First published in the Feb. 23 print issue of the Pasadena Outlook.
The Maranatha High School varsity baseball team lost to visiting Hart High of Newhall, 6-2, in an Easton Tournament game on Saturday.
Senior Cider Canon went 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored while senior Dylan Zdunek went 2-for-4 with a pair of RBIs and a stolen base. Senior Jackson Hisey struck out four across three innings of relief while allowing two hits, two earned runs and one walk. Sophomore Zach Strickland recorded five strikeouts across four innings while allowing seven hits, four runs (three earned) and two walks. Senior Bryan Richman tallied a hit and a run, senior Isaac Ton had a base hit, and senior Hudson Story and sophomore Doug Zuniga each walked once
The Minutemen lost at Calabasas, 7-2, in a tournament game last Thursday. Dylan Zdunek recorded a double with a pair of RBIs, Canon finished with a base hit and a run, and Richman scored and stole a base. Senior Garrett McGuigan pitched 2.1 innings with four strikeouts and one hit while freshman Noah Everly struck out a batter and walked three in an inning of work.
Maranatha recently routed host Poly High in Sun Valley in a tournament game, 13-2, as freshman Eric Zdunek went 3-for-4 with a home run, a triple, four RBIs and three runs.
Hisey earned the win after striking out five over four innings while allowing two runs (one earned) on a hit and a walk. Junior AJ Campana pitched a clean inning with a pair of strikeouts.
Dylan Zdunek went 2-for-2 with a double, two runs, an RBI and a walk, Story went 2-for-3 with a double, an RBI and a run, Zuniga went 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI, and Canon recorded a triple, two RBIs, two runs and a walk. Everly tallied a hit, a stolen base and scored once while senior Judson Pitre and Ton each registered a hit and an RBI. Richman scored twice, Strickland stole a base and scored, McGuigan scored once, and junior Christian Chang and sophomore Matthew Kurkdijian each walked once.
The Minutemen previously opened the regular season by defeating visiting Newbury Park in a tournament game, 3-1. Strickland tossed six strong innings with seven strikeouts while allowing an unearned run on one hit and a walk to earn the win. McGuigan allowed the first three batters to reach base as Newbury Park threatened with the bases loaded in the last inning but he escaped the jam with three straight strikeouts to earn the save. Zuniga tripled with an RBI and a run, Eric Zdunek recorded a base hit and an RBI, and Dylan Zdunek and Ton each had a base hit and a run. Pitre finished with a base hit, Everly notched an RBI and Richman walked once.
Maranatha (2-2 overall) will host Mayfair High of Lakewood for a nonleague game on Saturday, Feb. 25, at 5 p.m. before visiting Valley Christian High in Cerritos for its Olympic League opener on Friday, March 3.
FLINTRIDGE PREP
The Wolves blanked visiting Bravo High of Los Angeles, 8-0, in a nonleague game on Saturday.
Senior captain Max Brunngraber struck out 13 batters across five innings while allowing a hit and a walk to earn the win. He also went 2-for-4 with a double, three RBIs, and a run. Sophomore Brian Xu, who struck out four batters across a pair of scoreless innings, went 3-for-5 with a double, two RBIs and two runs. Sophomore Will Koh went 2-for-5 with a double and a run while senior captain John Kully doubled and scored once. Freshman Nathan Sanok finished with a hit, an RBI and a run, junior George Hayes recorded a hit and an RBI, and senior captain Graham DesHotel and sophomore Calvin Chen each scored once.
The Wolves routed host Hawthorne, 15-2, in a nonleague game last Thursday as DesHotel allowed two hits, two earned runs and a walk with four strikeouts over five innings to earn the win. He helped himself at the plate with a pair of hits, two runs and an RBI. Kully went 2-for-3 with a triple, a double, four RBIs and four runs while Sanok went 3-for-4 with two RBIs and two runs. Hayes went 2-for-2 with a run while freshman Will Grable went 2-for-4 with three RBIs and a run. Sophomore Matthew Chino tripled with two RBIs, Chen recorded a base hit, two RBIs and a run, and Brunngraber registered a base hit and a run. Senior Evan Yoon struck out two and issued a walk across a scoreless inning of relief while Xu scored twice.
Flintridge Prep crushed host Rosemead, 10-2, in a nonleague game last Wednesday as Grable, who scored once, struck out four over four innings without allowing a hit or a walk to earn the win. Xu recorded a pair of doubles, two RBIs and a run, Koh went 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run, Hayes finished with a double, two RBIs and a run, and Kully doubled and scored once. DesHotel registered a hit, an RBI and a run, Yoon had a base hit and a run, and Brunngraber notched a base hit. Chino allowed two runs (one earned) on one hit with one strikeout over two innings of relief, Chen scored twice and Sanok scored once.
The Wolves recently lost a nonleague game against visiting Beckman High of Irvine, 11-0. DesHotel and Kully each doubled while Xu and Chen each had a base hit. Sophomore Rowan Schaeffer allowed five earned runs on seven hits with one walk and a strikeout over 5.1 innings on the mound while sophomore Gregory Sue allowed three earned runs on two hits and two walks in 1.1 innings.
Flintridge Prep previously won its season opener at Big Bear, 12-1. Brunngraber struck out 13 over five innings to earn the win while adding a double at the plate. Schaeffer pitched a scoreless inning of relief while going 1-for-2 with an RBI and a run at the plate. DesHotel went 3-for-3 with a double, three runs, an RBI and a walk, Xu went 1-for-2 with two RBIs, two runs and a pair of walks, and Hayes doubled with an RBI. Kully tallied a hit, two runs and an RBI while Chen registered a hit and scored once. Koh and Chino each scored once while Grable had an RBI.
