Prep baseball: Sea Kings end slide

Barry Faulkner

CORONA DEL MAR - Patience runs in short supply when it has been

three weeks since your last victory. But the Corona del Mar High baseball

team’s ability to endure and remain composed served the Sea Kings well

Tuesday against Pacific Coast League visitor Costa Mesa.

Obviously pressing early, CdM hitters flailed away at curveballs

darting toward their shoe tops, and lashed upward to pop up belt-high

fastballs, while producing just one base runner the first three innings.

The defending Pacific Coast League champions, however, remained

undaunted, even while the Mustangs built a 3-0 lead, saw it disappear,

then regained a 4-3 advantage with a run in the sixth.

Patience then keyed an eight-run sixth inning rally for the Sea Kings,

who went on to post an 11-4 victory that may be a turning point in a

heretofore dismal campaign. CdM entered the final week of the first round

of league play occupying sole possession of last place. It also had lost

six straight.

“I think we got a little bit older today,” said Emme, whose nine

defensive starters consisted of five sophomores, one freshman and three

juniors. “We finally got a big hit (a three-run double by junior catcher

Nick Karpe that broke it open), but we put ourselves in position for it

by producing some real patient, smart at-bats.”

Sophomore Blake Contant walked to start the outburst and sophomore

Danny Whitaker did the same after a flyout. Sophomore Jeritt Thayer then

reached on a sacrifice bunt, when a Mesa fielder first checked second,

then threw late to first. Freshman Wess Presson walked for an RBI to tie

the game and senior designated hitter Billy Eagle gave CdM its first lead

with an RBI fielder’s choice. After junior Josh Bradbury walked to load

the bases, Karpe fisted a fastball off the top of the right-field fence

to bump the lead to 8-4. Three walks, a Contant single and two Mesa

errors then expanded the margin to 11-4 and CdM (3-7, 1-3 in league) had

its first victory since March 5.

“It has been a little hard to relax,” said Karpe, who noted the

come-from-behind triumph may allow the Sea Kings to do just that.

“I really think we could start rolling,” said Karpe who went 2 for 4

with four RBIs. “We’ve been going uphill, but, now, we may start rolling

downhill.”

Costa Mesa Coach Kirk Bauermeister said CdM deserves credit for some

clutch hitting. But, he also believed his team did its share to blow its

second straight late-inning lead.

“I absolutely felt like we gave this one away,” Bauermeister said. “We

had six walks and (two errors) in the sixth inning. The team that plays

catch best, usually wins. We didn’t do that today.”

The Mustangs appeared uncatchable after breaking a scoreless tie in

the third, then adding two more in the fourth.

A.J. Perkins’ two-out triple drove in Adam Beltran, who had singled,

to open the scoring in the third.

Michael McGuire’s single, stolen base, and another single by Kevin

DeSandro, set the table for Mesa teammates Nathan Hunter and Adam

Jorgenson in the fourth. Hunter’s groundout produced the first RBI and

Jorgenson followed with an RBI double to the gap in right-center for a

3-0 cushion.

CdM answered in the fifth, when Presson’s RBI groundout, Eagle’s

sacrifice fly and a single by Karpe all produced RBIs.

Mesa (5-6, 1-3), broke the tie in the sixth, when Beltran singled in

Hunter, who had singled to start the frame.

The Mesa rally thwarted what appeared to be some CdM momentum,

generated in the fifth when junior right-hander Beau Stockstill worked

out of a bases-loaded, no-out jam to maintain the deadlock.

A flyout to right earned the first out and Thayer turned a pop to

shallow right into a double play, when he made the catch then caught a

Mesa runner straying too far off first.

CdM also saw a scoring opportunity fizzle in its fourth inning, when

Mesa left fielder Nick Cabico barehanded a single through the hole by

Blake Contant and fired to third baseman Nathan Hunter, who relayed to

catcher Mike Carrasco in time to nail a CdM runner trying to score from

second.

Stockstill, who walked two and struck out two, went the distance to

even his record at 2-2. He threw just 92 pitches.

Contant was 2 for 3 with a walk, while Whitaker walked three times and

reached in all four plate appearances.

Beltran, who did not begin the season with the varsity, went 2 for 3

for the Mustangs. He is now 5 for 9 (.555) against varsity pitching.

PACIFIC COAST LEAGUE

Corona del Mar 11, Costa Mesa 4 Costa Mesa 001 201 0 - 4 7 4Corona del Mar 000 038 x - 11

4 1

Cooper, Vargas (5), Jorgenson (6) and Carrasco; Stockstill and Karpe.

W - Stockstill, 2-2. L - Vargas, 1-2. 2B - Karpe (CdM). 3B - Perkins

(CM).