Tourney opens today

The tournament formerly known as the Pride of the Coast has reinvented itself this year and will resurface today as the Beach Pit Classic.

Eleven of the 16 teams in the tournament are from Orange County. Beach Pit Classic games will be held at four high schools: Corona del Mar, Costa Mesa, Newport Harbor and Pacifica.

The field appears to be wide open, with only one team ? Westminster La Quinta, No. 3 in Division III ? ranked in the CIF Southern Section. Some of the top teams from out of the area include Oxnard ? which boasts 6-foot-2, 230-pound professional prospect Devin Shepherd, an outfielder and pitcher for the Yellowjackets ? Westlake, Ventura and San Pedro, a CIF City Section power.

Corona del Mar started the season ranked No. 6 in Division III but has since fallen out of the top 10. The Sea Kings concluded a two-game sweep of Laguna Beach on Friday and go into the tournament on a high note.

CdM Coach John Emme said he would take the opportunity to get kids playing time that haven’t seen a ton of action.

Corona del Mar opens the tournament today against JSerra at Corona del Mar High. Newport Harbor opens at home today against Rancho Alamitos and Costa Mesa faces Westlake at Costa Mesa High. All first-round games are scheduled for 11 a.m.

Westlake is not an easy draw for tournament organizer Jim Kiefer’s Mustangs.

“I had no problem opening against a strong team,” Kiefer said. “We want to play good teams. That’s how we’re going to get better.”

Kiefer has experience organizing the tournament from his days coaching at Newport Harbor. In the past, both Newport Harbor and Corona del Mar have taken turns organizing the Newport-Mesa-based tournament.

The Beach Pit Classic continues Monday and Tuesday and concludes on Wednesday. The championship game is slated for 3 p.m. Wednesday at Corona del Mar High.

The third-place game is scheduled for noon Wednesday at Corona del Mar.

Other teams in the tournament include El Rancho, Aliso Niguel, Beckman, Garden Grove Santiago and Pacifica.

Last year, Corona del Mar defeated Newport Harbor, 7-6, in the third-place game of the tournament. Costa Mesa finished fifth. A.B. Miller from Fontana won the tournament last year, when it was named Pride of the Coast.

This year’s tournament is named after its sponsor, the Beach Pit BBQ in Costa Mesa. The restaurant will be catering lunches at all fields today.dpt.08-cdmball-BPhotoInfoMF1PP76R20060408ixdrj4ncDOUGLAS ZIMMERMAN / DAILY PILOT(LA)Pitcher Vinnie St. John has been a stalwart for Corona del Mar, one of three area teams participating in the Beach Pit Classic.