The Wolves (4-1 overall) will host Palos Verdes Chadwick for their Prep League opener on Friday, Feb. 24, at 3:30 p.m. before visiting Santa Monica for a nonleague game on Saturday, Feb. 25, at 10 a.m.
LA SALLE
The Lancers rallied from a four-run deficit to defeat visiting Charter Oak High of Covina, 6-5, in a Pizza Chalet Tournament game last Saturday.
A-C Nieto went 2-for-3 with two RBIs and a run while Will Clougherty went 2-for-2 with two runs and a walk. David Mysza recorded a hit, two RBIs and a run while Kyle Lima tallied a hit and an RBI. Morgan Sullivan earned the win in relief after tossing two scoreless innings with one strikeout, one hit and a walk. Val Gomez, who had a base hit and scored at the plate, gave up five runs (two earned) on seven hits and three walks with three strikeouts over five innings. Peter Callihan notched an RBI while Travis Ochoa scored once.
La Salle lost at Bonita High in La Verne, 6-1, in a tournament game last Wednesday as Nieto went 3-for-4 with an RBI. Clougherty registered a pair of walks and scored once while Hunter Vigil, Gomez and Lima each walked once. Sullivan worked four innings with three strikeouts while allowing four hits, two earned runs and two walks. Drew Ward allowed two earned runs in two innings on two hits and three walks
The Lancers previously edged visiting Montebello in their season opener, 3-2. Callihan went 2-for-3 with a pair of runs while Mauricio Pavon doubled with an RBI. Sullivan earned the win in relief after tossing 2.2 scoreless innings with three hits and a walk while Gomez pitched 4.1 innings with three hits, four walks, two earned runs and one strikeout. Clougherty registered a hit, a walk and a run, Ochoa had a base hit, Vigil finished with an RBI and Jacob Escamilla walked once.
ST. FRANCIS
The Golden Knights defeated visiting Saugus, 8-4, in an Easton Tournament game on Saturday.
Sophomore Jordan Lewallen went 2-for-4 with a double, an RBI and a run while junior Holden Deitch went 2-for-4 with a double, a stolen base and a run. Caleb Thatcher, who doubled with an RBI and a run, allowed eight hits, four earned runs, three walks and one strikeout over six innings, senior Lucas Dixon doubled with two RBIs, and junior Jordan Viramontes doubled with an RBI and a run. Junior John Calmette went 1-for-3 with a walk and a run, sophomore Dane Shepard went 1-for-2 with a walk, and junior Kalani Quiroz pitched a clean inning of relief with two strikeouts. Junior Kal-El Holguin recorded a hit and an RBI while junior Brody Ruyle scored once.
SFHS was shut out at Valencia, 7-0, in a tournament game last Thursday. Quiroz went 2-for-2, junior Callum Clark recorded a base hit and senior Cole Shepard walked once. Holguin pitched 1.2 innings with four strikeouts, four hits, one earned run and a walk while sophomore Wes Soter allowed two earned runs, four walks and one hit over two innings. Junior Joe Krasnowski struck out two and allowed a base hit in one inning while senior John Glassen pitched a clean inning of relief.
The Golden Knights recently edged visiting Glendale, 1-0, behind a complete game shutout performance by Dixon. He struck out four with three hits and a walk while going 2-for-3 with a run at the plate. Meanwhile senior Liam Thatcher drove in what would be the deciding run in the fourth inning. Ruyle registered a hit and a stolen base, senior Grant Valentine finished with a base hit, and Caleb Thatcher, Calmette and Viramontes each walked once.
St. Francis previously lost its season opener at Oaks Christian High in Westlake Village, 5-4, as senior Xander Douglas pitched two innings of relief with two strikeouts and allowed an unearned run on one hit and a walk. Dixon went 2-for-3 with two RBIs and a walk while Viramontes went 1-for-2 with a pair of RBIs, a sac fly and a walk. Deitch recorded a base hit, two stolen bases and two runs, Caleb Thatcher finished with a base hit and a stolen base, and Ruyle had a hit. Lewallen scored once and stole a base while Calmette scored once.
The Golden Knights (2-2 overall) will host Harvard-Westlake High of Studio City in their Mission League opener on Tuesday, Feb. 28. SFHS will conclude its season series with Harvard-Westlake with a pair of matchups the following week.
POLY
The Panthers lost to visiting San Marino, 6-0, in their nonleague home opener last Thursday.
Senior Adam Arther allowed three unearned runs on four walks and a hit with seven strikeouts across four innings, senior Charlie Thorell walked four and struck out a batter in an inning of relief, and senior Dash Ferrante registered a hit and a pair of stolen bases. Junior Henry McDonald reach base on a walk and a hit-by-pitch while freshman Alex Chui walked once and stole a base.
Poly previously won its season opener at Schurr High in Montebello, 9-8, as Arther, who pitched a scoreless inning with a pair of strikeouts, went 2-for-3 with a triple and a walk. Junior Luke Kim went 3-for-4 with a double and two runs, junior captain Sean Asperger went 2-for-3 with a double, two stolen bases, two RBIs and two runs, and Ferrante went 2-for-3 with a double, an RBI and a run. Chui recorded a double, two RBIs and a run while McDonald produced a double, a walk and two runs. Connor Poon allowed two earned runs, three hits and two walks over 1.2 innings to earn the win, junior captain Elliott Rowley and sophomore Harrison Unanue each had a hit and an RBI, and senior Nick Cardenas walked once and scored a run.
The Panthers (1-1 overall) will open Prep League action at Rio Hondo Prep in Arcadia on Friday, Feb. 24, at 3:15 p.m. before hosting South Pasadena for a nonleague matchup on Tuesday, Feb. 28.
