Hillers fall in Lions final BOXSCORE

East County Sports.com
CARMEL VALLEY (4-14-06) -- The Premier Division championship to the 56th annual Lions Tournament may have fallen through, yet the Grossmont Foothillers seem to have reversed course from their early-season form, slowly transforming into the possible favorites to capture the Grossmont North League while competing ballclubs have slipped into recent funks.

Although Valencia rallied with runs on a wild pitch and a passed ball over the last two innings to claim a 3-2 victory, the Hillers still seemed confident after riding an 8-game winning streak to gain a berth into the tournament final.

"We're hitting the ball well, while the pitching is holding the other guys to 2-or-3 runs per game," noted first baseman NICK LONGMIRE. "It's a really good ballclub right now, with really good chemistry."

Longmire clouted his team-leading sixth home run of the season, going the other way to clear the right-centerfield fence at the Cathedral Catholic High School ballpark to lead off the 2nd.

However, three Vikings pitchers combined to allow just two additional hits, as Caleb DeVille gained his second victory on the day in relief. Earlier, Deville needed just one pitch to escape a jam, as Valencia (13-3) also scored in the 7th to defeat Cathedral by an identical 3-2 score.

Against Grossmont, Virgil Hill scored the winning run for Valencia following his lead infield single. Hill stole second base, took third on a flyball, then scored on a passed ball. The Vikings' run in the 6th came on a wild pitch.

MATT SILVA allowed one run on five hits over 4 1/3 innings in his second start of the season for Grossmont. BRYAN HAAR pitched the final two frames, and was a hard-luck loser for the first time in four decisions. Even more biting was the decisive second of the two runs he allowed was unearned.

Nevertheless, the enthusiasm generated with the Foothillers' recent success could carry over to league play. Grossmont is now sitting on one of the better records in East County at 12-6.

"This was a big tournament for us," said Grossmont coach ROB PHILLIPS. "We were 4-5 at one point (in the season) and were at the bottom of the pit. But everyone on this team has worked hard to get to where we're at right now."

GROSSMONT 6, VALHALLA 1 BOXSCORE -- Third time was the charm for the Foothillers, who finally beat the Norsemen after two losses in Thursday (Apr. 13) morning's semifinal at Joe Gizoni Field.

This three-game series has been a quick-strike affair. The first team to generate an early big inning wins.

Grossmont scored four runs in the opening frame of the latest get-together.

In the last meeting (Mar. 28), Valhalla did all of its scoring in the 1st inning of a 6-2 victory. Eighteen days earlier the Norsemen won by the identical 6-2 score, scoring five runs in the first two innings.

On this occasion, it was Grossmont that turned on the heat with four runs in the 1st inning. BRYAN HAAR hammered a two-run double to key the Foothillers' early morning coming-out party,

The Foothillers extended their advantage two more notches in the 3rd as DEREK BAUM delivered an RBI single and NICK SOBEL slugged a run-scoring double to make it 6-0.

JUSTIN MASON left his familiar shortstop post to pitch 5 1/3 innings to earn his first win. Prior to this length outing, Mason had pitched a mere 2 1/3 innings.

MISSION HILLS 7, HELIX 0 -- Perhaps the Highlanders were simply out of gas once they reached Thursday's (Apr. 13) Lions Tournament 4A championship game at Hilltop High.

Or maybe they were surprised to be staring at Mission Hills' fresh-faced rookie pitcher Tyler Brown, a freshman who's not on anybody's scouting report or on the Grizzlies roster for that matter.

Brown made his first varsity start (appearance) a Kodak moment as he blanked the Highlanders (9-7) on three hits.

Two of those hits went to MAHI LABASTIDA, the other to ZACH TANIDIA.

"I wasn't too disappointed," said Helix coach COLE HOLLAND. "We played seven games in seven days. It gets a little rough. We actually swung the bats well. We hit seven line drives right at people. We really couldn't catch a break."

The Highlanders have won five of their lasts seven and must be taken seriously in the Grossmont South League race. At the moment, Helix is in a three-way tie with Granite Hills and Valhalla for the league lead with 13 games remaining.

"The (tournament) magic kinda ran out at the end," Holland said. "I was very, very pleased with the way we played. We pitched, we threw -- no walks in 7 innings (in the finals). Everything they hit fell; everything we hit was right at someone."

HELIX 13, CARLSBAD 1 -- In Thursday morning's semifinals, base hits were falling everywhere, especially in the 4th inning when the Highlanders scored 11 runs with 2 outs.

"You don't see that happen very often," said Helix coach COLE HOLLAND. "I'm very happy with the way we swung the bats. I'm happy the way we played in the whole tournament."

MAHI LABASTIDA crashed a grand slam in the big inning.

RANDY PEREZ added two hits and three RBI to the Helix account, while DERRIC MILLER was 3-for-3.

Relief pitcher SALONZO GRIER blanked the Lancers on one hit over the final four innings to post his third win without a loss.

GRANITE HILLS 9, EL CAPITAN 8 BOXSCORE -- Talk about hard to swallow . . . El Capitan stormed out to a 7-0 lead in the 2nd inning, but host Granite Hills refused to fold in Thursday's (Apr. 13) Lions Tournament consolation contest.

"It was a good game, an exciting game," said Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS.

Spoken like a true winner.

Davis' Eagles (9-6) kept chipping away until they scored the winning run when TRAVIS TAIJERON doubled home LOUIS CAZARES with two outs in the bottom of the 7th.

Taijeron was 4-for-5 with his fifth home run and three RBI against the struggling Vaqueros (9-7),

"Over the last four days, Taijeron hit the ball and did a really fine job of catching all week long," Davis said. "I have high praise for him. He took on more of a leadership role this week, which I was happy to see."

The numbers Taijeron has produced back the praise of his coach. In his four tournament tilts, Taijeron is batting at a .688 clip (11 for 16) with three home runs and 13 RBI.

Not far behind is CODY CRAWFORD, who batted .636 with 7 hits in 11 at-bats, including two homers and six RBI in the tournament.

On the flip side, El Capitan's AUSTIN RAUCH was 3-for-4, including his East County leading 9th home run of the year in the 3rd inning.

The trump card for the Eagles was JOSH QUERIONES' 5 2/3 innings of two-hit relief.

FOLSOM 6, SANTANA 3 -- Fourteen wins in 18 starts and certain placement among the top 10 teams in the San Diego CIF is satisfactory to Santana coach JERRY HENSON at the moment.

His Sultans were playing catch-up from the 2nd inning on against Sacramento Folsom, which nudged in front with a pair of runs in the 2nd and 3rd innings.

Reliable CHRIS DIAZ launched his second home run to chop Folsom's advantage in half in the 4th inning.

But the Sultans, who also scored on NICHOLAS SICA's first varsity home run in the 5th, must now focus their attention on the Grossmont North League race.

"This was a good tournament but we were just completely fried, completely tired," said Henson. "The kids are ready for some time off. After the Aztec-Foothiller Tournament championship was moved due to rain and the Grossmont League opener was also moved due to rain, we played six games in seven days."

East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (4-13-06) -- Three East County teams are still in the hunt for gold as the semifinals of the 56th annual San Diego Lions Tournament begin the final day of the 112-team event Thursday morning (Apr. 13) at 10.

The Grossmont Conference is guaranteed a finalist in the Premier Division as the winner of the Valhalla-at-Grossmont morning game advances to the title bout at Cathedral Catholic High at 2 p.m. The other semifinal in this division pits Cathedral Catholic against Valencia at El Capitan High,also at 10.

Meanwhile, upstart Helix will host the winner of the disputed Carlsbad-Francis Parker pool play game Thursday morning sometime after 10 o'clock. First up is the playing of the top of the 7th inning with Parker batting and trailing Carlsbad 6-5. The game was halted due to a tournament rule misinterpretation by umpires on Tuesday after six innings. The men in blue thought this tourney has a two-hour time limit, which is not true unless one team leads by more than 10 runs and the game has completed at least four innings.

None of these criteria fit the situation and Parker appealed to the Lions Club to allow the game to finish. Thus, the game resumes at 10 at Helix.

The Highlanders (8-6) are just glad to still be playing. Helix coach COLE HOLLAND said "It's not an ideal situation for us, but we'll wait to see who we play."

A Helix victory would send the Highlanders into the 4A Division championship game Thursday afternoon at Hilltop at 2 o'clock. Mission Hills and Ramona are vying for the other 4A title spot.

VALHALLA 7, LA COSTA CANYON 4 -- After falling behind 3-0 in the first three innings, Valhalla erupted for 7 runs in the 4th inning Wednesday (Apr. 12) to complete a three-game sweep in Premier Division pool play.

Eight of the Norsemen's 12 hits came in that productive inning, which included a three-run home run by JASON KUTZLER and a two-run double by DAVID SMITH (2-for-3, 3 RBI).

"It's the same thing I've been saying all year -- there's no quit in these kids. Valhalla skipper STEVE PERDUE said. "They're constant hustle and determination. They just wanted it and never gave up. That's it in a nutshell."

ERIC JULIENNE allowed only one earned run and five hits in six innings as he logged his fourth win in five decisions. Julienne now has a three-year career mark of 17-2.

The Norsemen should be considered the favorites in terms of reaching the Premier Division finals as they have beaten Grossmont already this season. The irony here is, both Valhalla victories came on Grossmont's Joe Gizoni Field.

GROSSMONT 2, MISSION BAY 0 -- This was all about Grossmont fireballer A.J. GRIFFIN, who blanked the No. 2-ranked Buccaneers (13-2) on four hits while striking out eight as the Foothillers (11-5) won their seventh straight.

On a personal front, it was the fourth straight win for Griffin (4-2), who needed only 93 pitches to shut down the Bucs. Mission Bay had won 11 games in a row before Griffin slammed the door.

"He has been absolutely lights out for the past four outings," Grossmont coach ROB PHILLIPS said. Indeed he has. Besides posting four complete games, Griffin has lowered his ERA to 1.00 during his current 28-inning stretch.

"You can see it in his eyes -- he just wants to dominate," Phillips added. "He's got confidence in all three of his pitches."

An error free defense was another plus for Grossmont, which turned two double plays in support of their star pitcher.

"Those were classic double plays,"Phillips said.

Grossmont broke a scoreless deadlock in the 4th inning as BRYAN HAAR doubled into the left-center field gap and eventually scored on KYLE SECCIANI's single to left.

The Hillers doubled their lead when NICK SOBEL laced his third home run through a steady head wind and over the left field fence in the 5th.

Catcher DEREK BAUM accounted for two of the Foothillers' six hits.

OTAY RANCH 4, HELIX 3 -- Coach COLE HOLLAND didn't tell his youthful Highlanders that Wednesday's (Apr. 12) Division 4A pool play game against Otay Ranch had no bearing on the run for a Lions Tournament championship.

"I wanted them to play this like they would any game," he said.

Credit the Highlanders for fighting to the finish as they had the winning run on base in the last of the 7th inning against the Mustangs after ERIC PONCE punched an RBI single through the Otay Ranch defense to cut the deficit to a single marker.

But the next two Highlanders made outs and Helix was saddled with its third one-run loss and an end to its four-game winning streak.

"We just couldn't get the big hit," Holland said.

On the bright side, ZACH TANIDA knocked in a run with a single in the 4th and MATT COBB doubled home a run in the 6th for the Highlanders.

EL CAPITAN 7, CATHEDRAL 2 -- Unaccustomed to losing games in any kind of measurable amount, the Vaqueros snipped a 4-game losing streak in Wednesday's (Apr. 12) final round of Premier Division pool play.

"We're doing cartwheels out here,"quipped El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY.

And why not? This is a ballclub that had been ranked in the Top 10 the majority of the season before the latest downfall.

Senior leadoff hitter AUSTIN RAUCH opened with a triple. SHANE SULLENGER followed with a walk and one out later, DAMIAN GARCIA drove the ball deep enough to score Rauch.

Garcia's blast would be enough for his twin brother to enjoy a 1-0 lead into the 6th inning.

In a reciprocal style, CRISTIAN GARCIA, held the Dons off the board for five innings before giving up a pair in the 6th. Cristian Garcia, a senior right-hander bound for UC Riverside, posted his third complete game of the season, striking out 9 and walking none.

"When CRISTIAN GARCIA pitches we always have a pretty good chance. He just dominated on the mound," said his coach.

Batterymate Rauch belted his East County-leading 8th home run with a man on in the 5th inning.

"Austin had another typical game -- he kinda sets the tone for us," Vickery said.

Sullenger displayed surprising power when he knocked a 3-run homer to extend El Capitan's 4-2 lead for a 5-run cushion.

"Sullenger hit his first ever varsity home run today,"Vickery continued. "I'm so happy for this kid, he's made himself into a ballplayer. He's become an offensive threat. He takes thousands of extra swings after practice."

GRANITE HILLS 10, RANCHO BERNARDO 2 -- In a rematch of last year's San Diego Section Division I championship game, the Eagles reversed the tables in Wednesday's (Apr. 12) Lions Tournament Classic Division pool play finale.

Scoring in five of the six innings, the Eagles (8-6) had to enjoy the revenge.

ERIC KRAUSE tamed the Broncos with a complete game 5-hitter as he struck out 7 and walked none en route to his fourth win in five decisions.

"Krause had one of his best outings -- he was on today," said Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS. "He did a really good job of mixing his pitches and keeping them down."

Unheralded TRAVIS TAIJERON walloped his 4th home run with LOUIS CAZARES aboard to give the Eagles the 1st inning lead.

After Rancho Bernardo (9-7) cut the lead in half in the top of the 2nd, BRIAN HUMPHRIES hit the second of his 3 doubles to drive in two runs in the bottom of the 2nd.

Cazares, Humphries and Taijeron collectively produced some massive numbers. The trio was 7-for-11 with 7 RBI and 7 runs scored.

"Cazares and Humphries had a good day at the plate, and Taijeron has been solid as a hitter," Davis said.

SANTANA 10, LIBERTY (Bakersfield) 5 -- This was a tale of the old and the new. Veteran pitcher JOHN BASNIGHT struck out 11 and allowed only 4 hits and 3 runs in six innings as he posted his second win in as many decisions.

On the new front, junior RAYMOND MAUSER made his varsity debut and produced 3 hits in four at-bats. Mauser scored twice and drove in a run.

Santana coach JERRY HENSON was obviously pleased by Basnight's performance, but was pleasantly surprised by Mauser's immediate success.

"Raymond had been out of baseball for a couple of years so we knew it was going to take him a period of adjustment," Henson said. "He joined our winter league team and made some impressive strokes. But we knew that, rather than bringing him up to the varsity, he would get regular playing time at the JV level. And that has been the case."

Mauser's leadoff single in the 2nd keyed a 3-run Santana second inning. JONATHAN TIPPIN and Basnight each had an RBI in that productive frame.

The 3rd-ranked Sultans (14-3) added another run in the 3rd inning and Mauser was right in the middle of it with a two-out single. RYAN STUTZ picked up the RBI with a base hit as Santana moved out to a 5-0 lead.

Mauser contributed an RBI single in Santana's 5-run 5th that broke the game open.

The final rating of Santana's latest victory was team balance. Tippin, Basnight, and the rookie Mauser each had 3 hits, while RICHARD MARTINEZ and Stutz put together 2 hits apiece. Martinez' RBI triple in the 5th was the only extra base blow in Santana's 16-hit attack.

MONTE VISTA 4, ST. PAUL (Santa Fe Springs) 1 -- JOSH KELLY has become the Monte Vista stopper. The junior right-hander scattered 7 hits over four innings as he posted his fourth win in five decisions in the Monarchs' Lions Tournament 4A Division victory on Wednesday (Apr. 12).

"He's become a go-to guy for us," said Monte Vista coach LARRY RINEHART, who was happy to see the Monarchs' 4-game skid snuffed out.

DAN DeANDA and ANTHONY LOPEZ followed Kelly's lead by spinning three innings of one-hit shutout relief. Lopez gained his East County-best third save.

Monte Vista (5-9) scored all the runs it would need in the opening inning. GOLDIE SIMMONS drove in the first run with a sacrifice fly. DeAnda followed with an RBI single.

In the 3rd inning a two-out walk by DeAnda set the stage for SPENCER REED's triple to the right centerfield fence. In the 6th inning Reed singled, stole second and scored on the last of Kelly's three hits.

EL CAJON VALLEY 5, BRAWLEY 3 -- The Braves snapped a 14-game losing streak against an 11-4 Brawley squad in Wednesday's (Apr. 12) final round of 2A Lions Tournament pool play.

The victory-starved Braves (1-14) scored three runs in the 7th inning to gain the victory. A pinch-hit single by KEVIN MANSFIELD sparked the uprising that included a base hit by JOSE TORRES and a walk to CLIFTON THOMAS, filling the bases.

DEREK PEREZ walked to force in a run to tie the game at 3-3. RAY AQUININGOC followed with a two-run single giving El Cajon Valley its first taste of victory.

Thomas, who raised his section-leading stolen base count to 32, threw a new twist into his game as he took to the mound and pitched a shutout 7th inning to gain a save.

"It was a comeback victory and the kids were pumped," said El Cajon Valley assistant coach MIKE RANEY. "The kids had their rally caps on. It was great to get the win before we start league."

MOUNT MIGUEL 13, HOLTVILLE 3 -- For the first time in his two-year stint as head coach BYRON GRIGSBY's Matadors have posted back-to-back victories.

No. 9 hitter BRYANT SHIMIZU drove in five runs with a double and two singles as Mount Miguel narrowly missed qualifying for the 1A Division semifinals of the Lions Tournament.

JAMES TREBUS, the Matadors winning pitcher, broke a 3-3 tie with a two-run double in the 2nd inning and Mount Miguel (4-10) continued on for the victory. Trebus also pitched four innings of 2-hit ball and struck out nine as he gained his first win in three decisions.

Mount Miguel stole seven bases, three by DAUNTE WILLIAMSON.

"From the very beginning I started with these guys as sophomores in JV,"Grigsby said. "I knew these guys can do multiple things. This is my core group."

WOODCREEK 14, STEELE CANYON 3 -- Spring recess has not been the best of times for the Cougars of Steele Canyon, who came up winless in three Lions Tournament contests.

The final leg of his rugged tour resulted in a sound beating from the Timberwolves from Roseville on Wednesday (Apr. 12).

"We got waxed," said Steele Canyon coach PHIL MITTRY, acknowledging that Woodcreek scored in every inning before the mercy rule came into play and proceedings were halted after six innings.

Steele Canyon committed four errors that certainly didn't help matters considering the Wolves riddled four Cougar pitchers for 14 hits.

"Most of the damage is coming from us," Mittry confirmed. "They put the ball in play and we didn't make plays. We didn't play any defense today."

Things started out royally for SC as CODY MINICH smashed a solo homer and WILL MURRAY added an RBI single in the top of the 1st inning.

The game was still in question before Woodcreek pushed across six runs in the bottom of the 6th.

Another plus was the hitting of DANNY HARRIS, who was 2-for-3 with a run scored and a pair of steals.

THE BISHOP’S 7, CHRISTIAN 3 -- Once again the Patriots proved they are lacking in pitching depth as they dropped a Lions Tournament 3A Division pool play finale to the 10-3 Knights.

With the score tied 1-1 entering the 3rd inning, SHANE STANOVIC and ADAM PERRY swatted back-to-back doubles as the Patriots (5-7) took the lead. A bloop single by GRANT MILLS scored Perry to make it 3-1.

"Right after Grant Mills' single, (Bishop's pitcher Patrick) Swan retired the last 13 batters in order," said Christian coach MIKE MITCHELL ruefully. "The top of our order hit him (going 6-for-12), then our 6 through 9 hitters went 0-11."

FRANCIS PARKER 5, WEST HILLS 3 -- The Wolf Pack staged a 3-run rally in the bottom of the 7th inning, but it was too little too late in Wednesday's (Apr. 12) final round of Division 4A pool play.

SHAIN STONER and ERIC McKNIGHT banged back-to-back singles to cut the deficit to three. A Parker error permitted a third run to score, but West Hills (7-8) could do no more.

"The big story was the umpiring," said West Hills coach SCOTT "HOPPY" HOPGOOD. "It was the worst I've ever seen. I asked the home ump if he knew what he was doing."

There were three really controversial calls, Hopgood reported, that he felt would have made a definite difference in the game. The umpires didn't appear to know the rules. The scoreboard wasn't working and both teams had trouble staying current on the pitch count.

"I had to ask the ump what the count was at least 15 times," Hopgood said. "He's supposed to show the count after every pitch."

West Hills out-hit Parker six-to-three but the game remained close thanks to the strong-arm pitching of senior southpaw AARON RICHARDSON. The Wolf Pack left-hander deserved better, as only two of the runs he allowed were earned. Richardson struck out 8, but once again suffered with his control as he walked 6.

"We just didn't make adjustments at the plate, and it came back to bite us today. We did a great job battling back. I'm not too worried about it -- we're staying positive for league," Hopgood said.

El Capitan catcher Austin Rauch watches Saugus designated hitter Troy Ajer score the tie-breaking run in top of 6th inning to down the Vaqueros, 10-8. (Photo by Greg Eichelberger)

Highlanders surprising the experts

East County Sports.com
LA MESA (4-12-06) -- For the third straight game, the upstart Helix Highlanders left the opposition standing as they scored the game-winning run in the 9th inning of an an 8-7 win over Escondido in Tuesday's (Apr. 11) Division 4A game in the 56th annual Lions Tournament.

Sophomore KARLIS THORPE delivered a pinch-hit two-run single on a 2-1 pitch with two down in the 9th inning giving Helix (8-5) its fourth straight win and a clear shot at a berth in the Lions semifinals that begin on Thursday (Apr. 12).

Two innings earlier the Highlanders tied the game 6-6 on a two-out RBI single by CALEB SCHUMAKER.

Schumaker finished 2-for-3 with three RBI.

Leadoff man DEREK ANCRUM had a big day for the Highlanders with a home run and a double plus four runs scored.

VALHALLA 14, FOOTHILL 3 -- The Norsemen (9-5) scored in five of their six turns at-bats as they grounded the Falcons of Henderson, Nev. to keep their hopes of a berth in the Premier Division semifinals burning.

JEFF SOPATA was the offensive magnet for Valhalla, as he whacked three doubles, scored 4 runs and drove in two.

JASON KUTZLER kept wielding a hot stick with two hits and three RBI from his leadoff spot for the Norsemen who registered their four straight win.

BOBBY WILKINS pitched two-hit ball over six shutout innings and struck out to gain his third win against one loss.

GROSSMONT 12, LAS VEGAS-SPRING VALLEY 9 -- Five Foothillers enjoyed multiple-hit games as Grossmont outlasted the Nevada squad to set up Wednesday's (Apr. 12) showdown at No. 2-ranked Mission Bay in a battle of San Diego CIF Division III powers.

BRYAN HAAR hammered his 4th and 5th home runs of the season for three RBI to spark Grossmont (10-5) to its sixth straight victory. JUSTIN MASON drilled a two-run homer and AUGIE WILLIAMS added a solo shot for the Hillers.

NICK LONGMIRE was 2-for-4, including a two-run single that helped Grossmont (10-5) break a 4-4 tie with six runs in the 3rd.

ST. AUGUSTINE 6, SANTANA 2 -- In a raucous Lions Tournament Premier Division pool play encounter Tuesday (Apr. 11), No. 3 Santana succumbed to the long ball as St. Augustine (8-5) slapped the Sultans (13-3) with their third loss in 16 starts at Grossmont High's Joe Gizoni Field.

