Prep baseball: Pride of the Coast Tournament on tap

Barry Faulkner

While the Corona del Mar High baseball team enters the Pride of the

Coast Tournament with its foot on the metaphoric gas, squads from Costa

Mesa and Newport Harbor are hoping the 16-team affair, which starts

today, will allow them to apply the brakes to some recent struggles.

CdM, winner of 11 of its last 12, enters today’s 11 a.m. first-round

home game with Skyline High of Salt Lake City on a six-game winning

streak and a 3 1/2-game lead in the Pacific Coast League standings.

Coach John Emme’s Sea Kings, 12-3 and ranked No. 9 in Orange County

and CIF Southern Section Division IV, have not lost a PCL game this year.

A March 26 nonleague loss at Garden Grove is the only setback they’ve had

in a 12-game span.

Meanwhile, Costa Mesa, which opened the season 8-1-1, has lost four of

its last five, all against PCL foes. Coach Kirk Bauermeister’s Mustangs

(9-5-1) split with University this week, winning, 11-7, Tuesday then

falling, 11-9, Thursday to drop into third place, one game behind the

second-place Trojans.

Mesa hosts Newbury Park today at 2 p.m. in the first round, with hopes

of advancing to Monday’s 11 a.m. quarterfinals.

Newport Harbor, which has lost seven of its last eight, will host

Mission Viejo in the first round today at 11 a.m.

Coach Jim Kiefer’s Sailors have lost two straight sinceupsetting Sea

View League leading Irvine, 4-2, April 6.

CdM has featured a strong offense, quality pitching and above-average

defense thus far. The Sea Kings are paced offensively by junior All-CIF

Southern Section center fielder Billy Eagle and senior first baseman

Andrew Johns. Eagle, a three-year starter who shared Newport-Mesa

District Player of the Year honors as a sophomore, entered last week

hitting .486. Johns, who, like Eagle, is known for his sterling defensive

work, was hitting .457 through 13 games.

Leading the mound corps for the Sea Kings will be senior Cavan Cuyler

and sophomore Nick Rhodes. Cuyler improved to 5-1 with a complete-game

six-hitter against Northwood Thursday, while Rhodes, a left-hander, is

4-0 after holding the Timberwolves to six hits Tuesday in a five-inning,

14-3 mercy-rule verdict.

Other Sea King standouts include seniors Eric Snell, Wes Hockinson,

Dave Knecht and Rory McKeever, as well as sophomore shortstop Keith Long.

If victorious today, the Sea Kings would host the Moorpark-Saddleback

winner Monday at 11 a.m.

Costa Mesa has been paced by senior catcher Daniel Hunter, who is

hitting .424. But Hunter was ejected from Thursday’s game loss to Uni,

so, as per section rules, must sit out today’s game.

Other offensive weapons for Mesa include senior second baseman Steven

Shores, senior center fielder Josh Feldman, senior first baseman Carlos

Franco and junior Michael McGuire.

The Mustangs’ main starting pitchers have been senior left-hander

Jeremiah Haubrick and junior Nick Cabico.

If victorious, Mesa would advance to Monday’s 11 a.m. quarterfinals

against the Charter Oak-Santa Ana winner.

Newport has been keyed by senior catcher Garrett Brant, an

all-district returner, who came into this week hitting .477. He now has

a team-leading 15 RBIs. Middle infielders Alan Lane and Mike Jones have

also been offensive sparks at the top of the order.

Joel Brown, Cody Forsythe and Shane Glenn are Kiefer’s primary

starting pitchers, while Chris Ward has three saves this spring.

With a win today, Harbor would meet the Pacifica-Santa Ana Valley

winner in a quarterfinal Monday at 11 a.m.

Tournament pairings

Charter Oak vs. Santa Ana, 11 a.m. at CM

Newbury Park at Costa Mesa, 2 p.m.

Pacifica vs. Santa Ana Valley, 2 p.m. at NH

Mission Viejo at Newport Harbor, 11 a.m.

Skyline (Utah) at Corona del Mar, 11 a.m.

Moorpark vs. Saddleback, 2 p.m. at CdM

Royal vs. Burroughs, 2 p.m. at TeWinkle Park

San Clemente vs. Century, 11 a.m. at TeWinkle Park

Championship quarterfinals Monday, 11 a.m.

Championship semifinals Tuesday, 11 a.m.

Championship game Wednesday, 7 p.m.