DREAM TEAM

With three of the five Newport-Mesa area varsity baseball coaches taking over their respective teams for the first time, it was a season of new beginnings on the diamond for area clubs.

The season also marked a new beginning for Corona del Mar High junior shortstop Jake Lemmerman, who became as potent with the glove as he already was with the bat. As the most impressive all-around player on the only Newport-Mesa baseball team to reach the CIF Southern Section playoffs, Lemmerman stands above all others as the Daily Pilot Newport-Mesa Dream Team’s Player of the Year.

Lemmerman batted .429 with four home runs and 25 RBIs for the Sea Kings, who finished 17-9. They shared the Pacific Coast League title with Northwood and Calvary Chapel, all posting identical 8-4 league records.

More impressively, Lemmerman, a Dream Team selection last year when he batted .392 with one home run and 17 RBIs, went from an average fielder to a vacuum cleaner at shortstop. He turned double plays smoothly and made just three errors all season, finishing with a .969 fielding percentage.

Lemmerman said after struggling in the field last season, he wanted to improve, so he worked on his fielding all summer long and it paid off.

Lemmerman’s improvement was so immense, Corona del Mar Coach John Emme said only one guy, 2004 graduate Jeritt Thayer, has played better defense for him at Corona del Mar.

Lemmerman, a first-team All-Pacific Coast League pick this season, also improved at the plate.

He credits going from a dead-pull hitter to one who uses the whole field by keeping his hands inside the ball and driving it to right field as the key to his improvement.

“He has come a long way,” said Emme, who has the good fortune of getting Lemmerman for one more season.

The rest of the Dream Team includes: Corona del Mar’s Austin Elliot, Eric Eadington, Matt Hauser, Ryan Lance and Vinnie St. John; Newport Harbor’s P.J. Errington, Drew Harris and Skylar Cozad; Costa Mesa’s John Rybarcyzk and Alex Dominguez; Estancia’s Evan Van Geem; and Sage Hill’s Zach Milder.

Like Lemmerman, Milder is also a repeat Dream Team honoree.

Here’s a look at this year’s Dream Team honorees.

Austin Elliot: The junior was able to win games for the Sea Kings with both his arm and his bat.

As a pitcher, Elliot went 4-0 with a 1.98 ERA.

He batted .302 with two home runs and 17 RBIs and also played a solid center field when he wasn’t pitching.

Elliot played a big role in CdM’s sweep of Laguna Beach this season.

He hit a home run to help the Sea Kings defeat the Breakers, 6-5, in the first game.

In the second game, Elliot pitched the last three innings, including a scoreless seventh of a 5-4 verdict.

Elliot was a first-team All-Pacific Coast League selection.

Eric Eadington: The senior left-handed pitcher went 4-3 with a 1.80 ERA for the Sea Kings.

With his fastball consistently in the mid-to-upper-80-mph range, The Harvard-bound hurler had 98 strikeouts in 58 1/3 innings.

He was the hard-luck loser in Corona del Mar’s 2-0 setback to Westminster in the first round of the CIF Southern Section Division III playoffs.

Eadington was a first-team All-Pacific Coast League pick.

Matt Hauser: The senior side-armer did most of his work out of the bullpen for the Sea Kings, becoming Emme’s go-to guy in tight situations.

More times than not, Hauser got the job done, helping the Sea Kings get out of jams. He was 5-2 with a 1.94 ERA.

Ryan Lance: The Sea Kings’ senior first baseman proved he’s as good with a bat as he is with a basketball.

Lance, who also was a Dream Team selection in basketball this year, batted .346 with one home run and 16 RBIs. He was one of CdM’s most consistent and reliable players.

Vinnie St. John: The junior outfielder batted .390 with 26 runs and 16 stolen bases for the Sea Kings.

St. John also recorded an impressive .486 on-base percentage as the team’s leadoff hitter.

He was a second-team All-Pacific Coast League honoree.

Drew Harris: The junior left-handed pitcher was the ace of the Sailors’ staff, finishing with a 7-5 record and a 1.96 ERA.

He was a big reason why Newport Harbor was able to rebound from an 8-17 record in 2005 to finish 13-12.

Harris was Newport Harbor’s only first-team All-Sea View League selection.

Skylar Cozad: The senior center fielder batted .315 with one home run and 11 RBIs for the Sailors.

Cozad went two for three with an RBI in Newport Harbor’s 7-4 win over Westlake in the Beach Pit Classic championship game.

He earned second-team All-Sea View League recognition.

P.J. Errington: The junior third baseman batted .321 with 11 RBIs for the Sailors.

He hit a blast that hit the top of the fence and bounced back into the field of play during Newport Harbor’s 7-4 win over Westlake in the Beach Pit Classic championship game.

Errington also earned praise for his defensive work.

John Rybarcyzk: The Mustangs’ junior outfielder was tops on the team in hitting with a .408 average.

He also posted three home runs and 16 RBIs.

Rybarcyzk went four for four with a home run in Costa Mesa’s 11-2 win over Santiago in the Beach Pit Classic to break his team’s six-game losing streak.

He also clubbed two doubles in a 4-3 win over rival Estancia.

Alex Dominguez: The senior third baseman/pitcher batted .380 with 21 RBIs, and was 3-2 with a 4.44 ERA on the mound. He pitched 2 1/3 scoreless innings in Costa Mesa’s 4-3 win over rival Estancia.

The Mustangs (9-16) swept the Eagles this season to retain the perpetual Paul Troxel Trophy that is awarded to the series’ annual winner.

Evan Van Geem: The senior center fielder/pitcher was a big reason why the Eagles got out of the gate fast and gave the team reason for optimism.

A back injury slowed the versatile Van Geem and the Eagles, but he still hit .311 with one home run and 12 RBIs.

On the mound, he went 2-2 with a 2.47 ERA.

On defense, he played a flawless center field.

Zach Milder: The Sage Hill shortstop batted .369 with 13 runs and nine stolen bases.

In a key 8-7 win over Brethren Christian, the 145-pound senior went three for four, stole a base, scored two runs and drove in a run.