"They hit too many balls over the fence, and we had too many errors early on at critical times," said Santana coach JERRY HENSON.

Like any pitcher of substance, Martin let it be known that he was not pleased by the Saints home run parade that included a two-run smash by Dylan Graham, a two-run blast by Beck Wheeler and a solo shot by Ryan Ortiz that gave the Saints a 6-1 advantage.

Martin eventually plunked one of the St. Augustine batters with a pitch. That led to plenty of shouting from both dugouts.

The Saints, of course, returned the favor nailing Martin in the back with a pitch. That caused the umpires to issue "kick-out" warnings to both head coaches.

Martin was tagged with his second loss in six decisions yet turned in his East County-best fifth complete game.

If nothing else, the bean-ball wars added spice to this spring encounter.

That didn't mean a whole lot to Henson, who was upset by the loss.

"I can't remember when my guy in the No. 8 slot got a hit," Henson said. They're just not doing their job driving in runs."

MOUNT MIGUEL 9, HOOVER 7 -- For one of the few times this season, the Matadors turned the tables on the opposition in Tuesday's (Apr. 11) A Division second round pool play game with Hoover in Ramona.

Spotting the Cardinals a 7-0 lead after 2 ½ innings, Mount Miguel (3-10) scrambled back for nine unanswered runs and a victory that kept the Matadors hopes for a berth in the division semifinals alive.

JAMIE SANDOVAL slugged a two-run double during a five-run 6th inning to give Mount Miguel an 8-7 lead. CHRIS FREEMAN followed with a squeeze bunt to score BRYANT SHIMIZU with an insurance run.

Sandoval, who pitched the final two shutout innings to pick up his second win of the season, was 2-for-4 with three RBI.

RICHARD ARRAY was 2-for-4 with two RBI and a pair of steals. JEREMIAH WHITE also had two hits and two RBI for the Matadors, who got two hits, two runs and two steals from DAUNTE WILLIAMSON.

THOUSAND OAKS 8, GRANITE HILLS 6 -- The Eagles (7-6) blew a 6-0 advantage over the final three innings Tuesday (Apr. 11), which most likely eliminated them from any chance to making the Classic Division semifinals of the Lions Tournament.

Things were looking pretty good after JOSH QUERIONES' bases-loaded triple helped Granite Hills claim a 5-0 lead after two innings. TRAVIS TAIJERON added an RBI triple in that same inning and drove in the Eagles final tally with a single in the 4th.

Three Granite Hills pitchers were unable to protect that lead and Thousand Oaks looked like a million bucks in its come back win.

CASTLE PARK 6, WEST HILLS 3 -- You'll have to excuse West Hills coach SCOTT "HOPPY" HOPGOOD if he doesn't want to see the Castle Park Trojans any time soon.

Stung by a 1-0 setback to the Trojans last Saturday, the Wolf Pack thought its luck might be changing when SHAIN STONER lined a three-run double that tied Tuesday's (Apr. 11) Lions Tournament 4A Division contest 3-3 in the 3rd inning at Monte Vista.

The Trojans responded with a pair of markers in the 5th to regain the lead and leave the Wolf Pack (7-7) to suffer the agony of defeat.

"We threatened in the 5th and 6th innings," said the West Hills coach. "In the 5th we had two men on and hit into a double play once. We didn't look like the same team. We're so much better than a .500 club. Its really disappointing. When we play good, we do all the little things. This is a game we should have won. We're not playing to our full ability."

Stoner also pitched 2 2/3 innings of hitless relief.

CORONADO 5, STEELE CANYON 2 -- Senior ROSS EPPERSON made his Steele Canyon pitching debut in Tuesday's (Apr. 11) Lions Tournament 5A contest on the Coronado Peninsula.

The numbers -- one run and three hits in three innings -- weren't flashy, but impressive.

"I was hoping he could throw two innings because we had a 45-pitch count on Ross," Steele Canyon skipper PHIL MITTRY said. "He was so effective that we let him go three and he threw only 44 pitches. We were pleased with what we saw."

On the offensive side, this was one of Steele Canyon's weakest efforts.

"We only had seven baserunners," Mittry said. "It's hard tro win ballgames when nobody gets on."

NEWHALL-SAUGUS 10, EL CAPITAN 8 -- The skid continued for the Vaqueros (8-6), who rallied from an 8-2 deficit to tie Tuesday's (Apr. 11) Lions Tournament Premier Division contest in the 5th inning.

But that's where the Vaqueros' drive stalled as they ended up falling to their fourth straight loss.

Saugas turned three double plays and picked off an El Capitan baserunner to further frustrate the Vaqueros..

The key hits in El Capitan's game-tying 6-run 5th inning were JOSH ROYER's two-run single and a two-run double by RYAN INVERSO.

After Saugas soaked the Vaqueros for two runs to break the tie in the top of the 6th, El Cap came back to place the tying runs in scoring position with one out in the bottom of the 6th. Nothing came of it as the Vaqueros went away quietly.

AUSTIN RAUCH was 3-for-4 with a double and two runs scored for El Capitan. GABE LOPEZ was 2-for-3 with two RBI. Royer finished with three RBI.

VALLEY CENTER 13, EL CAJON VALLEY 4 -- The fabulous senior season for Braves center fielder CLIFTON THOMAS continued in Tuesday's (Apr. 11) second round 2A Division of the Lions Tournament.

Thomas followed a one-out walk to ABEL CERVANTES with his third home run of the season to give El Cajon Valley (0-14) a 3-0 lead in the 4th inning.

After the Jaguars tied the game with three runs in the top of the 5th, Thomas put El Cajon Valley back on top with a solo home run in the bottom of that inning.

After that, though, the game belonged to Valley Center.

HILLTOP 6, MONTE VISTA 2 -- By the time the Monarchs (4-10) found their offense it was too late as the visiting Lancers (9-6) were sitting on a 6-0 lead with three outs to go in Tuesday's (Apr. 11) 4A Lions Tournament duel.

Monte Vista avoided the shutout in the 7th as SPENCER REED singled and rode home on CORY COOPER's first home run of the season.

POINT . LOMA 7, CHRISTIAN 5 -- Patriots shortstop EDDIE YOUNG drove in tgwon runs with his third home run and an RBI single in Tuesday's (Apr. 11) Lions Tournament 3A Division loss in El Cajon.

The Patriots' primary problems were their three pitchers gave up a dozen hits and the defense's three errors led to two unearned runs.

East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (4-11-06) -- The premiere of the 56th annual San Diego Lions Tournament's Premier Division was generally a success for the East County entries during Monday's (Apr. 10) opening round of the nation's largest high school baseball event. Three came up winners, the fourth lost in the final inning.

Overall, East County teams posted a 7-5 mark in round one of the 112-team tournament.

Featured Game of the Day from the Premier Division:

GROSSMONT 14, FRESNO EDISON 4 (5 innings) -- Foothillers coach ROB PHILLIPS wasn't sounding the trumpets, but he wasn't afraid to say "that's the first game we've actually played well on our own field."

First-inning home runs by NICK LONGMIRE and AUGIE WILLIAMS propelled the Hillers to a 4-0 lead that would hold up for Grossmont's fifth straight win. Not before Jerad Thompson deadened the early Grossmont surge with a three-run blast in the bottom of the 1st for Edison.

The game remained a tight fit for the Foothillers (9-5), who were nursing a 5-4 advantage behind TAYLOR WOHLWEND (2-2) through four innings.

To Phillips' way of thinking it was the "little things" that made this win so monumental. Williams was hit by a pitch to start a 9-run 5th inning that included a squeeze bunt by JOSH SIMMS.

"A team at-bat is when you need to get hit, you take one for the team," Williams said. "I was down 1-2 in the count. He threw one inside and maybe I leaned in a little bit, but that's baseball. And that's how we want to play here. It's all about getting on base and getting runs in."

Christian's Grant Mills puts the "wood" to this fastball, slugging a double in the Patriots' 4-0 blanking of Santa Cruz-Harbor in Lions action. (Photos by Tori Mills)

Eight of the Grossmont starters contributed to a 13-hit attack in the game that was halted by the 10-run mercy rule after five innings.

KYLE SECCIANI led the way with three hits in as many at-bats. Simms, JUSTIN MASON and BRYAN HAAR each had a pair of hits. Longmire, who raised his home run count to five, drove in four runs.

VALHALLA 2, EASTLAKE 1 -- The Norsemen (8-5) beat one of the top pitchers (Jorge Dryjanski) in the county in Monday's (Apr. 10) opening round of the Lions Tournament's Premier Division.

Valhalla won this game behind the pitching of RYAN O'SULLIVAN and playing short ball on the offensive end. While O'Sullivan was scattering six hits in a complete-game effort, the Norsemen did all the scoring they needed in the 2nd inning.

Singles by JEFF SOPATA and DAVID SMITH and an Eastlake throwing error accounted for one run in the 2nd inning. TOMAS KARAGIANES' squeeze bunt brought home Smith to make it 2-0.

SANTANA 3, VALENCIA 2 -- Pitching depth and endurance are always staples for success in the Lions Tournament. No. 2-ranked Santana (13-2) proved that again on Monday (Apr. 10) as the Sultans received superb pitching from KYLE CULVER and JOSH POND in an impressive victory over the 11-2 highly-regarded Tigers from the land of Magic Mountain.

The key blow for Santana was DALLAS MARTIN's two-run single that hiked Santana's lead to 3-0 in the 3rd inning. Martin accounted for two of Santana's six hits.

Culver (3-1) allowed five hits and no earned runs over 5 1/3 innings. Pond got the final five outs for his second save.

FOLSOM 3, EL CAPITAN 2 -- Senior KYLE KING was spinning a 1-hit shutout for six innings before he tired in the 7th and the bullpen and defense folded, costing host El Capitan (8-5) what appeared to be a sure victory.

Sacramento Folsom (5-3) scored three runs in the bottom of the 7th to steal a victory from the Vaqueros.

"King was awesome through six, giving up just a bunt single," El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY said. "Then we drop a fly ball and miss a chance at a double play and wind up on the short end."

El Capitan, which has suddenly lost three in a row, mustered up only three hits in its latest loss.

CLASSIC DIVISION
GRANITE HILLS 15, VACAVILLE 5 (6 inn.) -- TRAVIS TAIJERON drove in five runs with a grand slam and a single as host Granite Hills (7-5) vanquished Vacaville in a not-so-Classic Division Lions Tournament opener on Monday (Apr. 10).

Trailing 3-0, Granite Hills erupted for 11 runs in the 3rd inning to put the game away. In addition to Taijeron's third home run of the season, CODY CRAWFORD launched his third round-tripper in three games -- this one a three-run shot -- in the Eagles' latest scoring binge.

Crawford is as hot as any player in East County at the moment. His last three games have reaped 7 hits, 7 runs and 7 RBI.

5A DIVISION
WESTVIEW 8, STEELE CANYON 7 -- The pitching-starved Cougars were further troubled by a shaky defense (5 errors) Monday (Apr. 10) as they let a possible victory fall into the hands of the Wolverines (10-4).

Trailing 6-1 after four, Steele Canyon (5-8) began its comeback in the 5th inning. ROSS EPPERSON ignited the rally with a double that climaxed with MIKE LANGE's three-run home run.

After the Wolverines upped their advantage to 8-4 with a pair of runs in the 6th, Steele Canyon attempted one final rally in the 7th. JUSTIN GRAFF added a two-run single that pulled the Cougars to within one run of Westview, but the Wolverines got that final out to claim the victory.

SC's DANNY HARRIS was 3-for-4 with a double that boosted his season average to .488.

4A DIVISION
MISSION HILLS 13, MONTE VISTA 2 -- It was not the best of days for the Monarchs (4-8) as they were steamrolled by Mission Hills in Monday's (Apr. 10) opening round of the Lions Tournament.

The Grizzlies took a bite out of the Monarchs when Eric Rodriguez belted a pair of three-run home runs as Mission Hills (8-5) scored a dozen runs in the 5th and 6th innings.

RICHIE GARCIA and CORY COOPER had two hits apiece for Monte Vista.

WEST HILLS 3, CARLSBAD 2 -- SHAIN STONER's single in the bottom of the 7th inning scored JOE MELLO -- who drew a two-out walk and stole second -- with the winning marker.

"It was the most intensity we have had all year," said West Hills coach SCOTT "HOPPY" HOPGOOD. "The first five innings we got the leadoff man on base, and left eight on base. Stoner came through for us. And the Wolf Pack went crazy, crazy, crazy."

Not to be forgotten was KOREY HOOPER's two-run single in 1st inning that gave West Hills the early advantage.

HELIX 6, MIRA MESA 5 (8 inn.) -- Junior CALEB SCHUMAKER was the Highlanders top gun in Monday's (Apr. 10) Lions Tournament first round win.

With one out in the bottom of the 8th, RANDY PEREZ singled and ERIC PONCE and MATT COBB followed with walks to load the bases.

Schumaker put an end to things with a game-winning single. It was his second run-scoring hit in the game for Helix (7-5).

Sophomore SALONZO GRIER survived the final 3 2/3 innings to gain his second pitching win.

Todd Jones tossed a 3-hit shutout, pacing Christian High to a 4-0 blanking of Santa Cruz-Harbor in a Lions Tournament opener. (Photos by Tori Mills)

3A DIVISION
CHRISTIAN 4, SANTA CRUZ-HARBOR 0 -- TODD JONES twirled a 3-hit shutout as the Patriots balanced their record at 5-5 with their third straight victory in the first round of Monday's (Apr. 10) the Lions Tournament.

GRANT MILLS laced a two-run single to give the Patriots a 2-0 edge in the 3rd inning.

ADAM PERRY and EDDIE YOUNG added RBI singles in the 7th to support the shutout pitching of Jones.

2A DIVISION
SAN YSIDRO 10, EL CAJON VALLEY 5 -- Even in defeat, El Cajon Valley center fielder CLIFTON THOMAS is a whirling dervish. The fleet-footed senior Brave stole four bases, raising his San Diego County leading total to 30 in Monday's (Apr. 10) 1st round the Lions Tournament.

Thomas singled and stole second and third bases in the 1st and 3rd innings for the Braves, who could not overcome their five errors that led to seven unearned runs for the visiting Cougars (5-11).

The hard-luck loser for El Cajon Valley (0-13) was pitcher CAMERON SINES, who should have been rewarded with his first victory in this complete-game outing. Sines also had two hits and an RBI.

1A DIVISION
BEAR RIVER 4, MOUNT MIGUEL 0 -- The Bruins (8-1) from Grass Valley sent an early message to Mount Miguel as leadoff hitter Matt Miraldi hit the first pitch of Monday's (Apr. 10) Division A game out of the yard.

That spoiled an otherwise sturdy complete pitching performance by the Matadors' CHRIS FREEMAN.

"We took ourselves out of the game early, made too many mistakes in the running game," said Mount Miguel coach BYRON GRIGSBY. "(Tyler) French, their left-hander, was especially tough on us. We had guys picked off attempting to stretch and attempting to steal."

Helix High leftfielder Derek Ancrum makes a sliding dive to collect this fly ball in Grossmont Tournament action. (Photo by Chris Edwards) FOR MORE PHOTOS, CLICK LINK IN CLASSIFIEDS

Mount Miguel catcher Jeremiah White (left) makes the tag on Helix baserunner Derric Miller (top), who turns towards the home plate umpire (middle) to indicate that he was safe. DOUBLE-CLICK on the bottom photo to see if Miller was correct. Helix swept the Grossmont South League doubleheader, 5-1 and 4-3. (Photos by Adolfo Villanueva) SEE THE ENTIRE PHOTO GALLERY HERE

7th-inning rally gives Helix
a share of the early GSL lead

East County Sports.com
LA MESA (4-9-06) -- The Helix Highlanders haven't been all that flashy, but they can take solace in knowing that they own a share of the Grossmont South League lead coming out of the gate.

Although they were challenged all day by the visiting Matadors of Mount Miguel in Saturday's (Apr. 8) Grossmont South League opening double-header, the Highlanders garnered three runs in the bottom of the 7th of the nightcap to gain a sweep -- 5-1 and 4-3 -- and share of the loop lead with Granite Hills and Valhalla at 2-0. BOXSCORE (G-1), BOXSCORE (G-2)

"Mount Miguel flat outplayed us in that second game," Helix coach COLE HOLLAND said. "We were fortunate to win."

Held to one run and two hits by Mount Miguel pitcher JAMIE SANDOVAL through six innings, the Highlanders (6-5, 2-0 GSL) finally caught a break when the Matadors pitcher issued walks to MAHI LABASTIDA and DERRIC MILLER to begin the 7th.

After a pitching change and a dropped fly ball in right field loaded the bases, Helix pinch hitter CALEB SCHUMAKER singled in one run to cut the deficit to 3-2. ERIC PONCE completed the comeback with a bases-loaded single that scored two runs to give the Highlanders the victory.

"Sandoval did a great job on the mound for them." Holland said of the Mount Miguel right-hander, who allowed only two hits while striking out 9 in six innings. "He deserved better."

Ponce packed some offensive punch for the Highlanders going 3-for-5 with four RBI. It was his two-run double that gave Helix a 2-1 advantage in the 3rd inning of the first game. The Highlanders doubled their lead on a passed ball and RANDY PEREZ's sacrifice fly in the 4th inning.

Perhaps the most exciting play of the day was Miller's inside-the-park home run in the 6th inning. To those who know Helix's compact ballpark, such a feat is more than rare. Miller belted a fly ball to dead center field that sailed over the defender's head. When the fielder tumbled to the ground, the fleet-footed Miller circled the bases for his first varsity home run.

That was more than enough run support Helix senior right-hander DUSTIN RUNIONS needed, as he checked the Matadors on two hits while striking out nine and walking one.

"I'm happy to be where we are right now," Holland said. "What I'm not pleased about is we struck out 16 times in these two games. That isn't like us, but I attribute a lot of that to the umpires."

JAMES TREBUS blasted his third home run of the season for Mount Miguel (2-9, 0-2 GSL) to give the Matadors a 1-0 lead in the 2nd inning of game one. His team, however, would generate only one more hit.

Santana's Dallas Martin slides to score, as the Sultans rallied to capture the final of the Aztec-Foothiller Classic over Eastlake, 12-10. (Photos by Greg Eichelberger)

SANTANA 12, EASTLAKE 10 BOXSCORE -- This game may be a harbinger of the Lions Tournament ahead -- a shortage of pitching and plenty of scoring.

Still, there are no sure things. Just ask Eastlake (9-3), which scored nine runs in the 3rd inning, yet could not hold a 10-5 lead over the Sultans (12-2).

The stakes were high, both coaches agreed, going into Saturday's (Apr. 8) final of the Aztec-Foothiller Classic at Santana. Given that Eastlake skipper Dave Gonzalez used his top six pitchers and Santana's JERRY HENSON sent four hurlers to the mound is proof that both teams coveted the tall trophy awarded to the tourney champion.

"We hadn't been hitting with the best of them the last couple of games (one run, seven hits in losses to Hilltop and Grossmont)," Henson said. "We went to the Padres-(Colorado) game (Friday night) and did some talking and came up with a different batting order. Just moving a guy one spot here or there really can take a lot of the pressure off."

Most glaring of the Santana changes was elevating JONATHAN TIPPIN into the leadoff spot and dropping RICHARD MARTINEZ into the No. 2 slot.

The results: Tippin reached base three times, scored three runs and contributed an RBI double that tied the game 10-10 in the 5th.

Martinez was 3-for-4 with two runs, two steals and the game-winning single that scored Tippin in the 5th.

Red-hot CHRIS DIAZ was 3-for-3 with three RBI and three runs scored, while DALLAS MARTIN had three hits, including a double, two runs and one RBI. The only time Eastake got Martin out was on a sacrifice bunt.

While the Sultans did break out with 14 hits, including a clutch two-run triple and sacrifice fly by RYAN BROSNAN, the ticket to victory was the pitching of Martinez.

Santana manager Jerry Henson hoists the championship trophy. (Photos by Greg Eichelberger)

A second baseman by trade, Martinez blanked the Titans on two hits over the final 4 2/3 innings to log his second win.

"He's played a real solid second base for us all year long," Henson said. "As a pitcher, he's thrown a few innings for us. But we were going through so many pitchers it was time to find somebody who had it. Today, Richard was the guy who had it."

Santana blew leads of 4-0 and 5-1 as the Eastlake avalanche hit in the 3rd inning.

"We needed somebody to give us a chance to come back and Richard was that guy," Henson said.

Santana's leadoff hitter reached base in all six innings. Better yet, they scored in every frame as the Sultans added to their run account in every frame.

CASTLE PARK 1, WEST HILLS 0 -- The excitement of a Grossmont North League season-opening victory over El Capitan less than 24 hours earlier apparently took its toll on the host West Hills Wolf Pack in Saturday's (Apr. 8) non-league encounter against Castle Park.

West Hills senior right-hander JOHN EDDY was spinning a no-hitter through 4 2/3 innings before the Trojans (7-6) broke through for the only run of the game with two outs in the 5th. Andrew Shirk ended Eddy's mastery with a single and promptly stole second base. He scored on Kenji Nose's base hit.

The Wolf Pack (6-6) appeared to have tied the game in the bottom of the 7th. But a runner's interference at second base not only took the tying run off the board, it ended the game.

West Hills coach SCOTT "HOPPY" HOPGOOD was incensed by the ruling, but kept his cool as he and the umpires discussed the pivotal call for several minutes after the game.

Here is how the controversial inning broke down: Strasburg led off with a single and WILL CRUMPLER ran for him. RYNE BARKLEY's attempted sacrifice resulted in Crumpler being forced out at second. KOREY HOOPER followed with a single. The Trojans' shortstop muffed JOE MELLO's line drive to load the bases with one down.

SHAINE STONER tapped a ground ball to the 5.5 hole and the Trojans got a force out at second base as Barkley scored the tying run from third and Stoner beat the throw to first. But Mello's popup slide at second base was ruled runner's interference, thus both he and Stoner were called out for a victory-clinching double play for Castle Park.

Eddy clearly pitched well enough to win, allowing just one run and two hits while striking out 7 in his five innings' work. Relievers BRET SKINNER and Strasburg held the Trojans at bay with a shutout inning apiece.

GROSSMONT 17-9, SAN YSIDRO 2-3 -- The Grossmont High offense gave a little bit extra in Saturday's (Apr. 8) non-league sweep at San Ysidro.

In terms of pounding extra-base hits, that is. The Hillers clubbed two home runs, six triples (five in the first game) and four doubles.

NICK LONGMIRE was Grossmont's big stick of the day, collecting five hits, six RBI and four runs scored in the sweep that lifted the Foothillers' season mark to 8-5. JUSTIN RUTHERFORD was 4-for-5 with a double, three RBI and two runs scored.

A.J. GRIFFIN, AUGIE WILLIAMS, DEREK BAUM, TREVOR BERRY, BRYAN HAAR and Longmire had triples, while NICK SOBEL stroked his first home run.

TAYLOR WOHLWEND pitched four innings of one-hit shutout ball to notch the first game win, while MATT SILVA scattered five hits and allowed only one run in four innings to pick up the second game nod. Silva struck out five and walked none.

East County Sports.com
SANTEE (4-8-06) -- Forget about the preseason records -- the Grossmont Foothillers are contenders for the Grossmont North League championship.

