West Torrance closes in on league crown with win
TORRANCE >> The bottom of the seventh was a high-pressure situation for the West Torrance baseball team and starting pitcher Dylan Smith.
With North trailing by one run Tuesday, the Saxons' Ethan Rhodes led off the inning, reached on an error and advanced to second base. The Saxons' pinch-runner moved to third on a groundout with one out.
Smith got the next hitter to ground back to the mound and Smith went to third to get the runner out. Two batters later, Smith struck out Justin Olivar to secure West's 2-1 win that moved the Warriors one step closer to at least a share of the Pioneer League title.
“I just had to dig deep and focus on every single pitch,” Smith said. “I dug as deep as I could and we came out on top. It's been awhile since we've been league champs. We've come close since I've been here.”
The teams will meet again Thursday at West to conclude the regular season.
Smith improved to 5-2 on the season for West (18-7, 9-2). West and Torrance are tied for first.
If El Segundo sweeps its series against Lawndale, the Eagles will finish the regular season at 9-3 in the Pioneer League.
“It's never easy and they have to understand that sometimes you have to play with your backs up against the wall, that's what they did,” West coach Juan Cueva said. “Their guy did a good job of mixing it up, keeping us off-balanced, but we figured out a way to scratch a couple across and gave it to Dylan our senior and he battled on the mound.”
West got on the board in the third inning against North's Makoto Nakawake on Christian Hernandez's two-run double that landed fair by inches, allowing Reef Sharman and Cameron O'Neil to score. The hit was the last one that Nakawake allowed.
“He's done that all year,” North coach Andre Van Gerwen said of Nakawake. “He's our No. 1 (pitcher) for a reason. He's competed every single time and kept us in a lot of our games.”
North got on the board in the fifth inning. Olivar drove in Eric Yamashiro, but in the inning North had one runner picked off second base another tagged out at third.
Nakawake allowed two runs on four hits, walked three and struck out one. Reef Sharman was 3 for 4 for West with a double.
In other games Tuesday:
TORRANCE 6, SOUTH TORRANCE 5 >> The Tartars (18-7-1, 9-2) led 5-0, allowed the Spartans to tie the score, but eventually walked off with the win.
Corey Guy was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to bring in the winning run in the bottom of the seventh.
The teams meet again Thursday at South (15-11, 6-5).
EL SEGUNDO 15, LAWNDALE 0 >> Mateo Heredia pitched six scoreless innings with seven strikeouts to lead the Eagles (18-8, 8-3) to a Pioneer League win.
Four El Segundo hitters had at least two hits and five drove in at least two runs.
PALOS VERDES 7, PENINSULA 0 >> The win moves the Sea Kings (1611, 6-3) into a tie for first with Culver City in the Bay League.
Stephen Deakins (five innings, three hits allowed) and two others combined for a four-hitter.
Kaden Stone and Tyler Tellenbach each had two hits and drove in two runs.
Sport: Volleyball Year: Senior Loiola started last week with MVP honors at the Santa Barbara Karch Kiraly Tournament and then wrapped it with a 23-kill performance in a sweep of rival Redondo that clinched the Bay League title for Mira Costa. The Mustangs are the No. 2 seed in Division 1 of the CIF Southern Section playoffs.
Noteworthy:
VICTOR LOIOLA School:
Pantoja pitched a complete game with 13strikeouts in a 9-1win over Banning on April 15. She pitched another complete game Monday as the Colts defeated San Pedro 8-2to remain in first place in the Marine League. In Monday's win, she struck out seven and allowed three hits.
Carson Softball Junior