after IAN CROFT's
1st inning double gave Monte Vista a 2-1 edge in Wednesday's
(Mar. 23) 5A Division Lions Invitational contest in
Spring Valley.
Sweetwater senior Vidal Nuno spoiled the Monarchs'
victory bid when he hammered a game-winning home run
off reliever ANDREW COGLEY in the 6th inning.
WEDNESDAY, MAR 23, 2005
EastCountySports.com
55th Lions Invitational Tournament
Classic Division:
EAGLES 2, GATORS 0
Green Valley 000 000 0 - 0 1 0
Granite Hills (6-2) 000 101 x - 2 4 1
Zunigh and Hansen; Krause and Monette. HR: Taijeron (GH, #4) 4th, solo. W: Krause (3-0). L: Zunigh.
*
5A Division:
FOOTHILLERS 5, BRAVES 0
Lompoc 000 000 0 - 0 2 2
Grossmont (8-1) 011 120 x - 5 13 1
Aguilar and Dutzler; Griffin and Pieczynski. HR: Snow (G, #4) 3rd, solo; Phillips (G, #2) 4th, solo.
W: Griffin (2-0). L: Aguilar.
*
RED DEVILS 3, MONARCHS 2
Sweetwater 100 011 0 - 3 5 0
Monte Vista (1-7) 200 000 0 - 2 6 0
Palacios, Llanez (7) and Llanez, Concha (7); DeAnda, Cogley (6), Sopher (7) and Cooper. HR: Nuno (S) 6th, solo.
W: Palacios. L: Cogley. Sv: Llanez.
*
4A Division:
HIGHLANDERS 6, GAUCHOS 1
Narbonne 001 000 0 - 1 5 1
Helix (7-1) 320 001 x - 6 8 0
Lopez, Walters (6) and Topete; Mendoza, Runions (6) and Foy. W: Mendoza (1-0). L: Lopez.
*
COUGARS 6, COUGARS 1
Escondido (7-1) 220 200 0 - 6 10 2
Steele Canyon (5-3) 000 000 1 - 1 5 1
Barlow, Gunton (6) and Afenir, Kuripla (6); Inzone, West (4), Lewis (5), Johnson (7) and Duby, Lange (6).
*
3A Division:
WOLF PACK 2, PILOTS 1
Harbor (Santa Cruz) (7-5) 100 000 0 - 1 3 1
West Hills (2-6) 000 101 x - 2 6 2
HR: Hooper (WH) 6th, solo. Long and Adkins; Richardson and Gagnon. W: Richardson. L: Long.
*
MUSTANGS 4, MATADORS 2
Mount Miguel (0-7) 000 101 0 - 2 3 1
Otay Ranch 010 003 x - 4 7 1
Sandoval, Freeman (6) and White; Taboada and Canedo. W: Taboada. L: Sandoval (0-2).
*
2A Division:
BRAVES 14, COUGARS 5
El Cajon Valley (2-7) 103 151 3 - 14 20 1
San Ysidro 000 023 0 - 5 9 5
Vega, Hopwood (6), Abbod (6) and D.Perez; Ruiz, M.Ortiz (5), C.Ortiz (6) and Enriguez.
HR: Myer (ECV, #1) 6th, solo. W: Vega (1-0). L: Ruiz.
*
Blazer SportCo Spring Bash
SULTANS 2, MOHAVE (AZ) 0
Sultans (8-1) 000 000 0 - 0 0 2
Mohave 011 000 X - 2 6 0
Sweat and Wachter; Woods and Haley. W: Woods (2-0). L: Sweat.
*
SULTANS 9, BOULDER CITY (NV) 3
Boulder City 000 102 0 - 3 6 4
Santana (9-1) 030 114 x - 9 12 3
Bloetsch, Shea (6) and Stephens; Martin, Medrud (5), Basnight (6) and Haley. W: Bloetsch. L: Martin (2-0).
*
Cleats National Invitational (Las Vegas)
BRONCOS 7, VAQUEROS 3
Brophy Prep (AZ) 040 030 0 - 7 10 3
El Capitan (2-6) 200 000 1 - 3 8 1
Highmark, Abbott (6), Strazzara (7) and Crowder; McCarthy, King (5) and Erickson. W: Highmark. L: McCarthy (0-1).
(03-23-05)
Helix makes the sacrifice for team play and win
Lions game
EastCountySports.com
SAN DIEGO - Well on his way to a solid 3-for-3 outing
at the plate, even NICK LEDESMA was asked to
make a sacrifice for the team. So when the Helix High
clean-up batter put down a perfect sacrifice bunt, it
opened the floodgates to a 4-run 5th inning Tuesday
(Mar. 22) as the Highlanders handed Mira Mesa a 6-2
loss in the 4A Division of the 55th annual Lions Invitational.
Obviously surprised by Ledesma's bunt, the hurried Mira
Mesa pitcher made a wild throw to first base for an
error to load the bases with no outs.
"The sacrifice helped keep us in the game and gave
us a big inning," said Ledesma, who earlier stroked
an RBI single in the 1st inning, then added a double
in the 3rd. "Every one of us had a job to do, so
we'll never be out of a ballgame all year."
Meanwhile, starting pitcher MATT WENHAM tossed
five shutout innings before Mira Mesa could reach the
right-hander, as the Highlanders (7-1) clinched a berth
in the 4A Division semifinals scheduled for Thursday
(Mar. 24) at Hilltop High at 10 a.m. The championship
game is later that afternoon at the same site at 2 p.m.
Wenham noted a strategy of going against the book in
his pitch selection to keep Mira Mesa (4-3) off-balance.
"Today, we threw the off-speed pitch as a fastball,
and we threw the fastball as an off-speed pitch,"
said the crafty senior right-hander, who allowed just
six hits in as many innings to run his record to 2-0.
"They were expecting different pitches all day
long, so we just went right after them and it worked."
The confusion among the batters started early, as four
Marauders were caught looking on third strikes over
the first two innings. Wenham went on to strike out
six, then STEVEN ROHMER registered two additional
strikeouts in the seventh to seal the victory.
Leading 2-0, ZACH TANIDA opened the 5th with
a line single. Romer then walked to set-up Ledesma's
sacrifice situation, which eventually filled the bases.
An ensuing wild pitch allowed Tanida to score. Romer
scored on a booming double to left-center by JEREMY
PETERSON, the second two-base hit of the contest
by the Helix first baseman. Later in the frame ALEX
ROSENTHAL, who earlier walked twice, slammed an
RBI triple to the deepest reaches of right field for
a 6-0 advantage.
GRANITE HILLS 5, FALLBROOK 4: These
Granite Hills Eagles are unique to say the least.
In Tuesday's (Mar. 22) Classic Division 2nd round game
against visiting Fallbrook, the Eagles (5-2) survived
their own bad base-running to dump the Warriors for
their 3rd straight win in a duel between San Diego CIF
Division I powers.
Granite Hills scored the winning run in the 7th frame
as CODY CRAWFORD tripled and scored on TRAVIS
TAIJERON's one-out single. Crawford is 5 for 7 in
the two Lions tourney tilts, raising his season average
to .400 (10 for 25).
"We are still not hitting the ball the way I know
we can," Eagles coach JAMES DAVIS said.
"Thank God for Cody Crawford.
"We have won two big games these past two days,
victories that will help us come (SDCIF Division I)
playoff seeding time."
Trailing 4-0 after 3 innings, the Eagles hit the come-from-behind
trail in the 4th inning as Taijeron lofted a scoring
fly ball to put Granite Hills on the scoreboard.
In the 6th inning, things really got interesting. It
was one for the so-called books. Two Eagles were put
out at third base and a third runner was nailed at the
plate.
Nevertheless, Granite Hills scored three runs in that
same inning to knot the game at 4-4. LOUIS CAZARES'
2-run double was the key blow.
EL CAPITAN 9, SALPOINTE CATHOLIC 6: Junior
VINNY NAZZAL sparked both of El Capitan's rallies
with a leadoff double in a 3-run third inning and a
walk in a 6-run 6th inning as the Vaqueros won for only
the second time in seven starts in Tuesday's (Mar. 22)
Cleats National Invitational at Scottsdale, Ariz.
"That six-run inning was our biggest of the season,"
El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY said. "Using
that big inning in our last time at-bat was a huge emotional
boost for our team morale. Hopefully it's a stepping
stone of things to come."
JOSH WALTON's two-run triple keyed the pivotal
6th inning that received its original jolt from LOUIE
RUSSO's 3rd home run with a man aboard. GRIFF
ERICKSON also stroked an RBI single in the big inning.
Russo was 3 for 4 with 2 runs scored and 3 RBI, while
Nazzal was 2 for 2 with two runs scored.
Junior KYLE KING twirled 1.2 shutout innings
of relief to notch his first varsity win for the Vaqueros.
SANTANA 5, TAFT 3: You would think that
the heavy hitting Santana Sultans would dismantle a
team that committed 10 errors in a game as Taft did
in Tuesday's (Mar. 22) second day of the Las Vegas Blazer
SportCo Spring Bash.
The Sultans (7-1) were limited to 5 hits, two of them
coming off the bat of senior shortstop JEFF WOODS
who stole 4 bases and scored a run. On top of his
offensive thrust, Woods earned his first save by hurling
a scoreless 7th.
"We started out like a firecracker then found they
weren't that good a ballclub, so we took ourselves down
to their level," grumbled Santana coach JERRY
HENSON. "We played OK, but not spectacular.
Good enough to get the job done. We've gotten spoiled
with games in double digit hits. We played some small
ball in order to get some runs."
Santana senior pitcher ERIK MEDRUD was
flirting with a no-hitter with 2 outs in the 6th inning
before Taft gave him the shaft.
Santana is the No. 1 seed in the Boulder City bracket
semifinals that kick off on Wednesday (Mar. 23).
UNIVERSITY CITY 6, GROSSMONT 5: The
Foothillers out-hit the visiting Centurions 8-7, but
still came up short for the first time in 8 starts in
Tuesday's (Mar. 22) second round of the 5A Division
of the Lions Invitational at Joe Gizoni Field.
Grossmont (7-1) could easily have won this game, but
left 3 runners in scoring position and saw ace left-hander
DONNIE SHAW serve up a pair of back-breaking
home runs.
The Foothillers produced scoring bursts in the 4th and
6th innings against University City (4-3), which rode
the methodical pitching of senior ace right-hander Taylor
Monjo (3-0-) to the victory.
"We had numerous opportunities to win that ball
game," Grossmont coach ROB PHILLIPS said.
"But we were due to have a letdown game. And it
sure was today, all-around - offense, defense, everything.
Pitching, home runs, everything.
Those home runs were ticketed by University City's Joe
Oliveira and Kevin Santos, each of the blows coming
with a man aboard.
Grossmont's A.J. GRIFFIN was 2 for 4, including
a 2-run single in the bottom of the 7th.
EL CAJON VALLEY 13, CALIMESA, (AZ) 5:
Not many teams want dry weather more than coach WAYNE
WEIGHTMAN's El Cajon Valley Braves.
Virtually drowned by a 71-18 score in six straight losses
to open the season, the Braves (1-6) finally gained
firm footing in Tuesday's (Mar. 22) second round 2A
Division contest in the 55th annual Lions Invitational.
And the Braves want more, as they hope to carry out
Wednesday's (Mar. 23) Lions pool play finale against
San Ysidro.
El Cajon Valley senior reliever SHANE MYER came
in and shut the door in the 4th inning for the win.
He scattered five hits, allowed one run and struck out
3 over the final 2.2 innings.
JONATHAN MANZO labored through 4.1 innings before
giving way to Myer. Manzo was 3 for 4 with 3 runs scored,
a double, and a stolen base.
The telling statistic of the game was the errors.
El Cajon Valley made every play, while the Arizona visitors
kicked six balls.
The highlight of the game was a diving catch by El Cajon
Valley center fielder CLIFTON THOMAS that short-circuited
a major blow by Cailmesa's Tom Cushman in the 4th inning.
CORONADO 7, MOUNT MIGUEL 4: The single-inning
blues again struck the hard-luck Matadors, this time
in the form of a bad hop to keep the team winless.
About to escape a budding Coronado rally, Mount Miguel
starting pitcher JERRY VANDERHYDE coaxed a groundball
which had double play written all over it in Tuesday's
(Mar.22) Division 3A Lions Invitational encounter. However,
the ball took a late bad hop, and the Islanders (7-3)
went on to score all seven of their runs in the 3rd
inning along the Silver Strand.
Matadors shortstop NICO CALAFATO was in position
to field the ball, step on second, then make an easy
throw to first, which would have limited Coronado to
a single run and maintained a 3-1 lead. Instead, the
ball skipped high, catching Calafato in the shoulder
and the side of the face to keep the inning alive.
"It's been one turning point, one play, one inning
all season long," sighed Matadors first-year coach
BYRON GRIGSBY. "This time is was a bad hop,
last game it was a base-running mistake, and another
time it was another thing."
Throwing in the lack of called strikes by the home plate
umpire on curveballs to the outside corner, Vanderhyde,
a pair of relievers and the catcher were left in frustration
as six of the next 7 Islanders reached base, including
four straight on walks, forcing home two additional
runs.
"At least the kids are staying focused,�
Grigsby said. â¤We are going to break through
soon. "And these guys are finally learning
to play the game of baseball."
Again playing extra-aggressive on the basepaths, Mount
Miguel scored all four of its runs without the aid of
an RBI hit.
In the 2nd, when a base runner was caught in a rundown
between first and second, JEREMIAH WHITE scored
for the early lead.
The Matadors then scored twice in the 3rd, as a dropped
third-strike resulted in a poor throw to first, allowing
DEXTER SEAVELLO to score from third, then a two-out
White roller back to the pitcher was thrown away, allowing
Calafato to come home from second.
Mount Miguel had chances to score late, kept in the
game behind a solid relief performance by WILLIAM
PLUNKETT, who allowed just one hit in 3 2/3 frames.
However, the lone run came during a first-and-third
situation in the 6th when CHRIS ESCALANTE scored
on a double steal.
Coronado second baseman Max Weinfortner halted a 7th-inning
threat by making a diving catch of a line drive up the
middle, tagging second base with his glove for a game-ending
double play.
BONITA VISTA 7, STEELE CANYON 5:
Blazing hot JOE INZONE snapped out of his brief
slump in which he saw 38 points fall from his East County
leading batting average despite going 2-for-4 a day
ago.
Inzone is back in the groove, as he stroked Bonita Vista
pitching for a 3-run home run, a pair of singles and
a sacrifice fly to drive in 4 runs and hoist his season
batting average to .696 (16 for 23). The versatile junior
is 5 for 7 in the Lions tourney.
Despite Inzone's offensive fireworks, the Cougars (5-2)
failed to maintain leads of 1-0 and 5-3 in Tuesday's
(Mar. 22) contest as they saw a 5-game winning streak
snapped in a loss to the Barons in the second round
of the Lions Invitational 4A Division.
"Inzone is on fire, he's really swinging the bat
well," said Steele Canyon coach PHIL MITTRY.
"Everything he hits is on a line. With DANNY
HARRIS and CODY MINICH getting on base in
front of him it's opening up holes for us. We're getting
on base and scoring runs early."
The fact that starting pitcher KYLE JOHNSON left
the game in the 3rd inning after rolling an ankle while
in pursuit of a foul ball certainly didn't help the
Cougars.
SAN PASQUAL 6, WEST HILLS 1 : Coming
off their first win of the season less than 24 hours
earlier, the Wolf Pack took what seemed like an hour
to coach SCOTT HOPGOOD to get the first three
outs against San Pasqual in Tuesday's (Mar. 22) Lions
Tournament 3A game.
"They sent 10 batters up in the 1st inning, and
the only batter that hit the ball hard was (Tyler) Moyneur,"
said Hopgood.
Tyler Moyneur ripped a 2-run double in the Golden Eagles'
fast start.
"We're not playing defense," he added. "(Pitcher
STEVE) STRASBURG deserved a better fate today,
our defense betrayed him. He's 0-3 on the season, but
with better support, he should be 2-1 or 3-0. We played
like we were sleep-walking. You'd have thought that
after yesterday's win, we would have come out on fire,
but we were really flat."