In a prove-it-to-me league opener at Santana on Friday (Apr. 7), the Foothillers handed the ball to their right-handed pitching ace A.J. GRIFFIN and asked him to do his stuff.

The 6-foot-4, 205-pound Griffin came through, twirling his third straight complete game victory as Grossmont assaulted Santana 5-1 in the league opener.

"A.J. was just phenomenal," said Grossmont coach ROB PHILLIPS. "He didn't have control of his curveball for the first five innings today, but got the job done by locating his fastball with precision."

Griffin (3-2) has been overpowering in his last three starts where he's harvested a 1.33 ERA while allowing only 14 hits. The USD-bound Griffin has struck out 29 and walked only four during his recent surge.

Against No. 2-ranked Santana (11-2, 0-1 GNL), Griffin was somewhat of an escape artist. He retired the side in order in the 1st, 5th and 7th innings, but the Sultans put him to the test in the other frames. Griffin was equal to the task.

In the 4th inning, with Grossmont (6-5, 1-0 GNL) leading 3-1, Griffin plunked the first two Santana batters with pitches. He escaped by coaxing two ground outs and recording an inning-ending strikeout.

Santana fanned the flames again in the 6th inning with one out as JOHN BASNIGHT walked and CHRIS DIAZ and DALLAS MARTIN singled to load the bases. Once again, Griffin met the challenge, getting a weak fly ball out and a strikeout to send Santana packing.

"A.J. wouldn't buckle under pressure and that is a very good sign," Phillips said.

Grossmont didn't exactly tee off on Martin, Santana's pitching ace. The Hillers took the early lead in the 2nd inning as NICK LONGMIRE beat out a slow roller for an infield single. Longmire stole the first of his three to reach second, advanced on an infield out and scored on NICK SOBEL's groundout to the first baseman with Martin covering.

DEREK BAUM followed with a double and JOSH SIMMS' single scored the Grossmont catcher for a 2-0 lead.

After Griffin struck out the first two batters of the 3rd inning, RICHARD MARTINEZ walked and scored on JON TIPPIN's double, which glanced off the glove of center-fielder AUGIE WILLIAMS.

KYLE SECCIANI doubled and eventually scored on a Sobel ground ball to push Grossmont's advantage to 3-1 in the 4th inning.

BRYAN HAAR doubled and eventually scored on the front end of a double steal with Longmire to pad Grossmont's lead to 4-1 in the 6th. Haar slashed an RBI single in the 7th to reach the final score.

Santana was held to three hits by Griffin.

"We finally played with some intensity," Phillips said. "To beat the No. 2 team in the county is obviously a big win for us."

VALHALLA 10-12, STEELE CANYON 6-7 BOXSCORE (G-1), BOXSCORE (G-2) -- The question around the Valhalla diamond this season is whether the Norsemen can generate enough offensive support to make their quality pitching championship caliber.

Give the Norsemen (7-5, 2-0) credit for coming out swinging Friday (Apr. 7) as they began the Grossmont South League season with a sweep of the visiting Steele Canyon Cougars (5-7, 0-2).

In a twist of irony as it was Valhalla's batters that led the charge, while the usually reliable pitching staff struggled against the pesky Cougars.

"Our pitching wasn't real sharp today, but we swung the bats," Valhalla coach STEVE PERDUE said. "And we were aggressive, too. Not just at the plate but on the basepaths, too. We took advantage of things."

Not that Perdue is ready to change Valhalla's nickname to "Slugfests R Us," but the Norsemen banged out 19 hits in the sweep. Five of those hits went for extra bases, including home runs by JASON KUTZLER and DAVID FRANK.

"We came from behind in each of those games," Perdue noted.

In the opener, Valhalla blew a 3-0 lead, but swiftly overcame a 4-3 deficit in the last of the 3rd inning. JEFF SOPATA smacked a two-run single to give the Norsemen a 5-4 edge and DAVID SMITH a two-run double to make it a three-run spread.

Steele Canyon had plenty of firepower of its own, primarily in senior DANNY HARRIS, who hoisted a grand slam in each game to finish with nine RBI.

MIKE LANGE laced a two-run homer in the opener, which pulled the Cougars to within 8-6 in the 5th.

The Norsemen regained control as Kutzler and David Frank launched solo homers in the 6th inning.

BOBBY WILKENS pitched the first four innings to gain the win and TREVOR FRANK worked the final three frames for his second save.

DAVID SMITH's two-run double broke a 5-5 tie in the 2nd inning of the nightcap, as the Norsemen scored in five of their six turns at bats. RYAN O'SULLIVAN was 3-for-3 with three runs scored and an RBI, while CHRIS THOMAS also chipped in three hits in game two.

Valhalla's Kutzler was 5-for-7 with six runs scored and three steals in the twinbill.

Steele Canyon was far more generous in the second game, handing the Norsemen half of their 12 runs on errors and wild pitches.

"You can't expect to win when you are giving away runs like that," Steele Canyon PHIL MITTRY said. "We swung the bats OK, but we left a lot of guys on base (14), which is something we've been doing all year."

ROSS EPPERSON paced Steele Canyon's 13-hit second game attack with a 3-for-4 effort.

CHRISTIAN 19, CRAWFORD 3 BOXSCORE -- In a season where little has gone right, the Christian High Patriots barged out of the Central League gate Friday (Apr. 7) with their biggest offensive showing of the campaign.

Christian coach MIKE MITCHELL liked the sound of it -- 23 hits equaled 19 runs -- as the Patriots pulverized the hosting Crawford Colts.

"We came out and swung the bats, so hopefully we are getting ready for league," Mitchell said. "We're on a little bit of a roll."

Senior pitcher GRANT MILLS (3-1) was a double threat, pitching four shutout innings of one-hit ball to notch his third win in four decisions. He also drove in four runs with a double, two singles and a sacrifice fly.

Leadoff man SHANE STANOVIC laced a two-run home run and an RBI triple for the Patriots (4-5, 1-0 CTL), while CHAD O'DONNELL drove in a trio of runs with a pair of hits.

ADAM PERRY, EDDIE YOUNG and COLIN McDONALD also joined the three-hit Patriots' hit parade.

Nine Patriots produced multiple-hit games.

"We took our leadoff and No. 3 hitters -- Stanovic and Young -- out after the 3rd inning," Mitchell said.

East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (4-7-06) -- Sometimes it boils down to "How bad do I want to play."

West Hills baseball coach SCOTT "HOPPY" HOPGOOD arrived at his ballpark at 8 o'clock on Thursday (Apr. 6) morning and spent eight hours preparing his rain-soaked field for the Grossmont North League opener against No. 7-ranked El Capitan.

Hopgood's efforts paid off, as the Wolf Pack came from behind to nip the defending league-champion Vaqueros 5-4 in eight innings.

Conditions were similar at Granite Hills on Thursday where Eagles coach JAMES DAVIS and "a few of the parents" teamed up to make the surface playable for a scheduled 11 a.m. Grossmont South League doubleheader against Monte Vista. The first game did not begin until 1 p.m., but nobody was complaining.

"Coach Davis and his parents did a great job of getting that field ready," said Monte Vista coach LARRY RINEHART.

One Granite Hills parent went beyond the call of duty.

"He bought eight 50-pound bags of Jonny Cat to put on the field because Butler's Mill ran out of the stuff (turf drying agent) we usually use," said Davis. "We were PetCo today."

And quite successful on their patched up field.

GRANITE HILLS 2-9, MONTE VISTA 1-5 BOXSCORE (G-1), BOXSCORE (G-2) -- The Eagles got a clutch RBI double by JOSH QUERIONES in the bottom of the 7th inning to win game one and CODY CRAWFORD drove in four runs with his first two home runs to propel Granite Hills (6-5, 2-0 GSL) to a sweep in game two.

ERIC KRAUSE was the beneficiary of Queriones' game-winning shot, checking the Monarchs (4-7, 0-2 GSL) on four singles and no earned runs for his third win against a single loss.

Overall, Crawford was the hitting star. The senior DH, who was hitting a paltry .207 coming in, was 4-for-5 with four RBI, four runs scored and two steals in the twinbill.

Granite Hills third baseman AUSTIN COLEMAN was 3-for-7 with three RBI and two runs scored in the sweep. BRYAN HUMPHRIES was 3-for-6 with an RBI and two runs.

"For all the work it took us to get the games in, I'd have to say I'm pleased," Davis said.

In the second game, Coleman provided the spark as he doubled in two runs in the 1st inning. Coleman doubled to begin the 3rd and Crawford followed his first home run to make it 4-0. LOUIS CAZARES kept the inning alive with a triple and scored on JOHNNY OMAHEN's single.

JOSH MILLER's RBI single and Crawford's two-run home run helped Granite Hills inflate its lead to 9-0 in the 4th inning.

"We had good pitching today," Davis said. "And we're starting to hit again. We executed a little bit better today. Coleman and Crawford have been swinging a pretty good bat – they all were, especially of late. We were due for some breaks, we've been kinda snakebitten."

Monte Vista battled back with five runs in its final two turns at bat. GOLDIE SIMMONS, who gave a powerful pitching performance in the opener, followed singles by DAVID PALACIOS and ANTHONY LOPEZ with a booming home run to dead center field in the 6th.

Simmons was 4-for-7 with the bat, but it was his pitching that had the scouts buzzing.

"Goldie is throwing about 90-to-91 miles per hour now," Rinehart said. "And he's doing a good job of mixing in his good changeup. This kid is a nugget. He has an excellent gpa, so I know he can get into most colleges. The coach that gets Goldie is going have a real find."

WEST HILLS 5, EL CAPITAN 4 (8 innings) BOXSCORE --The visiting Vaqueros tried to steal host West Hills blind in Thursday's (Apr. 6) Grossmont North League opener. Nine times the Vaqueros attempted to steal. Eight times they were successful, including an impressive steal of home by AUSTIN RAUCH in the 1st inning.

El Capitan baffled West Hills with a delayed double steal in the 7th inning to take a 4-3 lead as GABE LOPEZ carried across the go-ahead run.

But credit the Wolf Pack (6-5, 1-0 GNL) for hitting in the clutch. SHAIN STONER stroked a two-out run-scoring single to tie the game 4-4 in the bottom of the 7th before MICHAEL HALL sliced a game-winning RBI single to right field in the 8th.

"The pitch was a fastball pretty much down the middle," Hall said of his victory-clinching hit off El Capitan closer D.J. HENSON. "Our approach is to take the ball to opposite field and I was able to do that."

An inning earlier, Stoner delivered a game-tying single, scoring Hall who began the 7th with a base hit. WILL CRUMPLER advanced Hall into scoring position with a sacrifice bunt. After JOE MELLO walked on a 3-2 pitch, Stoner came through with his key hit.

"Our guys weren't trying to do too much, they just did their jobs," Hopgood said. "They took the ball up the middle and hit to the opposite field. To think that they did it against El Cap, is huge."

Another clutch hit for West Hills was AARON GAGNON's two-run single that gave the Wolf Pack a 3-1 edge in the 3rd inning.

"We've had some letdowns, but we are playing with a lot of confidence right now," Hopgood said. "Hopefully feeding off this game and mentally how we had to stay in it for eight innings that will set the tone to the direction we want to go."

This was far from a textbook game. Each team lost a flyball in the sun that led to scoring for the other side.

"I don't know how many guys we left on base (nine), but it was too many," said El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY, whose Vaqueros (8-4, 0-1 GNL) have lost three of their last five starts. "Nobody on our side came up with a big hit today. We had to do a lot of funny stuff to steal our runs. That's not going to work over the long haul."

East County Sports.com
LAKESIDE (4-5-06)-- With rain and leaden skies threatening to postpone El Capitan's home date with Bonita Vista, the Vaqueros must have gone into relax mode. The weather held up long enough and that proved beneficial to the Barons, who grabbed a 7-4 non-league victory.

"We came out flat and never really got anything going." El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY said. "We had our chances, as we have all season. But again we did not put enough offensive pressure upon on opponent."

VINNY NAZZAL beat out an infield roller for a single in the 2nd inning, setting the stage for switch-hitter TANNER RUST's two-run home run and an El Capitan lead.

The visiting Barons (8-4) bounced back for seven runs between the 3rd and 4th innings, leaving the Vaqueros to play catch-up.

Tre Dennis had three hits and five RBI to lead the Barons (8-4) to their eighth win in the last nine games. Dennis' two-run double tied the game in the 3rd and an El Capitan error allowed Dennis to score the go-ahead run in the same inning.

Dennis clubbed a 3-run double to cap Bonita Vista's 4th inning uprising.

El Capitan catcher AUSTIN RAUCH rifled his 7th home run of the season to begin the 7th inning. The SDSU-bound slugger was probably robbed of another in the 1st inning when he drove a ball to the left field fence for an out. His bat hit the catcher's glove, which no doubt caused the ball to travel 10-to-20 feet less. All Rauch got out of it was being awarded first base on catcher's interference.

No. 7-ranked El Capitan (8-3) went on to leave the bases loaded in the 1st inning. That set the tone for the game as far as the Vaqueros were concerned.

East County Sports.com
SANTEE (4-4-06) -- One has to wonder why the red-hot and No. 2-ranked Santana Sultans thought it necessary to play a Monday (Apr. 3) non-league game on the first day of Spring recess. The game was about one inning too long for the Sultans (11-1), as visiting Hilltop (7-5) did all of its scoring in the 1st frame of a 5-0 upset.

Only two of Hilltop's runs were earned, but it didn't matter. The Sultans were listless at the plate all afternoon.

Santana totaled only four hits -- singles by RICHARD MARTINEZ, JONATHAN TIPPIN, RYAN BROSNAN and DALLAS MARTIN. Martinez's hit extended his season-long hitting streak to 12 games.

Valhalla pitcher Ryan O'Sullivan (left) shows the ball to the umpire, yet is in disbelief when Santana's Chris Diaz is still ruled safe on the play at the plate in the championship game of the 15th annual Grossmont Conference Tournament. Santana (11-0) needed the run, claiming a tight 6-5 decision. (Photo by Greg Eichelberger)

Santana's Chris Diaz (left) makes the hard slide home, but Norsemen pitcher Ryan O'Sullivan seems to have the plate blocked as he applies the tag. The umpire, however, ruled Diaz safe, as the Sultans took a narrow 6-5 decision to win Saturday's Grossmont Conference Tournament finale. (Photo by Adolfo Villanueva) FOR MORE PHOTOS, CLICK LINK IN CLASSIFIEDS

East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (4-2-06) -- Santana has no doubt played better games than the Sultans showed in their 6-5 victory over host Valhalla in Saturday's (Apr. 1) Grossmont Conference Tournament championship game. BOXSCORE

But Santana's veteran skipper JERRY HENSON surely isn't complaining about the outcome. Nor are his Sultans (11-0), who have the most victories and are ranked No. 2 in the San Diego CIF polls. Fallbrook (10-0) is No. 1.

"I've gotten the most out of what we have," Henson said. "One of the big pluses is our younger guys are coming through."

That was the case against Valhalla. Santana sophomore starter BRANDYN BELL was impressive through six innings before junior KYLE CULVER got the first two outs in the 7th. But it took 6-foot-5, 220-pound sophomore JOSH POND to get the final out for his first varsity save.

Bell, a three-game winner, was one-pitch from a possible complete game. Valhalla' GREG GARCIA lined a three-run double over the left fielder's head to wipe out a 4-1 Santana advantage in the 2nd inning. It was the first of two doubles Garcia had in the game.

None the less Henson was pleased by Bell' performance, which included five strikeouts.

"I had a sophomore on the hill so I have to give him all the support I can,"said Henson. "It was Bell' turn in the rotation. He hasn' pitched since we played Mount Miguel (Mar. 25). I' proud of him. For the six innings that he pitched he really stepped up --itched his heart out today."

Five of the seven hits Bell allowed were singles.

Catcher Nick Sica (right) congratulates closer Josh Pond, a 6-foot-5 sophomore who registered the final out for his first varsity save to cap the Sultans' 6-5 win. (Photo by Adolfo Villanueva) FOR MORE PHOTOS, CLICK LINK IN CLASSIFIEDS

"It was a tough game to start him due to his lack of varsity experience," Henson admitted. "He made key pitches at the right time. The window of opportunity was open for Bell and he capitalized on it. He's not going to blow the ball by people, but he has three quality pitches."

Santana broke a 4-4 tie in the 6th inning with the help of a Valhalla miscue. RYAN BROSNAN reached base on an error and stole second. CHRIS DIAZ doubled to left center to score Brosnan.

Singles by RYAN STUTZ and JONATHAN TIPPIN set the stage for Brosnan's sacrifice fly and a two-run cushion for Santana in the 7th.

Valhalla didn't go down without a fight. Garcia lined a one-out double down the right field line and scored on RYAN O'SULLIVAN's single to right. JEFF SOPATA's two-out single kept Valhalla's hopes for a comeback alive.

That's when Henson brought the king-sized Pond to the mound. It proved to be a good move as the big kid got a game-ending ground out.

O'Sullivan was the hard-luck loser, surrendering just four hits and one earned run in six innings.

East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (4-01-06) -- Christian High's MIKE MITCHELL has never had one of his teams lose five games in a row. He wasn't about to start that negative trend this year.

Mitchell's Patriots jumped out to a 3-0 lead and continued on to a 9-1 win over Morse in Friday's (Mar. 31) City Conference Tournament action to halt a four-game skid.

RBI singles by AUSTIN MURRAY and SHANE STANOVIC along with a run-scoring double by EDDIE YOUNG staked Christian (3-5) to a 3-0 lead in the 2nd inning. The Patriots got two more in the 3rd on three walks and singles by CHAD O'DONNELL and JIMMY DOSSETT.

Christian stole six bases in the win, three of them by ADAM PERRY. All of Perry's thefts came in the 4th inning, including a steal of home as COLIN McDONALD swiped second. Catcher MATT HART laid down a squeeze bunt and winning pitcher GRANT MILLS capped the three-run inning with an RBI double.

Stanovic's solo homer in the 5th inning completed the scoring.

Mills (2-1) pitched the first four innings, allowing just four hits and striking out six. TODD JONES pitched two shutout innings to complete the job. Jones struck out three.

Josh Miller of Granite Hills beats the ball to third base with a head-first slide. However, Miller was left stranded as Santana remained unbeaten by blanking the Eagles. (Photo by Greg Eichelberger)

East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (3-31-06) -- Unbeaten and No. 2-ranked Santana (10-0) will take on Valhalla (5-4) in Saturday's (Apr. 1) championship of the 15th annual Grossmont Conference Tournament on the Norsemen's diamond at 2 p.m.

Meanwhile, in games played Thursday (Mar. 30):

MOUNT MIGUEL 8, EL CAJON VALLEY 1 -- Even on a rebuilding program like Mount Miguel, a pecking order still exists on who starts or sits. For ANDRIUS CASTRO, let's just say his role to open the season did not involve a bat or a glove. BOXSCORE

"Andrius started on the bench and worked really hard to get a chance to play," noted Matadors coach BRYON GRIGSBY. "He just started playing recently after we had him make some adjustments."

The results brought a smile to the Mount Miguel coaching staff. Castro, now the starting second baseman, cleared the loaded bases with a triple to cap a 5-run outburst in the 2nd inning, leading the Matadors to an 8-1 triumph at El Cajon Valley in Thursday's (Mar. 30) final round of the Grossmont Conference Tournament.

"He's no bench player anymore," added Grigsby, who also noted Castro's perfect play on defense, too. "It will be tough to get him out of the line-up."

And when JAMES TREBUS capped a 2-for-4 outing with a lead homer in the 5th , the Matadors (2-7) rode the arm of JAMIE SANDOVAL to the team's second victory of the season. Sandoval tossed a complete game, allowing just six hits and an unearned run. He struck out two without issuing a walk.

Trebus also added a triple, while DAUNTE WILLIAMSON also added a pair of hits and two RBI with run-scoring singles in the 2nd and 3rd innings.

El Cajon Valley catcher DEREK PEREZ registered three of the Braves' six hits, including a double. ADRIAN TORRES added two hits, while RAY AQUININGOC recorded an RBI single in the 3rd to score KEVIN MANSFIELD.

In addition, CLIFTON THOMAS added to his stolen base total. After getting hit by a Sandoval pitch in a pinch-hitting roll in the 6th, he registered his 26th theft of the season.

"The good news is that we only committed one error in 7 innings and had only two guys strike out," said El Cajon Valley coach WAYNE WEIGHTMAN. "CAMERON SINES continues to develop as a pitcher -- 12 batters faced and only one run scored."

EL CAPITAN 5, HELIX 0 BOXSCORE -- Both El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY and Helix skipper COLE HOLLAND are reasonably pleased at how well their respective teams have played through the first third of the season.

Vickery, who has 490 victories under his belt in 27 varsity seasons between El Capitan and Valhalla, saw his Vaqueros blank host Helix 5-0 in Thursday's (Mar. 30) final round of pool play in the Grossmont Conference Tournament. That win lifted El Capitan's record to 8-2.

"You know something, I'll take that in a heartbeat," Vickery said of the 9th-ranked Vaqueros' fast start. "We've had the toughest preseason as we've had in a while, but we've come through with pretty much quality pitching, steady defense and some timely hitting.

"The scary thing is, to be quite honest, we can get a lot better. We want to get better as the season goes on and certainly not peak right now."

El Capitan looked to be in tip-top condition in its latest win at Helix. CRISTIAN GARCIA was overpowering, shutting down the Highlanders (4-5) on five hits. He struck out eight and walked two.

"If Garcia isn't the best pitcher in East County he has to be one of the best," Holland said. "Give him credit. He did a great job against us."

Garcia raised his season mark to 3-1 with his second complete game.

"Cristian was just lights out," Vickery said. "He's just so tough."

Cristian's twin brother, DAMIAN GARCIA put a charge in the El Capitan offense going 3-for-3 with a home run and two RBI.

The Highlanders handled Vaqueros senior catcher AUSTIN RAUCH with kid gloves. Vickery has Rauch -- East County's leading home run hitter -- batting leadoff. Helix starter and loser ERIC PONCE retired Rauch on a flyball to center field in the 1st inning and then intentionally walked the San Diego State-bound slugger in the 2nd and 4th innings.

When Rauch came to bat in the 6th with two outs and SHANE SULLENGER on first with a single, Helix elected to pitch to the Vaqueros' kingpin. Two pitches later, Rauch had his 6th home run and El Capitan had a 4-0 lead.

Holland's Highlanders played errorless defense for the fifth time in their last six games. And Ponce pitched well enough to win. Where Helix has faltered is at the plate.

"Our hitting hasn't been what we want it to be," Holland said. "Of the nine teams we've played, eight have thrown their No. 1 (pitcher). That's made it tough and is reflected by our .230 team batting average. So I can't be upset by where we stand now. This is a young club and I know we will improve."

GROSSMONT 11, STEELE CANYON 2 BOXSCORE -- When A.J, GRIFFIN is in a groove, the Grossmont Foothillers are as good as any team in East County.

Griffin, who has accepted a scholarship to USD, turned in his second straight powerful pitching performance in Thursday's (Mar. 30) final round of the Grossmont Conference Tournament in Rancho San Diego. The 6-foot-4 senior right-hander checked the Cougars (5-5) on four hits while allowing just one earned run and striking out 9.

"I guess I've just been more focused lately," said Griffin, who balanced his pitching ledger at 2-2. "In the first part of the season I was overthrowing, trying to throw the ball by everybody."

That philosophy backfired.

