RIVERSIDE – Patriot’s bats fell quiet in Tuesday afternoon’s CIF-SS Division 4 second-round playoff game against visiting Laguna Beach, where Breakers right-hander Ashton Goddard tossed a three-hit, 4-0, shutout.
For most of the game, it was pretty silent all around.
Patriots starting pitcher senior-right-hander Andrew Martinez kept the game scoreless until allowing a single run in the top of the fourth. The Breakers then took out a three-run insurance policy in the top of the seventh inning.
“He’s been the guy for us all year; he’s got a great baseball future ahead of him,” Patriot coach Otis Williams said of Martinez, who struck out seven over seven innings. “This is another example of what he’s done for us all year. He ran out of gas a little bit in that last inning, but we win most games with that pitching performance right there.”
Martinez ran into trouble in the first inning when a leadoff single and an error put two runners aboard with no outs.
But Warriors catcher Michael Herrera fielded a pop bunt and doubled off the lead runner, who was running on the play, at second base, and Martinez retired cleanup hitter Will McInerny on an eight-pitch at-bat to end the inning.
Martinez retired six of the next seven batters he faced, but in the top of the fourth Breakers shortstop Dustin Angus led off with a single and moved into scoring position on a steal of second. Angus would have been out on the steal attempt, but the throw was dropped at second base.
Angus scored on a single by Zak Kovacic two batters later.
The Warriors (18-12) had a few chances to get to Goddard, with perhaps their best opportunity coming in the third when Jeffrey Wickham’s sky-high popup fell between the mound and second base for a two-base error. Wickham saw no one was covering third and made a heads-up play to take another base, but Nolan Hawkins flew out to center field for the third out at the end of a seven-pitch at-bat.
Patriot again had the tying run on base with one out in the sixth, but the Breakers (17-12) got out of the frame with a strikeout and throw out of a would-be base stealer all in one play.
“They did a really good job keeping us off balance,” Williams said. “(Goddard) did an outstanding job working away and then coming with that curveball.”
Contact the writer: grizk@pressenterprise.com
