Lightning count upon each other

Barry Faulkner

The Sage Hill School varsity baseball program has one coach, one CIF

Southern Section Division V playoff victory, two seasons under its

belt and one two-time All-Newport-Mesa performer.

The Lightning also have something a bit less quantifiable,

according to second-year coach Bert Emerson.

“They’re all good boys, who come from good mamas and good papas,”

Emerson said. “And I get excited to go out and work with them each

day.”

The Lightning created some excitement of their own last spring,

finishing third in the Academy League, then winning the school’s

first postseason game, a 4-2 CIF Division V wild-card triumph over La

Verne Lutheran. Sage was eliminated in the first round at Vasquez,

14-2, to finish at 14-9.

It wasted little time getting back on the winning track this

season, opening with a 12-1 nonleague win over Tarbut V’Torah March

9.The Lightning opened league play Friday against defending Academy

League champion Oxford Academy and, Emerson believes, have enough

talent to compete for a CIF playoff spot.

“We had some success last year and we’d obviously like to build on

that,” Emerson said.

The most successful player in the program’s history is senior Tim

Wilkins, who hit .400 last season with 28 hits, two home runs, 14

RBIs, seven doubles, and was perfect on 11 stolen-base attempts. He

also posted a 5-2 pitching record with one save and a 3.44 ERA,

fanning 54 in 36 2/3 innings.

Wilkins fanned five in two hitless innings to pick up the win

against TVT and will man his familiar No. 3 spot in the batting order

and also play shortstop, when not on the bump.

Junior Matt Loper, in his third varsity season, will also play

short and pitch. He was 6-2 with a 2.80 ERA on the mound as a

sophomore and his 21 RBIs were second on the team. Loper will bat

fourth, according to Emerson.

Seniors Jordan Salinger and Matt Kornswiet will also be counted

upon to pitch and produce at the plate.

Salinger hit .323 last season with one homer and 10 RBIs. He’ll

play the outfield when not pitching.

Kornswiet, the returning catcher who had 12 RBIs last season, is

part of a strong leadership corps that Emerson believes will help

offset the lack of any assistant coaching help.

Junior David Packard will start at third base, while sophomore

Zack Shockley will play first.

Freshman Braden Ross, who quarterbacked the football team in the

fall, is slated to start at second base.

Surrounding center fielder Salinger will be a rotation of

sophomores Michael Morgan, Kyle Ramer, Chris Mazzo and Bryan

Kornswiet.

Sophomore Zach Milder, who drove in eight runs with his eight hits

last season, is unavailable at least through March, Emerson said, due

to mononucleosis.

With only one set of eyes to watch over them, Emerson said he

expects his players to push themselves to improve daily.