ANAHEIM – Katella baseball coach Marcelo Miranda could only shake his head and give credit where credit was due.
“Give all the credit to Hemet,” he said after the Bulldogs scored eight runs in the first two innings and went on to defeat the Knights, 9-4, in the Newport Elks Tournament’s 16-team Costa Mesa Division title game Friday at Boysen Park.
“They found a way to put the ball in play. They were aggressive at the plate and jumped on us right away. It’s hard to win when you fall behind 5-0 in the first inning.”
After becoming the only team to go 4-0 in Costa Mesa Division pool play, Katella fell to 6-2 overall going into the start of Orange League play next week.
“The kids did an awesome job today,” Hemet coach Dave Parker said. “We’ve been preaching team play and our bats came alive in this tournament.”
Leadoff hitter Adrian Lopez went 4 for 5 to pace the Bulldogs’ 15-hit attack. Sophomore catcher Tyler Richardson went 3 for 4 and drove in two runs, while center fielder Danny Gomez and shortstop Aaron Harper each had two hits.
“Tyler had a hot bat in the tournament,” Parker said. “And Adrian had a great game today. Really, it’s been a different guy every game.”
To their credit, the Knights didn’t go flat after falling behind 8-0 just three batters into Hemet’s second inning.
Rafael Flores went 3 for 3, shortstop Angel Ureno went 2 for 4 and David Navarette went 2 for 3 with three RBI, including a two-run double in the fourth in which he scored himself after two errors.
“I’m proud of my kids,” Miranda said. “We fell a little short today but we kept playing. … We’re very optimistic going into league.”
Lopez slapped a single to left to start the game, then Gomez’s bunt went for a single. After a passed ball moved up the runners, Lopez scored on a groundout by first baseman Steven Wright. Another run scored on a single by Richardson.
Two-out singles by Elijah Neccochea and Kyle Serna got another run in before a two-run single by pinch hitter Ethan Post made it 5-0.
A triple by Wright and a double by Richardson keyed three more runs in the second, giving Hemet and starting pitcher David Ackley an 8-0 lead.
Ackley made the most of the big lead, working efficiently and going the distance while giving up three earned runs on 10 hits.