Strasburg also accounted for 2 of West Hills' 7 hits
as did BRET SKINNER.
POWAY 7, MONTE VISTA 0: The Monarchs
are struggling on a lot of fronts, the latest being
finding an offense.
For the fourth time in seven starts Monte Vista drew
blanks, as visiting Poway registered the shutout behind
a trio of pitchers in Tuesday's (Mar. 22) Lions Tournament
5A Division game
JESSE RODRIGUEZ was 3 for 3 in a losing cause
for the Monarchs (1-6).
(03-22-05)
TUESDAY, MAR 22, 2005
EastCountySports.com
55th Lions Invitational Tournament
Classic Division:
EAGLES 5, WARRIORS 4
Granite Hills (5-2) 000 103 1 - 5 10 3
Fallbrook (4-4) 022 000 0 - 4 7 1
Coleman, Sylvester (4), Horner (7) and Monette; Larsen, Sanford (6), Castro (7) and Chavez.
W: Horner (1-0). L: Castro.
*
5A Division:
CENTURIONS 6, FOOTHILLERS 5
University City (4-3) 200 022 0 - 6 7 1
Grossmont (7-1) 000 300 2 - 5 8 1
Monjo, Esiais (7) and Oliveira; Snow, Adams (6) and Pieczynski.
HR: Oliveira (UC) 5th, one on (#1); Santos (UC) 6th, one on (#1). W: Monjo (3-0). L: Snow (2-1).Sv: Esias 1.
*
TITANS 7, MONARCHS 0
Poway 000 214 0 - 7 7 2
Monte Vista (1-6) 000 000 0 - 0 7 0
Scruggs, Neal (4), Stanford (7) and Pellegrino; Leboffe, Sopher (4), Simmons (6) and Cooper.
W: Scruggs (2-0). L: Leboffe (0-2).
*
4A Division:
HIGHLANDERS 6, MARAUDERS 2
Mira Mesa (4-3) 000 001 1 - 2 9 3
Helix (6-1) 110 040 X - 6 11 0
Moran, Black (5) and O⤙Mary; Wenham, Rohmer (5) and Tanida.
W: Wenham (2-0). L: Moran.
*
BARONS 7, COUGARS 5
Bonita Vista 003 030 1 - 7 11 0
Steele Canyon (5-2) 103 100 0 - 5 9 2
Gonzales, Martinez (3), Morlett (4) and Moody; Johnson, Bellatti (3), Jenner (5), Carrillo (7) and Duby.
HR: Inzone (SC) 3rd, two on (#2). W: Morlett. L: Jenner (0-1).
*
3A Division:
EAGLES 6, WOLF PACK 1
West Hills (1-6) 010 000 0 - 1 7 2
San Pasqual (5-2) 400 200 x - 6 11 1
Strasburg, Hutchings (5), Skinner (6) and Pichette; Spinks and Moyneur. W: Spinks (2-1). L: Strasburg (0-3).
*
ISLANDERS 7, MATADORS 5
Mount Miguel (0-7) 012 001 0 - 4 5 0
Coronado (7-3) 007 000 x - 7 5 2
Vanderhyde, DeArcos (3), Plunkett (3) and White;
Gill, Anderson (3), Johnson (4), Pokorny (6) and Wheeler, Denson (3), Laster (6). W: Anderson. L: Vanderhyde.
*
2A Division:
BRAVES 13, CARDINALS 5
Calimesa (AZ) 200 021 0 - 5 11 6
El Cajon Valley (1-6) 003 055 x - 13 10 0
Roach, Austin (7) and Cushman; Manzo, Myer (5) and D.Perez. W: Myer (1-1). L: Roach (2-1).
*
Blazer SportCo Spring Bash (Las Vegas)
SULTANS 5, WILDCATS 3
Taft Union 000 003 0 - 3 3 10
Santana (7-1) 130 100 x - 5 5 0
Blackwood and Twisselman; Medrud, Spicer (6), Woods (7) and Haley. W: Medrud (1-0). L: Blackwood. Sv: Woods (1)
*
Cleats National Invitational (Scottsdale, AZ)
VAQUEROS 9, LANCERS 6
El Capitan (2-5) 003 006 - 9 9 3
Salpointe Catholic (Tucson, AZ.) 311 010 - 6 9 3
Game called after 6 innings, time limit.
N.Garcia, King (5)and Erickson; Griffith, Radovanovich (6), Mulgrew (6) and Thomas.
HR: Russo (EC), 6th, one on (#3). W: King (1-0). L: Griffith.
(03-22-05)
Eagles give Mavs first defeat of season at 55th
Lions event
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON - The Granite Hills Eagles have taken a new
direction. Playing against some of the top San Diego
County teams and beyond, coach JAMES DAVIS' crew
posted back-to-back victories for the first time in
six starts Monday (Mar. 21) when they edged previously
unbeaten La Costa Canyon 7-5 in the opening round of
the 55th annual Lions Tournament.
A 5-run 3rd inning outburst propelled host Granite Hills
(4-2) to its upset of No. 3-ranked La Costa Canyon (6-1).
"I'm sure a win like this will help us in the (San
Diego) CIF seeding meeting," Davis said.
Granite Hills (4-2) peppered a pair of La Costa Canyon
pitchers for a dozen hits led by CODY CRAWFORD's
two doubles and a single, which put 3 runs on the Eagles'
plate.
Senior right-hander DONNIE ANDERSON labored through
5.2 innings before giving the ball to sophomore DANNY
GAY, who retired four of the final 5 batters to
earn the save. Anderson was rewarded with his second
win.
"I've seen Donnie pitch better," Davis said.
"He got the ball up today. He's off a little bit
mechanically right now."
The bottom of the Eagles' batting order provided the
spark to a decisive rally in the 3rd frame with a pair
of well-placed bunts. Freshman BRIAN HUMPHRIES
rolled a one out bunt about 12 feet up the third base
line and beat the catcher's throw to first. GARRETT
RUSSELL drove a hard bunt past the pitcher to put
two Eagles on base with nobody out. After faking a bunt,
leadoff man BRANDON DECKER drilled a double into
the left corner, scoring Humphries.
CODY CRAWFORD clubbed a 2-run double, NICK
MONETTE singled in a run and TRAVIS TAIJERON
doubled in the fifth marker to complete the 3rd inning
breakout.
"This was a good win for a couple of reasons,"
said Decker, who finished 2 for 4 with a pair of runs
scored and one RBI. "It goes back to last
year when they beat us in CIF. Yeah, it's revenge, but
more important this gives us a 1-0 edge in the Lions
Tournament."
Decker, who is making the defensive shift from second
base to shortstop, continues to be the Granite Hills
catalyst.
More than just his batting prowess, which weighs in
at .412 (7 for 17), Decker has measured up to his defensive
change.
The slick-fielding Decker made a clutch catch while
falling down in the 2nd inning and executed a difficult
glove-to-hand play on a ground ball to end a budding
Mavericks rally in the 4th inning.
"The wind was tough today, but I should have made
a better read on that (popup) coming off the left-hand
hitter's bat," Decker said. "I went the wrong
way at first, but jumped back to make the catch."
Granite Hills, which has been a bit shaky in the field
this season, committed just one meaningless error against
the Mavericks.
"I love playing shortstop," said Decker, who
will no doubt be asked to play second base at the college
level. "There are more thrills and more action,
just a good feeling being at short."
Davis is impressed by Decker's improvement during his
three-year varsity career.
"He's a gamer who knows when to get with it,"
Davis said. "He's not going to win any Gold Gloves
any time soon, but he knows how to win. He's a tough
little ballplayer. He's come a long way since he was
a sophomore. He's a ballplayer who deserves a lot of
accolades. He's probably the hardest working kid we've
had in the past 4 or 5 years. Nobody has given him anything,
especially not me."
Not far behind is Crawford, who was 3 for 4 with a pair
of doubles and 3 RBI to spearhead Granite Hills' 12-hit
attack.
"Crawford is our little unknown secret," Davis
added. "He's probably got the best swing on our
team. He has a really compact swing, and is a 4.5 (gpa)
student."
STEELE CANYON 6, SAN DIEGO 5: The Steele
Canyon Cougars carried a .397 team batting average into
Monday's (Mar. 21) opening round of the 4A Division
of the 55th annual Lions Tournament.
A trio of hot bats at the top of the Steele Canyon batting
order were hitting a combined .592 this season, propelling
the Cougars to a four-game winning streak and high expectations
entering the nation's largest high school baseball tournament.
But when the bats cooled off, a pair of young arms in
the bullpen - GARRETT JENNER and ERIC CARRILLO
- kept the Cougars afloat with a pair of shutout innings.
The Cougars then parlayed a pair of errors into the
winning run in the bottom of the 7th to clip the Cavers
and extend the Cougars' winning streak to five.
"If we keep playing like this, we'll get some recognition,"
said Jenner, who yielded a game-tying unearned run when
Steele Canyon committed two errors on the same play.
"We don't get mentioned in the paper as a team
to watch, but a team like Sweetwater gets in there.
We beat them twice, once this season and once in winter
ball."
Jenner, who followed five strong innings from starter
ROSS EPPERSON, got out of a jam. Then it was
time for Carrillo, who met his first varsity challenge
by setting down the Cavers (2-4) in order in the 7th.
The sophomore would eventually collect his first varsity
victory.
"This is a big year for us," noted Carrillo.
"Ross pitched well, then we were there to help
him out."
After an unearned run tied the game, the Cavers were
equally as generous to return the favor in the seventh,
extending the Steele Canyon (5-1) winning streak to
five.
With one out, the Cougars slapped four balls in the
ground to the left side of the infield, and San Diego
failed to make a play on any of them.
CHRIS RICE sent a ball through the hole for a single,
then the shortstop made a throwing error to first on
DEVON DUBY's roller. MIKE LANGE followed
with a soft roller through the infield, but Rice had
to hold at third.
Finally, with the infield brought in, a WILL MURRAY
grounder was again booted to allow Rice to score the
winning marker.
After San Diego took a 3-0 lead, Steele Canyon answered
with 5 runs in the 3rd, as East County's leading hitter,
JOE INZONE, found the short porch in right field
with a solo homer. Inzone was 2 for 4, but saw his batting
average drop 38 points to a cool .650.
Inzone and Rice each collected two hits for Steele
Canyon, while Rice stole three bases.
WEST HILLS 4, (Las Vegas) CHAPARRAL 0:
Junior pitcher JOHN EDDY is sort of a barber's
best friend. Well, at least he's earned a special place
in the heart of West Hills coach SCOTT HOPGOOD
Hopgood, the Pack's first-year head coach, can finally
shave his "itchy" beard since his team presented
him with his first coaching win in Monday's (Mar. 21)
opening round 3A Division win in the Lions Tournament.
The youth-laden West Hills ballclub was provided added
incentive by the desperate rookie skipper, who shaved
his head the night before in hopes of inspiring his
club to break into the win column.
Mission accomplished.
Eddy, a junior right-hander, turned in a complete game,
blanking the Cowboys on 5 hits while striking out 3
and walking 2.
"Eddy pitched a great game, needed just 88 pitches
to get it done," said an obviously happy Hopgood.
West Hills (1-5) scored all the runs it needed in the
2nd inning. AARON RICHARDSON doubled and
MICHAEL HALL was hit by a pitch. Richardson stole
third and scored on a squeeze bunt by TRAVIS IRVIN.
AARON GAGNON followed with an RBI single to stake
West Hills to a 2-0 lead.
The Pack put the win on ice with a pair of runs in the
4th inning. JOE MELLO drove in one of the runs
as he extended his hitting streak to six games.
GROSSMONT 5, TORREY PINES 1: Not
many teams in San Diego County have exhibited better
pitching than the undefeated Foothillers of Grossmont
this season.
In tournaments such as the 55th Lions Club event, pitching
management is the key to survival.
Veteran Grossmont coach ROB PHILLIPS has done
an excellent job of juggling his staff, which is why
his club is off to an East County best 7-0 start.
Phillips played a wild card of sorts as he assigned
sophomore TAYLOR WOHLWEND to start Monday's (Mar.
21) Lions Tournament 5A opener against visiting Torrey
Pines. Whether it was a hunch or an educated guess,
Wohlwend (3-0) delivered a powerful performance, stuffing
the Falcons (2-4) with a complete game 2-hitter while
striking out 7 and walking one.
"Taylor has quite a lot of composure for a sophomore,"
Phillips said. "He knows how to pitch. He has the
basic baseball concept, no free passes."
Pitching continues to be Grossmont's strong suit. The
Foothillers' team ERA is 1.00, while their strikeouts
to walks ratio is 57 to 9. More impressive is their
pitchers have permitted just 24 hits in 49 innings.
Senior catcher DANNY PIECZYNSKI blasted his 3rd
home run in five games, driving in 4 runs thanks to
a 2-run double. Pieczynski is batting at a .375 clip
with 8 RBI.
CARLSBAD 6, MONTE VISTA 0: After
being limited to three stints of an inning or less each,
Cody Cantabrana not only gained his first start
of the season for the Lancers, the left-hander shut
down the Monarchs on one hit through six frames to power
Carlsbad to victory in Monday's (Mar. 21) in the 5A
Division opener of the Lions Tournament.
Monte Vista halted any thoughts of a Lancers' no-hitter
as ANTHONY LOPEZ laced a sharp one-out double
in the 2nd inning. Cantabrana then set down the next
14 Monarchs he faced before yielding to the bullpen
in the 7th.
Monte Vista collected a walk and a pair of singles
against the bullpen in the final frame, but left the
bases loaded.
Monte Vista catcher CORY COOPER tried to keep
the hosts in the game with his defense, again throwing
out a pair of would-be base-stealers. On plays when
he actually tossed the ball to second base, the junior
backstop has now thrown out all six potential base-stealers
this season.
"When runners get on, I get a bit more aggressive
and put some extra on the ball," explained Cooper.
"We just need the entire team to bring it on in
the game, because we have been hitting well in practice."
How bad was the Monarchs' luck? While Lopez slammed
the ball hard on his double, he should've had a triple
except that the right-fielder was playing near the line
to limit the hustling Monte Vista first baseman to just
two bases.
The other Monarchs hits were grounders up the middle
by pinch-hitter GARTH DAWSON and shortstop IAN
CROFT.
HELIX 5, CHULA VISTA 2: Talk about a guy
who knows how to roll the dice and come up a winner,
Helix High's COLE HOLLAND has become a master.
Holland performed more magic in Monday's (Mar. 21) Lions
Club 4A Division opener as ERIK PONCE blanked
the Spartans on one hit over the first 5 innings and
was rewarded with his second win against no losses.
Ponce also contributed at the plate, punching in a 2-run
double as Helix (5-1) took a 5-0 lead in the 3rd inning.
Ponce, a lanky 6-foot-1, 145-pound junior, was 2 for
3, while sophomore RAUL RITCHIE was 3-for-3 with
a double
"I'm happy with our offense today," commented
Holland, whose Highlanders hammered out 13 hits. "Our
defense and starting pitching has carried us all year."
BRAWLEY 10, EL CAJON VALLEY 7: Seven errors
denied the Braves their first victory of the season
Monday (Mar. 21) as they opened the Lions Tournament's
2A Division by handing the Brawley Wildcats five unearned
runs.
The Braves (0-7), who failed to hold leads of 2-0 and
5-4, received 2 hits apiece from JONATHAN MANZO,
CLIFTON THOMAS, FEDERICO CARREON and MARCOS VEGAS.
Carreon's totals include his East County leading 7th
double.
Blazer SportCo Spring Bash (Las Vegas)
SANTANA 12, CLARK (Nev.) 0: The visiting Sultans
paid heed to the tournament name as they bashed out
a season high 20 hits to blaze a trail past Clark (Nev.)
in Monday's (Mar. 21) first round.
KYLE HELMHOLTZ was 4 for 5 with a double, three
runs and 3 RBI, while ROBERT HERMANSEN was 3
for 5 with 4 RBI and a double. The hit parade didn't
stop there as JOHN BASNIGHT was 4 for 5 with
2 runs scored and one RBI.