"I was just a thrower instead of a pitcher back then," Griffin said. "Now I'm doing a better job of spotting my fastball. I'm working the corners. "

In his last 14 innings, Griffin has a 21-to-1 strikeouts-to-walks ratio.

"A.J. has been the dominating pitcher we need him to be these last two games," Grossmont coach ROB PHILLIPS said.

The Foothillers (5-5) broke open a 1-0 game with five runs in the 2nd inning. Sophomore BRYAN HAAR capped the big with a three-run homer -- his third of the season. Prior to Haar's back-breaking blast, JUSTIN MASON slashed a two-run single to center field.

Mason finished the game 3-for-4 with three RBI. NICK LONGMIRE clubbed his third homer to begin the 5th after driving in Grossmont's first marker in the opening inning.

Sophomore catcher DEREK BAUM walked four times and scored three runs for Grossmont.

No one in injury-riddled Steele Canyon's lineup had more than one hit.

MONTE VISTA 3, WEST HILLS 2 BOXSCORE -- Senior STEPHEN STRASBURG is regarded as one of the best pitchers in the San Diego CIF. Professional ball scouts know his name. SDSU is glad it has a verbal commitment with the 6-foot-5, 225-pound right-hander.

None of that mattered to the unheralded Monte Vista Monarchs (4-5) in Thursday's (Mar. 30) Grossmont Conference Tournament action in Spring Valley.

Strasburg did pitch well enough to win as he posted his third complete game of the season. He gave up only five hits and just one of the runs he allowed was ruled earned by the official scorekeeper.

"We wasted another pitching performance by Strasburg," West Hills coach Scott "Hoppy" Hopgood said. "He pitched way too well to walk away with a loss. Our team didn't show up to play. For some reason we make (three) errors and they come back to kill us. Strasburg deserved better. There's no way we should be 5-5. It's just a lack of focus. It's hard to stay positive when you're allowing teams to stay in the game. In our five losses we just haven't showed up to play."

The pivotal inning was the 3rd when the Monarchs did all of their scoring to erase a 1-0 deficit.

ANTHONY LOPEZ's two-run double was the key blow in an inning that included a MIKE NUSH double, a walk, two West Hills errors and a passed ball.

"I guess we did things right," said Monte Vista mentor LARRY RINEHART. "The kids did what they are supposed to do. The whole team did a good job. It was a good pitching contest."

Lopez was the biggest thorn in Strasburg's side, collecting three of Monte Vista's five hits.

West Hills made a belated challenge to catch the Monarchs in the 7th inning. TRAVIS IRVIN led off with a single. WILL CRUMPLER ran for Irvin and raced to third on MICHAEL HALL's double. After a strikeout, Crumpler scored on KOREY HOOPER's sacrifice fly.

Down to their last out and one run short on the scoreboard, the Wolf Pack succumbed to Monte Vista reliever JOSH KELLY, who completed a three-inning relief stint by getting a game-ending pop up.

Santana pitcher Dallas Martin struckout eight batters to raise his record to 4-0. (Photo by Greg Eichelberger)

SANTANA 6, GRANITE HILLS 0 BOXSCORE -- Locked up in a scoreless tie through five innings, the visiting Sultans (10-0) broke loose for six runs in the final two frames to bowl over Granite Hills in Thursday's (Mar. 30) Grossmont Conference Tournament action.

Singles by JOHN BASNIGHT and CHRIS DIAZ set the Santana offense in motion. When the Granite Hills center fielder booted Diaz's base hit, Basnight came home to break the scoreless deadlock.

CHRIS RABICHAUD's sacrifice fly made it 2-0.

Santana stung the Eagles (4-5) for four runs in the 7th. Basnight belted a two-run double and scored on Diaz' single. Winning pitcher DALLAS MARTIN (4-0) doubled in Diaz to end the scoring.

Martin permitted just five singles before Basnight came on to pitch a hitless 7th.

East County Sports.com
SANTEE (3-29-06) -- When asked if he'd ever thrown a no-hitter in the past, West Hills senior southpaw AARON RICHARDSON paused and blurted out, "If I did it must have been in T-Ball." BOXSCORE

That, of course, was the first days of Richardson's baseball career. It is also a level where neither team has live pitching, as per the name T-Ball. Batters hit the ball off a tee.

Following his initial response Richardson decided, "I guess this is the first no-hitter I've ever thrown."

Modesty, no doubt.

None the less, it was an impressive effort as it came in Tuesday's (Mar. 28) Grossmont Conference Tournament game against sometimes-explosive Granite Hills. Richardson offered the Eagles four free passes (hitting one batter) and the West Hills defense committed four errors, still Richardson held the Eagles hitless in a 4-1 West Hills victory.

"I've probably had better outings, but this ranks right up there with my best," said the 6-foot-3, 175-pound Richardson.

As dominating as Richardson was, he said he was not aware that he was working on a no-hitter.

"I had no idea," he said. "I knew I was getting up in my pitch count and I went to coach (SCOTT HOPGOOD) if I could keep pitching because I really felt good. He just looked at me, and said, 'Sure.'"

When Richardson recorded the final out, his teammates poured out of the dugout to offer congratulations.

"I didn't realize I'd thrown a no-hitter until coach Hopgood grabbed my hand and offered his congratulations," Richardson said. "I'm just glad it didn't rain."

Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS was impressed by Richardson's effort.

"We had some good hacks at him early on, but you have to give him credit," Davis said. "He had a sharp curveball and good placement of his fastball. His breaking ball wasn't its usual 12-to-6, but it was good enough to get our guys to swing at it."

AARON GAGNON led West Hills (5-4) with a two-run single in the 1st inning. That would be all the runs the Wolf Pack would need. The Pack tacked on an unearned run on an error in the 3rd inning and a fourth run on STEPHEN STRASBURG's double in the 5th.

Granite Hills (4-4) scored its lone run in the 6th inning as TRAVIS TAIJERON stole third and scored on a throwing error.

JOE MELLO was 3-for-3 for West Hills.

STEELE CANYON 10, EL CAJON VALLEY 2 BOXSCORE -- Injury-riddled Steele Canyon keeps finding ways to stay competitive. Injuries to half its pitching staff and now having senior standouts shortstop DANNY HARRIS (groin) and outfielder JOE INZONE (wrist) on the shelf only makes matters more challenging for Cougars coach PHIL MITTRY.

Mittry is proving to be a pretty adept juggler.

"At the beginning of the year we looked at our team and figured we'd get pretty good (offensive) production from our lineup," Mittry said. "Of course that lineup has changed since our initial evaluation."

The scoring punch has not. The Cougars (5-4) stole nine bases -- four by ROSS EPPERSON -- as they rolled past host El Cajon Valley in Tuesday's (Mar. 28) Grossmont Conference Tournament game called after six innings by darkness.

Epperson keyed Steele Canyon's 3-run 1st inning rally with a leadoff walk and a pair of stolen bases. CODY MINICH followed with a walk and steal and MIKE LANGE's scoring fly ball allowed the Cougars to draw first blood. WILL MURRAY's RBI single doubled the advantage and GARRETT JENNER's run-scoring double made it 3-0.

El Cajon Valley (0-11) turned the state's No. 1 base-bandit CLIFTON THOMAS loose in the bottom of the 1st. Thomas was hit by a pitch and continued onto second and third with his 24th and 25th steals of the campaign to tie with Johnny Newton of La Verne's Calvary Baptist.

Freshman ABEL CERVANTES brought Thomas home with a ground ball out.

Minich smacked a two-run single in the 4th to stretch Steele Canyon's lead to 5-1.

Cervantes hammered his first varsity home run in the 5th inning to keep the Braves in contention.

Steele Canyon broke the game open with five runs in the 6th inning. The key blows were a two-run double by sophomore MARK BELLATTI and a two-run single by JUSTIN GRAFF.

Thomas' string of 25 consecutive steals came to an end in the 5th inning when Cougars catcher Murray cut him down attempting to swipe second. The only other time Thomas was nailed on the basepaths this season was when he was picked off by Monte Vista's JOSH KELLY.

With assistance from the on-deck batter (left), Santana's Nicholas Sica (7) does the pop-up slide to score against Helix in Tuesday's 17-0 romp. (Photos by Chris Edwards) FOR MORE PHOTOS, CLICK HERE

SANTANA 17, HELIX 0 BOXSCORE -- All the usual stars were shining for No. 2-ranked Santana (9-0) in Tuesday's (Mar. 28) Grossmont Conference Tournament game against visiting Helix.

But it was sophomore JOSH POND who made the big splash for the Sultans as far as Santana coach JERRY HENSON was concerned.

Pond, a 6-foot-5, 220-pound sophomore appearing in his third varsity game and his first varsity at-bat, crushed the ball on his first pitch in the 6th inning, sending the ball sailing over the center field fence. Pond, who wears a size 19 shoe, pitched two shutout innings, struck out six and walked none.

"My pitching coach, PAT CAVALCANTE, has been working with him on his pitching," said Henson. "And we decided this was a good opportunity to see what he can do. He capitalized on the opportunity."

"Pond kinda overshadowed JOHN BASNIGHT's first home run of the season, but it was nice to see a little bit of display of power."

KYLE CULVER threw five innings of shutout ball, gave up two hits and walked one for Santana.

Kyle Culver of Santana blanked Helix through five innings in the Sultans' 17-0 thrashing. (Photo by Chris Edwards) FOR MORE PHOTOS, CLICK HERE

"He's not an overpowering pitcher but he kept the ball in the strike zone with all three of his pitches -- fastball, curve, and changeup," Henson said.

Helix (4-4), which had not committed an error in its previous four games, was charged with eight miscues at Santana, which is the official scorer for the game. Highlanders coach COLE HOLLAND believed his defense to be even more porous than did Santana.

"We had a legitimate 10 errors," Holland said, "We made five in the first inning."

Basnight's offensive output was hard to ignore. He was 3-for-4 and accounted for six runs, scoring four times.

CALEB SCHUMAKER accounted for two of Helix's three hits.

VALHALLA 6, GROSSMONT 2 BOXSCORE -- Senior JEFF SOPATA capped a six-run 1st inning with a grand slam Tuesday (Mar. 28) to help visiting Valhalla grease Grossmont in a Grossmont Conference Tournament game at Joe Gizoni Field.

"Jeff has really worked hard to improve his game," Valhalla coach STEVE PERDUE said. "He got behind in the count in that (first inning) at-bat but didn't give in. The pitch was up a little but and he was able to lift it into the jet stream (to right-center)."

It was Sopata's second home run of the year.

It was also the second time the Norseman (5-4) have KO'd the Foothillers by the exact same score this season.

One difference in this second go-round was Valhalla was limited to only two singles over the final six innings.

It didn't matter, though, as the early thrust was all Valhalla pitchers ERIC JULIENNE and BOBBY WILKENS needed as they combined to spin a four-hitter at the Foothillers (4-5) while striking out 10.

Julienne is 2-1 this season and 15-2 during his three-year career.

"I wish he wouldn't work behind in the count so much," Perdue said of his ace left-hander. "But Eric gets down and dirty when he has to."

The Norsemen began their pivotal opening inning on an infield single by JONATHAN ALFANO (who was quickly forced out) and a walk to GREG GARCIA. RYAN O'SULLIVAN doubled in JASON KUTZLER for the first run. Walks to DAVID SMITH and TOMAS KARAGIANES forced in Garcia to make it 2-0. That set the stage for Sopata's knockout punch.

NICK LONGMIRE followed a walk to AUGIE WILLIAMS with his second home run of the year in the 4th inning. The Hillers made one final challenge in the 7th as Longmire singled and TREVOR BERRY walked.

Wilkens finished the Hillers off at that point by striking out the side.

"I've never had a team play a game like that," Grossmont coach ROB PHILLIPS said. "We give up a granny on an 0-2 pitch, then have our first five hitters strike out. Worse than that we have our last three hitters strike out just when it looks like we have a chance to pull one out."

EL CAPITAN 19, MOUNT MIGUEL 2 BOXSCORE -- A nine-run 3rd inning helped the No. 9 ranked Vaqueros (7-2) blow out hapless Mount Miguel (1-7) in Tuesday's (Mar. 28) Grossmont Conference Tournament contest in Lakeside.

"Highlight of the game was sophomore MILES REAGAN, in his first varsity start, struck out 9 and walked one in four innings," said El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY. "He did a great job for us. And KYLE KING had a great game swinging the bat --had a double and a home run."

Reagan surrendered just four hits and one run in four innings to collect the win. Senior southpaw TONY PETRILLE checked the Matadors on two hits over the final three innings to log his first save.

King's big blow was a three-run home run in El Capitan's nine-run scoring burst.

East County Sports.com
TIERRASANTA (3-26-06) -- The struggling Christian High Patriots continued to find ways to lose close games Monday (Mar. 27) as they dropped a 5-4 City Conference Tournament decision in eight innings at Serra.

It's been a discouraging skid for the Patriots, who have lost four in a row. Sans one blowout a week ago, Christian coach MIKE MITCHELL knows the "agony of defeat." He's seen it first-hand. It hasn't been a pleasing view. Three of the Patriots' four losses have come by a total of five runs.

RBI singles by EDDIE YOUNG and ADAM PERRY gave Christian (2-5) a 2-0 lead in the 1st inning.

After Serra (5-5) scored four runs in the 5th inning, the Patriots fought back to tie in the 6th inning on CHAD O'DONNELL's two-run triple that scored MATT HART and JIMMY DOSSETT.

Serra scored the winning run in the bottom of the 8th on an infield error with one out.

Christian wasted a decent pitching effort that included five innings by AUSTIN MURRAY (7 hits, 3 ER) and TODD JONES (2 1/3 innings 3 hits 0 ER).

SHANE STANOVIC was 3-for-4 in the losing cause and O'Donnell added a double to go with his triple in three trips for Christian, which is slated to host Morse on Wednesday (Mar. 29) at 3 p.m.

East County Sports.com
RANCHO SAN DIEGO (3-26-06) -- Some might question whether the El Capitan Vaqueros are worthy of a No. 3-ranking in the San Diego CIF baseball ratings. Yet, even in Saturday's (Mar. 25) Grossmont Conference Tournament loss at Steele Canyon, the Vaqueros proved they don't go down easily. It's that tenacity that keeps pollsters looking favorably toward the Vaqueros. BOXSCORE

You'll have to excuse Steele Canyon coach PHIL MITTRY if he doesn't buy into all that rhetoric. His Cougars are playing without a couple of key pitchers yet have managed to split their first eight decisions, including a 6-5 prized win over the visiting Vaqueros.

After blowing a 5-1 lead in the top of the 7th, the Cougars clawed back in the bottom half. ROSS EPPERSON hammered a double to left-center. He advanced to third on DANNY HARRIS' ground out. MIKE LANGE and CODY MINICH were dealt back-to-back intentional walks to load the bases with one out.

El Capitan's gamble backfired when WILL MURRAY hit a shot over the head of the Vaqueros' center fielder to score Epperson with the game-winner.

Steele Canyon's ALEX CEBALLOS, a 6-foot-2 sophomore right-hander, surrendered 13 hits -- all singles -- and four earned runs in 6 2/3 innings. He was close to securing the victory but the Cougars bullpen caved in.

"I'm not sure I've ever had a team get 16 hits and all singles,"El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY said. "We had opportunities but couldn't get the big hit. We at least got them nervous. I'm not sure we're as good as our record shows but I am sure we're not as bad as we played today."

The Vaqueros were down to their final out and behind by four runs when they erupted for six consecutive singles to create a 5-5 tie. MARCO MARISCAL's two-run single was the key blow. DAMIAN GARCIA and TANNER RUST also had run-scoring singles.

Mariscal was 2-for-3 with 3 RBI.

"Ceballos deserved to win but we didn't quite get it for him,"Mittry said. "He pitched out of a bases loaded jam in the 1st and 4th innings, and did a nice job today. He and (WILL) MURRAY were on the same page today."

HELIX 6, WEST HILLS 4 BOXSCORE -- Sophomore SALONZO GRIER was called up to the Helix varsity so fast that he didn't even have a uniform. So Highlanders' coach COLE HOLLAND handed over his No. 13 jersey to Grier in time for Saturday's (Mar. 25) Grossmont Conference Tournament game in La Mesa.

Grier wound up being the winning pitcher as he held the visiting Wolf Pack to two runs and six hits in three innings.

Grier, a left-hander, did his best work in the 7th inning after West Hills (4-4) loaded the bases by RYNE BARKLEY, KOREY HOOPER and JOE MELLO.

Facing West Hills' Nos. 3 and 4 hitters with the winning run at first base and nobody out, Grier struck out the Pack's No. 3 hitter, SHAIN STONER, and coaxed cleanup hitter ERIC McKNIGHT to bang into a game-ending double play.

"We've been hurting for pitching,"Holland said. "One of our pitchers is in New York with the band and another is in Hawaii with the choir. But the way Grier came in and showed he could pitch in a pressure situation shows me we have another pitcher. He's going to stay up here with the varsity."

None of that impressed West Hills coach SCOTT "HOPPY' HOPGOOD.

"We made a nice comeback to tie it up and then let them off the hook,"Hopgood said.

Helix (4-3) rolled ground balls all over the field against West Hills fireballer STEPHEN STRASBURG, who attracted more than a dozen pro scouts to check out his 90-plus mph velocity.

The Highlanders' MAHI LABASTIDA blanked the Pack over the first three innings, but succumbed to back-to-back home runs by Stoner and McKnight to cut the Helix lead to 4-2 in the 4th.

Stoner and McKnight struck again in the 5th inning to tie the game at 4-4. Stoner smacked an RBI double and then scored on McKnight's single.

Helix did not fold. The Highlanders got an RBI single from MATT COBB to move in front. RAUL RITCHIE executed a squeeze bunt to drive in a second run in the frame to give the Highlanders a 6-4 advantage.

"We're not a flashy baseball team, we are a fundamental baseball team,"Holland said. "We put the ball in play and make them play defense."

Hopgood recognized that strategy and had nothing but respect for the Highlanders, who have played error free defense four games in a row.

"They put the bat on the ball and we couldn't catch it or field it,"Hopgood said. "We booted way too many balls."

GROSSMONT 7, MONTE VISTA 2 BOXSCORE -- Grossmont's "Iron Horse"finally climbed into his saddle in Saturday's (Mar. 25) Grossmont Conference Tournament contest in Spring Valley.

Make no mistake about it, senior A.J. GRIFFIN was at his best as he struck out 12, walked none and shut down Monte Vista (3-5).

"We needed this kind of performance from A.J.,"Grossmont coach ROB PHILLIPS said. "This is the kind of effort I expect from him every time he goes out on the mound."

Grossmont (4-4) struck first in the opening inning. NICK SOBEL led off with a double, but was wiped out on an infield grounder in a rundown between second and third base.

RYAN HAAR followed with a tremendous shot over the center field fence at Monte Vista giving Grossmont a 2-0 lead.

Two Monte Vista errors helped the Hillers up their advantage to 5-0 in the 4th inning. JOSH SIMMS executed a squeeze bunt for a hit and an RBI. JUSTIN MASON capped the rally with a run-scoring single.

AUGIE WILLIAMS completed the Grossmont scoring when he followed a Haar double with his second home run of the year in the 7th inning.

RICHIE GARCIA drove in Monte Vista's runs with a sacrifice fly in the 4th and a ground out in the 6th.

This victory was No. 250 for Foothillers' coach Rob Phillips, who is in his 10th season at Grossmont and 13th as a high school head coach.

VALHALLA 14, EL CAJON VALLEY 0 BOXSCORE -- After struggling to make anything click at the plate a day earlier, the host Valhalla Norsemen put together one of their better offensive efforts Saturday (Mar. 25) as they destroyed visiting El Cajon Valley in a Grossmont Conference Tournament game.

"We were more confident at the plate than we were the day before,"said Valhalla senior JEFF SOPATA. "We were way out in front of everything (Friday) at Santana. So our goal today was to stay back yet be more aggressive."

Sopata launched one of Valhalla's two home runs -- the other a two-run shot coming off the bat of senior catcher DAVID FRANK as Valhalla (4-4) in the 4th inning.

Frank drove in four runs, while GREG GARCIA ripped a pair of doubles, driving in three runs and scoring twice.

"We showed a whole lot more discipline at the plate,"Valhalla coach STEVE PERDUE said.

BOBBY WILKENS was overpowering on the mound for Valhalla, rationing the Braves (0-10) to two hits while striking out nine over six innings.

Sopata struck out two in a scoreless 7th for the Norsemen.

SANTANA 14, MOUNT MIGUEL 1 BOXSCORE -- He's hardly a household name, but pitching to Santana lanky sophomore BRANDYN BELL is about as easy as a Chuck Berry lyric -- "just like a ringing a bell . . . go Brandyn go."

Bell blanked the Matadors on four hits over six innings while striking out seven and walking none as Santana (8-0) solidified its No. 2 ranking in the San Diego CIF.

Of course, Bell received plenty of offensive support as 12 Sultans contributed to Santana's 17 hits, which helped the Santee crew to build an 11-0 lead after three innings in Saturday's (Mar. 25) Grossmont Conference Tournament encounter.

Santana's JOHN BASNIGHT drove in three runs with an RBI single in the 1st inning and a two-run triple in the 2nd.

CHRIS DIAZ also came out swinging with three hits and three RBI in four at-bats for the Sultans.

Bell contributed more than sterling pitching. In his only at-bat, the 6-foot-2, 195-pound sophomore belted an RBI single in the 6th inning.

Does he score?

Double-click the photo to see if Monte Vista's Richie Garcia scores against El Capitan. (Photo by Greg Eichelberger)

East County Sports.com
LAKESIDE (3-25-06) -- Staring at a 3-0 deficit entering the bottom of the 4th inning Friday (Mar. 23), the El Capitan Vaqueros were challenged to prove that they are worthy of their San Diego Section No. 3 ranking. BOXSCORE

And so they did.

El Capitan pitcher NICK McCARTHY led the way on two fronts. He pitched a complete-game six-hitter and did not allow an earned run as the Vaqueros edged visiting Monte Vista 4-3 in a Grossmont Conference Tournament win.

McCarthy rolled his personal pitching ledger to 2-0.

More than that, though, McCarthy came through at the plate in the bottom of the 7th with the score knotted at 3-3. The 6-foot, 230-pound senior blasted a double off the bank in left-center field.

How McCarthy talked the El Capitan coaches into letting him bat is something else, considering the Vaqueros were using a designated hitter for his spot in the lineup until the final frame.

A two-out throwing error by McCarthy in the 4th inning opened the floodgates to three Monte Vista runs. And the El Capitan pitcher later begged for a chance to retaliate.

"Nick was upset over that error," said El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY. "We were using a DH for him and he was throwing beautifully, so we let him bat in the 7th inning."

TAELOR WORRELL ran for McCarthy and scored the winning run on MILES REAGAN's single to left field. Reagan, making his first start in right field, was 2-for-3 with a pair of RBI.

The key blow for Monte Vista (3-4) was IVAN PITTI's three-run double to left field in the 4th that staked the Monarchs to a 3-0 lead.

El Capitan (6-1) countered with an RBI double by TANNER RUST in the 4th and his sacrifice fly in the 5th. Reagan also hit an RBI single in the 5th.

"McCarthy deserved this win," Vickery said. "It was nice for him to have a hand in it with the bat as well as on the hill."

Still Vickery was concerned that the Vaqueros left a dozen runners on base.

"We left the bases loaded in the 1st and 3rd innings -- just couldn't get anybody to get a big hit," Vickery said.

