A Run Proves Enough for Fillmore’s Chessani : Prep baseball: 1-0 victory over St. Bonaventure forces tie for Tri-Valley League lead.

Clarion calls of “Let’s rope this guy!” resounded from both dugouts throughout Friday’s Tri-Valley League baseball showdown between Fillmore and St. Bonaventure highs.

But senior right-handers Anthony Chessani of Fillmore and Kevin Zoll of host St. Bonaventure were oblivious to any chants.

Chessani and Zoll--each with a shutout victory over the other team this season--traded strikeouts and scoreless innings into the late afternoon.

Finally, Chessani emerged on top, hurling a nine-inning two-hitter with 10 strikeouts as Fillmore eked out a 1-0 victory in the season’s rubber match between the schools.

The win moved Fillmore (15-3, 11-2 in league play) into a first-place tie with St. Bonaventure (12-7, 11-2) with two games remaining. Should the teams finish as co-champions, Fillmore, by virtue of its two victories over St. Bonaventure, would enter the Southern Section playoffs as the league’s top-seeded team.

“I felt like I was getting stronger and stronger,” said Chessani (7-1). “That one run put more into me. Every time we huddled, I said to the guys, ‘Just get one run because I’m not going to let them score.’ ”

Chessani, who blanked St. Bonaventure, 4-0, earlier this season, closed five innings with strikeouts. He gave up his first hit in the fourth and didn’t allow another until Zoll’s two-out single in the ninth. The game ended four pitches later when Zoll, on his way to second base, was struck by a ball off the bat of Chris Borchard.

“He has a great fastball,” St. Bonaventure Coach Dennis Johnson said of Chessani. “He’s the hardest thrower in the league.”

Zoll (7-3), who pitched a no-hitter against Fillmore three weeks ago, struck out six and gave up seven hits. Fillmore threatened, putting a runner at third in the second, third, fourth and sixth, but Zoll escaped each threat.

In the ninth, Mike Thompson tagged Zoll for a one-out triple. After an infield pop out, Alex Sandoval drove in the run with a ground ball into right field.

“We were playing him up the middle,” Zoll said. “If I didn’t hang (the pitch), he would have hit it up the middle. But you can’t second-guess a 1-0 game.”