Santana pitcher DALLAS MARTIN pitched a complete
game 4-hit shutout, striking out 7 en route to his 1st
varsity win. In addition, Martin was 3 for 4 with one
RBI at the plate.
Santana (5-1) scored all 12 runs in the final three
innings.
SANTANA 4, BOULDER CITY (Nev.) 3 (8
inn.): ROBERT HERMANSEN scored on
a wild pitch with one out in the 8th inning to give
the nod in Monday's second game at the Blazer SportCo
Spring Bash.
Hermansen was 2 for 4 with a double and 2 runs scored,
while KYLE HELMHOLTZ was 2 for 3 with a second
inning RBI.
DALLAS MARTIN singled and scored on RYAN BROSNAN's
triple, giving Santana a 2-1 edge in the 3rd inning.
Brosnan coasted home on Helmholtz's base hit.
After Boulder City scored twice in the 6th inning to
force extra innings, Hermansen doubled to spark the
Sultans' winning rally.
Santana's JOHN BASNIGHT was 3 for 4, giving him
7 hits in 9 at bats for the doubleheader.
Cleats National Invitational (Scottsdale, AZ)
SACRAMENTO JESUIT 14, EL CAPITAN 1: Leadoff
man LOUIE RUSSO gave the visiting Vaqueros a
sterling start when he began El Capitan's junket in
the desert with a home run in the bottom of the 1st
inning of Monday's (Mar. 21) opening round.
After that it was a landslide for the Sacramento Jesuit
Marauders (7-2).
"It was the nightmare game of my career,"
said El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY, who has
393 wins and is in his 21st season at the Vaqueros'
helm.
Russo and AUSTIN RAUCH rapped out 2 hits apiece
and that was the extent of the offense for the 1-5 Vaqueros.
SANTA FE CHRISTIAN 5, MOUNT MIGUEL 3: No information
reported.
(03-21-05)
MONDAY, MAR 21, 2005
EastCountySports.com
55th Annual Lions Tournament
Classic Division:
EAGLES 7, MAVERICKS 5
La Costa Canyon 000 113 0 - 5 10 1
Granite Hills (4-2) 005 200 x - 7 12 1
K.Anderson, Brookey (5) and Van Leewen; D.Anderson, Gay (6) and Monette. W: D.Anderson (2-0). L: K.Anderson (2-1). Sv: Gay (1).
*
5A Division:
FOOTHILLERS 5, FALCONS 1
Grossmont (7-0) 200 030 0 - 5 7 1
Torrey Pines (2-4) 000 100 0 - 1 2 2
Wohlwend and Pieczynski; Suitor, Schneider (6) and Silvett. HR: Pieczynski (G) 5th, one on (#3).
W: Wohlwent (3-0). L: Suitor (1-1).
*
LANCERS 6, MONARCHS 0
Monte Vista (0-3) 000 000 0 - 0 3 0
Carlsbad (2-4) 202 101 x - 6 13 0
Rodriguez, Haase (4), Sopher (7) and Cooper; Cantabrana, Brady (7) and Talley. HR: Talley (C), 6th, solo.
W: Cantabrana (1-0). L: Rodriguez (1-4).
*
4A Division:
HIGHLANDERS 5, SPARTANS 2
Chula Vista (2-4) 000 000 2 - 2 3 0
Helix (5-1) 014 000 x - 5 13 0
Medrano, Felix (6) and Yoquigua; Ponce, Runions (6), Mendoza (7) and Tanida. W: Ponce (2-0). L: Medrano.
*
COUGARS 6, CAVERS 5
San Diego (2-4) 300 002 0 - 5 8 5
Steele Canyon (5-1) 005 000 1 - 6 8 2
Ga.Hernandez, Manzanares (5) and Guardado; Epperson, Jenner (6), Corrillo (7) and Doby.
HR: Inzone (SC), 3rd, solo; Guardado (SD), 6th, lead). W: Carrillo (1-0). L: Mansanares.
*
3A Division:
WOLF PACK 4, COWBOYS 0
Las Vegas Chapparal 000 000 0 - 0 5 3
West Hills (1-5) 020 200 x - 4 5 2
Judge, Montiel (6) and Wooldridge; Eddy and Gagnon. W: Eddy (1-1). L: Judge.
*
EAGLES 5, MATADORS 3
Mount Miguel (0-6) 100 002 0 - 3 6 3
Santa Fe Christian 000 320 x - 5 7 2
Freeman, Sandoval (5) and White; Shinkle, Bradley (7) and Bodemer. W: Shinkle (2-0). L: Freeman (0-3).
*
2A Division:
WILDCATS 10, BRAVES 7
El Cajon Valley (0-7) 203 002 0 - 7 10 7
Brawley (1-5) 404 020 x - 10 9 3
L.Perez, Abbod (3), Manzo (6) and D.Perez; de la Trinidad and Baeza. W: de la Trinidad (1-1). L: L.Perez (0-3).
*
Blazer SportCo Spring Bash (Las Vegas)
Game 1:
SULTANS 12, CLARK (NV) 0
Santana (5-1) 000 035 4 - 12 20 0
Clark (NV) 000 000 0 - 0 4 5
Martin and Haley; Wright, Nohequimith (8) and Gron. W: Martin (1-0). L: Wright.
*
Game 2:
SULTANS 4, BOULDER CITY (NV) 3 (8 inn.)
Santana (6-1) 012 000 01 - 4 9 1
Boulder City 100 002 00 - 3 4 3
Basnight, Woods (6) and Haley; Marquez, Hafer (6) and Staples. HR: Bletsel (BC) 1st, solo. W: Woods (2-0). L: Hafer.
*
Cleats National Invitational (Scottsdale, AZ)
MARAUDERS 14, VAQUEROS 1
Sacramento Jesuit (7-2) 010 304 6 - 14 11 x
El Capitan (1-5) 100 000 0 - 1 4 8
Anderson and Sandoval; C.Garcia, Petrille (6) and Rauch. W: Anderson (2-0). L: C.Garcia (1-2).
(03-21-05)
Fittingly, Foothillers come-from-behind to take
down Aztecs to win Foothiller-Aztec Classic
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON - Grossmont High coach ROB PHILLIPS
admits that he is surprised by the Foothillers 6-0 start
this season. Most impressive of the half-dozen victories
in the Hillers' house was Saturday's (Mar. 19) come-from-behind
8-5 conquest of visiting Montgomery in the Aztec-Foothiller
Classic finale at Joe Gizoni Field.
After allowing an early 3-run home run, Grossmont pitcher
A.J. GRIFFIN made amends with his bat while the
Foothillers bullpen covered his back.
Griffin slugged a two-run homer in the 6th inning to
tie the game at 5-all. That blow set stage for TIM
FERRARA's game-winning single that scored winning
relief pitcher TAYLOR WOHLWEND.
THOMAS ADAMS tossed two shutout innings of relief
to collect the save, and also contributed an RBI single
with his bat in the 7th inning.
"We had to come up clutch -- when one of us is
down, someone comes in and gets the job done,"
said Adams, who struck out two and allowed just one
hit to slam the door on the tournament co-hosts. "And
this is our first tournament championship win in a while
-- last year, we didn't win one, but this is a new team
and we stepped up."
Montgomery third baseman Robert Spicer slugged
a two-out 3-run homer in the 3rd inning after Daniel
Vargas opened the frame with a round tripper for
the Aztecs.
But Grossmont rallied with a homer over each of the
final three innings.
Shortstop TRISTAN PHILLIPS went deep to left
with a 2-run home run in the 5th to trim the Aztecs'
lead to 4-3, although Montgomery pushed the margin to
5-3 behind an RBI double by RAMON PENA in the
bottom of the inning.
Griffin hoisted his second home run off the campaign,
going the opposite way to right field to tie the game
at 5-apiece.
Four batters later, Ferrara gave Grossmont the lead
on a run-scoring single to right, scoring AUGIE WILLIAMS,
who walked and stole second after two were out.
In the 7th inning, Grossmont's DANNY PIECZYNSKI
powered a solo homer to left for an insurance run. MATT
PASSANISI followed with a double, scoring three
batters later on Adams' sharp basehit.
"I gave up a couple of bombs, but I felt confident
in our team," noted Griffin, who was 3-for-3 with
a double plus an intentional walk. "Unlike last
year, this team plays with intensity though the entire
ballgame."
Ferrara also finished with three hits and scored twice,
while Sobel stroked a pair of singles to back a 12-hit
attack.
SATURDAY, MAR 19, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Foothiller-Aztec Tournament
Championship
FOOTHILLERS 8, AZTECS 5
GROSSMONT ab r h bi MONTGOMERY ab r h bi
Ferrara 2b 4 2 3 1 Vargas ss 4 1 2 0
Phillips ss 3 1 1 2 Garcia rf-p 3 2 1 0
Snow rf 3 0 0 1 Meredith 1b 3 0 0 0
Fox pr-rf 0 0 0 0 Pena cf 3 1 2 1
Pieczynski dh 4 1 2 1 Spicer 3b 2 1 1 3
Passanisi 1b 3 2 1 0 Hall c 3 0 0 0
Griffin p-3b 3 1 3 2 Diaz dh 3 0 0 0
Cusumano lf 4 0 0 0 Rios 2b 3 0 0 0
Sobel 3b 3 0 1 0 Valdez lf 2 0 0 0
Adams p 1 0 1 1 Ybarra ph 1 0 0 0
Williams cf 3 1 0 0
TOTALS 31 8 12 8 TOTALS 27 5 6 4
Grossmont (6-0) 100 023 2 - 8 12 1
Montgomery (4-2) 004 010 0 - 5 6 1
GWRBI: Ferrara (1).
E: Hall, Sobel. LOB: Gro 7, Mont 3. DP: Gro 1, Mont 1. 2B: Ferrara, Griffin, Passanisi, Pena, Vargas.
HR: Vargas 3rd, solo; Spicer 3rd, two on; Phillips (#1) 5th, 1 on; Griffin (#2) 6th, 1 on; Pieczynski (#2) 7th, solo.
SB: Williams, Garcia, Vargas.
GROSSMONT ip h r er bb k
Griffin 4.0 3 4 4 2 3
Wohlwend W(2-0) 1.0 2 1 1 1 0
Adams Sv(1) 2.0 1 0 0 0 2
MONTGOMERY
Miller 4.1 7 3 2 1 2
Garcia L(0-1) 2.2 5 5 5 2 0
HBP: by Griffin (Garcia), by Garcia (Passanisi); WP: Garcia.
(03-19-05)
Patriots punish Mountain Empire in cold conditions
EastCountySports.com
PINE VALLEY -- If not for the chilly 40-degree weather,
Christian High coach MIKE MITCHELL might have
thought his Patriots were amidst a spring training scrimmage
Friday (Mar. 18) at Mountain Empire.
Mitchell utilized seven pitchers, each throwing one
inning, as the Patriots (4-1) pounded out a 17-8 victory
over the Redhawks in the final round of pool play in
the Christian Patriot Invitational.
"We knew we didn't control our destiny in terms
of making the finals of our tournament," Mitchell
said. "So we treated this game like a scrimmage.
We let everybody play, and let all 16 guys hit."
Christian chiseled out an 8-4 lead after four innings,
but could not secure a victory until scoring 8 runs
in the 7th inning.
RICKY PLUM and NICK ADAMS slashed 2-run
singles to key the big 7th inning for the Patriots.
Plum finished with 3 RBI and the pitching win.
Freshman EDDIE YOUNG was 3 for 5 with a pair
of doubles and 2 RBI.
KELLEN ROSSITTO, who played six defensive positions,
was 2 for 3 with 3 RBI for the Patriots, who also received
3 RBI from Plum and a solo home run from GRANT MILLS.
ADAM PERRY accounted for 3 of Christian's
7 stolen bases.
Christian will take a week off before hosting Mira Mesa
in the first round of the City Conference Tournament
Monday, March 28.
FRIDAY, MAR 18, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Christian Patriot Invitational
PATRIOTS 17, REDHAWKS 8
Christian (4-1) 401 301 8 - 17 14 3
Mountain Empire (2-4) 202 013 0 - 8 11 5
Allen, Plum (2), Rossitto (3), O'Donnell (4), Murray (5), Stanovic (6), Mills (7) and Hart, Rossitto (4), Abell (5);
Barber, Mann (5), Dappert (7), Shreve (7) and Ulmer.
HR: McCleary (ME) 2: 3rd, one on and 6th, one on; Barber (ME) 6th, solo; Mills (C) 6th, solo (#1).
W: Plum (1-0). L: Barber (1-2).
(03-18-05)
Grossmont will play in Foothiller-Aztec final after
beating Eastlake
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON -- It was another afternoon of close calls
and last-inning emotion. Five of Thursday's (Mar. 17)
eight East County games were decided by one run, three
in the 7th inning. Meanwhile, Grossmont advanced to
Saturday's (Mar. 19) finals of the Foothiller-Aztec
Classic by clipping Eastlake 5-1 in Thursday's semifinals.
Santana, which appeared to be a cinch to face Grossmont
in that tourney finale, was upset by Marian Catholic,
11-10.
GRANITE HILLS 3, ST. AUGUSTINE 2: With
one out in the 7th inning, Granite Hills had hit only
two balls out of the infield. Make that 2.5 balls:
a double to left field, a flyout to right field, and
a terrible bunt which floated over the pitcher's head,
then split the middle infielders before rolling to the
apron of the outfield at Hickman Field.
"That was ugly baseball," noted Eagles coach
JAMES DAVIS, stating the obvious. "Their
little left-hander was spinning the ball right past
us, pure and simple."
However, after giving up two runs in the 6th inning,
Granite Hills was able to force several errors to spring
back and reclaim the lead in the 7th, as sophomore pitcher
ERIC KRAUSE tossed a complete game in earning
his second win without a loss.
Saints starter Travis McCracken allowed just
two hits through six innings, utilizing a slow curve
and a not-so-fast fastball. But it was enough to strike
out 12 Eagles, as a 1st -inning passed ball produced
the game's only run during his stint on the mound.
"Their left-hander threw junk at us all day,"
added Eagles shortstop BRANDON DECKER. "So
we had to play small ball and put pressure on their
defense."
The plan worked to perfection, as a pair of Saints throws
to first base floated down the line to allow runs to
score to lift the Eagles (3-2) over the .500 mark.
Granite Hills didn't give away its change in game plan,
as pinch-hitter BRIAN HUMPHRIES put down a perfect
bunt along the third base line for a scratch single.
Then the malapropos on defense began.
Decker followed with a push bunt towards the first baseman,
but the defender's throw to the second baseman missed
its mark. Decker reached third while Humphries scored
the tying run.
Two batters later, CODY CRAWFORD, who doubled
in the 1st, struck out on a pitch in the dirt. However,
the catcher's throw to first sailed wide to allow Decker
to produce the go-ahead third run. Granite Hills failed
to produce an official RBI, yet won the game.
"Humphries made a great bunt, and then we kept
going, made things happen," added Decker.
Meanwhile, Krause, who was on the verge of a hard-luck
loss, set the Saints down in order in the 7th on three
fly balls, including a sliding stab by Humphries in
right-center to seal the triumph.
"We got the fly ball right there and it was done,"
noted Krause. "We just went right after them, so
now we're ready to go for bigger teams at the Lions
Tournament."
RYAN MARQUIS coaxed a one-out walk in the 1st, and
moved to second on Crawford's double down the third
base line. Marquis scored on a passed ball for the only
run for the first hour-and-a-half of play.
The Saints took the lead after Krause misplayed a one-out
bunt for an error, then hit a batter with the next pitch.
That allowed first baseman Ryan Ortiz to stroke
his second double of the game to clear the bases. Otherwise,
Krause allowed just one other hit.
"The thing about Krause is, although he's a little,
bitty guy (5-foot-8, 147 pounds), he's a bulldog out
there," added Davis. "There was no way I could
take the ball from him."
GROSSMONT 5, EASTLAKE 1: Grossmont coach
ROB PHILLIPS is all smiles these days. His Foothillers
have fired out of the chute with five straight wins.