El Capitan pinchrunnerTaelor Worrell slides home safely with the winning run to defeat Monte Vista, 6-5. (Photo by Greg Eichelberger)

Monte Vista walked El Capitan slugger AUSTIN RAUCH four times, three times intentionally.

"They just weren't going to let him hit," said Vickery, who was hardly surprised by the Monarchs' strategy.

Three of Monte Vista's four losses are by one run and two of those setbacks came in the final inning. So Monarchs coach LARRY RINEHART must realize his club is oh-so-close to being 6-1 at this juncture.

STEELE CANYON 9, WEST HILLS 7 BOXSCORE -- Eight runs were scored in the 7th inning that helped decide Friday's (Mar. 24) Grossmont Conference Tournament contest at West Hills.

The visiting Cougars (3-4) scored five runs in the 7th inning to snap a 4-4 deadlock and then survived a 3-run Wolf Pack rally in the bottom of the final frame.

Consecutive singles by ROSS EPPERSON, DANNY HARRIS and MIKE LANGE allowed Steele Canyon (3-4) to break the deadlock. CODY MINICH added an RBI single and GARRETT JENNER's two-run double capped the big inning.

"We finally had some balls trickle our way," said Steele Canyon coach PHIL MITTRY.

The Cougars also received a two-run home run from DANNY HARRIS -- his third of the season -- that gave the Cougars a 4-3 edge in the 5th inning.

CAESAR CHAVEZ, in his first varsity outing, pitched two shutout innings to gain the pitching nod.

"We got the lead and kinda sat on it," WEST HILLS coach SCOTT "HOPPY" HOPGOOD said. "Our pitching was good. We had the winning run at the plate and couldn't bring it in."

In a last gasp effort in the bottom of the 7th, SHAIN STONER swatted an RBI double and AARON GAGNON and MICHAEL HALL hit RBI singles. Turns out it was too little, too late.

SANTANA 2, VALHALLA 0 BOXSCORE -- There were no RBI and no extra base hits in this Grossmont Conference Tournament game that was dominated by good pitching on both sides Friday (Mar. 24) in Santee.

Junior right-hander DALLAS MARTIN pitched a nifty four-hitter and struck out 8 as he recorded the shutout win for No. 2-ranked Santana (7-0). It was Martin's third victory and second complete game.

"Right now, he's right on track," Santana coach JERRY HENSON said the East County's winningest pitcher. "He pretty much called his own ballgame today."

Valhalla sophomore RYAN O'SULLIVAN was equally as stingy. He gave up a leadoff single to RICHARD MARTINEZ in the bottom of the 1st inning and a line-drive single to left field by KYLE CULVER to start the 5th. Neither hit figured in the scoring.

CHRIS DIAZ scored Santana's first run on a wild pitch in the 2nd and a throwing error gave the Sultans a second tally in the 3rd.

"We didn't hit the ball as well I would have liked, but we scored when we had a chance to score," Henson said.

Santana received a scare when center fielder JONATHAN TIPPIN was hit by an O'Sullivan fastball in the 3rd inning. It was originally feared that the junior speedster had broken his arm. Further examination, however, revealed that Tippin has suffered a deep bruise and would probably be sidelined for a week or so.

The Norsemen (3-4) haven't shown much muscle at the plate, but have to realize that they are close to finding the winning formula. Their four losses have come by a total of six runs.

Valhalla's best chance against Martin and the Sultans came in the 3rd inning when they loaded the bases with one out. But cleanup hitter TOMAS KARAGIANES rapped into an inning-ending double play.

Highlanders pitcher Eric Ponce vs. Grossmont (Photo by Chris Edwards) MORE PHOTOS, CLICK HERE

HELIX 6, GROSSMONT 4 BOXSCORE-- Five Grossmont errors caused the Foothillers (3-4) to fall on their collective faces Friday (Mar. 24) while the visiting Highlanders (3-3) scampered away with a Grossmont Conference Tournament victory at Joe Gizoni Field.

Helix senior right-hander ERIC PONCE posted his second straight complete-game victory, blanking the Hillers for all but one inning.

"He's a solid high school pitcher, who can throw three pitches for strikes," Helix coach COLE HOLLAND said. "He spots his fastball well and isn't afraid to throw inside."

Grossmont did get to Ponce for all of its runs in the 2nd inning. AUGIE WILLIAMS provided the spark for the Hillers with a leadoff single. BRYAN HAAR followed with a home run to right-center field. A. J GRIFFIN kept the rally alive with a walk and stole second base. DEREK BAUM singled and NICK SOBEL was hit by a pitch to load the bases.

A Ponce wild pitch allowed Griffin to score and Baum trotted home on JUSTIN MASON's ground out, giving Grossmont a 4-2 edge.

Two errors, a single by KARLIS THORPE, a bunt single by DERRIC MILLER and scoring fly ball by RANDY PEREZ added up to three runs and a 5-4 Helix lead in the 5th inning.

Grossmont (3-4) made a bid to overhaul the Highlanders in the 6th, but a double-play defused the Foothillers' charge.

Helix played errorless ball for the third straight game.

"We 're not going to blow you away with our hitting, our pitching or our defense," Holland said. "What we do is play small ball. And we're only going to get better at it."

El Cajon Valley's Clifton Thomas (top) opens Thursday's ballgame with a bunt single,, but he promptly gets picked off by Monte Vista pitcher Josh Kelly, as first baseman Anthony Lopez applies the tag to snap Thomas' streak of 23 consecutive stolen bases without being caught. (Photos by Chris Edwards) MORE PHOTOS, CLICK HERE

East County Sports.com
SPRING VALLEY (3-24-06) -- Grossmont High owns three San Diego Section CIF championships over the past decade, El Capitan has two, while Santana has claimed at least one title over each of the past three decades. BOXSCORE

On the flipside, El Cajon Valley may be winless this season, yet fields the most exciting player in East County in base-stealing threat CLIFTON THOMAS.

And for as many years as anyone on campus can remember, West Hills has drifted somewhere in between.

However, the 2006 season could be the exception which might move the Wolf Pack among the elite in the Grossmont North League. The team ran its season ledger to 4-2 following Thursday's (Mar. 23) 8-4 victory over Mount Miguel to open play in the Grossmont Conference Tournament.

KOREY HOOPER batted 3-for-4 with a two-run homer, while MICHAEL HALL drove in three runs and played a part in all three West Hills rallies leading the team to its third consecutive triumph.

"Our approach and our mental attitude has changed," noted Hall, who lined a two-run single in the 2nd to give the Pack the lead, 4-1. "We come to the field expecting to win."

Hall later scored when Hooper drilled his first homer of the year to left. Hall added an RBI base hit in the 3rd, then hit the ground ball which was booted in the 5th to allow another run to score.

"We jumped on 'em early and came out swinging the bats," added Hooper. "We just need to do that every game."

JOHN EDDY nearly gained a complete-game victory, but allowed a pair of late runs with two outs in the 6th. However, reliever STEPHEN STRASBURG entered to close out the Matadors with a strikeout.

Eddy struck out five, but hit four batters. Strasburg, the designated hitter, added three of West Hills' nine hits.

West Hills later tacked on three runs in the 7th, including the second double on the day by catcher JOSH PICHETTE, but the contest was called by darkness and the score reverted back to the previous inning's count.

Mount Miguel received a solo homer from JAMES TREBUS in the 6th. Earlier, catcher JEREMIAH WHITE smacked two ground balls, one booted for an unearned run in the 1st for an early lead, then one which raced through the infield for an RBI in the 4th.

Meanwhile, it might have been the longest day in the baseball career for Mount Miguel's DAUNTE WILLIAMSON.

Already entering the game with a leg injury, Williamson was temporarily forced from the contest when a line drive off the bat of Wolf Pack pinch-hitter AARON GAGNON struck him in the hand. Matadors officials were afraid he broke a finger, yet an inning later, Williamson was back on the field at third base.

Big mistake.

Upon Williamson's next plate appearance, he was smacked in the leg (his injured leg, of course) by a pitch, falling to the ground in pain just before reaching first base. Somehow, he gutted it out and remained in the ballgame.

"Daunte battled through it all and was there for us," said Mount Miguel coach BYRON GRIGSBY. "He really showed his commitment to the team."

Despite his leg woes, Williamson stole three bases for Mount Miguel.

EL CAPITAN 4, VALHALLA 2 BOXSCORE -- STEVE VICKERY, veteran coach of the No. 3-ranked El Capitan Vaqueros, is still waiting for his club to hit the way he believes it can.

"We keep setting the table, but just can't get that big hit," Vickery said.

Banging into two double plays and failing to score despite loading the bases twice in the final three innings, El Capitan (5-1) generated enough firepower to hand Valhalla senior ace ERIC JULIENNE just his second loss in 16 varsity decisions over three seasons.

Julienne's troubles were centered around the 1st inning. After two were out, mind you.

BRYSON LUKACIK sparked the Vaqueros' rally with a single and moved up a notch after AUSTIN RAUCH walked. JOSH ROYER rocketed a double to score Lukacik. D.J. HENSON then singled to score Rauch. When the ball was misplayed in the outfield, Royer rolled across the plate.

With two outs and nobody on in the 3rd, Rauch ripped a 3-2 fastball out of sight for his 5th home run in six games to make it 4-0.

"That ball landed halfway up the football bleachers (in left center field)," Vickery said. "Aussie has done a great job at the plate all year. The big thing is he's not getting greedy. He'll take the walk."

Another benefit Rauch has received is the improved hitting of Royer, who bats behind the El Capitan cleanup hitter in the No. 5 spot.

"Josh is really coming on," Vickery said. "We need him to have a big year."

CRISTIAN GARCIA spun a complete-game 5-hitter for El Capitan for his second win in three decisions. He retired the final 10 Norsemen in order, striking out the last four. Garcia totaled eight strikeouts for the game.

"It seemed like Cristian had an 0-2 count on every batter he faced," Vickery said. "He really dominated."

Back-to-back one-out singles by JASON KUTZLER and GREG GARCIA coupled with a balk put Valhalla runners at second and third with one out in the 3rd inning. Only one run scored and that came on a RYAN O'SULLIVAN ground out.

A hit batter and walk followed by DEVIN AZEVEDO's RBI single gave Valhalla (3-3) its final run in the 4th inning.

"Bottom line is we just can't hit," Valhalla coach STEVE PERDUE said. "We're not getting much production out of anyone."

Valhalla's three losses have come by a total of four runs.

"Our kids are young, but they play hard and give the kind of effort I want to see," Perdue said. "We'll be OK. We just need more time to mature."

GRANITE HILLS 11, GROSSMONT 3 BOXSCORE -- Senior JOSH MILLER delivered a game-winning pinch hit on Wednesday and found himself in the Eagles' starting lineup for Thursday's (Mar. 23) Grossmont Conference Tournament against visiting Grossmont.

For an encore, Miller went 4-for-4 with a home run and five RBI as the Eagles (4-3) buried the Foothillers (3-3).

"He's always had good bat speed," Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS said. "He's in a groove right now."

The entire Granite Hills lineup was locked in, stinging five Grossmont pitchers for 17 hits. The stampede started early as BRIAN HUMPHRIES opened the rout with a double. One out later, TRAVIS TAIJERON laced his second home run of the season to right center.

AUSTIN COLEMAN kept the 1st inning rally alive as he singled and rode home on Miller's shot over the left field wall.

Miller added a two-run single in the 3rd and JOSH QUERIONES and Humphries also drove in runs in that frame as Granite Hills moved out to an 8-0 lead.

RBI singles by Coleman and Humphries swelled the Eagles advantage to 10-0 in the 5th.

That was more than enough for Granite Hills ace ERIC KRAUSE, who blanked the Hillers on five hits while striking out seven over six innings.

"When Eric is on the mound there is a lot of confidence on the field," Davis said. "He's 'Steady Eddie' out there. He can throw three pitches for strikes and works at a good tempo. He keeps his defense in the game."

Grossmont avoided a shutout in the 7th when NICK LONGMIRE followed a pair of walks with his first home run of the season.

MONTE VISTA 3, EL CAJON VALLEY 0 BOXSCORE -- Monarchs pitchers JOSH KELLY and IVAN PITTI combined to twirl a six-hit shutout at visiting El Cajon Valley in Thursday's (Mar. 23) Grossmont Conference Tournament action.

Kelly, who picked off CLIFTON THOMAS -- the state's No. 1 base bandit in the 1st inning -- limited the Braves (0-9) to a double and four singles over six innings. Kelly struck out three and walked none to earn the victory.

"Josh is a raw talent, but he's coming along," Monte Vista coach LARRY RINEHART said of the 6-foot-2, 165-pound junior right-hander. “He did a good job."

Things got a bit dicey in the top of the 7th inning. For the record, Pitti struck out the side to earn the save. But not before giving up a lead off double to RAY AQUININGOC and dishing out back-to-back two-out walks to ADRIAN TORRES and JOSE TORRES to load the bases.

That brought Thomas -- a .500 hitter with three triples -- to the plate. Pitti and Thomas battled to a full-count before the Monte Vista reliever sneaked a changeup past the El Cajon Valley ace for a game-ending strikeout.

Catcher CORY COOPER was Monte Vista's offensive hero, collecting three hits and two RBI. He tripled and scored on a wild pitch in the 3rd inning.

In the 6th, Cooper followed a walk to Pitti, a pinch single by MIKE NUSH and a bunt single by Kelly with a base hit, increasing Monte Vista's advantage to 3-0.

SANTANA 6, STEELE CANYON 2 BOXSCORE -- Falling behind doesn't seem to faze the undefeated and No. 2-ranked Santana Sultans (6-0).

Steele Canyon (2-4) jumped in front with two runs in the 1st inning. ROSS EPPERSON singled, stole second and scored on a base hit by DANNY HARRIS, who eventually came home on JOE INZONE's ground out.

Harris kept the visiting Sultans off the scoreboard for four innings before Santana erupted for five runs in the 5th. Back-to-back doubles by JOHN BASNIGHT and CHRIS DIAZ cut the Cougars lead in half. Walks to DALLAS MARTIN and CHRIS RABICHAUD loaded the bases.

RYAN STUTZ lined a single to right field that scored Diaz and Martin, putting Santana in front 3-2. RICHARD MARTINEZ followed with a two-run single and the Sultans had the Cougars reeling. Stutz, the No. 9 batter in the Santana order, added a third RBI when he walked with the bases loaded in the 6th.

"The bats finally came alive in the 5th inning," said Santana skipper JERRY HENSON. "We put some hits together."

Henson was also pleased by the relief pitching of junior KYLE CULVER, who blanked the Cougars on three hits over the last four innings to earn his first varsity victory.

"He just shut the door on them," Henson said. "It's the second time he's come in and put out the fire."

Steele Canyon coach PHIL MITTRY is biding time waiting for his full team to heal.

"We started off well but didn't do much after the 1st inning," said Mittry. "We are still looking for the little looper to fall our way. It's gonna happen sometime. Every game we have lost we have given up a big inning. I tried something different today, tried to stop the big inning. Unfortunately it didn't work out the way I wanted."

East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (3-23-06) -- It started out business as usual for the El Cajon Valley Braves in Wednesday's (Mar. 22) Grossmont Conference Tournament game against Madison Avenue rival Granite Hills.

The Eagles scored four runs in the top of the 1st inning and El Cajon Valley was in its all-too-familiar position of playing catch up. And the Braves did tie the game 4-4 by the close of the 3rd inning, but Granite Hills regained the lead on a three-run double by pinch-hitter JOSH MILLER and continued for a 9-6 victory. The game was called after six innings because of darkness.

Miller's game-winning blow came in the 4th inning after LOUIS CAZARES reached base on an error, JOSH QUERIONES singled, and pitcher GARRETT RUSSELL walked to load the bases. Queriones earlier smacked a two-run single in Granite Hills' four-run 1st.

The victory balanced Granite Hills' record at 3-3, while El Cajon Valley fell to 0-8.

Once again, the Braves' center fielder CLIFTON THOMAS produced positive results. He drilled a solo home run to the deepest part of the El Cajon Valley diamond leading off the bottom of the 1st, raised his state-leading stolen base count to 23 (without being caught) and smoked his third triple of the season. He also scored three runs.

"That home run he hit was a bomb," Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS said. "He just whistled that thing out of here, past those nets (beyond the right-center field fence). I was impressed."

"Clifton has great bat speed and a swing where I wouldn't change a thing. If he keeps up what he's doing he can play at the next level."

MADISON 10, CHRISTIAN 8 -- It was a City Conference Tournament game of big innings. The Warhawks produced two five-spots and the Patriots countered with one six-run splurge on Wednesday (Mar. 22).

The result: Christian's third straight loss

After Madison took a 5-0 lead in the 1st, the Patriots bounced back for a 6-5 edge scoring all of their runs in the 2nd frame. Sophomore EDDIE YOUNG gave Christian the lead with a three-run double to right-center.

Bases-loaded walks to GRANT MILLS and AUSTIN MURRAY and an RBI single by SHANE STANOVIC accounted for the first three Patriots runs in the inning.

JIMMY DOSSETT played a key role in the Patriots' ability to add single runs in the 3rd and 4th innings.

In the 3rd, Dossett singled and raced to third on CHAD O'DONNELL's base hit. An overthrow of third base by the Madison center fielder was cut off by the Warhawks catcher who was backing up on the play. However, umpires ruled that the catcher had stepped into the dugout with both feet and that allowed Dossett to score, making it 7-5.

Singles by Young and ADAM PERRY followed by MATT HART's sacrifice bunt set up Dossett's scoring fly ball giving Christian an 8-5 lead after four frames.

"We got pounded in our last game (15-0 by Mission Bay) and then got down by 5-0 in the 1st inning," said Christian coach MIKE MITCHELL. "We could have folded, but we battled. Our league is going to be a battle all the time. Today was a really good ballgame to watch."

Six of Madison's runs came from runners who either walked or were hit by a pitch.

East County Sports.com
PACIFIC BEACH (3-21-06) -- Christian High starter GRANT MILLS retired the first Mission Bay batter of the game in Monday's (Mar. 20) City Conference Tournament opener. That was the only time the Buccaneers leadoff batter was put down as host Mission Bay crushed Christian 15-0.

The Bucs battered four Patriots pitchers for 15 hits as they improved to 4-1. Christian, which committed four errors that led to seven unearned runs, fell to 2-3.

"Every ball they hit they hit hard," lamented Christian coach MIKE MITCHELL. "They were pretty good and we weren't. They swung the bats really well. Every time we made a mistake, they just jumped on us."

The closest thing to a highlight for the Patriots was a pair of singles by senior COLIN McDONALD. The 2-for-2 effort raised McDonald's batting average to .500.

Next up for the Patriots is a City Conference Tournament contest at Christian against Harbor League rival Madison Wednesday (Mar. 22) at 3 p.m.

East County Sports.com
CHULA VISTA (3-19-06) -- Although not flashy in manner, the El Capitan Vaqueros are living up to their No. 6 preseason ranking. Their lone defeat came to No. 1-ranked Fallbrook, and three of their wins have come over No. 2 Rancho Bernardo, No. 3 St. Augustine and No. 9 Cathedral Catholic.

"We are pretty happy to be 4-1 at this point," El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY said Saturday (Mar. 18) after the Vaqueros outlasted St. Augustine 6-5 in eight innings in their final round of Hilltop-Lolita's Invitational pool play at Hilltop High.

"Our defense has been outstanding, our pitching consistent and we've had some timely hitting," Vickery added.

Most timely of the El Capitan hitters has been catcher AUSTIN RAUCH, who drove in three runs with a home run and a single against the Saints (1-4). Rauch, who has a scholarship to San Diego State, gave El Capitan a 1-0 lead with an RBI single in the 1st inning and rifled a home run with RYAN INVERSO (walk) on board for a 3-1 advantage in the 3rd inning. Rauch has homered in four of the Vaqueros' first five games.

Tied at 3-3 entering the bottom of the 5th inning, the Vaqueros nudged in front with a run after two outs without benefit of a hit.

Down to their last three outs in the 8th inning, the Vaqueros mounted their comeback with an infield single by DAMIAN GARCIA. Garcia advanced to second on TANNER RUST's sacrifice bunt.

VINNY NAZZAL walked and BRYSON LUKACIK singled to load the bases. Following a strikeout, Inverso slashed an RBI single to left tying the game at 5-5.

A bases-loaded walk to LUCAS WHITMORE cashed in the winning run for El Capitan.

Senior KYLE KING needed only 39 pitches to work the first four innings for El Capitan. King wound up pitching six frames, permitting just three runs and five hits while walking one and striking out three.

Henson, who has two saves, was touched up for five hits and two runs in two innings of relief. He missed a shot at a save, but did collect his first win.

HILLTOP 12, GRANITE HILLS 0 -- The Eagles were limited to four singles, committed six errors and allowed five unearned runs Saturday (Mar. 18) as they took a pratfall in the semifinals of the Hilltop-Lolita's Invitational at Hilltop.

Half of the Granite Hills offensive output consisted of singles by BRIAN HUMPHRIES. His second hit coupled with a LOUIS CAZARES base hit gave the Eagles (2-3) their best scoring chance with two down in the 3rd inning. That scoring bid never went any farther.

"Nothing positive came out of that game for us," Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS said.

East County Sports.com
SANTEE (3-18-06) -- When West Hills baseball coach SCOTT "HOPPY" HOPGOOD pulled his truck up behind the Wolf Pack's third baseball before Friday's (Mar. 17) Aztec-Foothiller Tournament game he looked across the diamond and saw a blue and white banner hanging on the railing in front of the first base dugout.

"I couldn't believe it," Hopgood said. "Here it is our field and see this 12-foot banner that read 'Chula Vista Baseball.' That really fired me up."

That fire apparently carried over to the West Hills players. Nine pitches into the bottom of the 1st inning, the Wolf Pack was sitting on a 5-0 lead.

The Pack loaded the bases on a hit batter and singles by KOREY HOOPER and SHAIN STONER. Sophomore first baseman ERIC McKNIGHT then belted a 1-0 pitch over the left field fence for a grand slam. TRAVIS IRVIN hit the next pitch over the wall in right-center field.

"Every ball we hit today we hit hard," Hopgood said. "We were focused on being aggressive at the plate. We were really swinging it, the best by far we have since I've been head coach."

An error and a base hit by Hooper set the stage for Stoner's two-run single to make it 7-0 in the 2nd inning. West Hills could have had more that frame, but left the bases loaded.

No matter. West Hills' offensive couldn't to click in the 3rd inning with some help from the Chula Vista pitching staff. WILL CRUMPLER was hit by a pitch and stole second. After Hooper walked, JOE MELLO sliced a triple down the left field line to give West Hills a 9-3 advantage.

The West Hills onslaught continued in the 4th when Irvin was hit by a pitch, AARON GAGNON doubled and MICHAEL HALL singled up ther middle to make it 11-3.

JOHN EDDY pitched the first five innings to notch the win for West Hills (3-2). Stoner twirled 1 2/3 innings of shutout relief to earn the save.

Hopgood is pleased by the Wolf Pack's 3-2 start.

"We were 0-5 at this time last year, so obviously we are doing some things right," Hopgood said. "Things are only to get better for us."

EASTLAKE 15, STEELE CANYON 7 -- Even though the Cougars put together a six-run 5th inning in Friday's (Mar. 17) Aztec-Foothiller Classic game, the visiting Titans scored seven times in the 4th and six runs in the 7th to turn what was a close contest into a rout.

