ROUNDUP: Helix, Hillers, Pats, Cougs, MV win; WH no-hit again

By Bill Dickens
Updated: March 10, 2016

2016 EAST COUNTY PREP BASEBALL

By Bill Dickens
© East County Sports.com

LA MESA (3-10-16) — KEATON CHASE pitched 5 shutout innings and received help from JORDAN JACKSON and WILLIAM BLEVINS as they pitched one inning apiece as the Highlanders sailed past San Diego 5-0 in Wednesday’s (Mar. 9) Aztec-Foothiller Classic.

The Highlanders got a lift from AUSTIN KOVALCHECK as he slugged a 2-run homer in the fourth inning to extend Helix’s advantage to 4-0.

The Highlanders hammered out 11 hits. WES BABBITT was 2-for-4 while CONNOR KONISHI hoisted 2 hits and MICHAEL BROGAN also banged a pair of safeties.

GROSSMONT 14, MATER DEI 0 – Three Grossmont pitchers – CALVIN FARRIS, KANNON ROMERO and JAKE ENNIS – combined to pitch a 4-hit shutout as the Foothillers raised their record to 2-0 in Wednesday’s (Mar. 9) Aztec-Foothiller Classic in a blowout of Mater Dei.

The Grossmont trio limited the Crusaders to 4 hits while striking out 8.

The Foothillers put together a 5-run second inning. Catcher JAMES HINDORFF singled in 2 runs to ignite a 5-run frame.

EVAN McCARTHY also drove in a run as did ADAM LOPEZ. Lopez finished with 3 hits in 5 at-bats with one RBI and 2 runs scored.

Winning pitcher Farris was 2-for-2 with 2 RBI and 2 runs scored. He rolled up his offensive statistics while pitching five innings of 2-hit baseball. He walked 2 and struck out 4 to earn the win.

JAYDEN LOMBARDO was 3-for-4 with 3 runs scored, while JESSE GARCIA slammed a 2-run homer in the seventh inning.

MADISON 6, CHRISTIAN 3 – Things looked promising for the Christian High Patriots who scored runs in the first, second and third innings of the Aztec-Foothiller Classic on Wednesday (Mar. 9).

However, the roof fell in in the fourth inning as rival Madison scored four times and continued on to score two more in the seventh to put the game away.

Bottom line for Christian is the Patriots No. 4, 5 and 6 hitters are hitless in 18 at-bats.

“That’s pretty hard to win games when that part of the order are producing nothing,” said Patriots coach MIKE MITCHELL, whose team is off to an 0-2 start.

“The thing that really burned us was all of the Warhawks’ hitters were making connections ahead in the count,” Mitchell added. “None of those key positions has hit ahead in the count.”

The Patriots’ JUSTIN LEDGERWOOD slugged a solo home run in the first inning to give Christian the lead.

In the second inning GARRETT NIELSEN doubled to right center, JOHN GERSHOW singled to put runners at the corners. NATHAN JARVIS then hit a sacrifice fly to make it 2-0.

In the third inning Ledgerwood slashed an RBI single to right to elevate the Patriots’ lead to 3-0.

After that the Christian offense stalled.

MT. CARMEL 7, STEELE CANYON 1 – Steele Canyon scored a run in the first inning on a sacrifice fly by AVERY TUCK but that was the end of the offensive show for the visiting Cougars in Wednesday’s (Mar. 9) 35^th Annual Pirate Baseball Classic in NorthCounty.

Cougars right-hander TYLER LUBAN pitched 4 2/3 innings, allowing only 3 hits and 5 unearned runs as he absorbed the loss.

All but one of the Sundevils’ runs were unearned.

The Cougars were handcuffed as only JOSH ESQUIBEL, LUKE ARIAS and KANE FIEDLER had singles in the losing cause.

MONTE VISTA 16, SD-SOUTHWEST 3 – The Monarchs banged out 14 hits and never looked back as JUSTIN SCHWEIZER and JUAN GUTIERREZ combined to deal a 6-hit shutout in Wednesday’s (Mar. 9) Bully’s East Tournament contest.

The Monarchs turned the game into a road race as ANTHONY ROSARIO was 4-for-5 with 2 doubles, 3 runs scored and 3 RBI.

Monte Vista’s batting spree continued as BRENDAN COLLIS was 3-for-3 with a double and 3 RBI in the tournament opener.

Monte Vista’s barrage was ignited in the top of the order as Rosario, ANDREW GONZALES and Collis were 6-for-11. They had 7 hits and 8 RBI.

Although he didn’t have a hit Andrew Gonzales stole 3 bases and scored 2 runs while driving in a pair.

IVAN PLAZOLA was 2-for-4 with 2 RBI.

Schweizer spun five powerful innings allowing only 2 hits, no earned runs and struck out 8.

JUAN GUTIERREZ finished the job with one run and 4 hits in two innings.

MONTGOMERY 4, WEST HILLS 0 – For the second game West Hills might have made some kind of history as the Wolf Pack suffered back to back no-hitters to begin the season in Wednesday’s (Mar. 9) Aztec-Foothiller Classic action.

After rolling over and playing dead against Eastlake, the Pack showed little to no life against Montgomery.

It’s hard to imagine whether the Wolf Pack has wasted good pitching because when they can’t collect a single hit it’s hard to put a label on their progress.

Wed., March 9
Aztec-Foothiller Classic
WARHAWKS 6, PATRIOTS 3
Madison   000 040 2 – 6 7 1
Christian 111 000 0 – 3 8 1
Lentz, Bovee (5) and Raiboldi. Jarvis, Bessone (5) and Josephson. 
WP-Bovee. LP-Jarvis (0-1).

HIGHLANDERS 5, CAVERS 0
San Diego 000 000 0 – 0  4 0
Helix     100 310 x – 5 11 1
Garcia, Tinney (5) and Moran. Chase, Jackson (6), Blevins (7) and Isbell. 
WP-Chase (1-0). LP-Garcia. HR-Kovalcheck (H-1) 4^th, one on.

FOOTHILLERS 14, CRUSADERS 0
Grossmont 050 033 3 – 14 18 0
Mater Dei 000 000 0 -  0  4 0
Farris, Romero (6), Ennis (7) and Hindorff. 
Golenbrewka, Lopez (3), Cardova (5), Skillan (5), Villarfaro (7) and Machelo. 
WP-Farris (1-0). LP-Golenbrewka. HR-JGarcia (G-1) 7^th, one on.

AZTECS 4, WOLF PACK 0
Montgomery 000 201 1 – 4 7 3
West Hills 000 000 0 – 0 0 2
(No further information provided.)

35^th Annual Pirate Baseball Classic 
SUNDEVILS 7, COUGARS 1
Steele Canyon (1-1) 100 000 0 – 1 3 2
Mt. Carmel    (2-0) 000 052 x – 7 6 2
Luban, Fitch (5) and Arias. Velasco, Barton (6) and Cope. 
WP-Velasco. LP-Luban (0-1).

Bully’s East Tournament
MONARCHS 16, RAIDERS 3
Monte Vista  140 006 5 – 16 14 6
SD-Southwest 001 011 x -  3  6 4
Schweizer, JGutierrez (6) and Sandoval. 
Aguayo, Maiter (6), Mendoza (7) and Olea. WP-Schweizer (1-0). LP-Aguayo.