Lightning playoff run halted

The Sage Hill School baseball team started fast, but fizzled out in a

14-2 loss in the first round of the CIF Southern Section Division V

playoffs at Vasquez High.

The Lightning (14-9), which topped La Verne Lutheran in Tuesday’s

wild-card round for the two-year-old varsity program’s first

postseason victory, had unbeaten Vasquez senior starter Eddie Cook on

the ropes in the opening inning.

Tim Wilkins led off with a walk, Jordan Salinger singled and

senior Zach Friedrichs singled to drive in Wilkins. Matt Loper walked

to load the bases with no outs, but Cook, who improved to 9-0 with

the complete-game effort, fanned the next three to work out of the

jam. Cook, bound for Chapman University, had eight strikeouts and

allowed six hits.

“He was the best pitcher we faced all year,” Sage Hill assistant

coach Steve Wishek said.

Vasquez tied it in the second, but Sage regained the lead with a

run in the third on Loper’s RBI triple.

Five unearned runs, however, put the Mustangs ahead for good in

the third, as they improved their record to 18-3.

Senior catcher Vince Ortiz belted two solo homers and the Mustangs

had three round-trippers among their seven extra-base hits.

*--*

CIF Division V

First round Vasquez 14, Sage Hill 2

Score by Innings

Sage Hill 101 000 0 - 2 6 2

Vasquez 015 233 x - 14 13 0

Loper, Salinger (4), Packard (6) and

Kornsweit; Cook and Ortiz. W - Cook, 9-0.

L - Loper, 6-2. 2B - Wilkins (SH), Kelsey

(V), Vitti (V). 3B - Vitti (V), McCarney

(V), Loper (SH). HR - Ortiz (V) 2, Kelsey

(V)

*--*