Missed early chances cost Knights
Cloverdale holds off Kelseyville 3-2 for fifth straight league win
CLOVERDALE >> Two early scoring chances that slipped away came back to haunt the Kelseyville Knights in a 3-2 North Central League I varsity baseball loss to the red-hot Cloverdale Eagles on Tuesday afternoon in Cloverdale.
Cloverdale, 0-3 after its first three league games, won its fifth straight behind the pitching and hitting of senior David Alvarez, who threw a complete-game fivehitter and drove in all of the Eagles' runs with a two-run double in the bottom of the third and a RBI single in the bottom of the fifth to snap a 2-2 tie.
“They didn't have him the first time we played them,” Kelseyville head coach Billy Shaul said of Alvarez, who wasn't available to the Eagles in their 7-6 loss to the Knights back on March 25, the league opener for both teams. “He's their stud. He's a good pitcher.”
Cloverdale, now 5-3 in league play and 7-6 overall, travels to Middletown on Friday to play the first-place Mustangs (6-1). Kelseyville fell to 5-3 in the NCL I standings and 7-10 overall despite a solid outing from freshman pitcher Brock Barrick, who went the first five innings before giving way to reliever Jon Dougherty in the sixth.
Kelseyville tried to rally against Alvarez in the seventh and put the potential tying run in scoring position before Alvarez got Kyle Watkins to pop out to the mound to end the game. Alvarez should been out of the game one batter earlier when Jake Keithly rolled a grounder to the right side. The throw to second for the force arrived in plenty of time but the shortstop dropped the ball for an error.
“I thought we played really well,” Shaul said. “We didn't make an error and we really didn't even have a mental error. We hit the ball hard at times. I told them (his players) after the game that
if we keep doing stuff the right way things will start rolling in our favor at some point.”
Like they are for the Eagles right now.
Cloverdale spotted Kelseyville a 1-0 lead in the top of the first as Keithly led off the game with a double to left field, advanced to third on a oneout error and scored on Max Hommer's fielder's choice grounder, the throw home arriving too late to catch Keithly at the plate as Hommer took second on the play. Tyler Bryant singled to deep shortstop to put runners at the corners, then Bryant stole second base.
With a great chance to add to that 1-0 lead, Kelseyville couldn't do it. Alvarez struck out Joey Gentle and got Barrick to fly out to right field to end the inning.
Kelseyville missed another great opportunity in the top of the second. Luke Watkins led off with a double to the right-center field gap and advanced to third on Jake Burke's groundout to second base. Colin Jensen then lined out to the right fielder, but Watkins was halfway down the line when the ball was caught and couldn't tag up in time.
“That was on me,” Shaul said without a bit of hesitation. “I thought that ball was down and I should have had him tag up.”
Kelseyville's 1-0 lead lasted until the third when Emilio Diaz, the Eagles' No. 9 hitter, singled to right field to get things started. Gabe Wlodarczyk was hit by a pitch and Dylan Jones blooped a single into shallow center field to load the bases for Alvarez, who drilled a 0-1 pitch from Barrick into the right-center gap to score Diaz and Wlodarczyk . Jones also tried to score but was gunned down at the plate on a play that wasn't close.
The Knights tied the score in the top of the fifth when Jensen led off with a single, moved up to second on a wild pitch, went to third on a groundout to the right side, and scored on a passed ball. While Kelseyville pulled even at 2-2, a nice bit of glovework by Cloverdale's Dom Vellutini in center field prevented it from being an even bigger inning.
With Jensen at first base following his leadoff single, Keithly crushed a drive into left-center field that was tailing away from Vellutini, but he ran it down, reaching out at the last second to make the catch as Jensen retreated to first base.
“He tracked that ball well,” Shaul of Vellutini. “I thought it was in there.”
The Eagles wasted no time regaining the lead in the bottom half as Wlodarczyk led off with a single, advanced to second base on a grounder and scored on Alvarez's single to left field. Alvarez was tagged out at second trying to move up on the throw home.
Both the top and bottom of the sixth inning ended with line-drive double plays to the second baseman.
The Knights didn't go down without a fight in the top of the seventh. Luke Watkins battled Alvarez during a nine-pitch at-bat leading off the inning before finally striking out. Alvarez's 10th pitch of the inning hit Burke, putting the potential tying run aboard as Hunter Keener came in to pinch-run. Jensen then worked the count full before bouncing into a force play at second base. Jensen arrived safely at second when the Eagles couldn't pull off a second consecutive force play, but the Knights couldn't take advantage of the extra chance as Kyle Watkins popped it up for the final out.
Kelseyville is home Friday to play Clear Lake (35) at 4 p.m.