COLLEGE SPRING SPORTS HIGHLIGHTS : Drury’s Homer Leads Canyons Over Merced

First baseman Scott Drury hit a solo home run in the bottom of the eighth innning to break a tie and lead College of the Canyons to a 3-2 win Friday over Merced in the second round of the Allan Hancock tournament.

Canyons, which has won two straight in the tournament, plays Mission of Santa Clara today in the final round. Canyons can clinch the title with a win if Cerritos loses. Cerritos also has won two games in the round-robin tournament.

If Canyons and Cerritos finish with the same record, the team with the most runs in the tournament will be the champion.

On Friday, Canyons pitcher Frank Halcovich threw a complete game to record his sixth straight win against no losses. Halcovich, one of the premier players in the state, walked one while striking out six.

“It was a gutsy performance. He had good stuff,” Canyons assistant coach Len Mohney said.

Halcovich also received excellent defensive support, including a game-saving play by left fielder Joe Pieper in the eighth inning. With one out, one on and the score tied at two, Merced catcher Mike Sexton drove the ball to left where Pieper made a diving catch, denying Sexton of an extra-base hit.

“It was a game-winning play,” Mohney said. “It changed the momentum to our favor.”

In Canyons’ half of the eighth, leadoff hitter Drury hit the first pitch, a breaking ball, over the left field fence.

“He turned on a mistake and did a good job of hitting,” Mohney said. “It was a clutch home run.”

Merced pitcher Kevin Smith, a sophomore right-hander, walked eight while giving up only three hits to Canyons, ranked No. 1 in Southern California and an excellent hitting team. Smith is the third man in Merced’s pitching rotation. Merced (11-6) is the first-place team in the Central Coast Conference.

Canyons (16-2) opened the scoring in the first inning when Chris Cota walked and then stole second and third. Cota scored on a grounder to second by shortstop Don Erickson.

The Cougars scored again in the fourth inning when Drury led off with a walk and was singled to third by Victor Sotelo. Pieper grounded to third and Sotelo scored, sliding past Sexton’s tag.

Canyons resumes Mountain Valley Conference play Thursday at Valley at 2 p.m. Valley is ranked No. 9 in Southern California.

Concordia 6, The Master’s 0--The Master’s managed only three hits in the seven-inning game at home to fall to 10-17. Shane Carriger (2-6) took the loss, pitching six innings and allowing four earned runs on nine hits and four walks while striking out one.

Concordia’s Russ Myers, who had two runs batted in, doubled to score Todd Atkinson in the first inning and was scored on a single to left field. Concordia, of Portland, Ore., added one run in the fifth and three in the sixth inning to raise its record to 6-2.

“We didn’t hit the ball,” The Master’s Coach John Zeller said. “We got beat by a better ball club today.”

The Master’s College is scheduled to play a doubleheader with Cal Lutheran University at noon today.

Volleyball

CS Northridge def. Brigham Young, 8-15, 15-7, 15-11, 15-7--CSUN’s Chuck English “played the match of his life” in Provo, Utah, according to CSUN Coach John Price.

“BYU spanked us in the first game,” Price said. “After that we played with the most emotion we’ve played with all year.”

The No. 14-ranked Matadors (15-16) are 8-3 in March after going 0-8 in February.

CSUN’s John Buffington suffered a sprained ankle in the second game.