Impressive wins, too. Grossmont has outscored its foes
42-5.
"Our pitching has just been great," Phillips
said. "We are giving up only one run a game and
our pitchers have a 43 strikeouts-to-5 walks ratio.
You have to like those numbers."
The kingpin of the Grossmont staff is DONNIE SNOW.
The senior left-hander limited one of the better hitting
outfits in town to 2 hits and one unearned run over
6 innings to notch his second win. He struck out 4 and
walked none. A.J. GRIFFIN finished the job, striking
out two of the three batters he faced in the 7th.
"The middle of the Eastlake order (Nos. 2, 3 and
4) was 0 for 9 against Snow," Phillips noted.
Not that pitching is Snow's only strength. The
Grossmont cleanup hitter proved his mettle in his first
at-bat against Eastlake starter Eric Martinez.
After falling behind 0-2 in the count, Snow fouled off
five consecutive pitches. Snow finally took a pitch
for a ball, and then hit the next Martinez serve over
the right field wall for his 3rd round tripper of the
campaign. That blow tied the game 1-1.
The Foothillers scored 4 runs in the 4th to take command.
Once again, Snow was in the middle of things with a
leadoff walk. DANNY PIECZYNSKI followed with
a double to left-center. MATT PASSANISI singled
up the middle to score Snow for a 2-1 lead. TONY
CUSUMANO then knocked an opposite field double down
the left field line, scoring Pieczynski and Passanisi.
TREVOR BERRY capped the inning with an RBI single.
Game over!
MONTGOMERY 2, HELIX 1: The Highlanders
(4-1) narrowly missed a shot at the Foothiller-Aztec
championship when they came up short against perennial
power Montgomery in Thursday's (Mar.17) semifinals in
South Bay.
A single by ERIK PONCE followed by three walks
gave Helix a 1-0 edge in the 2nd inning.
The Aztecs (4-1) parlayed three hits and a key Helix
error into 2 runs in the 4th inning and made them stand
up for the victory that gave Montgomery a berth in Saturday's
(Mar.19) tournament finale at Grossmont.
"We had our chances," Helix coach COLE
HOLLAND said. "It was a typical game at Montgomery
-- wind blowing in, low scoring game. Pitching and defense
have been carrying us. We just need to get the sticks
going again."
In the 7th inning Holland unsuccessfully argued a controversial
call and was ejected for, as the ump told him, "standing
too close to me." Holland plans to appeal.
VALHALLA 11, WEST HILLS 2: For a
brief moment, winless West Hills was hoping for a major
upset in Thursday's (Mar. 17) Foothiller-Aztec Classic
contest at Valhalla.
Coach SCOTT HOPGOOD's Wolf Pack took a 2-1 lead
over Valhalla in the 3rd inning, but saw that advantage
evaporate in rapid fashion.
But the Norsemen tied the encounter with a run in the
3rd and then broke loose for 6 runs in the 4th to coast
to their 4th win in five starts.
"It was a great ballgame through three innings,"
Hopgood said. "We competed for four innings and
then fell asleep."
Valhalla's JAVIER BROWN was 3 for 3 with a double,
with 2 runs scored and a pair of RBI. Brown, who has
hit safely in 4 of 5 games, is batting at a .667 clip
(10 for 15).
GREG GARCIA and CHAD WILSON also drove
in a pair of runs for the Norsemen. RYAN O'SULLIVAN
was 2-for-5 with an RBI and one run scored.
ERIC JULIENNE rationed the Pack to 4 hits and
one earned run through 4 innings as he posted his 8th
varsity win without a loss. CORY STANGYL pitched
3 hitless innings of shutout relief while striking out
3 as he earned the save.
MARIAN CATHOLIC 11, SANTANA 10: This
one had to hurt. Santana surrendered two grand slams
and 11 unearned runs Thursday (Mar. 17) as the Sultans
suffered their first loss of the season after starting
out 4-0.
Caesar Munoz and Rey Lopez dismantled
a usually stable Santana pitching staff with grand slams
in the 2nd and 3rd innings as the visiting Crusaders
(2-3) claimed a 10-2 advantage.
Credit Santana for making a mad scramble to avoid defeat
in the end, but fell short nonetheless. Make no mistake
about it, Santana coach JERRY HENSON was downright
upset.
"When you give up two grand slams you don't deserve
to win the ball game," Henson said. "This
is a game we should have won."
Four Santana errors undermined the already shaky pitching
of NICK NOEL (5 hits and 5 runs in 1.2 innings)
and CHRISTIAN SPICER (5 runs,1 hit, and 3 walks
in one inning), leaving the Sultans in a hole.
Santana kept fighting back on the offensive end. BRANDON
HALEY's 2-run double cut the Crusaders' lead to
10-4 in the 3rd inning.
An RBI triple by RYAN BROSNAN and run-scoring
singles by KYLE HELMHOLTZ and ROBERT HERMANSEN
keyed a 4-run 5th inning, which left Santana down 10-8.
After Marian picked up another earned run in the 6th
to make it 11-8, Santana received RBI singles by Helmholtz
and CHRIS DIAZ only to fall short with the tying
and winning runs on base in the bottom of the 7th.
ESCONDIDO 3, EL CAPITAN 2: Spencer
Warren, the Valley League Player of the Year in 2004,
smacked a 2-run single to cap a 3-run 7th inning Thursday
(Mar. 17) that gave the Cougars the come-from-behind
Hilltop Lolita's Invitational victory over the Vaqueros
in Lakeside.
"We are not a very good team right now," said
El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY. "We're making
too many fundamental mistakes."
El Capitan (1-4) wasted six shutout innings from starter
BRYAN PAUKOVITS, who scattered 3 hits, walked
2 and struck out 9 before handing the ball to reliever
CRISTIAN GARCIA.
The two teams fought to a scoreless draw through five
innings. Then, in the bottom of the 6th, it appeared
El Capitan was going to pull out a victory.
AUSTIN RAUCH sparked the El Capitan rally with
a double and scored the first run of the game on NIK
GARCIA's base hit. But Garcia was cut down on the
basepaths attempting to stretch his blow into an extra-base
hit.
JOSH WALSTON launched his East County-leading
4th home run of the year later in the inning to give
the Vaqueros a 2-0 lead.
But the 7th inning belonged to Escondido (4-1).
If there is a silver lining for the Vaqueros it would
be that they are leaving town to compete in the Scottsdale
(Ariz.) Horizon Classic next week. This scenario seems
a bit familiar. A few years back a struggling El Capitan
squad left San Diego County to compete in a holiday
tournament. It was a fruitful venture as the Vaqueros,
who gained firm footing in the tournament, eventually
turned what was a woeful start into a successful season.
CASTLE PARK 5, MONTE VISTA 4: The visiting
Monarchs blew a 4-1 lead, giving up 2 runs in the bottom
of the 7th inning Thursday (Mar. 17) to drop a Foothiller-Aztec
Classic contest at Castle Park.
In the early going it appeared that Castle Park was
going to play the giveaway game. Three errors by the
Trojans in the 3rd inning loaded the bases for Monte
Vista.
DAN DeANDA singled in a run to square things
at 1-1. JESSE RODRIGUEZ unloaded a booming double
that plated 3 runs to give Monte Vista (1-4) a 4-1 lead.
Two hit batters, a double and pair of singles added
up to tying and winning runs in the final frame for
the Castle Park victory.
ERIC LeBOFFE and DeAnda chipped out 2 hits apiece
for Monte Vista which totaled 7 for the game.
CHULA VISTA 7, EL CAJON VALLEY 5: FEDERICO
CARREON clubbed 3 doubles and scored 3 runs for
El Cajon Valley, which suffered its 6th loss in as many
starts in Thursday's (Mar.17) Foothiller-Aztec Classic.
LUIS PEREZ was 2 for 4 with 3 RBI, while CLIFFTON
THOMAS was 2 for 4 with a triple, one RBI, 2 runs
and 2 stolen bases for the Braves.
THURSDAY, MAR 17, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Foothiller-Aztec Classic
CRUSADERS 11, SULTANS 10
Marian Catholic (2-3) 055 001 0 - 11 9 4
Santana (4-1) 112 041 1 - 10 9 4
Munoz, Lopez (5) and Sanchez; Noel, Spicer (3), Spicer (3), Martin (6) and Haley.
HR: Munoz (MC) 2nd, grand slam; Lopez 3rd, grand slam. W: Munoz (1-1). L: Noel (0-1).
*
AZTEC 2, HIGHLANDERS 1
Helix (4-1) 010 000 0 - 1 4 1
Montgomery (4-1) 000 200 x - 2 10 0
Peterson, Mendoza (4) and Tanida; Gutierrez, Diaz (2), Garcia (5) and Hall. W: Diaz. L: Peterson (1-1).
*
NORSEMEN 11, WOLF PACK 2
West Hills (0-5) 020 000 0 - 2 5 3
Valhalla (4-1) 101 603 x - 11 10 2
Richardson, Hoffard (4), Hall (6) and Pichette; Julliene, Stangyl (5) and McClain.
W: Julienne (1-0). L: Richardson (0-2). Sv: Stangyl (1).
*
FOOTHILLERS 5, TITANS 1
Eastlake (3-2) 010 000 0 - 1 2 0
Grossmont (5-0) 010 400 x - 5 8 2
Martinez, Anda (4) and Lievanos; Snow, Griffin (7) and Pieczynski. HR: Snow (G) 2nd, solo (#3).
W: Snow (2-0); L: Martinez (1-2)
*
TROJANS 5, MONARCHS 4
Monte Vista (1-4) 004 000 0 - 4 7 1
Castle Park 100 110 2 - 5 8 3
Leboffe, Simmons (5), Haase (6), Rodriguez (7) and Cooper; Ollier, Escalante (7) and Escalante, Orozco (7).
W: Escalante (1-0). L: Rodriquez (1-3).
*
SPARTANS 7, BRAVES 5
Chula Vista 020 050 0 â¤" 7 10 0
El Cajon Valley (0-6) 201 010 1 â¤" 5 7 0
Sanchez, Berfondic (5),Yaguagawa (6) and Yaguagawa, Martinez (5); Watson, Manzo (6), Hopwood (6) and D.Perez.
W: Sanchez. L: Watson (0-1).
Hilltop Lolita⤙s Tournament
COUGARS 3, VAQUEROS 2
Escondido (4-1) 000 000 3 - 3 5 0
El Capitan (1-4) 000 002 0 - 2 9 2
Barlow, Ross (6) and Afenir; Paukovits, C.Garcia (7) and Rauch. HR: Walston (EC) 6th, solo (#4).
W: Ross (2-0). L: C.Garcia (1-1).
*
EAGLES 3, SAINTS 2
Granite Hills (3-2) 100 000 2 - 3 4 2
St. Augustine (1-4) 000 002 0 - 2 3 4
Krause and Monette; McCracken, Arthur (7) and Graham. W: Krause (2-0). L: Arthur (0-1).
(03-17-05)
Cougars' bats club Otay Ranch for fourth-straight
victory
EastCountySports.com
RANCHO SAN DIEGO: Even a 4-1 record wasn't
good enough to qualify the Steele Canyon Cougars for
the finals of the Sweetwater Bully's Invitational. But
Cougars coach PHIL MITTRY is hardly disappointed.
The Cougars won their fourth straight game, downing
visiting Otay Ranch 9-6 on Wednesday (Mar. 16).
The top third of the Steele Canyon lineup continues
to produce as well as any trio in San Diego County.
How does .592 sound? Check it out.
The Cougars' leadoff man DANNY HARRIS is batting
at a .592 clip (9 for 17). CODY MINICH, who bats
in the No. 2 slot, is hitting .563 (9 for 16) with a
pair of home runs. JOE INZONE, the Cougars' No.
3 man in the order, is batting .688 (11 for 16) with
4 doubles and 6 RBI.
"We are pretty happy about our start and those
three guys have a lot to do with it," Steele Canyon
coach PHIL MITTRY said.
The Cougars pounced on the visiting Mustangs early in
Wednesday's game, taking a 6-0 lead in the first 3 innings.
Minich followed a leadoff single by Harris with an inside
the park home run in the 1st inning.
Messrs Harris, Minich and Inzone were collectively 7
for 11 with 5 runs scored and 4 RBI against the Mustangs.
Catcher MIKE LANGE pounded a pair of doubles
and scored twice for Steele Canyon.
"He had a great round of batting practice on Tuesday,
so we plugged him into the lineup," Mittry said.
"We told him to relax and think about BP and he
came through big time."
KENNY KLOPP ripped an RBI triple in the 2nd inning
and singled and scored in the 6th.
ROSS EPPERSON pitched 2 shutout innings to log the
save for winning pitcher KYLE JOHNSON.
BISHOP'S 14, MOUNT MIGUEL 13: This game
was something to see. The struggling Matadors probably
wanted to go home after the 1st inning as the visiting
Knights staked themselves to an 11-0 lead.
The fact that the Matadors (0-5) didn't just run for
cover should give this ballclub solace.
"We should have won it in the 6th, just came up
short," lamented Mount Miguel coach BYRON GRIGSBY.
The Matadors scored 5 runs in the 5th inning to close
the deficit to one run, but failed to generate a single
marker in their final two turns at bat.
Nevertheless, the Matadors broke loose for 19 hits in
their comeback bid.
JAIME SANDOVAL had a huge game for Mount Miguel,
punching out 4 hits in 5 at bats, clubbing 2 doubles,
scoring 4 runs and batting in one run. On top of that,
he pitched 3 shutout innings, striking out 3 and allowing
one hit.
Grigsby was pleased by the relief he provided to a beleaguered
Mount Miguel pitching staff.
"He keeps the ball low, will be tough to hit,"
Grigsby said.
DEXTER SEAVELLO was 3 for 5 with 4 RBI and 2
runs scored for Mount Miguel.
BUD NEWBORN was 3 for 4 with a pair of RBI and
2 runs scored, while EDDIE DeARCOS ripped a 2-run
triple that keyed a 5-run 5th inning for Mount Miguel.
JEREMIAH WHITE also had 3 hits, one RBI and 2
runs scored for the Matadors.
SERRA 9, CHRISTIAN 4: The visiting
Patriots (4-1) committed as many errors as they
had hits in Wednesday's (Mar. 16) Christian Patriot
Invitational.
"When you kick the ball around as much as we did
today, you don't deserve to win," Christian coach
MIKE MITCHELL said.
Freshman EDDIE YOUNG was 2 for 3 with a double
and 2 runs scored for Christian, which mustered just
6 hits while committing 6 errors.
The Patriots were out of this one from the get-go, trailing
5-0 after two innings and 9-1 after four.
WEDNESDAY, MAR 16, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Sweetwater Bully's Invitational
KNIGHTS 14, MATADORS 13
Bishop's (11)01 200 0 - 14 13 0
Mount Miguel (0-5) 0 42 250 0 - 13 19 3
Perez and Fowler; Escalante, Vanderhyde (1), Calafato (1), Sandoval (5) and Freeman. W: Perez. L: Calafato (0-1).
*
COUGARS 9, MUSTANGS 6
Otay Ranch 000 231 0 - 6 6 4
Steele Canyon (4-1) 231 012 x - 9 14 2
Torrez and Alvarez; Johnson, Epperson (6) and Lange, Duby (7).
HR: Alvarez (OR) 5th, two on; Minich (SC, 2) 1st, one on. W: Johnson (1-0). L: Torrez. Sv: Epperson (1).
*
Christian Patriot Invitational
CONQUISTADORS 9, PATRIOTS 4
Christian (3-1) 001 010 2 - 4 6 6
Serra (3-1) 410 400 x - 9 8 2
Mills, Murray (4), Jones (5) and Hart; Stenavich, Fogelman (7) and Shea.
W: Stenavich (1-1). L: Mills (2-1).
(03-16-05)
Four teams still unbeaten out of east, as Helix
joins ranks
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON -- It's less than two weeks into the high school
baseball season and four of East County's 12 teams remain
undefeated. That may not sound like any big deal, but
consider what teams make up the quartet of the unbeaten.