Eastlake (4-1) was slated to face Santana (5-0) for the Aztec-Foothiller Classic championship on Saturday (Mar. 18) at Grossmont High''s Joe Gizoni Field at 10:30 a.m. Overnight rain has put the playing of the game in jeopardy, however.

First baseman MIKE LANGE carried the big stick for Steele Canyon (2-3) in Friday's bout with the Titans. Lange doubled and scored in the 2nd inning and then launched a three-run homer in the Cougars big 5th inning.

ROSS EPPERSON was 2-for-4 with two RBI. JUSTIN GRAFF also had two hits for the Cougars.

"The score was 9-1 and Steele Canyon scored 6 runs to make it 9-7, and we couldn't hold 'em after that," said SC coach PHIL MITTRY. "Its part of the price you pay with a young pitching staff. We had a couple of mental mistakes and it cost us. This experience will help us though once we get into league."

An Escondido baserunner (Upper left) gets ready to take his lead off first base, but Granite Hills pitcher Garrett Russell (4) makes his pick-off move (Upper right), as Eagles first baseman Austin Coleman (29) makes the grab (Lower left) and applies the tag (Lower right) for the out. It was Russell's second pickoff of the inning. -- (Photos by Chris Edwards) -- MORE PHOTOS, CLICK HERE

East County Sports.com
LAKESIDE (3-17-06) -- Cathedral Catholic slugged four home runs, including a pair by Alex Diachenko, but playing in cozy Hostetler Field, the power surge left the El Capitan Vaqueros.unfazed. Without flinching, the hosts still found a way to comeback and defeat the Dons, 7-4, in Thursday's (Mar. 16) Hilltop-Lolita's Tournament contest.

El Capitan starting pitcher NICK McCARTHY surrendered all four of the Dons' circuit clouts -- all solo shots with no runners aboard -- yet maintained spotless control as he did not issue a single walk while striking out seven in a five-inning stint.

"Except for four bad pitches, McCarthy pitched a pretty good ballgame," El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY said. "They unloaded on some fastballs that found the middle of the plate, but Nick kept his composure. Unlike last year when something like this would have destroyed him, Nick kept his emotions under control."

El Capitan relievers MARCO MARISCAL and D.J. HENSON each spun a scoreless inning to preserve the victory for McCarthy. Henson earned his second save.

JOSH ROYER drove in two runs with an RBI single in the 3rd inning and a sacrifice fly in the 4th.

RYAN INVERSO was 2-for-4 with two runs and one RBI in the leadoff spot for El Capitan (3-1).

ESCONDIDO 5, GRANITE HILLS 4 -- Four errors and a costly balk spelled defeat for host Granite Hills (2-2) in Thursday's (Mar. 16) Hilltop-Lolita's Tournament against the Cougars (3-1).

"What a mess this game was in terms of being ugly," Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS said. "We can't make plays right now. We're not a good baseball team right now."

Granite Hills scored three runs in the 1st inning to erase Escondido's 2-0 advantage. The Eagles capitalized on three walks, an RBI single by AUSTIN COLEMAN and a dropped fly ball to take a 3-2 edge.

A two base error, a single and a balk allowed Escondido to break a 3-3 tie in the 5th inning. The Eagles tied it in the bottom of the 5th on a double by BRIAN HUMPHRIES and a two-out balk.

Escondido scored the winning marker in the 6th inning on an error and an RBI single by Tony Asper.

The Eagles were in position to force the game into extra innings as TRAVIS TAIJERON doubled with one out and advanced to third on a base hit by CODY CRAWFORD. The rally faltered when the Cougars turned a game-ending double play.

Taijeron accounted for two of Granite Hills' seven hits, while BILLY SYLVESTER pitched two perfect innings of relief.

BONITA VISTA 9, EL CAJON VALLEY 1 -- The visiting Barons won this battle of winless teams in Thursday's (Mar. 16) Aztec-Foothiller Classic encounter.

The highpoint for the Braves (0-7) continues to be speedy center fielder CLIFTON THOMAS, who was 2-for-4 at the plate while running his stolen base count to 21 with a trio of thefts against Bonita Vista.

ADRIAN TORRES drove in the Braves only run with a first-inning single.

Bonita Vista (1-3) scored six runs in the 1st inning and the game was all but over.

Grossmont's Augie Williams (4) receives congratulations following his home run to right field which missed by inches from going completely out of the ballpark. However, Steele Canyon's Mark Bellatti trots around the bases after his homer to help the Cougars upend the Foothillers, 6-3, in Aztec-Foothiller Classic action. (Photos by Chris Edwards)

East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (3-16-06) -- For the first time in the four-year history of Steele Canyon's baseball program, the Cougars upended host Grossmont 6-3 in Wednesday's (Mar. 15) Aztec-Foothiller Classic at Joe Gizoni Field.

The visiting Cougars (2-2) scored five runs in the first two innings to put Grossmont's back to the wall.

DANNY HARRIS was the main thorn in Grossmont's side, banging out two hits including his second home run while driving in three runs. More than that, though, was Harris made his Steele Canyon pitching debut. The senior right-hander scattered five hits over four innings and allowed only one earned run.

"The guy we wanted to start the game had the stomach flu," Steele Canyon coach PHIL MITTRY said. "Danny stepped up and said he could pitch, so we went with him."

Harris, who is 7-for-14 with two home runs on the season, scattered five hits and allowed only one run in four innings and was awarded with the pitching win.

Foothillers pitcher A.J. Griffin vs. Steele Canyon. (Photo by Chris Edwards) MORE PHOTOS, CLICK HERE

"Our mainline pitching has been riddled with injuries," Mittry said. "As a group they are starting to come back, but it will be a while before they are able to throw multiple innings."

Harris belted a two-run home run in the 1st inning and MARK BELLATTI banged a solo shot in the 6th for the Cougars, who led 6-1 at the time.

AUGIE WILLIAMS belted a two-run home run in the 6th inning to keep Grossmont in contention,

The Foothillers (3-2) had the tying run at the plate in the bottom of the 7th inning, but SC reliever JOE INZONE got out of it to earn his first save.

JUSTIN MASON was 3-for-4 for Grossmont, while BRYAN HAAR was 2 for 3.

SANTANA 10, BONITA VISTA 4 -- CHRIS DIAZ was Santana's main man in the Sultans' Aztec-Foothiller romp at Bonita Vista on Wednesday (Mar. 15).

Diaz, a multi-sport senior, smacked an RBI triple in the 4th inning and capped a six-run 5th inning with a grand slam, as Santana improved its ledger to 5-0.

"It was Chris Diaz Day in the South Bay," Santana coach JERRY HENSON said.

JOHN BASNIGHT pitched four innings of one 1-hit shutout ball. The Barons teed off on Santana reliever RICHARD MARTINEZ before junior DALLAS MARTIN came on to pitch three strong innings of relief to log his first save.

Martin was also a key offensive tool, delivering two squeeze bunt RBI.

A 5-0 start has Henson looking toward to greater things, considering the Sultans' 15-year skipper has an overall record of 267-171-3.

WEST HILLS 3, MARIAN CATHOLIC 0 -- STEPHEN STRASBURG fired a 4-hit shutout while striking out 9 in Wednesday's (Mar. 15) Aztec-Foothiller Classic conquest of the visiting Crusaders.

SHAIN STONER drove in three runs with a first-inning double and a two-run single in the 4th inning for West Hills (3-2).

"Today was a complete ballgame," said West Hills skipper Hoppy Hopgood. "We ran the bases great, played great, and Strasburg was phenomenal on the mound. He had 10 ground ball outs, 9 strikeouts and one walk. They didn't have a chance today. He was amazing -- a complete game 4-hitter. "

"He's got more wins now than he did all last year. He's becoming the total package. I think it's his mental approach this year, he's been a workhorse. He throws the pitches where he needs to throw them -- was in total control of the game today. It was a big confidence booster not only for him but for the team as well."

EASTLAKE 4, VALHALLA 3 -- Two runs by the Titans in the 7th inning spoiled an otherwise excellent outing by Valhalla in Wednesday's (Mar. 15) Aztec-Foothiller Tournament contest.

A two-out single and stolen base by TOMAS KARAGIANES set the table for CHRIS THOMAS' RBI single in the 4th inning and a 1-0 lead.

After Eastlake nudged in front 2-1 in the top of the 6th inning, the Norsemen scored twice in the bottom of the 6th. A fielder's choice by Karagianes brought in the tying run and Thomas' sacrifice fly gave Valhalla the 3-2 edge.

Eastlake denied Valhalla the victory with two runs in the top of the 7th.

"I have always said kids are a reflection of their parents and families, and we have great kids!" Valhalla coach STEVE PERDUE said. "Thanks to both the players and parents for your support and great attitudes and efforts. All of you have made this year so much fun to this point."

MONTGOMERY 1, HELIX 0 -- A 1st inning home run by Montgomery's Brandon Meredith and the one-hit pitching of Bradley Procopio sent Helix to its third loss in five starts.

RANDY PEREZ accounted for Helix's only hit with a 5th inning single and a stolen base.

"We didn't hit," summed up Helix coach COLE HOLLAND. "We only had two guys get to second base. And that was in the 5th and 7th innings -- on Montgomery errors."

The lone bright spot for the team?

"We didn't make an error for the second straight game."

RAMONA 14, EL CAJON VALLEY 4 -- The Braves (0-6) took an early 3-2 lead in the 2nd inning Wednesday (Mar. 15) and then the roof caved in as Ramona rolled closer to the Aztec-Foothiller Classic championship.

On the bright side, El Cajon Valley senior CLIFTON THOMAS stole four more bases giving him 18 for the season. Thomas was also 2-for-4 at the plate.

ABEL CERVANTES also had two hits for El Cajon Valley, but seven fielding miscues were too much to overcome.

CASTLE PARK 8, MONTE VISTA 3 -- Six errors spelled doom for Monte Vista (2-3), which gave up four unearned runs in Wednesday's (Mar. 15) Aztec-Foothiller Classic loss to the Trojans.

ANTHONY LOPEZ, RICHIE GARCIA and ANTHONY MARCON logged RBI for the Monarchs.

East County Sports.com
SANTEE (3-14-06) -- Just how good are these Santana Sultans?

Visiting Monte Vista put the Sultans to the test in Tuesday's (Mar. 14) Aztec-Foothiller Classic contest.

The Monarchs (2-2) marched to a 5-0 lead after three innings -- a surge keyed by DAN DeANDA's two-run 1st inning double and GOLDIE SIMMONS' two-run homer in the 3rd.

ANTHONY LOPEZ's RBI double extended Monte Vista's advantage to 6-2 in the top of the 7th.

Santana (4-0) wasn't intimidated. The Sultans scored five runs without Monte Vista recording an out in the bottom of the 7th inning.

CHRIS DIAZ hoisted a two-run double over the center fielder's head for two RBI. A bases-loaded walk to CHRIS RABICHAUD forced in a run to cut the Monarchs advantage to 6-5 before catcher NICHOLAS SICA -- a defensive replacement in the top of the 7th -- blooped a two-run single to give undefeated Santana the victory.

"To come from behind with 5 runs in the last inning says a lot about our ballclub," Santana coach JERRY HENSON said. "This was a big win for us,"

GRANITE HILLS 5, MISSION BAY 1 -- Junior right-hander ERIC KRAUSE pitched a complete-game six-hitter in the Eagles' Hilltop-Lolita's Tournament victory over the Bucs by the beach on Tuesday (Mar. 14).

It was all about control for Krause (1-1), who needed only 85 pitches to complete the job. He struck out six and walked only one.

Granite Hills (2-1) played long ball in his support as catcher TRAVIS TAIJERON launched a solo home run in the 3rd inning for a 1-0 lead.

BILLY SYLVESTER took over from there, driving in four runs with an RBI single in the 4th and a booming 3-run home run in the 6th.

"Billy's home run hit the football fence, which is probably 420 feet from home plate," Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS said. "And that was into a howling wind."

Davis admits being surprised by Sylvester's prowess at the plate.

"The big thing is he's hitting the curveball so much better," Davis said. “His adjustment at the plate has been excellent."

A one-time bullpen pitcher, Sylvester also proved his defensive ability by throwing out a Mission Bay base-runner at the plate on a strong throw from center field.

VALHALLA 10, CHULA VISTA 1 -- The Norsemen delivered six of their 11 hits in the final inning when they scored six runs in Tuesday;s (Mar. 14) Aztec-Foothiller Classic contest that secured the season-opening pitching outing of sophomore RYAN O'SULLIVAN.

O'Sullivan scattered five hits and struck out six in six innings on the mound in his first game of the season.

Turning point of the game was in the 2nd inning.

CHRIS THOMAS and DAVID SMITH slapped back-to-back singles. DEVIN AZEVEDO sacrificed the runners into scoring position. One out later JEFF SOPATA -- in an 11-pitch at-bat, fouling off five pitches in a row -- laced a two-run single down the left field line to score Thomas and Smith.

Valhalla put the game away with a 7-run 7th inning. Azevedo's two-run double was the key blow.

RAMONA 6, HELIX 5 -- The visiting Highlanders fell behind 4-1 after two innings of Tuesday's (Mar. 14) Aztec-Foothiller Classic contest at Ramona and never recovered.

"Our Nos. 2 and 5 hitters had to stay at school for some makeup work; they got to the game in the 2nd inning," said Helix coach COLE HOLLAND. "We had four people playing out of position. We had bases loaded in the 1st, 3rd, 5th and 7th innings and had runners on second and third in the 4th -- and couldn't come up with the big hit."

JEREMY PETERSON was 3-for-4 with two RBI and DERRIC MILLER added three hits and one RBI for the Highlanders (2-2).

"We had 11 hits for the second game in a row, and 12 left on base today. This was key for us."

But not enough to secure a victory.

IMPERIAL 7, CHRISTIAN 5 -- The Patriotsâ' EDDIE YOUNG was 3-for-3 with two home runs, 3 runs scored and 3 RBI as Christian lost to visiting Imperial in Tuesday's (Mar. 14) Patriots Invitational game.

"We didn't play very good defense, failed to execute on defense," said Christian coach MIKE MITCHELL. "We left too many guys on base. We didn't play very well today."

"We hit some balls deep, but we needed to get a few more two-out basehits, clutch up with two outs," he recalled.

After Imperial (2-2) scored two runs in the top of the 1st inning, ADAM PERRY laced a solo home run to right center field, cutting the Tigers lead in half.

Two innings later, Perry doubled and scored on the first of Young's home runs, giving the Patriots a 3-2 edge.

Perry's second home run of the game and an RBI single by GRANT MILLS erased an Imperial 4-3 advantage in the bottom of the 5th.

The visiting Tigers scored twice in the 6th and once in the 7th to defeat the tournament hosts.

FALLBROOK 11, EL CAPITAN 2 -- If the El Capitan Vaqueros had a vote as to which team is the best in the San Diego Section, Fallbrook would be a unanimous choice.

The top-ranked Warriors (3-0) behind the 2-hit pitching of ace Mike Leake cut down the Vaqueros with relative ease in Tuesday's (Mar. 14) Hilltop-Lolita's Invitational.

El Capitan (2-1) avoided a shutout in the 7th inning after Leake had left the mound. GABE LOPEZ singled and AUSTIN RAUCH followed with his third home run in as many games.

"If there is a better pitcher in town than Leake, I don't want to have to face him," El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY said.

VISTA 14, STEELE CANYON 2 -- The Panthers scored 10 runs in their final two at-bats to turn Tuesday's (Mar. 14) Aztec-Foothiller Classic game into a rout.Aztec-Foothiller Classic.

"We got smoked," said Steele Canyon coach PHIL MITTRY ruefully. "We had runners on base all day and hit three times as many balls hard than Vista did, but they ended up with all the runs. We left the bases loaded, runners in scoring position all day long. The first two outs of the game we got picked off."

"The ball didn't drop where we needed it, and it did for them."

DANNY HARRIS was 3-for-4 for Steele Canyon.

East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (3-14-06) -- TREVOR BERRY and JUSTIN MASON drove in two runs apiece Monday (Mar. 13) as host Grossmont (3-1) cut down the Marian Catholic Crusaders 8-3 in an Aztec-Foothiller Classic contest at Joe Gizoni Field.

Mason had the key blow -- a two-run single -- that gave Grossmont a 4-1 lead in the 5th inning.

Berry put the game on ice with a two-run single that vaulted the Hillers into a 7-1 advantage in the 6th inning.

Grossmont rapped out 13 hits, led by A.J. GRIFFIN's 3-for-4. NICK LONGMIRE added a pair of doubles and scored 3 times, while KYLE SECCIANI spanked a double and a single.

Mason worked the first three innings for the Hillers, striking out 4. BRYAN HAAR toiled 2 1/3 innings, allowing the same stuff that Mason did – three hits and one run. Difference is Haar was rewarded his second win in as many appearances.

For the third time in four games, TAYLOR WOHLWEND served as mop-up man, recording five outs without allowing an earned run.

EASTLAKE 3, WEST HILLS 2 -- For the third consecutive game, the Wolf Pack struggled offensively in Monday's (Mar. 13) Aztec-Foothiller makeup game at Eastlake. The Pack, in fact, has garnered only eight hits in its first 21 innings.

"We're playing good defense and our pitching has been outstanding, but it's hard to win when you don't score runs," said West Hills coach SCOTT "HOPPY" HOPGOOD.

Eastlake ace Jorge Dryjanski struck out 13 and limited the Wolf Pack (1-2) to just three singles. Seven times Dryjanski caught West Hills hitters looking, including once with the bases loaded.

"It seemed like we were a little gun-shy at the plate," Hopgood said. "We didn't make adjustments when we needed to."

Sophomore RYNE BARKLEY, in his first varsity at-bat, slugged a single and stole second base with one out in the 3rd inning. JOE MELLO reached base on catcher's interference. TRAVIS IRVIN walked to load the bases. KOREY HOOPER brought in Barkley with a sacrifice fly to tie the score 1-1. The rally fizzled out after that.

Eastlake (2-1) touched up West Hills ace AARON RICHARDSON for 2 runs in the bottom of the 3rd inning. Richardson, a premier southpaw, checked Eastlake on four hits, but walked 9 as he struck out 8 in a five-inning stint.

West Hills picked up a run in the 4th inning on MICHAEL HALL's RBI single, which scored JOSH PICHETTE, who walked and stole second. West Hills stole six bases in the game, including two by Mello.

The Wolf Pack missed a golden opportunity to overthrow the Titans when they put runners at second and third with nobody out in the 5th. Nothing came of it as one West Hills runner was put out at the plate attempting to score on a passed ball and two struck out.

East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (3-11-06) -- One thing about Valhalla senior southpaw ERIC JULIENNE is he knows how to win. Hidden in the shadow of SEAN O'SULLIVAN for the first two years of his three varsity campaigns, Julienne is finally starting to gain recognition.

Julienne allowed just one hit and no earned runs during a five-inning stint won by the Norsemen 6-2 in Friday's (Mar.10) Aztec-Foothiller Classic contest at Joe Gizoni Field. That win elevated Julienne's career record to 14-1.

"Everytime he's been challenged, he's answered," Valhalla coach STEVE PERDUE said. "The guy is a winner."

DAVE SMITH gave Valhalla a 1st -inning lead with a two-run double off Grossmont ace A.J. GRIFFIN.

Valhalla extended that advantage to 5-0 in the 2nd inning when DAVID FRANK singled and JEFF SOPATA doubled. One out later, GREG GARCIA slugged a three-run home run over the right-center fence.

"To look at him you wouldn't think of him as a home run hitter," Perdue said. "But he'/ll surprise you with his power."

Perdue is sold on Garcia, naming him Valhalla's team captain.

"I've never had a team captain before," Perdue said. "But Greg, who is only a junior, is special. He's a leader."

Freshman TREVOR FRANK blanked the Foothillers (2-1) on two hits over the final two frames to preserve the victory.

"I'll put my pitching staff up against anybody's in the county," Perdue said.

Grossmont (2-1), which generated just three hits, had one shot at a comeback when the Hillers loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom of the 6th and Valhalla leading 5-2. NICK LONGMIRE laced a liner to center field with the bases loaded. Valhalla's TOMAS KARAGIANES made a nice shoe-string catch to foil the Grossmont rally.

SANTANA 12, HELIX 7 -- A pair of 5-run innings on Friday (Mar.10) helped Santana remain unbeaten as the Sultans (3-0) spanked the visiting Highlanders in an Aztec-Foothiller Classic contest.

JONATHAN TIPPIN was Santana's top weapon as he drove in four runs with a double and a single.

A two-run single by ERIC PONCE capped a 4-run top of the 6th for Helix that tied the game 7-7 after the Sultans charged in front 7-2.

Santana countered with a 5-spot in the bottom of the 6th. Winning pitcher DALLAS MARTIN slashed a two-run double following an RBI single by CHRIS DIAZ to give Santana a 10-7 advantage.

Martin was a bit rocky in his four innings of relief, but drove in 3 runs with a 2-for-3 effort at the plate.

All nine Santana starters contributed to a 14-hit attack.

Ponce was 3-for-4 with 3 RBI for Helix, while DEREK ANCRUM was 2-for-2 with a solo home run and 3 runs scored.

"We didn't play our best ballgame," Santana coach JERRY HENSON said. "It was a tough day to play a ballgame."

Foul weather was a major factor. Three times this game was halted by rain. All three times Santana coach Henson and his players were swift in covering the surface with tarps.

MONTE VISTA 13, EL CAJON VALLEY 7 -- The wind was blowing out and that set the tone for the visiting Monte Vista Monarchs in Friday's (Mar. 10) Aztec-Foothiller Classic game at El Cajon Valley.

Monte Vista (2-1) mashed two-run home runs by ANTHONY MARCON, IVAN PITTI and ANTHONY LOPEZ to overpower the Braves (0-5).

"The wind was blowing so hard that the outfielders from both teams had trouble throwing the ball back into the infield," Monte Vista coach LARRY RINEHART said. "And any ball hit in the air that was hit well had a chance to go out."

That's saying something, considering El Cajon Valley is not a hitter friendly park and has deep fences.

Monte Vista jumped in front on BO AGULIAR's two-run double in the first inning. El Cajon Valley cut that advantage in half as CLIFTON THOMAS walked, stole second and third and scored on CAMERON SINES' double.

A two-run homer by Marcon followed by a two-run double by DAN DeANDA gave Monte Vista a 6-1 edge after four innings. Piiti's two run homer in the 5th inning stretched Monte Vista's advantage to 8-1.

El Cajon Valley fought back with three runs in the bottom of the 5th. A two-run single by Sines was the key blow.

Monte Vista iced the victory with 5 runs in the 7th inning. Lopez's two-run homer capped the big inning.

The Braves' Thomas smacked his first home run and ran his county-leading stolen base count to 14 thefts without being caught. Sines was 2-for-4 with 4 RBI for El Cajon Valley.

PATRICK HENRY 11, MOUNT MIGUEL 2 -- Fresh off their first win in two years, the Matadors (1-4) were pasted for nine runs in the 2nd inning of Friday's (Mar. 10) Sweetwater-Bully's East Tournament game at Patrick Henry.

No other information was provided by Mount Miguel coach BYRON GRIGSBY.

El Capitan southpaw Marco Mariscal tossed three full innings of relief to garner the victory Thursday, helping the Vaqueros upend Rancho Bernardo, 8-6. (El Capitan courtesy photo)

Vaqueros bust Broncos as East County trio goes 3-0

East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (3-10-06) -- It was a clean sweep for East County baseball teams during Thursday's (Mar. 9) tournament activity. El Capitan edged Rancho Bernardo 8-6 and Granite Hills popped Poway 13-9 in the Hilltop-Lolita's Tournament, while Christian nipped Kearny 7-6 in the Patriots Invitational.

