Santa Monica Losing Streak Comes to End at Tournament

The Santa Monica College baseball team, ending a 10-game losing streak with a non-league tournament win, will play Pasadena today at 2:30 p.m. at Pasadena.

The Corsairs will meet the USC junior varsity Friday at 2:30 p.m. at USC in a non-league game, and play Los Angeles Pierce Tuesday at 2:30 p.m. at Santa Monica.

The Corsairs have been beaten by all three schools this year, losing to Pasadena, 10-4, USC junior varsity, 16-8, and Pierce, 11-4. But after they snapped their monthlong losing streak, Coach Marty Berson said, “I expect we’ll win two out of those three if we can just get some pitching going.

“Nobody on those teams really impressed me,” he said.

The Corsairs, whose league record is 1-7 will need those wins to climb out of last place in the Metropolitan Conference.

Pitcher Jeff Allen (7.50 ERA, no wins and two losses) should start for the Corsairs against Pasadena, Cliff Dawson (7.50 ERA, 0-1,) is expected to start against the USC junior varsity, and Jaime Ramirez (4.20 ERA, 3-3) should start against Pierce.

The Corsairs losing streak, Berson said, was a result of a weak pitching staff. “Our pitchers couldn’t hold a lead.”

That wasn’t the case against San Diego City College last week though. Ramirez had a no-hitter going into the seventh inning that was spoiled by a bloop single into center field.

San Diego lost, 16-3, as Corsair pitching and hitting melded. Left fielder Paul Saunders (.351 batting average) smacked a bases-loaded triple, first baseman Darren Payne (.455) also provided a triple.

In other non-league games last week the Corsairs lost a first-round tournament game to San Diego, 6-4, and lost a second-round game to Grossmont, 6-3.