Perennial power Grossmont (4-0) and Santana (4-0) are
in that group. So is Christian (4-0). Not much surprise
there. But throw the Helix Highlanders into the mix
at 4-0 and the first thing you notice is that there
are a couple of major powers missing for this elite
club. Well, it's still early.
SANTANA 12, MONTE VISTA 0: Santana senior catcher
BRANDON HALEY doesn't claim to be a meteorologist,
but he does know which way the wind blows.
With the Sultans clinging to a 2-0 lead in the 5th inning,
Haley put Santana in command as he sliced a three-run
home run over the right field fence in Tuesday's (Mar.
15) Foothillers-Aztec Classic action.
"I pulled the ball my first time up and they walked
me the second time," Haley said. "So I knew
they'd pitch me outside."
And so the Monarchs did. Monte Vista senior southpaw
JESSE RODRIGUEZ attempted to tick the outside
corner and Haley was waiting. The Santana clean-up hitter
made contact, but at first it appeared that Monte Vista
right fielder DAN DeANDA would be able to run
the ball down and make the catch.
DeAnda got to the fence in time to watch the ball clear
the barrier and Santana's advantage swell to 5-0.
"Haley did a nice job of going the opposite way,"
Santana coach JERRY HENSON said. "He was
able to elevate the ball high enough to get it into
the jet stream." Home team advantage, perhaps,
as a Wrigley Field-style wind was blowing out to right
field.
The Sultans broke the game open with 7 runs in the 6th
inning.
Haley, who was 2-for-2 with a pair of walks, drove in
5 runs and scored another.
"The really neat thing about this team is everybody
in our lineup can hit," Haley said. "It's
nice to know when you come to bat that there will be
guys on base."
Junior JOHN BASNIGHT pitched a complete-game
2-hitter to roll his season record to 2-0. It took him
only 87 pitches to do the job.
"He's our ace," Haley said. "He does
an excellent job of moving the ball in and out. He can
throw hard when he needs to."
Monte Vista coach LARRY RINEHART was obviously
not pleased by the outcome. But the third-year Monarchs'
pilot pointed to a key play in the 3rd when Santana
was leading by a 1-0 margin.
That play was made by Santana center fielder ROBERT
HERMANSEN, who made a diving catch to rob the Monarchs'
ANTHONY LOPEZ of a run-scoring extra base hit.
"If Lopez's ball drops in, it's a different ball
game," Rinehart said.
Henson noted that Hermansen was paying off an old debt
so to speak.
"He popped up a 3-0 pitch when he didn't have the
green light and knew that he messed up," Henson
said. "But he didn't sulk about it. He went
out and made the catch of the game."
Basnight, a soft spoken hurler, recognized the value
of Hermansen's catch.
"That was a big play," said Basnight, who
was 9-0 for Santana's 2004 Grossmont North League champion
junior varsity squad. "That's the big thing about
my game. I don't go for strikeouts. I try to hit
my spots, get the ball over the plate where I want it
and let them make contact."
"He's not much of a practice player, but he is
a gamer," Henson said of Basnight. "He performs
well under pressure."
Santana is making a bid for its second straight Foothillers-Aztec
Classic championship.
"We're a lot better team than we were a year ago,"
Haley said. "We don't have to worry about one or
two guys to carry us. Everybody on this ballclub can
play."
HELIX 2, HENRY 1 (12 inn.): This Foothillers-Aztec
Classic contest was a marathon, as the Tuesday (Mar.
15) afternoon affair became a night game with the final
innings played under the lights at Helix.
This was no ordinary affair, which is not unusual for
COLE HOLLAND's four years as the Highlanders'
skipper. In fact, the winning run scored on the
combination of a walk, an error, a sacrifice bunt and
ERIC PONCE's bad-hop single that hit the Patrick
Henry shortstop in the face.
"We had five sacrifice bunts, which has to be some
sort of a record," Holland said. "We had so
many chances, left seven runners in scoring position,
most of them in extra innings."
Helix also turned 3 double plays and received superb
pitching from MIKE SCHULER (8 innings, 4 hits
0 ER), MATT WENHAM (2 innings, 1 hit, 0 runs),
DUSTIN RUNIONS (1 inning, 0 hits, 0 runs) and
ERIK PONCE (1 inning, 0 hits, 0 runs, 2 strikeouts).
"This one had a playoff atmosphere," Holland
said. "The stands were full."
While Holland was unhappy by his team's missed scoring
opportunities, he was elated by the Highlanders' defensive
effort. The highlight of Helix's defensive stand was
a diving catch by center fielder NICK LEDESMA
that saved a run and possibly more in the 9th inning.
It was Ledesma's RBI single in the 4th inning that tied
the game 1-1.
ANDREW VALLES accounted for 3 of the Highlanders'
nine hits.
EASTLAKE 10, WEST HILLS 5: Wolf Pack first-year
coach SCOTT HOPGOOD made a deal with his young
team prior to the start of the season.
"I told them I wasn't going to shave until they
gave me my first (coaching) win," Hopgood said.
"This beard is starting to itch."
Hopgood did not take the West Hills job expecting miracles.
"All I want to do this first season is be competitive,"
the coach said. And, for the most part, the Wolf Pack
(0-4) has been in contention in every game. Of course,
the Pack has been challenged by a tough schedule. West
Hills' four losses have come to teams with a composite
11-5 record. The last 3 setbacks have come to teams
with a combined 10-2 mark.
"We have only one senior on our club," Hopgood
said. "Everybody is coming back, so our future
looks good."
JOE MELLO continued to spark the Pack at the
plate, picking up 2 hits in 3 at-bats, while driving
in one and scoring another. Mello, the West Hills leadoff
hitter, is batting at a .615 clip (8 for 13) for the
season.
Trouble is, the majority of the West Hills hitters are
struggling.
Against Eastlake, six West Hills errors handed the Titans
(3-1) 7 unearned runs.
"Leadoff walks, hit batters and errors killed us,"
Hopgood said. "In four of the seven innings, we
put the leadoff guy on with a walk or hit him. Three
of those runners scored."
VALHALLA 17, EL CAJON VALLEY 0: Eleven
different Norsemen scored in Tuesday's (Mar. 15) lopsided
Foothillers-Aztec Classic encounter at Valhalla.
Leadoff man JAVIER BROWN continued to wield a
hot bat, accounting for 6 runs for the Norsemen (3-1).
The senior shortstop, who has collected 7 hits in his
last 12 at-bats, drove in 3 runs and scored 3 against
El Cajon Valley (0-5). He was 2 for 4 with a double,
and stole his third base in the last two games.
Freshman RYAN O'SULLIVAN blanked the Braves on
4 hits while striking out 7 over five innings to record
his second varsity win as many starts. O'Sullivan also
broke out of a mild slump with a double and a single
in 3 at-bats, driving in one and scoring 3.
Senior SEAN O'SULLIVAN was 3 for 5 with 4 RBI
for Valhalla, raising his season average to a modest
.375 (6 for 16) with 7 RBI.
SHANE MYER was 2 for 3 with a double for El Cajon
Valley. FEDERICO CARREON also had 2 hits for
the Braves.
GROSSMONT 8, CASTLE PARK 1: Pitching
was a question mark when the Foothillers opened the
season. But a strong 6-inning outing by THOMAS ADAMS
in Tuesday's (Mar. 15) Foothiller-Aztec Classic had
to put a smile on the face of Grossmont coach ROB
PHILLIPS.
The senior right-hander scattered 5 hits and did not
allow an earned run while striking out 3 and walking
none to log the victory.
Eight of Grossmont's starters contributed to a 10-hit
attack. DANNY PIECZYNSKI unloaded a 3-run homer
to key a 5-run first inning for the Foothillers (4-0).
TIM FERRARA added a 2-run double as the Foothillers
did all of their scoring in the first three innings.
A.J. GRIFFIN pitched a shutout 7th inning, striking
2 of the 3 batters he faced.
MISSION BAY 9, GRANITE HILLS 8: NICK MONETTE
drove in 4 runs with a home run and a pair of singles,
but the Eagles still found a way to lose to visiting
Mission Bay in Tuesday's (Mar. 15) Hilltop-Lolita's
Invitational encounter.
The Buccaneers' Zach Sand had a pair of 2-run singles,
including the game-winner in the 7th inning.
"We absolutely gave it away," Granite Hills
coach JAMES DAVIS said. "This is a talented
team. We just have to get used to performing under pressure.
And I think we will, in time."
Bolstered by Monette's 2-run home run, the Eagles took
a 3-0 lead into the 3rd inning. That's when the wheels
came off - the first time. Former El Cajon Valley High
player Randy Smith capped the Buccaneers⤙
6-run 3rd inning with a three-run home run.
Once again it was a 2-run single by Monette that brought
the Eagles back into contention, down 6-5 at the end
of three.
Trailing 7-5 entering the bottom of the 5th, Granite
Hills scrambled back to knot the count. Monette contributed
a single, but it was an RBI single by TRAVIS TAIJERON
and scoring fly ball by AUSTIN COLEMAN that made
it a 7-7 tie.
An unearned run gave Granite Hills an 8-7 edge heading
into the final frame. But a muffed double play grounder
set the stage for Sand's winning 2-run single.
Granite Hills rolled over 1-2-3 in the bottom of the
7th to absorb the loss.
"In four pitches when we were supposed to be taking
a strike, mind you," Davis fumed.
FALLBROOK 9, EL CAPITAN 4: Senior
JOSH WALSTON blasted his 2nd and 3rd home runs
of the season to claim the East County long ball lead,
but it wasn't enough Tuesday (Mar. 15) as the Vaqueros
blew an early 3-0 lead in a Hilltop-Lolita's Invitational
engagement at Fallbrook.
It started out to be a most glorious of afternoons for
the Vaqueros (1-3), as senior LOUIE RUSSO laced
a solo home run to left field. AUSTIN RAUCH followed
with a base hit and one out later Walston unloaded with
the first of his two homers on the day.
El Capitan's pitching took another beating, as the Warriors
raked three Vaqueros hurlers for a dozen hits.
"We have too many guys trying to be perfect,"
El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY said. "They
are putting too much pressure on themselves, individually
trying to carry our ballclub."
TUESDAY, MAR 15, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Foothiller-Aztec Classic
SULTANS 12, MONARCHS 0
Monte Vista (1-3) 000 000 0 - 0 2 1
Santana (4-0) 101 037 x - 12 12 1
Rodriguez, DeAnda (6), Cogley (6) and Haase; Basnight and Haley.
HR: Haley (S, 1) 5th, two on. W: Basnight (2-0). L: Rodriguez (0-2).
*
FOOTHILLERS 8, TROJANS 1
Castle Park (0-4) 010 000 0 - 1 5 2
Grossmont (4-0) 503 000 x - 8 10 2
Santana, Escalante (6) and Romero, Wannamaker (6); Adams, Griffin (7) and Pieczynski.
HR: Pieczynski (G, 1) 1st, two on. W: Adams (1-0). L: Santana (0-2).
*
HIGHLANDERS 2, PATRIOTS 1 (12 inn.)
Patrick Henry (1-3) 100 000 000 000 - 1 5 3
Helix (4-0) 000 100 000 001 - 2 9 1
M.Triolo, S.Triolo (8), Barry (12), Sudol (12) and Selik; Schuler, Wenham (9), Runions (11), Ponce (12) and Tanida.
W: Ponce (1-0). L: Sudol (0-1).
*
TITANS 10, WOLF PACK 5
Eastlake (3-1) 330 010 2 - 10 4 1
West Hills (0-4) 300 101 0 - 5 5 6
Antunez, Dryjanski (3), Romero (7) and Sarosy; Strasburg, Richardson (6), Hutchings (7), Hoffard (7) and Gagnon.
HR: Skinner (WH, 1) 4th, solo. W: Dryjanski. L: Strasburg (0-2).
*
NORSEMEN 17, BRAVES 0
Valhalla (3-1) 120 310 0 - 17 13 1
El Cajon Valley (0-5) 000 000 0 - 0 6 3
R.OSullivan, Young (6), Acevedo (7) and McClain; Abbod, Myer (2), Carreon (5), Hopwood (6) and D.Perez.
W: R.OSullivan (2-0). L: Abbod (0-1).
*
WARRIORS 9, VAQUEROS 4
El Capitan (1-3) 300 100 0 - 4 7 2
Fallbrook (3-2) 240 300 x - 9 12 0
N.Garcia, King (4), Petrille (6) and Rauch; Larsen and Chavez.
HR: Russo (EC, 1) 1st, solo; Walston (EC, 2,3) 2:1st, one on, and 4th, solo. W: Larsen (2-0). L: N.Garcia (0-2).
*
Hilltop Lolita⤙s Tournament
BUCCANEERS 9, EAGLES 8
Mission Bay (2-2) 006 100 2 - 9 11 2
Granite Hills (2-2) 302 021 0 - 8 8 3
Sand, Chatfield (4), Santos (5) and Powell; Anderson, Gay (3), Horner (7) and Monette.
HR: Monette (GH, 1) 1st, one on; Smith (MB) 3rd, two on. W: Santos (1-1). L: Horner (0-1).
(03-15-05)
Cougars claw to third-straight win
EastCountySports.com
RANCHO SAN DIEGO -- Even though Steele Canyon
probably won't qualify for the finals of the Sweetwater
Bully East's Invitational this year, Cougars coach PHIL
MITTRY likes what he's seen from his team so far.
That is, the Cougars have clawed their way to three
straight wins after a season-opening loss to Westview.
STEELE CANYON 5, BRAWLEY 1: Junior CODY
MINICH ripped a solo home run and a double while
raising his season batting average to .500 (6 for 12)
as the Cougars tamed the visiting Wildcats (0-4) in
Monday's (Mar.14) Bully's East Invitational.
Minich gave the Cougars the early lead with a booming
solo home run in the 1st inning.
In the 5th inning, after singles by DAVID LEWIS
and KENNY KLOPP and a scoring fly ball by DANNY
HARRIS made it 2-0, Minich smacked an RBI double
for a 3-0 edge.
JOE INZONE continued to wield a hot bat, stroking
a pair of singles and a double in three at-bats. His
bloop single scored Minich in the 5th and CHRIS RICE's
RBI single capped the 4-run inning.
"Inzone is just on fire," Mittry said. "In
his first two at-bats, he just hit seeds."
Sophomore ANDREW BRUDER turned in a powerful
pitching performance for Steele Canyon, permitting just
2 hits while walking none and striking out 7.
"Bruder is gonna be a horse," Mittry said.
"He didn't have his good stuff today, but still
managed to get the job done. He made big pitches when
he had to. He reminds me of (former major leaguer) Andy
Benes. He wants the ball."
FRANCIS PARKER 9, MOUNT MIGUEL 2:
The Matadors (0-4) continue to struggle as they succumbed
to unbeaten Francis Parker in Monday's (Mar. 14) Sweetwater
Bully's East Invitational in Spring Valley.
NICO CALAFATO and BUD NEWBORN slugged
RBI singles, but that was all the offensive might Mount
Miguel could muster.
MONDAY, MAR 14, 2005
Sweetwater Bully's Invitational
LANCERS 9, MATADORS 2
Mount Miguel (0-4) 010 001 0 - 2 2 3
Francis Parker (4-0) 140 103 x - 9 11 2
Freeman, Vanderhyde (6) and White; Ek, Harrigan (6), McKinley (7) and Smith.
HR-Noonan (FP). W-Ek (1-0). L-Freeman (0-2).
*
COUGARS 5, WILDCATS 1
Brawley (0-4) 000 000 1 - 1 4 1
Steele Canyon (3-1) 100 040 x - 5 11 0
Trinidad, Romo (5) and Baeza; Bruder, West (7) and Duby. HR: Minich (SC-1) 1st, solo.
W: Bruder (1-1). L: Trinidad. (03-14-05)
Sultans' success should be no surprise
EastCountySports.com
SAN DIEGO: Just who are these Santana Sultans. Unknown,
unbeaten and undaunted, this ballclub has made subtle
inklings that it will contend for the various championships
in its path.