EL CAPITAN 8, RANCHO BERNARDO 6 -- Whatever rankings El Capitan may receive is based mostly on reputation. But the new-look Vaqueros continue to produce old-time results.

AUSTIN RAUCH and SHANE SULLENGER drove in three runs apiece as the Vaqueros came from behind twice to ditch Rancho Bernardo, which began the season as the No.2-ranked team in the San Diego CIF.

Rauch, who is committed to USD, rifled a two-run home run in the 1st inning to give the Vaqueros the early edge. It was Rauch's second homer in as many games.

"He's off to a great start," El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY said of his blue-chip receiver. "He hit that (home run) hanging curveball a million miles. Then, in the 3rd inning, when they tried to beat him with a fastball he hit another shot (for an RBI single to left)."

Sullenger, who was a bench jockey as a junior, delivered two key hits for the Vaqueros. His RBI single in the 5th inning extended El Capitan's lead to 7-5. Sullenger came through again in the 7th with a base hit that plated VINNY NAZZAL to make it 8-5.

"Sullenger has really improved," Vickery said of the once forgotten second baseman, who has six RBI in the first two games this season. "He can bunt the ball with a pool cue and understands the importance to hitting to the opposite field. He's made himself into a solid hitter."

RYAN INVERSO also had three hits for El Capitan.

Sophomore southpaw MARCO MARISCAL pitched three solid innings of relief to pick up his first varsity win. Mariscal needed only 14 pitches to retire the Broncos in the 4th and 6th innings.

"People hate to hit against guys like Marco," Vickery said. "He's so unassuming. He throws mostly off-speed stuff, but isn't afraid to bust you inside with a decent fastball."

D.J. HENSON came on to finish the job, retiring all three batters he faced -- two of them on strikes -- to earn the save.

GRANITE HILLS 13, POWAY 9 -- All nine starters contributed to Granite Hills' 17-hit attack as the Eagles punched out visiting Poway in Thursday's (Mar. 9) Hilltop-Lolita's Tournament game.

Just 13 pitches into the game, Granite Hills (1-1) had six hits and four runs. Despite a pitching change, the Eagles led 6-0 after one inning. AUSTIN COLEMAN's RBI triple made it 7-0 after two frames.

All of that went for naught as Poway scrambled back to tie it at 7-7 in the 5th inning. The key blow for the Titans (1-1) was a 4th inning grand slam by Jarend Jones, who wound up 2-for-3 with 6 RBI. Catcher Dan Pellegrino slugged a solo homer to tie it in the 5th.

Junior ERIC KRAUSE smacked a three-run double on a 3-2 pitch with two outs in the bottom of the 5th to give Granite Hills a 10-7 advantage.

"Krause and BILLY SYLVESTER are pleasant surprises as hitters for us," Granite Hills coach JAMES DAVIS said. Krause, the Eagles' pitching ace, was 2-for-5 with 4 RBI, while Sylvester was 3-for-3 with an RBI and two runs scored.

An RBI single by Sylvester and a two-run single by BRIAN HUMPHRIES gave Granite Hills a 13-8 spread in the bottom of the 6th.

"Given the weather conditions with all the swirling wind, I knew it was going to be a high-scoring game," Davis said. "But 1-through-9 we've been swinging the bats pretty well.

CHRISTIAN 7, KEARNY 6 -- Senior GRANT MILLS scattered 10 hits and allowed only three earned runs as Christian nipped Kearny 7-6 in Thursday's (Mar. 9) Patriots Invitational contest on Komets' soil.

The 6-foot-2, 200-pound Mills struck out 9 and walked only one as the Patriots improved to 2-1.

Christian was playing catch-up most of the afternoon. AUSTIN MURRAY hit his second home run in three games as the Patriots took a 1-0 lead in the 2nd inning. Kearny countered with 4 runs in the bottom of the inning, but the Patriots rebounded for 4 runs in the 4th inning. That rally was sparked by RBI singles by SHANE STANOVIC and JIMMY DOSSETT.

An infield RBI single by freshman MASON MILLS in the 5th inning turned out to be the decisive marker for the Patriots.

Christian secured the victory when it short-circuited a budding rally with a strikeout-throw out double play to end the game. Dossett and Mason Mills paced Christian's 12-hit attack with three singles apiece.

East County Sports.com
SPRING VALLEY (3-9-06) -- CHRIS FREEMAN's 18th birthday was also extra special for the Mount Miguel Matadors.

On Wednesday (Mar. 8) afternoon, not only did Freeman throw four shutout innings in relief to gain the pitching nod, he also ripped a two-run home run that gave Mount Miguel a 7-4 advantage en route to a 10-6 victory over The Bishop's School in Sweetwater-Bully's East Tournament action.

"Chris had a pretty good birthday present," Mount Miguel coach BYRON GRIGSBY said. "We've had a lot of leads over the past two years, and we finally closed one out."

It was Mount Miguel's first win in 32 starts over the past two years, excluding a post-season forfeit win over Otay Ranch.

"This win is for what we did," Grigsby said. "I'm happy for kids, glad to see those smiles on their faces."

Mount Miguel (1-3) knocked out 15 hits and stole 10 bases against the previously unbeaten Knights (3-1).

Trailing 2-1 in the 2nd inning, Mount Miguel scored 3 runs to take the lead. DAVID WYNN's RBI single tied the game, then RICKY ARRAY's run-scoring single and NICO CALAFATO's RBI double put the Matadors in front.

Yet Mount Miguel was unable to finally take control until the 5th. JEREMIAH WHITE stroked an RBI single and Freeman followed with a line-drive two-run homer.

The Matadors tacked on three runs in the 6th inning to secure Mount Miguel's first on-field win in two seasons.

White was 3-for-3 with three RBI for Mount Miguel.

SANTANA 14, CASTLE PARK 2 -- The Santana Sultans are starting to prove they may be the best baseball team in East County.

An 8-run 1st inning gave the Sultans (2-0) all the runs they would need in Wednesday's (Mar. 8) rout of Castle Park in the Aztec-Foothiller Classic. NICHOLAS SICA's two-run double was the key blow in the big inning.

BRANDYN BELL, JOHN BASNIGHT and RICHARD MARTINEZ combined on a 4-hitter, with both of the Trojans were unearned.

"Sophomore Bell threw five innings -- he didn't have his best stuff, but only gave up four hits," Santana coach JERRY HENSON said "He's been real successful in winter ball."

KYLE BROSNAN was 2-for-3 with a double and 3 RBI for Santana. Basnight's line included a triple and 2 RBI, while freshman RYAN STUTZ was 4-for-4.

"We hit the ball real well," Henson said. "We got to play everyone and we still learned some things."

HELIX 2, BONITA VISTA 0 -- Senior ERIC PONCE and junior MAHI LABASTIDA combined to pitch a 4-hit shutout Wednesday (Mar. 8) as the Highlanders knocked off the Barons in an Aztec-Foothiller Classic contest.

Juniors CALEB SCHUMAKER and DERRIC MILLER stroked RBI doubles in the 2nd inning to provide Helix the platform to victory.

Schumaker was 2-for-2, while DEREK ANCRUM was 2-for-3 for the Highlanders, who missed several other scoring opportunities.

"We missed three sacrifices and a squeeze play," said Helix coach COLE HOLLAND. "Of the nine left on base, seven were in scoring position, so I'm not real happy with our offense. But we got the win."

GROSSMONT 18, EASTLAKE 6 -- In a year where Grossmont coach ROB PHILLIPS wasn't sure how the Foothillers would find their run supply, the Foothillers (2-0) went wild in Wednesday's (Mar. 8).

A 10-run first inning against a traditionally strong Eastlake pitching staff led Grossmont to an easy lopsided victory over the host Titans in an Aztec-Foothiller Classic contest.

TREVOR BERRY drove in three runs with a home run and a double while going 3-for-6 to pace the Foothillers. NICK SOBEL, batting at the top of the Hiller order, was 3-for-5 with three runs and two RBI.

Nine Hillers contributed to Grossmont's 16-hit attack. BRYAN HAAR was 2-for-3 with three RBI and pitched 2 1/3 scoreless innings to earn his first varsity pitching win.

VALHALLA 3, MARIAN CATHOLIC 2 -- Junior BOBBY WILKENS teamed up with freshman reliever TREVOR FRANK to pitch host Valhalla past Marian Catholic in Wednesday's (Mar. 8) Aztec-Foothiller Classic contest.

A bases-loaded walk to TOMAS KARAGIANES in the bottom of the 7th inning forced in the winning for Valhalla.

The key to the victory in the eyes of Valhalla coach STEVE PERDUE was a defensive gem turned in by third baseman DEVIN AZEVEDO in the 5th inning.

"It was a big league play, as good as I've ever seen by a high school kid," Perdue said. "It saved the game for us."

The play in question involved a diving stop by Azevedo of what appeared to be a sure base hit. Instead, Azevedo tagged the runner attempting to advance to third base and fired to first base to complete the double play.

"To think a kid of his years has the presence to make that throw to first base says a lot about Devin," Perdue said.

CHRIS THOMAS' RBI single gave Valhalla a 1-0 lead in the 1st inning. DAVID FRANK's sacrifice fly made it 2-0 an inning later.

RAMONA 5, MONTE VISTA 4 -- Senior DAN DeANDA of Monte Vista had things going his way as he launched a three-run home run in the 1st inning and kept the Bulldogs in check through 4 2/3 innings of Wednesday's (Mar. 8) game in the Aztec-Foothiller Classic in North County.

Monte Vista pinch-hitter GOLDIE SIMMONS slugged a RBI single giving Monte Vista (1-1) a 4-2 advantage in the top of the 5th.

DeAnda ran out of gas on the hill as he gave up a two-out single and then hit a batter with two outs in the bottom of the 5th That left the gate open for catcher Chuck Stith, who belted a three-run home run to erase a 4-2 Monte Vista lead.

ANTHONY LOPEZ also had two hits for Monte Vista, which totaled six for the game.

CHULA VISTA 8, STEELE CANYON 5 -- After taking a 2-0 lead in the opening frame of Wednesday's (Mar. 8) Aztec-Foothiller Classic against the visiting Spartans, Steele Canyon watched as Chula Vista countered with eight unanswered runs.

The Chula Vista turnaround included a pair of home runs.

"We got out of our game plan," said Steele Canyon coach PHIL MITTRY. "Had (too many) fly ball outs. Our game is more speed -- if we don't put the ball on the ground, it is trouble for us."

MIKE LANGE, who doesn't make his living with footspeed, laced a two-run double giving Steele Canyon (1-1) a 2-0 lead in the first.

CODY MINICH was 2-for-3 with a double, two runs and an RBI, while JUSTIN GRAFF added two hits to Steele Canyon's game total of eight.

Relievers NICK TODARO and TAYLOR McKINLEY blanked the Spartans over the final 3 1/3 innings.

VISTA 5, WEST HILLS 1 -- The Wolf Pack rates as one of East County's top teams. Vista is one of the North County's best.

Trevor Cahill, who has a ride to Dartmouth, dominated West Hills (1-1) over six innings, allowing just two hits and three walks while striking out 13.

JOE MELLO and WILL CRUMPLER accounted for West Hills' two singles.

"We didn't make any adjustments at the plate," said West Hills coach SCOTT HOPGOOD. "Our defense, which is normally pretty solid, just didn't make the plays they were supposed to make. When you get behind against a team like Vista, it's trouble. We had some defensive miscues. But this is just one game, we'll bounce back."

MONTGOMERY 16, EL CAJON VALLEY 2 -- It was not a day to remember for El Cajon Valley baseball fans.

The Braves (0-4) were trailing only 5-2 after four innings before Montgomery -- shut out by Santana in the season opener -- exploded for 10 runs in the 5th to turn the game into a blowout.

"Six errors and 0-2 hits killed us," El Cajon Valley coach WAYNE WEIGHTMAN said.

The Braves' CLIFTON THOMAS continued his torrid hitting with two hits -- including a triple -- in 3 at-bats. Thomas scored both El Cajon Valley runs and upped his county-leading stolen base count to 12.

Vaqueros right-hander Gabe Lopez tossed two innings of shutout relief, helping El Capitan blank San Marcos, 13-0, in Tuesday's season opener. (Photo by Greg Eichelberger)

Rauch opens El Cap season to a slam-ing start

East County Sports.com
LAKESIDE (3-8-06) -- Weather or not, the El Capitan Vaqueros are ready to play ball.

Senior catcher AUSTIN RAUCH put a charge in the Vaqueros' season opener, driving in five runs with a 1st inning RBI single and a booming grand slam in the 5th inning as El Capitan steamrollered visiting San Marcos 13-0 in Tuesday's (Mar. 7) first round of the Hilltop-Lolita's Tournament.

While Rauch was spearheading the offense, senior right-hander CRISTIAN GARCIA was laying the foundation for a 3-hit shutout.

Garcia worked the first four frames, allowing just two hits while striking out 7 -- three in the 1st inning. GABE LOPEZ followed with two perfect innings of relief that included 4 strikeouts. D.J. HENSON pitched the 7th to complete the job.

El Capitan was on top 4-0 after four innings before breaking the game open with 8 runs in the 5th. Eleven Vaqueros batted in that frame. Freshman TANNER RUST slapped an RBI single to right field. Senior SHANE SULLENGER drove in a run with a single up the middle and LUCAS WHITMORE and RYAN INVERSO each plated a run with a bases-loaded walk.

"We gave up just two infield singles and a single to right field," noted El Capitan coach STEVE VICKERY. "This is a good start."

RANCHO BUENA VISTA 6, GRANITE HILLS 5 -- The bottom fell out of the Granite Hills defense in the final two innings of Tuesday's (Mar. 7) Hilltop-Lolita's Tournament opener in Vista.

The Eagles, No. 2-ranked team in the San Diego CIF a year ago, were riding a 5-1 advantage into the bottom of the 7th inning. Granite Hills starter ERIC KRAUSE was spinning a nifty 3-hitter through six frames, but Eagles coach JAMES DAVIS wanted to test his bullpen in the final inning.

The relievers flunked the test, but easily could place blame on the Granite Hills defense.

"Krause was up to 80 on the pitch count," Davis said. "I thought we could make a move and it didn't work out.

"Krause pitched a helluva game. I hated to waste the performance that he had. He deserved to win. He had the game in complete control. The flow of the game changed when I took him out."

Rancho Buena Vista's Vince Riedel hit a three-run double in the seventh to tie it 5-5. The winning run came across on a passed ball.

It was a complete giveaway by the Eagles.

"Hopefully, we lose the battle and win the war," Davis said. “Hopefully, we can learn from this and build on it."

On the bright side, Granite Hills did put together a five-run 5th inning. BILLY SYLVESTER smacked an RBI double, LOUIE CAZARES plated a run with a flyball and TRAVIS TAIJERON laced a two-run double.

VALLEY CENTER 3, CHRISTIAN 2 -- In another 7th inning fold job, the visiting Patriots of Christian High blew a 2-1 lead to host Valley Center in Tuesday's (Mar. 7) second round of the Christian Tournament.

The hard-luck loser was Christian's TODD JONES, who pitched a complete-game 8-hitter.

In the decisive bottom of the 7th inning, after a ground out and a basehit, stolen base and single, Valley Center tied the game at 2-2.

It was a close play at the plate.

Christian intentionally walked the next Valley Center batter to set up a possible force play with runners on first and second base. The Patriots gave up that advantage when the next Jaguars batter grounded out to move the runners to second and third.

"We got the ground ball but it was way too slow," said Mitchell.

Valley Center cleanup hitter Matt Goswick followed with a single down the left field line that landed just fair, and scored the winning run.

Christian (1-1) generated just four hits off Valley Center pitcher Brian Petry, who logged a complete game.

An RBI double by Christian's EDDIE YOUNG tied the game 1-1 in the 3rd inning. The Patriots took a 2-1 lead in the 5th on ADAM PERRY's RBI single.

East County Sports.com
SPRING VALLEY (3-7-06) -- Mount Miguel coach BYRON GRIGGS must wonder what it's going to take for his Matadors to get that first on-the-field victory.

For the record, Mount Miguel is 1-30 in Griggs' one-plus seasons. That lone win was via forfeit against Otay Ranch a year ago.

The Matadors were closing in on a victory in Monday's (Mar. 6) Bully's-East Invitational against visiting San Dieguito Academy. But the visiting Mustangs scored five runs in the top of the 7th to steal an 8-7 victory.

"We lost a heartbreaker today," Grigsby said. "But the kids are starting to believe now. A couple of individuals really stepped up today. I've got position players now."

Mount Miguel was one strike away from pulling out a one-run victory when Benito Castillo slapped a two-run single to give San Dieguito the come-from-behind win.

"We got an 0-2 pitch up, and their guy hit it right back through the middle for a two-run single," Grigsby lamented. "We were THAT close."

Mount Miguel (0-3) wiped out a 2-0 Mustangs lead with 6 runs in the bottom of the 2nd inning. CHRIS FREEMAN and RICKY ARRAY each had a 2-run single in that inning. JAMIE SANDOVAL smacked an RBI single and eventually scored on a wild pitch.

Freeman was 3-for-4 with a double to lead Mount Miguel's 7-hit attack.

The Matadors wasted five innings of 2-hit pitching by DAVID WYNN in the loss. Reliever DAUNTE WILLIAMSON retired the side in order in the 6th, but couldn't get out of the 7th. NICO CALAFATO came on to get the final two outs, but not before surrendering the decisive hit.

East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (3-5-06) -- How good is East County high school baseball?

On this particular Saturday (Mar. 4) seven Inland ballclubs won. Three lost. Two of the losing East County crews were beaten by other Area teams.

Among the most impressive victories was 8th-ranked Santana's 4-0 victory over perennial power Montgomery in the first round of the Aztec-Foothiller Classic.

Junior right-hander DALLAS MARTIN pitched a 3-hit shutout, while striking out 10 and walking none. Martin's pinpoint control allowed Santana coach JERRY HENSON to permit Martin to complete the opening day assignment. Martin needed only 85 pitches to silence the Aztecs.

"Any time you can strike out 10 of Montgomery's hitters with no walks, you've had a good day," Henson said. "We played really solid baseball, hit the ball very well and played great defense."

Interpretation of Henson's remarks: Santana played error-free defense and collected clutch hits when runners were in scoring position.

Santana scored the only run it needed in the 2nd inning. JOHN BASNIGHT singled to left, CHRIS DIAZ was hit by a pitch and sophomore CHRIS RABICHAUD singled down the right field line to score Basnight.

RYAN BROSNAN doubled into the wind, lifting the ball over the Montgomery left fielder's head for an RBI and a 2-0 lead in the 3rd inning. Brosnan wasn't finished, as he added an RBI single in the 5th. A squeeze bunt by Basnight added a second tally in the inning and Martin took care of the rest.

GROSSMONT 2, CHULA VISTA 1 (9 inn.) -- Pitching dominated this Aztec-Foothiller Classic opener Saturday (Mar. 4) at Grossmont's Joe Gizoni Field. None of the runs were earned.

Grossmont's A.J. GRIFFIN turned in an overpowering seven innings, scattering six hits and striking out 11. He did not issue a single walk, yet was not rewarded with a victory.

It was Griffin, however, who logged the game-winning RBI in the bottom of the 9th inning. The USD-bound right-hander rolled a bases-loaded grounder to third. When the Chula Vista third baseman made his throw to the plate, he pegged Foothillers base-runner AUGIE WILLIAMS in the back. Williams scored the winning marker as the ball rolled harmlessly away.

Grossmont tied the game three innings earlier as back-to-back errors gave the Foothillers their first two base-runners with two outs in the 6th. Williams rifled an RBI double to left-center field bringing NICK SOBEL across to make it 1-1.

WEST HILLS 2, VALHALLA 1 (9 inn.) -- Sacrifice flies by AARON GAGNON in the 2nd inning and MICHAEL HALL in the bottom of the 9th was enough firepower to give host West Hills to extra-inning nod in Saturday's (Mar. 4) Aztec-Foothiller Classic.

AARON RICHARDSON, SHAIN STONER and STEPHEN STRASBURG combined to spin a 2-hitter, striking out 10 while surviving 9 walks and a pair of hit batsmen.

"First game out we've got a pitchers' duel," said West Hills coach SCOTT "HOPPY" HOPGOOD. "We played hard defense. We executed well, did the little things well. That's what it takes to win these one-run ballgames."

ERIC JULIENNE allowed only one run and three hits in a seven-inning stint for Valhalla. Reliever BOBBY WILKINS was tagged with the loss despite not allowing a hit.

TRAVIS IRVIN accounted for two of West Hills' three hits.

STEELE CANYON 7, MARIAN CATHOLIC 4 -- The Cougars overcame a 3-1 deficit to knock off Marian Catholic in Saturday's (Mar. 4) Aztec-Foothiller Classic contest at Grossmont's Gizoni Field .

"We threw sophomore pitchers and both did well," said Steele Canyon coach PHIL MITTRY. "They did exactly what they needed to do. We were down 3-1 and the offense kicked into gear in the 5th inning. We started hitting the ball on the ground and we were able to move some runners around the bases."

RBI singles by MIKE LANGE and WILL MURRAY capped a 3-run 5th inning that vaulted Steele Canyon in front 4-3.

DANNY HARRIS slugged a two-run home run to extend Steele Canyon's lead to 6-3 in the 6th.

ROSS EPPERSON stole a Steele Canyon record 4 bases, while Harris and CODY MINICH each swiped one.

ALEX CEBALLOS pitched 4 innings for the win and MARK BELLATI pitched three innings for the save.

CHRISTIAN 11, MOUNTAIN EMPIRE 1 -- SHANE STANOVIC drove in three runs with a double and a single as the Patriots opened Saturday's (Mar. 4) Christian Invitational with a lopsided victory.

EDDIE YOUNG was 3-for-4 with a pair of RBI and a couple of runs scored, while ADAM PERRY was 2-for-2 with a triple and three runs. AUSTIN MURRAY blasted a solo home run in the 6th inning.

"We're kind of a 'senior' team -- we have nine," said Christian coach MIKE MITCHELL. "We never have that many seniors. And of the nine, five are three-year starters, so we've got a chance this year."

Four Christian pitchers shared in toiling a 3-hitter at the visiting Redhawks (1-1).

MONTE VISTA 5, BONITA VISTA 3 -- RBI doubles by ANTHONY LOPEZ and DANNY DeANDA in the 5th inning gave host Monte Vista a 4-3 lead it wouldn't lose in Saturday's (Mar. 4) Aztec-Foothillers Classic.

DeAnda finished 2-for-3 with 2 RBI, and also pitched 3 innings to collect the win. Lopez retired the side in order to earn the save.

"The kids on this team have potential," said Monte Vista coach LARRY RINEHART. "We only have 13 kids on the team."

HELIX 7, EL CAJON VALLEY 5 -- CALEB SCHUMAKER's two-run single helped stake the Highlanders to a 4-0 lead in the 2nd inning Saturday (Mar. 4) as both teams began play in the Aztec-Foothiller Classic at Montgomery.

DEREK ANCRUM blasted a two-run double to cap a three-run 4th as Helix opened up a 7-2 lead.

