Former GCC baseball player Chris Stroh sets table for Westmont College
The following are updates on local athletes at the collegiate level.
Chris Stroh (Glendale Community College, 2012) junior outfielder, Westmont College baseball: After serving as a consummate lead-off hitter and base-stealing threat for Glendale college, it appears Stroh has set the tone for Westmont’s lineup during the first part of the season.
Stroh has provided a shot in the arm for the Warriors, having recorded three stolen bases and nine doubles through March 2. Stroh, a Crescenta Valley High graduate, is batting .304 (28 for 92) in 22 contests with nine runs batted in and a .981 fielding percentage.
In the second game of a Golden State Athletic Conference road doubleheader against Arizona Christian on March 2, Stroh had a pair of runs batted in to help Westmont record a 4-1 win.
The Warriors entered Friday’s conference game against visiting The Master’s College at 14-9 and 7-7 in conference.
Lonnie Kauppila Jr. (Glendale native, Burbank High, 2010) junior infielder, Stanford University baseball: A former two-time All-Area Baseball Player of the Year selection, Kauppila helped the Cardinal complete a three-game home sweep of Texas, ranked No. 22 in the nation.
Kauppila picked an ideal time for his heroics, as he had a game-winning double in the bottom of the ninth inning to lead Stanford to a 3-2 win. Kauppila, a shortstop, finished the series going four for 10 for Stanford, which swept Texas for the second straight season. Stanford outscored Texas, 11-3, in the set.
On March 2, Kauppila, who began his high school days at Crescenta Valley before transferring to Burbank, had one hit and drove in a run to spark the Cardinal to a 7-2 victory. He began the series March 1 with a hit in Stanford’s 2-0 victory.
He scored a run in Stanford’s 6-4 nonconference road win against Santa Clara on Wednesday. Stanford (10-2) has won nine games in a row leading up to Friday’s nonconference home contest against UNLV.
In 11 games, Kauppila is batting .250 (seven for 28) with seven runs and four runs batted in.
Dylan Kilgour (Crescenta Valley High, 2012) freshman guard, Macalester College men’s basketball: After helping Crescenta Valley advance to the state tournament last season, Kilgour proved he could handle his share of responsibilities on the collegiate stage.
Kilgour was one of five athletes from the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference named to the all-freshman team. Kilgour led all conference freshmen in scoring, averaging 12.6 points and 2.6 assists per game. He also led in three-pointers made (2.3 a game) and three-point accuracy (39.6%) for the Scots in seven conference contests.
Kilgour added 16 steals in 25 games for the Scots, who went 4-21 and 1-19 in conference.
Mark Saatzer (St. Francis High, 2010) junior infielder, Chapman University baseball: The former All-Mission League honoree has turned in some impressive efforts during the past several weeks for the Panthers.
While Chapman has spent the first part of the season trying to reach the .500 mark, Saatzer has done his part at the plate. In a Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference home doubleheader against California Lutheran University on March 2, Saatzer went a combined three for seven and drove in a pair of runs.
In the first game, Saatzer went two for three and scored a run in a 7-3 loss. In the second game, he delivered a two-run single in the second inning to help the Panthers earn a 9-6 victory.
Saatzer, a first baseman, recorded a game-winning run-scoring single in the bottom of the eighth to lead Chapman to a 1-0 home win conference victory on Feb. 22.
In 14 games, Saatzer is batting .294 with one home run and a team-best 10 runs batted in. He’s scored seven runs and recorded three doubles for the Panthers (6-8, 5-4 in conference).
Stella Ghazarian (Glendale High, 2011) sophomore guard, Pasadena City College women’s basketball: Ghazarian and the Lancers saw their season conclude March 2 with a 66-53 loss to visiting Irvine Valley College in an opening-round contest of the California Community College Athletic Assn. Southern California Regionals.
Ghazarian averaged 9.9 points and 3.3 rebounds per game in 29 contests, including 26 starts. Ghazarian’s numbers spiked in conference, as she averaged 11.4 points per game. She registered with 32 steals, including 22 in conference.
Pasadena finished 22-7 and in third place in the South Coast Conference.