Coach JERRY HENSON's squad has marched to three
consecutive victories, including an impressive 6-1 knockout
of No. 5 ranked Montgomery in Saturday's (Mar.12) Foothiller-Aztec
Classic contest at Patrick Henry.
JOHN BASNIGHT's slapped a two-run single to cap
a 4-run 1st inning for the Sultans , who rode the pinpoint
pitching of JEFF WOODS and DALLAS MARTIN to
the surprisingly easy victory over the Aztecs.
"We are playing pretty good ball right know,"
Henson said cautiously.
Woods, a shortstop by nature, checked the Aztecs on
2 hits without allowing an earned run. The burly
right-hander struck out 8.
RYAN BROSNAN put the capper on Santana's latest
conquest with a solo homer in the 7th inning.
GROSSMONT 4, CHULA VISTA 2: The prospects
of Snow were obviously not in the forecast at Chula
Vista for Saturday's (Mar.12) Foothiller-Aztec Classic
skirmish between the Foothillers and the Spartans.
Yet DONNIE SNOW, the Hillers' senior designated
hitter, put the deep freeze on Chula Vista with a 2-run
home run in the 3rd inning that gave Grossmont (3-0)
a 4-1 edge it wouldn't lose.
But Snow's duties were not completed with his circuit
clout. The smooth southpaw was asked to close this win
out as he arrived on the mound with the bases-loaded
and the winning run at first base with one out.
No problem. Snow got the final two outs to earn the
save and present the win to sophomore starter TAYLOR
WOHLWEND.
"Snow saved the day for us pitchingwise,"
Grossmont coach ROB PHILLIPS said. And he was
pretty much our offense, too."
Phillips was not pleased with Grossmont's meager 5-hit
attack.
After scoring all the runs we did (in a 19-1 romp over)
Marian Catholic, our kids came out taking really big
swings," Phillips said. "They were not focused
swings which explains why we didn't score more."
HELIX 7, CASTLE PARK 5: Helix's youthful
Highlanders continue to amaze coach COLE HOLLAND.
Down 5-1 after 3 innings, the Highlanders (3-0) erupted
for 4 runs to tie the contest with STEVEN ROHMER's
2-run single with one out pulling Helix even at 5-all.
ALEX ROSENTHAL smashed a game-winning solo home
run with two outs in the 6th inning to give Helix a
lead it wouldn't lose.
The Highlanders tacked on an insurance run in the 6th
inning on RANDY PEREZ's RBI single.
"That's the great thing about these kids, they
don't hit the panic button," Holland said. "Just
because we get behind doesn't mean it's time to quit."
Senior MATT WENHAM, who was hammered for 5 runs
and 6 hits in the first three innings, blanked the Trojans
on 2 hits over the final 4 frames to earn the win.
EL CAPITAN 8, HILLTOP 1: Junior CRISTIAN
GARCIA spun five shutout innings, scattering 6 hits
while walking one and striking out 6 in Saturday's (Mar.12)
Hilltop-Lolita's Invitational contest in South Bay.
"Just an outstanding job by Christian," El
Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY said. "He struck
out 5 of the first 8 batters he faced. He had great
command. His ball moves more than any pitcher I've ever
had. His ball probably dips three to four inches."
The Vaqueros made their intensions known in the opening
frame at Hilltop. A leadoff single by THOMAS HOSTETLER
and walks to AUSTIN RAUCH and NIK GARCIA set
thre stage for JOSH WALSTON's grand slam.
Back-to-back doubles by AUSTIN RAUCH and Nik
Garcia made it 5-0 in the 6th inning. But the Vaqueros
weren't through. JOSH ROYER capped the 4-run
inning with a two-run single.
EASTLAKE 7, VALHALLA 5: A three-base
throwing error with the bases loaded in the sixth inning
handed host Eastlake three unearned runs that helped
the top-ranked Titans (2-1) erase a 5-1deficit (Mar.12)
and deal the visiting Norsemen a stinging Foothiller-Aztec
Classic defeat.
The headlines will credit Nick Romero for his
game-winning two-run home run with two outs in the bottom
of the 7th inning. But the critical throwing error and
poor backup by the right fielder were as destructive
as Romero's blast.
Some might question the decision of Valhalla coach STEVE
PERDUE to pitch to left-hand hitting Romero with
right-handed reliever CORY STANGYL on the mound
with two outs and the score tied 5-5 in the bottom of
the 7th. Sure, Perdue could have ordered an intentional
walk for Romero and allowed Stangyl to take his chances
with cleanup hitter Jon Eubanks with the winning
run at second base.
Eastlake's veteran coach Dave Gonzalez recognized Perdue's
dilemma and did not criticize the Valhalla skipper decision
to go after Romero rather than face Eubanks.
"Jon Eubanks is the hottest hitter in our lineup,"
Gonzalez noted.
Regardless, the ball Romero hit over thje left-center
fence was gone in any high school ballpark in town.
The Norsemen wasted 4 strong innings of pitching from
SEAN O'SULLIVAN (4 hits, earned run).The relievers
pitched well enough to protect a 5-1 lead after O'Sullivan
left the mound, but two walks, the major throwing error
and some clutch hits spelled defeat for Valhalla for
the first time in 3 starts.
Valhalla leadoff man JAVIER BROWN reached base
in 3 of his 4 at-bats, twice on singles. He scored a
run, drove in one and swiped two bags. GREG GARCIA
slugged an RBI double and chased home a second run with
a bases-loaded walk.
GRANITE HILLS 8, RANCHO BUENA VISTA 2:
Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS was happy to
see Longhorns⤙ flame-thrower Gavin
Brooks leave the mound with the Eagles leading 1-0 Saturday's
Hilltop-Lolita's Tournament contest 1-0 after 5 innings.
"That guy is one of the top three pitchers in the
county (along with Valhalla's Sean O'Sullivan and Montgomery's
Roman Pena)," Davis said of Brooks, a 6-foot-4
southpaw. "His changeup is as good as (2003 first
round draft pick Cole) Hamels. He's so smooth."
When Brooks left the mound and the bullpen tookover,
the Longhorns were in trouble.
Granite Hills (2-1), which parlayed a NICK MONETTE
double, stolen base and a passed ball into 1-0 lead
in the 2nd inning, broke the game open with 6 marekrs
in the 6th inning.
Rancho Buena Vista's battery lent a helping hand to
what has been an anemic Granite Hills offense. The Longhorns
(1-2) issued 7 walks and allowed three passed balls
as the Eagles broke the game open with 6 runs in the
6th inning.
The Eagles added their final run on a passed ballin
the 7th.
CODY CRAWFORD accounted for half of Granite Hills'
4 hits with a double and a single for the Eagles.
Sophomore ERIC KRAUSE pitched 5 innings without
allowing an earned run for Granite Hills. DONNY
ANDERSON, who escaped a bases-loaded jam in the
6th,made the Longhorns go peacefully in the 7th.
"Krause isn't all that big, but he's not afraid
to come right at you," Davis said. "I don't
think he threw a ball above the belt all day."
CHRISTIAN 6, LA JOLLA COUNTRY DAY 5: The
Patriots continued to play it close to the collar Saturday
(Mar.12) as they held off the visiting Torreys in a
Christian Patriot Invitational encounter in El Cajon.
Juniors CHAD O'DONNELL and TODD JONES
survived four Christian errors that led to 2 unearned
runs to remain beaten after four starts. The duo combined
for 8 strikeouts.
Christian's GRANT MILLS continued to wield a
hot bat as he was 2 for 3 with an RBI. KELLEN ROSSITTO
and EDDIE YOUNG chipped in with RBI doubles for
the Patriots.
MONTE VISTA 11, EL CAJON VALLEY 0:
Senior IAN CROFT tested his batting skills as
a leadoff hitter for the Monarchs in Saturday's (Mar.12)
Foothiller-Aztec Classic contest in Spring Valley.
It took Croft three pitches to make contact as he launched
a solo home run in the bottom of the first inning to
start the Monarchs (1-2) on their way to the lopsided
victory.
JESSE RODRIGUEZ drove in 3 runs for Monte Vista,
while ANTHONY LOPEZ went 2-for-5 with 2 RBI.
El Cajon Valley can take solace in that reliever ALLAN
ABBOD limited the Monarchs to four hits and one run
over the final 3 2/3 innings.
VISTA 16, WEST HILLS 2: Nobody is
making things easy for West Hills first-year head coach
SCOTT HOPGOOD.
"The field was wet at Vista, didn't get chalked,"
said West Hills coach SCOTT HOPGOOD. "The
balls were skipping out there. We were killing worms
on the infield."
Not to mention the so-so umpiring.
"We didn't lose the game because of them,"
Hopgood said of the men in blue. "They were brutal
both ways. What made it even worse is we made a crucial
play an inning that killed us."
The Wolf Pack (0-3) avoided the shutout with a pair
of runs in the 7th. JOE HUTCHINGS
swatted an RBI single and AARON GAGNON picked
up a second tally with an infield ground out in the
Foothiller-Aztec Classic encounter.
"We swung the bat but you've got to play defense
to compete, and today we didn't play defense,"
Hopgood said, recognizing the Pack's 7 errors that helped
the Panthers (2-1) to 6 unearned runs.
(03-12-05)
SATURDAY, MAR 12, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Foothiller-Aztec Classic
PANTHERS 16, WOLF PACK 2
West Hills (0-3) 000 000 2 - 2 7 7
Vista (2-1) 054 061 x - 16 13 1
Eddy, Mello (3), Skinner (5), Strasburg (6) and Pichette, Gagnon (7); Dean, Richardson (5), Purcell (7) and Carroll. W: Dean (1-0). P: Eddy (0-1).
*
MONARCHS 11, BRAVES 0
El Cajon Valley (0-4) 000 000 0 - 0 8 1
Monte Vista (1-2) 253 010 x - 11 12 1
L.Perez, D.Perez (2), Abbod (3) and D.Perez, L.Perez (2); Deanda, Cogley (4), Simmons (7) and Mendiola, Cooper (6).
HR: Croft (MV, 1) 1st, solo. W: Cogley (1-0). L: L.Perez.
*
TITANS 7, NORSEMEN 5
Valhalla (2-1) 110 300 0 - 5 4 2
Eastlake 010 103 2 - 7 8 3
S.O⤙Sullivan, Petrovelli (5), Stangyl (6) and McClain; Eubanks, Dryjanski (4), Antonez (4), Martinez (5) and Lievanos.
HR: Romero (E) 7th, one on. W: Martinez (1-1). L: Stangyl (0-1).
*
FOOTHILLERS 4, SPARTANS 2
Grossmont (3-0) 202 000 0 - 4 5 2
Chula Vista (1-2) 010 000 1 - 2 3 0
Wohlwend, Adams (5), Snow (7) and Pieczynski; Felix, O⤙Mara (5), Rosas (6) and Burgos.
HR: Snow (G, 2) 3rd, one on. W: Wohlwend (1-0). L: Felix (0-2). Sv: Snow (1).
*
SULTANS 6, AZTECS 1
Santana (3-0) 400 001 1 - 6 7 1
Montgomery (2-1) 010 000 0 - 1 2 2
Woods, Martin (6) and Haley; Procopio and Diaz. HR: Brosnan (S, 2) 7th, solo. W: Woods (1-0). L: Procopio (0-1).
*
HIGHLANDERS 7, TROJANS 5
Castle Park 203 000 0 - 5 8 1
Helix (3-0) 100 411 x - 7 9 1
Ollier, Escalante (6) and Romero; Wenbaum and Tanida. HR: Rosenthal (H, 1) 5th, solo. W: (1-0). L: Ollier.
*
Hilltop Lolita⤙s Tournament
VAQUEROS 8, LANCERS 1
El Capitan (1-2) 400 004 0 - 8 8 1
Hilltop 000 000 1 - 1 8 1
C.Garcia, McCarthy (6) and Rauch, Erickson (4); Fadden, McNaughton (6), Avilez (7) and Avilez, Tellez (7).
HR: Walston (EC, 1) 1st, three on. W: C.Garcia (1-0). L: Fadden.
*
EAGLES 8, LONGHORNS 2
Granite Hills (2-1) 010 006 1 - 8 4 2
Rancho Buena Vista (1-2) 000 002 0 - 2 6 1
Krause, Anderson (6) and Monette; Brooks, Garcia (6), Lee (6), Soper (6) and Love. W: Krause (1-0). L: Brooks (0-1).
*
Christian Patriot Invitational
PATRIOTS 6, TORREYS 2
La Jolla Country Day 000 300 2 - 5 9 1
Christian (4-0) 000 222 x - 6 10 4
Wisenberg, Saleh (4), Morris (6) and Fronek; O⤙Donnell, Jones (5) and Hart. W: Jones (1-0). L: Saleh.
(03-12-05)
Cougars' Inzone is in zone with pitching, hitting
against Sweetwater
EastCountySports.com
NATIONAL CITY -- Versatile JOE INZONE turned
in a smothering performance for Steele Canyon Friday
(Mar. 11) as the Cougars smashed host Sweetwater 13-5
in a Bully's East Tournament clash. The junior southpaw
drove in 4 runs with three doubles and pitched 5 innings
to earn his first varsity win.
Inzone broke a 1-1 tie with a three-run double in the
2nd inning and then let his pitching dictate policy.
"Joe threw one more inning today than he threw
all of last year," Steele Canyon coach PHIL
MITTRY said, noting that Inzone toiled only 4.1
frames as a sophomore. "Joe has the arm strength
and we want to get him more innings. He could really
help us."
Inzone allowed only one hit and one unearned in four
innings against the Red Devils, who eventually teed
off on his serves for 3 runs in the 5th.
Cougars leadoff hitter DANNY HARRIS was 3 for
4 with a pair of doubles, 3 runs scored and 2 RBI. Harris
is 6-for-11 with three doubles this season. CODY
MINICH is batting at a .444 clip in the No. 2 slot
of the Steele Canyon order, while Inzone, who bats No.
3, is batting at a .600 clip (6 for 10) with 5 RBI.
"Harris and Minich have done a great job of setting
the table," Mittry said. "Between the two
of them, they were on base six times (at Sweetwater)."
CHRISTIAN 9, SANTA FE CHRISTIAN 8:
Coach MIKE MITCHELL admits being surprised by
the Patriots sudden burst of offensive firepower, especially
since he is missing four players due to scholastic requisites.
"We are hitting the ball a lot better than I thought
we would," Mitchell said of his Patriots who have
produced 21 runs and 18 hits in their first two starts.
After blowing a 4-0 first inning lead, the Patriots
scored 3 runs in the bottom of the 7th inning to secure
the Christian Patriot Invitational victory.
Junior MATT HART ignited the 7th inning rally
for Christian when he was hit by a pitch in an 8-pitch
at bat. Singles by RICKY PLUM and JOEL McGRANAHAN
loaded the bases.
GRANT MILLS, who came on in relief to get the
final out in the top of the 7th inning, delivered a
game-tying 2-run single in the bottom of the 7th.
After AUSTIN MURRAY reloaded the bases with an
infield hit, EDDIE YOUNG drove in McGranahan
with a sacrifice fly ball to center to give the Patriots
the win.
Mills now has both of Christian's pitching decisions.
USDHS 10, EL CAPITAN 5: Lackluster
pitching and inconsistent hitting has the Vaqueros staring
at a rare 0-2 start in the Hilltop-Lolita's Tournament.
The Vaqueros were playing catch-up almost from the get-go.
Doubles by THOMAS HOSTETLER and LOUIE RUSSO
followed by NIK GARCIA's sacrifice fly gave the
Vaqueros a 1-0 edge in the 1st inning edge. The Dons,
however, answered back to lead 5-1 after three innings.
RBI singles by GRIFF ERICKSON and MICHAEL
GRIFFITH pulled the Vaqueros to within 5-3 in the
4th inning. But the inning came to an abrupt ending
when USDHS center fielder Joey Centanni nailed Griffith
taking a wide turn at first base.
JASSON KSIAZEK stroked a 2-run single in the
7th inning to conclude El Capitan's scoring. Ksiazek
accounted for 2 of the Vaqueros' 8 hits.
"Pitching should be our strength," El Capitan
coach STEVE VICKERY said. "Everything works
off that. But our pitchers are not being aggressive
enough. They are working behind in the count too much."