"We swung the bats really well, only struck out one in 6 innings," reported Helix coach COLE HOLLAND. "We did a terrible job on 2-strike pitches, but overall we played pretty good defense, only walked one person. El Cajon only walked us once -- their pitchers did a good job."

For the Braves (0-3), CLIFTON THOMAS was 3-for-4 with a double and three steals to raise his county-leading stolen base count to 10 in three games.

LA JOLLA 5, MOUNT MIGUEL 0 -- The Matadors were limited to singles by BRYAN SHIMIZU and JAMES TREBUS in Saturday's (Mar. 4) Sweetwater-Bully's East Tournament game.

"It's early, we're in a little slump," said Mount Miguel coach BYRON GRIGSBY. "We're playing with a little pressure instead of having fun playing the game of baseball. We'll get better."

East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (3-4-06) -- It was a less than classic opener for the Mount Miguel Matadors, who tested a rebuilding band of Red Devils Friday (Mar. 3) at Sweetwater in a Bully's East Tournament tilt.

NICO CALAFATO and JEREMIAH WHITE delivered RBI hits for the Matadors, who led 2-0 in the 1st inning.

That was short-lived as Mount Miguel pitchers served up a dozen walks as Sweetwater claimed a 12-6 victory.

JAMES TREBUS was the only Matador to generate multiple hits with a pair of singles (in three at-bats) and stole a base.

DAUNTE WILLIAMSON had three steals for Mount Miguel.

East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (3-3-06) -- Three El Cajon Valley pitchers combined to spin a six-hitter Thursday (Mar. 2), but the visiting Chula Vista Spartans still rolled to an 11-4 victory in a non-league game called by darkness with two outs in the top of the 7th inning.

All 11 of Chula Vista's runs were unearned, reported El Cajon Valley coach WAYNE WEIGHTMAN, who saw his defense commit seven errors in six innings. Eight walks didn't help matters for the Braves (0-2), who collected seven hits of their own.

On the bright side, CLIFTON THOMAS stole four bases, giving him seven thefts in as many attempts over two games. Thomas reached base on a single and a walk against Chula Vista.

CAMERON SINES was 2-for-2 with a walk for the Braves, while KEVIN MANSFIELD stroked an RBI single.

Note -- The listed CIF-San Diego Section record for stolen bases in a single season is 50, set in 1995 by Mount Carmel's Eric Chavez, the 5-time Gold Glove third baseman of the Oakland Athletics. The East County mark is 41 by ROBERT CANNON of Mount Miguel in 1985.

East County Sports.com
CHULA VISTA (3-2-06) -- It was a nice start for El Cajon Valley senior center fielder CLIFTON THOMAS, but a rather lengthy first outing for the Braves as a whole as they dropped their season opener 12-4 Wednesday (Mar. 1) at Otay Ranch.

Thomas, a standout performer for the Braves' football team in the fall, was 2-for-3 with a triple, three steals, a run and one RBI.

The Mustangs, meanwhile, took advantage of five El Cajon Valley errors and teed off on three El Cajon Valley pitchers for 17 hits. Five of Otay Ranch's runs were unearned.

Otay Ranch blasted three home runs -- all coming in the third inning as the Mustangs galloped to a 7-1 lead.

Senior catcher DEREK PEREZ, a dominating lineman in football, had an RBI double as part of a three-run sixth inning for the Braves.

East County Sports.com
EL CAJON -- Weather permitting, the East County baseball season will begin this week.

First out of the chute are the El Cajon Valley Braves, who are slated to travel to Otay Ranch Wednesday (Mar. 1) for a 3 p.m. non-league contest. The Braves don't plan for any rest as they will host Chula Vista in a non-league affair on Thursday (Mar. 2) at 3 p.m.

Although rain is predicted for Friday (Mar. 3), Mount Miguel's Matadors plan to begin the season in the Bully's East Tournament with a road game against host Sweetwater High at 3 p.m.

Activity intensifies on Saturday (Mar. 4) as the Aztec/Foothiller Classic begins with games involving Inland teams Santana, Helix, El Cajon Valley, Monte Vista, Grossmont, Valhalla and Steele Canyon.

Game of the day on Saturday is Santana's outing against the hosting Montgomery Aztecs at 10:30 a.m.

Christian High begins its season on Saturday by hosting Mountain Empire in the opening round of the Patriots Invitational at 2 p.m. Mount Miguel continues its play in the Bully's East Tournament with a visit to La Jolla at 11 a.m.

East County Sports.com
LINDA VISTA (2-3-06) -- The schedule of games has been released for the inaugural Baseball "K" Classic, the season-opening event of the high school baseball season which raises funds for the CIF-San Diego Section. Six ballgames are slated, with Granite Hills, Grossmont and Valhalla high schools among the 12 participating schools.

CIF commissioner Dennis Ackerman announced the games will be held at Sat., Feb. 25, at the Poway High School baseball stadium.

The classic begins at 8:30 a.m. in a contest between 2005 Division IV semifinalist Francis Parker, going against rising contender Westview, followed by a 10:45 a.m. ballgame between defending CIF Division I finalist GRANITE HILLS going against perennial playoff participant Patrick Henry.

The afternoon contests show Imperial Valley League power El Centro-Central meeting Division I Montgomery at 1 p.m., followed by the 3:15 p.m. game between Division I Fallbrook and defending Division III champion Cathedral Catholic.

In the evening session, Division II titlist GROSSMONT meets the powerful Division III program from Mission Bay at 5:30 p.m., then at 7:45 p.m., its Division III semifinalist VALHALLA taking on the host Poway Titans.

Tickets are just $6 and go on sale Feb. 1, 2006. To purchase tickets or for further information, contact the CIFSDS office at 858-292-8165 or visit the section's website www.cifsds.org.

East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (12-21-05) -- Valhalla High baseball announces the inaugural Norsemen Baseball Alumni Day on Saturday, Feb. 11. The day's events begin with a Norsemen baseball game at 10:30 a.m., followed by a catered lunch ($8 a plate) at 11:30 a.m., and then a Home Run Hitting Contest from 1-2 p.m. The alumni vs. Norsemen winter varsity team will square off at 2:30 p.m.

Raffles will be held for items donated by the community and San Diego based athletes. For further information, please call Valhalla head coach Steve Perdue at (619) 518-1315; former Norsemen players please call or email your confirmation to: s.perdueatcox.net.

Wed., Apr. 12
56th Annual Lions Tournament
Granite Hills 10, Rancho Bernardo 2
Valhalla 7, La Costa Canyon 4
Santana 10, Bakersfield-Liberty 5
Grossmont 2, Mission Bay 0
El Capitan 7, Cathedral Catholic 2
Roseville-Woodcreek 14, Steele Canyon 3
Monte Vista 4, St. Paul 1
Francis Parker 5, West Hills 3
Otay Ranch 4, Helix 3
The Bishop's 7, Christian 3
El Cajon Valley 5, Brawley 3
Mount Miguel 13, Holtville 3

Tue., Apr. 11
56th Annual Lions Tournament
Mount Miguel 9, Hoover 7
Grossmont 12, L.V.-Spring Valley 9
Helix 8, Escondido 7 (9 inn.).
Valhalla 14, Foothill 3
Castle Park 6, West Hills 3
Coronado 5, Steele Canyon 2
Hilltop 6, Monte Vista 2
Point Loma 7, Christian 5
St. Augustine 6, Santana 2
Saugus 10, El Capitan 8
Thousand Oaks 8, Granite Hills 6
Valley Center 13, El Cajon Valley 4

Mon., Apr. 10
56th Annual Lions Tournament
Granite Hills 15, Vacaville 5 (6 inn.)
Valhalla 2, Eastlake 1
Grossmont 14, Fresno-Edison 4 (5 inn.)
Sacramento-Folsom 3, El Capitan 2
Santana 3, Valencia 2
Westview 8, Steele Canyon 7
Mission Hills 13, Monte Vista 2
West Hills 3, Carlsbad 2
Helix 6, Mira Mesa 5 (8 inn.)
Christian 4, Santa Cruz-Harbor 0
San Ysidro 10, El Cajon Valley 5
Bear Valley 4, Mount Miguel 0

Sat., Apr. 8
Grossmont South League
Helix 5-4, Mount Miguel 1-3
Aztec-Foothiller Classic
Championship: Santana 12, Eastlake 10
Non-League
Grossmont 17-9, San Ysidro 2-3
Castle Park 1, West Hills 0

Fri., Apr. 7
Grossmont South League
Valhalla 10-12, Steele Canyon 6-7
Grossmont North League
Grossmont 5, Santana 1
Central League
Christian 19, Crawford 3

Thurs., Apr. 6
Grossmont North League
West Hills 5, El Capitan 4 (8 inn.)
Grossmont at Santana, ppd. (Apr. 7, 3 p.m.)
Grossmont South League
Granite Hills 2-9, Monte Vista 1-5
Steele Canyon at Valhalla, DH, ppd. (Apr. 7, 2 p.m.)
Mount Miguel at Helix, DH, ppd. (Aor. 8, 11 a.m)
Central League
Kearny 11, Hoover 4

Wed., Apr. 5
Non-League
Christian at Mission Bay, ppd., rain (May 13, 1 p.m., moved to Christian)

Tue., Apr.4
Non-League
Bonita Vista 7, El Capitan 4

Mon., Apr.3
Non-League
Hilltop 5, Santana 0

Sat., Apr. 1
Grossmont Conference Tournament
Championship: Santana 6, Valhalla 5
Aztec-Foothiller Classic
Championship: Eastlake at Santana, ppd. (site, date change to Apr. 8)
Christian Tournament
Santa Fe Christian at Christian, ccd.

Fri., Mar. 31
City Conference Tournament
Christian 9, Morse 1

Thurs., Mar. 30
Grossmont Conference Tournament
Monte Vista 3, West Hills 2
Santana 6, Granite Hills 0
El Capitan 5, Helix 0
Grossmont 11, Steele Canyon 2
Mount Miguel 8, El Cajon Valley 1

Wed., Mar. 29
City Conference Tournament
Morse at Christian, ppd., rain (Mar. 31)

Tue., Mar. 28
Grossmont Conference Tournament
Valhalla 6, Grossmont 2
West Hills 4, Granite Hills 1
Santana 17, Helix 0
El Capitan 19, Mount Miguel 2
Steele Canyon 10, El Cajon Valley 2

Mon., Mar. 27
City Conference Tournament
Serra 5, Christian 4

Sat., Mar. 25
Grossmont Conference Tournament
Steele Canyon 6, El Capitan 5
Helix 6, West Hills 4
Grossmont 7, Monte Vista 2
Valhalla 14, El Cajon Valley 0
Santana 14, Mount Miguel 1

Fri., Mar. 24
Grossmont Conference Tournament
Steele Canyon 9, West Hills 7
Helix 6, Grossmont 4
Santana 2, Valhalla 0
El Capitan 4, Monte Vista 3

Thurs., Mar. 23
Grossmont Conference Tournament
Santana 6, Steele Canyon 2
Granite Hills 11, Grossmont 3
West Hills 8, Mount Miguel 4
El Capitan 4, Valhalla 2
Monte Vista 3, El Cajon Valley 0

Wed., Mar. 22
City Conference Tournament
Madison 10, Christian 8
Grossmont Conference Tournament
Granite Hills 9, El Cajon Valley 6

Tue., Mar. 21
Grossmont Conference Tournament
Steele Canyon at West Hills, ppd., rain
Helix at Grossmont, ppd., rain
Valhalla at Santana, ppd., rain
Granite Hills at El Cajon Valley, ppd., rain
Monte Vista at El Capitan, ppd., rain

Mon., Mar. 20
City Tournament
Mission Bay 15, Christian 0

Sat., Mar. 18
Hilltop-Lolita's Tournament
El Capitan 6, St. Augustine 5 (8 inn.)
Hilltop 12, Granite Hills 0
Championship: ppd. (TBA)
Aztec-Foothiller Classic
Championship: Santana vs. Eastlake, at Grossmont, ppd., rain
Christian Tournament
Santa Fe Chr. at Christian, ppd., rain

Fri., Mar. 17
Aztec-Foothiller Classic
Eastlake 15, Steele Canyon 7
West Hills 11, Chula Vista 8

Thurs., Mar. 16
Hilltop-Lolita's Tournament
El Capitan 7, Cathedral Catholic 4
Escondido 5, Granite Hills 4
Aztec-Foothiller Classic
Bonita Vista 9, El Cajon Valley 1

Wed., Mar. 15
Aztec-Foothiller Classic
Castle Park 8, Monte Vista 3
Ramona 14, El Cajon Valley 4
Santana 10, Bonita Vista 4
Montgomery 1, Helix 0
West Hills 3, Marian Catholic 0
Eastlake 4, Valhalla 3
Steele Canyon 6, Grossmont 3

Tue., Mar. 14
Hilltop-Lolita's Tournament
Fallbrook 11, El Capitan 2
Granite Hills 5, Mission Bay 1
Christian Tournament
Imperial 7, Christian 5
Aztec-Foothiller Classic
Santana 7, Monte Vista 6
Valhalla 10, Chula Vista 1
Ramona 6, Helix 5
Vista 14, Steele Canyon 2

Mon., Mar. 13
Aztec-Foothiller Classic
Grossmont 8, Marian Catholic 3
Eastlake 3, West Hills 2
Monte Vista at Santana, ppd., wet grounds (Mar. 14)

Sat., Mar. 11
Hilltop-Lolita's Tournament
St. Augustine vs. El Capitan, at Hilltop, ppd., rain
Granite Hills at Hilltop, ppd., rain
Aztec-Foothiller Classic
Monte Vista at Santana, ppd., rain
West Hills at Eastlake, ppd., rain
Chula Vista vs. Valhalla, at Eastlake, ppd., rain
El Cajon Valley vs. Bonita Vista, at Castle Park, ppd., rain
Marian Catholic vs. Grossmont, at Santana, ppd., rain
Steele Canyon at Vista, ppd., rain (Mar. 14, 3 p.m.)
Ramona vs. Helix, at Vista, ppd., rain (TBA)
Christian Tournament
Santa Fe Chr. at Christian, ppd., rain (TBA)
Sweetwater-Bully's East Tourney
Championship, at Sweetwater, ppd., rain (Mar 13)

Fri., Mar. 10
Sweetwater-Bully's East Tourney
Patrick Henry 11, Mount Miguel 2
Aztec-Foothiller Classic
Santana 12, Helix 7
Monte Vista 13, El Cajon Valley 7
Valhalla 6, Grossmont 2
Eastlake at Steele Canyon, ppd., rain (Mar. 17)
Chula Vista at West Hills, ppd., rain (Mar. 17)

Thurs., Mar. 9
Christian Tournament
Christian 7, Kearny 6
Hilltop-Lolita's Tournament
El Capitan 8, Rancho Bernardo 6
Granite Hills 13, Poway 9

Wed., Mar. 8
Sweetwater-Bully's East Tourney
Mount Miguel 10, The Bishop's 6
Aztec-Foothiller Classic
Montgomery 16, El Cajon Valley 2
Ramona 5, Monte Vista 4
Santana 14, Castle Park 2
Helix 2, Bonita Vista 0
Grossmont 18, Eastlake 6
Valhalla 3, Marian Catholic 2
Vista 5, West Hills 1
Chula Vista 8, Steele Canyon 5

Tue., Mar. 7
Christian Tournament
Valley Center 3, Christian 2
Hilltop-Lolita's Tournament
El Capitan 13, San Marcos 0
Rancho Buena Vista 6, Granite Hills 5

Mon., Mar. 6
Sweetwater-Bully's East Tourney
San Dieguito Academy 8, Mount Miguel 7

Sat., Mar. 4
Aztec/Foothiller Classic
West Hills 2, Valhalla 1 (9 inn.)
Monte Vista 5, Bonita Vista 3
Grossmont 2, Chula Vista 1 (9 inn.)
Santana 4, Montgomery 0
Helix 7, El Cajon Valley 5
Steele Canyon 7, Marian Catholic 4
Sweetwater-Bully's East Tourney
La Jolla 5, Mount Miguel 0
Christian Tournament
Christian 11, Mountain Empire 1

Fri., Mar. 3
Sweetwater-Bully's East Tourney
Sweetwater 12, Mount Miguel 6

Thurs., Mar. 2
Non-League
Chula Vista 11, El Cajon Valley 4

Wed., Mar. 1
Non-League
Otay Ranch 12, El Cajon Valley 4

2005 SAN DIEGO CIF PLAYOFFS
 
TUESDAY, MAY 24
Play In:
DIVISION I
Top 4 seeded teams draw Play in Bye:
#1  Poway (26-4)
#2  Fallbrook (24-6)
#3  Rancho Bernardo (27-5)
#4  GRANITE HILLS (25-5)
 
Chula Vista (18-10) 10,  Vista (19-10) 8
Montgomery (20-9) 5, Torrey Pines (13-16)0
Eastlake (24-7) 8,  La Costa Canyon (16-15) 3
Rancho Buena Vista (20-11) 8,  Sweetwater (18-12) 0
*
DIVISION II
Byes:
#1  EL CAPITAN (19-11)
#2  GROSSMONT (22-8)
#3  Ramona (20-7)
#4  Escondido (19-9)
 
Oceanside (16-15) 7,  Serra (14-12) 5
Hilltop (17-12) 11,  Scripps Ranch (12-13-2) 4
Patrick Henry (18-10) 11,  San Pasqual (13-16) 3
University City (17-10) 8,  Mt. Carmel (11-20) 2
*
DIVISION III
Byes:
#1  VALHALLA (21-7)
#2  Mission Bay (21-8)
#3  St. Augustine( 19-10)
#4  SANTANA (23-7)
 
USDHS (16-11) 9,  STEELE CANYON (16-12) 1
Madison (24-5) 8, Otay Ranch (16-11) 2
Coronado (19-11) 11,  San Marcos (17-13) 8
Clairemont (16-12) 8,  Mission Hills (15-15) 2
*
DIVISION IV
Byes:
#1  Horizon (17-4)
#2  Santa Fe Christian (17-7) 
#3  Francis Parker (21-8-1)
#4  CHRISTIAN (16-9)
 
The Bishop's (15-11) 22,  Calipatria (14-6-1) 8
Marian Catholic (13-16) 18,  Tri-City Christian (8-13) 11
Imperial (14-10) 7,  La Jolla Country Day (14-14) 5
Palo Verde (18-9-1) 13,  Mountain Empire (14-9) 3

 
WEDNESDAY, MAY 25
Round 1:
DIVISION I
#1 Poway (27-4) 6,  Chula Vista (18-11) 1
#4 GRANITE HILLS (26-5) 7,  Montgomery (20-10) 3
#3 Rancho Bernardo (28-5) 6,  Eastlake (24-8) 5
#2 Fallbrook (25-6) 7,  Rancho Buena Vista (20-12) 0
*
DIVISION II
#1 EL CAPITAN (20-11) 10,  Oceanside (16-16) 8
#4 Escondido (20-9) 11,  Hilltop (17-13) 1
#3 Ramona (21-7) 2,  Patrick Henry (18-11) 0
#2 GROSSMONT (23-8) 9,  University City (17-11) 3
*
DIVISION III
#1 VALHALLA (22-7) 8,  USDHS (16-12) 6
#4 SANTANA ( 24-7) 1,  Madison (24-6) 0
Coronado (20-11) 7,  #3 St. Augustine (19-11) 4
#2 Mission Bay (22-8) 4,  Clairemont (16-13) 0
*
DIVISION IV
#1 Horizon (18-4) 4,  Bishop⤙s (15-12) 3 (8)
Marian Catholic (14-16) 8,  #4 CHRISTIAN (16-10) 6
#3 Parker (22-8-1) 19,  Imperial (14-11) 1
#2 Santa Fe Christian (18-7) 4,  Palo Verde (18-10-1) 2

 
FRIDAY, MAY 27
Round 2:  4 pm
DIVISION I
#4 GRANITE HILLS (27-5) 10,  #1 Poway (27-5) 7
Montgomery (21-10) 1,  Chula Vista (18-12) 0
#3 Rancho Bernardo (29-5) 13,  #2 Fallbrook (25-7) 7
Eastlake (25-8) 4,  Rancho Buena Vista (20-13) 2
*
DIVISION II
#1 EL CAPITAN (21-11) 10,  #4 Escondido (20-10) 9
Hilltop (18-13) 3,  Oceanside (16-17) 2
#2 GROSSMONT (24-8) 14,  #3 Ramona (21-8) 10
Patrick Henry (19-11) 8,  University City (17-12) 7 (9i)
*
DIVISION III
#1 VALHALLA (23-7) 6,  #4 SANTANA (24-8) 2
USDHS (17-12) 8,  Madison (24-7) 5
Coronado (21-11) 6,  #2 Mission Bay (22-9) 3
#3 St. Augustine (20-11) 5,  Clairemont (16-14) 1
*
DIVISION IV
#1 Horizon (19-4) 8,  Marian Catholic (14-17) 3
Bishop's (16-12) 3,  #4 CHRISTIAN (16-11) 2
#2 Santa Fe Christian (19-7) 7,  #3 Parker (22-9-1) 3
Imperial (15-11) 5,  Palo Verde (18-11-1) 4

SATURDAY, MAY 28
Round 3:
DIVISION I
#1 Poway (28-5) 10,  Montgomery (21-11) 6
Eastlake (26-8) 3,  #2 Fallbrook (25-8) 2
*
DIVISION II
Hilltop (19-13) 11,  #4 Escondido (21-10) 7
Patrick Henry (20-11) 4,  #3 Ramona (21-9) 3
*
DIVISION III
 USDHS (18-12) 10,  #4 SANTANA (24-9) 8 (10i)
#2 Mission Bay (23-9) 14,   #3 St. Augustine (20-12) 7
*
DIVISION IV
Marian Catholic (15-17) 6,  Bishop⤙s (16-13) 0
#3 Francis Parker (23-9-1) 9,  Imperial (15-12) 4

TUESDAY, MAY 31
Round 4:
DIVISION I
#4 GRANITE HILLS (28-5) 7,  #1 Poway (28-6) 6
#3 Rancho Bernardo (30-5) 5,  Eastlake (26-9) 3
*
DIVISION II - 4 pm
#1 EL CAPITAN (22-11) 6,  Hilltop (19-14) 3
#2 GROSSMONT (25-8) 10,  Patrick Henry (20-12) 9
*
DIVISION III - 4 pm
USDHS (19-12) 4,   #1 VALHALLA (23-8) 1
#2 Mission Bay (24-9) 3,  Coronado (21-12) 2 (9i)
*
DIVISION IV - 4 pm
#1 Horizon (20-4) 8,  Marian Catholic (15-18) 5
Santa Fe Christian (20-7) 4,   #3 Francis Parker (23-10-1) 3 (9i)
*
THURSDAY, JUNE 2
DIVISION III - 4 pm
USDHS (20-12) 3,  Valhalla (23-9) 2 (12 inn)
Coronado (23-11) 2,  Mission Bay (24-10) 0

SATURDAY, JUNE 4
SDCIF Championships
at SDSU Tony Gwynn Stadium
DIVISION I
#3 Rancho Bernardo (31-5) 8,  #4 GRANITE HILLS (28-6) 2
*
DIVISION II
#2 GROSSMONT (26-8) 7,  #1 EL CAPITAN (22-12) 2
*
DIVISION III
USDHS (21-12) 12,  Coronado (23-12) 7
*
DIVISION IV
Santa Fe Christian (21-7) 2,  #1 Horizon (20-5) 1 (8 inn.)