Sea Kings clash with Titans

Barry Faulkner

Friends on the opposing coaching staff, Pacific Coast League

affiliation and a double-digit winning streak are all things Corona

del Mar High and Tesoro have in common heading into today’s CIF

Southern Section Division IV championship baseball game at 10 a.m. at

Dodger Stadium.

But, in the end, the collective emotion of both teams, dictated by

the final score, will be as different as the history of both

programs.

CdM (24-5) is playing for its third CIF crown, having won the 2-A

Division in 1981 and Division IV in 1999, the latter under John

Emme’s guidance. The Sea Kings are paced by a veteran nucleus that

includes seven senior regulars and many predicted they’d make a

title-game appearance this season.

Tesoro (20-10) is in only its second varsity season and has just

four seniors, only one of which figures to be in today’s starting

lineup. After finishing 7-18 last season, 3-12 in the PCL, Coach Rick

Brail said there was no way he could have foreseen a postseason run

this momentous this spring.

CdM defeated the Titans in their three league meetings this

season, including two on the still spanking new Las Flores campus.

The Sea Kings prevailed, 8-2, in the league opener March 19, won,

16-6, April 13 at home, then earned a hard-fought 2-1 road triumph

April 16.

The No. 3-seeded Sea Kings have won 16 straight and 22 of their

last 23 and advanced to the title game with a 6-5 come-from-behind

win over PCL rival Northwood, its fourth victory over the

Timberwolves this season.

CdM’s 15-0 PCL campaign gave them their second straight league

crown and their fourth league title in the last six seasons.

Unseeded Tesoro has won 10 straight, including a stunning 4-1

upset of top-seeded La Quinta in Tuesday’s semifinal. The Titans

finished second in the PCL with an 11-4 record, their only loss to an

opponent other than CdM coming at the hands of third-place Northwood.

“We both kind of caught fire, but [the Sea Kings] have been on

fire all season,” said Brail, whose staff includes former CdM

assistant and Emme’s close friend, Aaron Kokx.

Kokx was among those who spilled out of the CdM dugout in 1999,

when the Sea Kings capped their 20-8 season by scoring five runs in

the bottom of the seventh to claim a 9-8 title victory over El

Segundo at Angel Stadium.

Emme said he and Kokx remain close and their relationship has

helped Emme and Brail forge a friendship, as well.

“We already negotiated a co-championship, but I don’t think the

Southern Section or the kids would go for it,” Emme joked. “It’s an

incredible thing for their school to be in a championship game this

early and it’s incredible for us to be back for the second time in

five years.”

Emme acknowledges the difficulty of beating the same team four

times in one season, but he’ll have senior ace left-hander Blake

Contant on the mound to help ease his anxiety.

Contant, 11-2 with four saves and a 1.83 ERA this season, has

three wins and a save in the playoffs this spring. He is 16-3 over

the last two seasons and 19-5 in his three-year varsity career.

“To have Blake with eight innings [of his 10-inning-per-week

allotment]; what more could you ask?” Emme said. “He’s getting the

ball and he’ll keep the ball. We’ll do what we do with Blake on the

mound and we’ll be happy with that.”

Contant will oppose junior right-hander Bryan Evans, who is 8-5

with a 2.46 ERA. Evans has thrown two shutouts in the playoffs, a

two-hitter against Temple City in the quarterfinals and a four-hit,

first-round win over Duarte. In addition, Evans threw two scoreless

innings to save Tuesday’s semifinal triumph.

Contant outdueled Evans in CdM’s 2-1 win in their last meeting.

CdM is hitting .358 as a team, while Tesoro checks in at a .348

clip.

The Sea Kings’ big bats are wielded by senior first baseman

Barrett Sprowl (.495 with four home runs and 25 RBIs), All-CIF senior

designated hitter Josh Bradbury (.378, 11 homers, 24 RBIs), junior

third baseman Tyler Lance (.421, three homers, 23 RBIs), senior left

fielder Nik Palchikoff (.316, five homers, 31 RBIs) and junior right

fielder Wess Presson (.337, three homers, 24 RBIs).

Tesoro’s top hitters include juniors Derek Craddock (.382, four

homers, 31 RBIs), Curtis Hill (..482, three homers, 24 RBIs) and Nik

Nelson (.385, four homers, 22 RBIs).