Sweetwater Bully's Invitational
MISSION HILLS 12, MOUNT MIGUEL 2: No
information reported.
(03-11-05)
FRIDAY, MAR 11, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Hilltop Lolita's Tournament
DONS 10, VAQUEROS 5
El Capitan (0-2) 100 200 2 - 5 8 2
USDHS 032 104 x - 10 10 1
Paukovitz, Petrille (4), King (6) and Rauch; Soares, Schultz (5) and McKeever.
HR: Wiegand (USDHS) (4) 6th, one on. W: Soares. L: (0-1).
*
Sweetwater Bully⤙s Invitational
COUGARS 13, RED DEVILS 5
Steele Canyon (2-1) 133 033 0 - 13 16 1
Sweetwater 100 030 1 - 5 5 3
Inzone, Lewis (6), Johnson (7) and Duby; Palacios, Lianez (3), Ortega (7) and Llanez, Concha (3).
HR: Llanez (S) 5th, two on. W: Inzone (1-0). L: Palacios.
*
GRIZZLIES 12, MATADORS 2
Mission Hills (2-1) 005 220 3 - 12 10 0
Mt. Miguel (0-3) 100 100 0 - 2 5 1
Hatley, Donaghy (3), Haley (7) and Parks. Escalante, Freeman (3), Plunkett (5), Green (6) and White.
WP: Donaghy (1-0). LP: Freeman (0-2). HR: Sandoval (MM), 4th, none on.
*
Christian Patriot Invitational
PATRIOTS 9, EAGLES 8
Santa Fe Christian (0-3) 010 012 4 - 8 14 4
Christian (2-0) 400 020 3 - 9 10 2
Steinwedell, Rehberger (1), Campbell (7) and Bodemer, Sullivan (6); Stanovic, Murray (4), Plum (7), Mills (7) and Hart.
HR: Rehberger (SFC) 2nd, solo. W: Mills (2-0). L: Campbell (0-1).
(03-11-05)
Sultans' bats in midseason form in rout of Henry
EastCountySports.com
SAN DIEGO: Those who like to compile ratings and
discuss which teams should be included among the elite
somehow overlooked coach JERRY HENSON's Santana
Sultans. Perhaps those prognosticators should take a
second look.
Despite surrendering six runs in the first two 2 innings
to Top 10 power Patrick Henry in Thursday's (Mar. 10)
Foothiller-Aztec Classic, Santana slashed 18 hits and
scored six of its seven turns at-bat to win for the
second time in as many starts.
That's 29 runs and 33 hits in two starts for Santana,
which is supposed to be in a rebuilding mode.
"I'm not surprised by our (fast) start," Henson
said. "These kids can play ball."
And so they have, to date.
RYAN BROSNAN was an offensive scoring machine, scoring
4 runs and driving in 3 while going 3 for 4 at the plate.
He included a solo home run in his totals, while stealing
a base.
KYLE HELMHOLTZ was also 3-for-4 with a double
and a pair of RBI.
RICHARD MARTINEZ stroked 3 hits in four at-bats,
while BRANDON HALEY and JEFF WOODS drove
in 2 runs apiece.
JOHN BASNIGHT was 2 for 4 with 3 runs scored
for the Sultans, who also received 5.1 shutout innings
of relief pitching from senior CHRISTIAN SPICER.
HELIX 11, WEST HILLS 9: Helix coach
COLE HOLLAND doesn't like to talk about the Highlanders'
struggles of a year ago. Yet, he can't forget the string
of hitless innings that plague him to this day.
"We've scored more runs in these first two games
this year than we did in the first month last year,"
Holland said.
Holland's assessment was a little more desperate than
what actually occurred although it wasn't completely
off the wall.
Helix has outscored its first two foes 22-9 this season.
In its first five starts of 2004, the Highlanders were
manhandled by a composite 56-11 score, resulting in
five straight defeats.
The Highlanders (2-0) hammered out 11 hits paced by
NICK LEDESMA's 3 for 4 effort that included 2
RBI.
"One through nine this is the most solid lineup
we've had since I've been here," said Holland,
who is in his 4th season at the Helix helm. "We
start four sophomores and will probably insert a 5th
sophomore into our lineup very soon. This is all very
encouraging."
ZACH TANIDA, ERIK PONCE, RAUL RITCHIE and
JEREMY PETERSON also drove in 2 runs apiece for
the Highlanders.
MIKE SCHULER pitched the first 4 innings to pick
up the win, but needed 7th inning relief help from MATT
WENHAM, who retired all three batters he faced,
striking out two to gain the save.
Trailing 10-2 heading into the bottom of the 6th, West
Hills (0-2) erupted for 7 runs. KOREY HOOPER's two-run
double was the big blow. Hooper finished the day 2-for-3
with 3 RBI.
VALHALLA 3, VISTA 2: JAVIER BROWN's
RBI single in the bottom of the 7th inning broke a 2-2
tie Thursday (Mar. 10), giving the Norsemen (2-0) the
Foothiller-Aztec Classic victory.
Brown, 3-for-4 with 2 RBI batting in the leadoff spot
for Valhalla, drove in CHAD WILSON, who singled
and moved into scoring position on a passed ball.
ERIC JULIENNE fired a 4-hitter at the visiting
Panthers (1-1), allowing just 4 hits and 2 runs while
striking out 4. Reliever MIKE PETRIVELLI pitched
a shutout 7th to earn the win.
"Chad Wilson came through with two infield singles,
balls that he hit hard but used his speed to beat the
throw," Valhalla coach STEVE PERDUE said.
"Javier got the key hits and (second baseman) GREG
GARCIA made some great defensive plays.
"Yeah we've got the O'Sullivans, but we are more
of a team than that."
GROSSMONT 19, MARIAN CATHOLIC 1: A.J.
GRIFFIN is known more for his pitching than his
batting, yet the 6-foot-4, 205-pound junior proved he
can swing it with the best of them during Thursday's
(Mar. 10) Foothiller-Aztec Classic contest at Marian
Catholic.
Griffin drilled a 3-run home run during an 8-run 4th
inning after stroking a run-scoring single in the Hillers'
6-run 3rd inning, finishing the day 3-for-5 with 5 RBI
and 2 runs scored.
Griffin also pitched a 2-hitter while striking out 5
over the first four innings to earn the pitching nod.
TRISTAN PHILLIPS, who is 5-for-7 with 6 RBI in
the first two games, teed off on Marian Catholic pitching
for two doubles and 4 RBI in Grossmont's latest victory.
DONNIE SNOW plated 4 runs with a home run, a
double and a single, while TONY CUSUMANO was
2-for-3 with a double and 2 RBI.
MONTGOMERY 12, MONTE VISTA 2: Coach
LARRY RINEHART's Monarchs are operating without
two of their top three pitchers. Gone is senior letterman
DAVID MAKIN, and injured is senior JAMES DAILEY.
Dailey, who expects to have his cast removed from his
pitching arm on Friday (Mar. 11), is facing a minimum
of five weeks of rehab. That won't help the Monarchs
(0-2) who are suddenly thin on pitching.
"We hope to get James back by the start of league
play," Rinehart said. "But we just don't know
if that is going to happen."
Thus, finding support for No. 1 starter JESSE RODRIGUEZ
is the plight facing Rinehart at the moment.
Ever the optimist, Rinehart notes that his Monarchs
have committed only one error in their first two games.
RANCHO BERNARDO 11, GRANITE HILLS 2: John
Drennen blasted a pair of tape-measure solo home runs
and Brian Wilson drove in three runs with a home run
and a double Thursday (Mar. 10) as host Rancho Bernardo
crushed Granite Hills in the Hilltop Lolita's Tournament.
"One through five, that's the best group of hitters
we've faced in a while," Granite Hills coach JAMES
DAVIS said of the heavy-hitting Broncos (2-0).
The Eagles (1-1) committed more errors than they garnered
hits (4-3). Freshman BRIAN HUMPHRIES, nephew
of former East County prep and NFL star MARK MALONE,
drove in Granite Hills' first run with a single in the
2nd inning.
"Humphries is legit," Davis said.
EASTLAKE 11, EL CAJON VALLEY 1: Six errors
led to disaster for the struggling Braves in Thursday's
(Mar. 10) Foothiller-Aztec Classic contest in the South
Bay.
The Titans, who were touted as preseason choice for
No. 1 in the San Diego Section, were buried by Vista
in their season opener. They vented their frustration
on El Cajon Valley (0-3), claiming an 8-0 lead after
two innings.
FEDERICO CARREON clubbed his third double of
the season and scored the Braves' only run in the 6th
inning. LUIS PEREZ accounted for the Braves'
other two hits with a pair of singles.
(03-10-05)
THURSDAY, MAR 10, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Foothiller-Aztec Classic
SULTANS 14, PATRIOTS 6
Santana (2-0) 141 104 3 - 14 18 2
Patrick Henry 330 000 0 - 6 10 3
Medrud, Spicer (6) and Haley; S.Triolo, Sudol (3), Selek (6), Lashley (7) and Florence. HR: Brosnan (S) 4th, solo.
W: Spicer (1-0). L: Sudol.
*
FOOTHILLERS 19, CRUSADERS 1
Grossmont (2-0) 306 820 0 - 19 20 2
Marian Catholic (1-1) 010 000 0 - 1 3 4
Griffin, Adams (6), Kinsella (7) and Schroeder; Lopez, Obaide (4), Harding (6), Gil-Salazar (7) and Martinez, Sanchez (6).
HR: Harding (MC) 2nd, solo; Snow (G) 4th, solo; Griffin (G) 4th, two on. W: Griffin (1-0). L: Lopez.
*
HIGHLANDERS 11, WOLF PACK 9
Helix (2-0) 100 702 1 - 11 11 1
West Hills (0-2) 002 007 0 - 9 10 2
Schuler, Runions (5), Rohmer (6), Wenham (7) and Tanida;
Richardson, Eddy (4), Skinner (6), Hutchings (7) and Gagnon, Pichette (6).
W: Schuler (1-0). L: Richardson (0-1). Sv: Wenham (1).
*
AZTECS 12, MONARCHS 2
Montgomery (2-0) 017 002 2 - 12 13 2
Monte Vista (0-2) 010 100 0 - 2 4 0
Gutierrez, Miller (6) and Diaz; Leboffe, Sopher (3), DeAnda (4), Haase (7) and Cooper.
HR: Hall (Mont) 2nd, solo. W: Gutierrez (1-0). L: Leboffe (0-1).
*
NORSEMEN 3, PANTHERS 2
Vista (1-1) 000 002 0 - 2 5 1
Valhalla (2-0) 000 020 1 - 3 7 0
Julienne, Petrivelli (7) and McClain; Lewis, Cahill (6) and Carroll. W: Petrivelli (1-0). L: Cahill (0-1)
*
TITANS 11, BRAVES 1
El Cajon Valley (0-3) 000 001 0 - 1 3 6
Eastlake (1-1) 441 020 x - 11 12 0
Myer, Manzo (2), Vega (4) and D.Perez; Dyrjanski, Benner (4), West (5), Yowell (7)and Lievanos-Sarosy.
HR: Miramontes (ESL) 2nd, solo; Eubanks (ESL)2nd two on. W: Benner (1-0): Myer (0-1).
*
Hilltop Lolita⤙s Tournament
BRONCOS 11, EAGLES 2
Granite Hills (1-1) 010 010 0 - 2 3 4
Rancho Bernardo (2-0) 611 210 x - 11 8 1
Russell, Coleman (3), Gay (5), Sylvester (6) and Monette; Haynal, Peabody (5), Griffins (7) and Laws.
HR: Drennen (RB) 2: 2nd, solo, and 5th, solo; Wilson (RB) 1st, two on; Kuehl (RB) 1st, solo.
(03-10-05)
Patriots don't need special equipment to touch-up
Imperial pitching
EastCountySports.com
IMPERIAL -- The Christian High Patriots opened the season
under the lights at Imperial High Wednesday night (Mar.
9). Credit coach MIKE MITCHELL's club for having
sharp night vision as the visiting Patriots pounded
the Tigers into submission 12-1. The game was called
after five innings.
SHANE STANOVIC keyed an 8-run 5th inning with
a bases-loaded triple, and finished the evening 2-for-3.
The Patriots' leadoff hitter also scored 3 runs and
stole a base.
Catcher MATT HART was 2 for 2 with an RBI and
a run scored.
Winning pitcher GRANT MILLS drove in a pair of
runs with a base hit in the big 5th inning. The junior
right-hander rationed the Tigers to three hits and one
unearned run while striking out 5 and walking 2 in four
innings. AUSTIN MURRAY pitched a hitless
5th inning while striking out 2.
STEELE CANYON 9, HORIZON 5: He throws footballs
in the fall and baseballs in the spring. By either account,
junior right-hander ROSS EPPERSON throws strikes.
Epperson blanked visiting Horizon on one hit over 5
innings while striking out five and walking none Wednesday
(Mar. 9) as the Cougars balanced their season slate
at 1-1 in the Sweetwater Bully's Invitational.
"We played great defense," said Steele Canyon
coach PHIL MITTRY of his Cougars, who were flawless
in the field. "Ross was great on the mound, let
them put the ball in play and we made the plays behind
him."
Junior second baseman DANNY HARRIS was 2-for-3
with a double, 2 runs and a pair of steals in the leadoff
spot for Steele Canyon. CODY MINICH whacked a
triple, stole two bags and scored 3 runs batting in
the No. 2 spot.
This game was really a blowout, as the Cougars led 9-0
after six innings. The Panthers punched out the Steele
Canyon relievers for 5 runs in the 7th before sophomore
ANDREW BRUDER came on to strike out the side.
SD SOUTHWEST 7, MOUNT MIGUEL 1: The
Matadors are still attempting to develop a team personality
under first-year head coach BYRON GRIGSBY.
Mount Miguel starting pitcher JAIME SANDOVAL deserved
a better fate, as he allowed only one earned run to
the visiting Raiders in four innings. He gave up 4 hits,
walked none and struck out 4.
"We went from 13 hits (in Monday's loss to Westview)
to 4 hits today," said Grigsby. "This is a
really talented group but the chemistry is still coming."
Sandoval drove in CHRIS FREEMAN with Mount Miguel's
lone run with a base hit in the 6th inning. Freeman
reached base on a double. EDDIE De ARCOS also
stroked a two-base hit.
Southwest pitcher Ruben Espinoza pitched a complete
game 4-hitter, striking out 8 Matadors in the process.
Grigsby did offer special praise to his freshman shortstop
NICO CALAFATO.
"He is my freshman Khalil Greene," said Grigsby.
"He's going to be a good one. I predict him to
be a draft choice by his senior year."
(03-09-05)
WEDNESDAY, MAR. 9, 2005
EastCountySports.com
Sweetwater Bully's Invitaional
RAIDERS 7, MATADORS 1
SD Southwest (2-2) 100 210 3 - 7 12 3
Mount Miguel (0-2) 000 001 0 - 1 4 3
Espinoza; Sandoval, Vanderhyde (5), Freeman-Bolden (6) and White.
W: Espinoza. L: Sandoval (0-1).
*
PANTHERS 5, COUGARS 9
Horizon (0-2) 000 000 5 - 5 5 2
Steele Canyon (1-1) 340 002 x - 9 10 0
Reyner, Garcia (6) and Keehl, Powers (6); Epperson, West (6), Jenner (7), Bruder (7) and Duby, Lange (7).
W: Epperson (1-0). L: Reyner (0-1).
*
Christian Patriot Invitational
PATRIOTS 12, TIGERS 1
Christian (1-0) 102 18 - 12 8 0
Horizon (0-1) 000 10 - 1 3 5
Game called after 5 innings, mercy rule.
Mills, Murray (5) and Hart; Boerner, Gonzalez (5) and Garcia (5) and Lopez.
W: Mills (1-0). L: Boerner (0-1).
(03-09-05)
Highlanders have big showing against Braves
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON -- When the Helix Highlanders were going through
pre-game warm-ups for Tuesday's (Mar. 8) Foothiller-Aztec
Classic opener, players from host El Cajon Valley had
to marvel at the size of some of their opponents. Take
Helix starting pitcher JEREMY PETERSON for example.
The 6-foot-5, 250-pound sophomore made an impressive
showing as the Highlanders belted the Braves.
HELIX 11, EL CAJON VALLEY 0 -- Peterson
and a trio of relievers combined on a three-hit shutout,
while left fielder ALEX ROSENTHAL registered
four line singles to back a 15-hit attack to pace Helix.
Peterson struck out five batters in four innings, followed
by three innings of no-hit relief, as DUSTIN RUNION,
ERIK PONCE and STEVEN ROHMER threw one frame
each. Rohmer's work resulted in three straight strikeouts
with his knuckle ball.
Meanwhile, the 6-foot-6, 224-pound Rosenthal displayed
a sweet stroke in sending four consecutive line drives
to center field. The senior, who batted .214 a year
ago, added an RBI and a stolen base for Helix (1-0).
"I've been working on my hitting because I've been
in a slump lately," said Rosenthal. "I'm just
looking to just sit back on the ball -- the entire team
is."
Peterson was also 2-for-4 with 3 RBI. NICK LEDESMA
stroked a pair of doubles for Helix, while Ponce was
2-for-4 with an RBI.
El Cajon Valley (0-2) committed five of its six errors
in the first two innings, staking the Scotties to a
3-0 lead. Otherwise, Braves starter FEDERICO CARREON
did not yield an earned run over four innings, finally
getting tagged in the 5th, when Helix broke the game
open with four runs. Included was a 2-run single by
Peterson.
Peterson extinguished El Cajon Valley's lone rally in
the 1st, when the Braves loaded the bases after two
were out, but a grounder to 6-foot-3, 245-pound ZAC
WEBB, the first baseman, ended the threat.
With so many loaded teams in the Grossmont South League,
Helix seeks to sneak up on the competition. The Highlanders
were 2-13 against league competition and 8-20 overall.
"We'll be the surprise team this year," added
Rosenthal. "There are some good teams out there,
but we're a lot better team than last year.�
MORE FOOTHILLER-AZTEC CLASSIC:
VALHALLA 13, CHULA VISTA 2: The O'SULLIVAN
Brothers, freshman RYAN and senior SEAN,
along with a few of their friends, helped the Norsemen
rout host Chula Vista in Tuesday's (Mar. 8) season
opener for both squads.
Ryan O'Sullivan was 4-for-5 with 3 doubles, 4
runs scored and 2 RBI. As if that wasn't enough, the
young right-hander hurled four innings to gain the pitching
nod.
Sean O'Sullivan whacked a pair of doubles, drove
in 2 runs and pitched a hitless 7th inning with 2 strikeouts.
Not to be overlooked was the hitting of senior CHRIS
MOORE, who was 3-for-4 with six RBI. Moore, who
batted a quiet .250 and 12 RBI in 44 at-bats a year
ago, blasted a pair of doubles (Valhalla totaled 7)
and a single.
The No. 2-ranked Norsemen led 6-0 after two innings
and never looked back.
GROSSMONT 6, MONTE VISTA 0: DONNIE SNOW and
A.J. GRIFFIN combined to spin a 3-hit shutout
Tuesday (Mar. 8) as the Foothillers opened the season
with the shutout victory over the Grossmont Conference
rival Monarchs at Joe Gizoni Field.
Snow was nicked for 3 hits, but struck out 9 and walked
none in 5 impressive innings. Griffin faced six batters
and struck out 3 without allowing a base-runner.
Grossmont scored the only run it needed in the 1st inning
as leadoff man TIM FERRARA slugged the first
pitch of his varsity career to right-center for a double.
Ferrara eventually scored on a TRISTAN PHILLIPS
sacrifice fly.
Monte Vista's JESSE RODRIGUEZ held the Hillers
in check after that until he reached the 5th inning.
Then the roof caved in.
NICK SOBEL sparked the 5-run inning with a double
to left-center. One out later, the Hillers received
consecutive singles from Ferrara, NICK LONGMIRE,
Phillips, Snow, MATT PASSANISI, and TONY CUSUMANO.
Longmire, Phillips, Snow, Cusmano and FRANCIS FOX
(fielder's choice) picked up RBI.
SANTANA 15, CASTLE PARK 4: Sophomore
DALLAS MARTIN went 4-for-4 with a double, a triple
and drove in 3 runs as the Sultans slapped the Trojans
at Castle Park in Tuesday's (Mar. 8) opener.
Senior NICK MILLER was 3-for-3 with three steals,
2 runs and one RBI, while junior JOHN BASNIGHT
blasted a pair of doubles, driving in 2 and scoring
twice himself.
Basnight's first extra-base blow scored ROBERT HERMANSEN
(2-4, 2 RBI) with the initial run in the 2nd inning.
Martin's 2-run double made it 4-0 in the 3rd inning.
Basnight checked the Trojans on 5 hits while striking
out 6 over 5 innings to earn the win.
"We have a bunch of good ball players but not a
bunch of experience at the varsity level," said
Santana coach JERRY HENSON. "By the time
we get to league we should be ready to go. They're working
real hard and played a good ballgame today."
MARIAN CATHOLIC 1, WEST HILLS 0: Word
around the Grossmont Conference was West Hills was a
team without pitching.
So much for rumors.
STEPHEN STRASBURG, a 6-foot-4, 220-pound junior
right-hander, pitched a complete game 3-hitter, while
striking out 8 and walking none in the Wolf Pack's opener
under new skipper SCOTT HOPGOOD.
Despite the loss, Hopgood was upbeat about the game.
"There's not many times you can be happy with a
loss," he said. "But this was a good game.
Strasburg took a perfect game into the 5th inning."
West Hills junior designated hitter JOHN EDDY
was 2-for-3 with a stolen base. JOE MELLO accounted
for the Pack's only other hit.
It was not a day for good luck for West Hills. Case
in point was in the 4th inning. Catcher JOSH
PICHETTE hit a bullet up the middle. "He
hit right on the screws," Hopgood said. The ball
ricocheted off the pitcher's shin and deflected to the
third baseman, who threw to first base for the out.
Hilltop Lolita's Tournament
GRANITE HILLS 6, SAN MARCOS 5: In perhaps
the best game of the day in Tuesday's (Mar. 8) round
of opening games in the Hilltop Lolita's Tournament,
host Granite Hills blew an early 3-0 lead but wound
up coming from behind to edge visiting San Marcos.
Trailing 5-4 heading into the bottom of the 7th, the
Eagles rebounded for a pair of runs on CODY CRAWFORD's
RBI single and NICK MONETTE's game-winning RBI
double.
BRANDON DECKER led off the Granite Hills season
with a solo home run and finished the opener 2-for-4.
Sophomore TRAVIS TAIJERON slugged a solo homer
that gave Granite Hills a 4-3 edge in the 6th. Taijeron
concluded his varsity debut 2-for-3, including a 2-run
single in the 1st inning.
Senior ironman DONNIE ANDERSON turned in a complete
game with 10 strikeouts. The 6-foot-4, 200-pound right-hander
surrendered 6 hits and 2 earned runs.
POWAY 9, EL CAPITAN 4: By the
time the Vaqueros found home plate, the visiting Titans
from Poway were sitting on a 7-0 lead in Tuesday's (Mar.
8) season opener for both teams.
El Capitan senior THOMAS HOSTETLER blasted a
pair home runs to drive in 3 runs in the losing cause.
Three El Capitan errors undermined the pitching efforts
of three Vaqueros hurlers.
TUESDAY, MAR 8, 2005
Foothiller-Aztec Classic
SULTANS 15, TROJANS 4
Santana (1-0) 022 335 0 - 15 15 3
Castle Park (0-1) 000 002 2 - 4 6 4
Basnight, Martin (6), Noel (7) and Haley; Gutierrez, Escalante (4), Ollier (6), Nose (7) and Romero, Wannamaker.
W: Basnight (1-0). L: Gutierrez (0-1).
-
FOOTHILLERS 6, MONARCHS 0
Monte Vista (0-1) 000 000 0 - 0 3 0
Grossmont (1-0) 100 050 x - 6 10 0
Rodriguez, Simmons (5), Haase (6) and Cooper; Snow, Griffin (7) and Passanisi.
W: Snow (1-0). L: Rodriguez (0-1).
*
CRUSADERS 1, WOLF PACK 0
West Hills (0-1) 000 000 0 - 0 3 0
Marian Catholic (1-0) 000 010 x - 1 3 0
Strasburg and Pichette; Cartier and Martinez. W: Cartier (1-0). L: Strasburg (0-1).
*
NORSEMEN 13, SPARTANS 2
Valhalla (1-0) 240 301 3 - 13 12 1
Chula Vista (0-1) 002 000 0 - 2 7 1
R.O⤙Sullivan, Young (6), S.O⤙Sullivan (7) and McClain; Felix, Rosas (4), Omara (6) and Burgos.
W:R.O⤙Sullivan (1-0). L: Felix (0-1).
*
HIGHLANDERS 11, BRAVES 0
Helix (1-0) 210 043 1 - 11 15 0
El Cajon Valley (0-2) 000 000 0 - 0 3 6
Peterson, Runion (5), Ponce (6), Rohmer (7) and Tanida; Carreon, Hopwood (5) and L.Perez, D.Perez (5).
W: Peterson (1-0). L: Carreon (0-1). Sv: none.
*
Hilltop Lolita⤙s Tournament
TITANS 9, VAQUEROS 4
Poway (1-0) 101 230 2 - 9 10 0
El Capitan (0-1) 000 020 2 - 4 9 3
Hovey, Wildmark (5), Busick (6) and Pellegrinn; N.Garcia, C.Garcia (6), McCarthy (7) and Rauch.
HR: Scruggs (P) 5th, two on; Hostetler (EC) 2:(1,2) 5th, one on and 7th, solo. W: Hovey (1-0). L: N.Garcia (0-1).
*
EAGLES 6, KNIGHTS 5
San Marcos (0-1) 000 102 2 - 5 6 2
Granite Hills (1-0) 300 001 2 - 6 11 2
Cruz, Hayes (7) and Ibarra; Anderson and Monette. HR: Decker (GH) (1) 6th, solo; Taijeron (GH) (1) 6th, solo.
W: Anderson (1-0). L: Hayes (0-1).
(03-08-05)
Aggressive Matadors can't get favorable calls in
loss to San Ysidro
EastCountySports.com
SAN YSIDRO -- Byron Grigsby, the new head baseball coach
at Mount Miguel High, sensed a change was needed to
turnaround the Matadors.
"We're going to be aggressive, especially running
on the bases," Grigsby explained. "But this
was a tough one to lose."
Perhaps, the Matadors were a bit too aggressive.
After the team's fifth run was nullified on appeal when
a baserunner was ruled to have missed third base on
his way to the plate, host San Ysidro seized the momentum
to score over each of the final three innings, including
twice in the 7th to stun Mount Miguel, 5-4.
"We did everything we needed to do except for three
key calls," added Grigsby. "There were two
close calls at first base, but the appeal play was the
key or else it would've been a different ballgame."
Leading 3-1 through four innings, catcher JEREMIAH
WHITE lined a two-out single to center, then stole
second base. BUD NEWBORN followed with an RBI
single, but when he apparently scored on a sharp basehit
by DEXTER SEAVELLO, coaches from the Cougars
were quick to have the appeal made at third.
Ironically, the appeal could also have been made at
first, as both baserunners were too eager to advance,
each missing their respective bags. Mount Miguel was
also hampered by five errors, a passed ball and two
hit batsmen, aiding the San Ysidro rally.
The Cougars scored twice in the seventh to win, as catcher
Steve Urbena lifted a bases-loaded sacrifice fly to
center to tie the game. San Ysidro pitcher Ruben Valenzuela
made himself a winner with the bat, hoisting a sun-aided
single to center.
Hardluck losing pitcher CHRIS FREEMAN limited
San Ysidro to just four hits and three earned runs in
the complete-game effort. Valenzuela was tagged for
12 hits in his seven frames, as Freeman, White, Newborn
and freshman shortstop NICO CALAFATO tagged the
right-hander for two hits each.
White also smacked a single in the 2nd, scoring on Newborn's
basehit to offset an early 1-0 Cougars lead. The run
started a string of single runs over four
consecutive innings, as a White grounder scored Freeman
in the third, then CHRIS ESCALANTE's single in
the 4th scored Seavello, who was hit by a pitch and
stole a base.
WESTVIEW 4, STEELE CANYON 3: The
season started fast and fine for the Steele Canyon Cougars
in Monday's (Mar. 7) Bully's East Invitational contest
at Westview. But the Cougars could not make early leads
of 2-0 and 3-1 hold up as they fell to the Wolverines.
"After a good start, we just let it get away from
us," Steele Canyon coach PHIL MITTRY said.
A major part of Steele Canyon's woes centered around
Westview junior shortstop Elijah Tupuola, who
belted a game-tying solo home run in the 5th inning
after using his glove to rob the Cougars of a run in
the top of the 3rd.
"That kid killed us," Mittry said.
Steele Canyon capitalized on a two-out error in the
1st inning. JOE INZONE reached base on an error
and advanced on CHRIS RICE's single. Catcher
DEVON DUBY drove in both runners with a double
to right field.
Leading 2-1 entering the 3rd, the Cougars got a one-out
single from Inzone and a walk to Rice. Duby tapped into
a force play, allowing Inzone to score to make it 3-1.
A throwing error placed Duby in scoring position at
second.
Then came the play of the game. ROSS EPPERSON
ripped a ground ball into the 5.5 hole that would surely
have scored Duby had it cleared infield. Instead, Tupuola
flashed to his right, speared Epperson's grounder and
threw him out at 1st to end the inning and save a run.
"That play change the momentum of the game,"
Mittry said.
Inzone accounted for two of Steele Canyon's 7 hits.
Steele Canyon pitchers KYLE JOHNSON and ANDREW
BRUDER combined to fire a 5-hitter at Westview (2-0),
but were victimized by 2 unearned runs.
Monday, Mar. 7, 2005
Sweetwater Bully's Invitational
COUGARS 5, MATADORS 4
Mount Miguel (0-1) 011 110 0 - 4 12 5
San Ysidro (1-0) 100 011 2 - 5 4 2
One out when winning run scored.
Freeman and White; Valenzuela and Urena. W: Valenzuela (1-0). L: Freeman (0-1).
-
WOLVERINES 4, COUGARS 3
Steele Canyon (0-1) 201 000 0 - 3 7 3
Westview (2-0) 010 111 x - 4 5 2
Johnson, Bruder (5) and Duby; Floros, Hyndman (6), Hillenbrand (7) and McCoy.
HR: Tupuola (W) 5th, solo. W: Hyndman (1-0). L: Bruder (0-1).
(03-07-05)
First game of the season deals Braves defeats at
hands of Raiders
EastCountySports.com
EL CAJON -- The El Cajon Valley Braves were the first
East County team out of the chute this season. Whether
that is good or bad remains to be seen. Bottom line
is the visiting Braves blew an early 2-0 lead and lost
their opener 6-3 Wednesday (Mar.2) at San Diego Southwest.
FEDERICO CARREON put a spark in the Braves offense
with a pair of doubles and 2 runs scored.
ALAN ABBOD contributed a pair of RBI singles for
the Braves, while JONATHAN MANZO was 2-for-3
with a double and a run scored.
Looking ahead in the schedule, the Aztec-Foothiller
Classic begins on Saturday (Mar. 5) as does the Bully's
East Classic and the Patriots Invitational.
The game of the day on Saturday pits top-ranked Eastlake
at Grossmont (10:30 a.m.).
Non-League
Wednesday, Mar. 2, 2005
RAIDERS 6, BRAVES 3
El Cajon Valley (0-1) 110 000 1 - 3 10 3
SD Southwest (1-0) 002 012 x - 5 9 2
Myer, L.Perez (4), Hopwood (6) and D.Perez; Castro and Martinez.
HR: Espinoza (SW) 6th, two on. WP: Castro (1-0). LP: L.Perez (0-1).
(03-02-05)
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