Mater Dei loses high-scoring thriller

Mater Dei's Jimmy Daley scores the tying run as Harvard-Westlake catcher Tom Fuller catches a throw during the sixth inning of Tuesday's playoff game. Mater Dei lost, 11-10.
Mater Dei's Austin Reyes slides into second base as Harvard-Westlake's Ezra Steinberg catches a throw during first inning of a wild-card round playoff game Tuesday.
Mater Dei's Josh Stephen reacts after he struck out in the bottom of the sixth inning of the wild-card game Tuesday in Santa Ana. Stephen homered in the fourth.
Harvard-Westlake's Chase Aldridge celebrates after finishing up an 11-10 win over Mater Dei in the wild-card round of the CIF-SS Division 1 baseball playoffs on Tuesday at Mater Dei.
Harvard-Westlake's Jake Suddleson beats the throw to Mater Dei second baseman Bryan Call in the fourth inning of Tuesday's CIF-SS Division 1 wild-card playoff game.
Mater Dei's Grant Burton connects for a two-run homer against Harvard-Westlake during the first inning of Tuesday's wild-card playoff game Tuesday.
Harvard-Westlake's Jackson Grayson misses on an attempt to catch a line drive during the first inning of Tuesday's playoff game against Mater Dei.
Mater Dei's Bryan Call dives back to first base as Harvard-Westlake's Cameron Deere catches a throw during the sixth inning of Tuesday's CIF-SS Division 1 wild-card playoff game.
Mater Dei's Ben Kane fires a pitch against Harvard-Westlake during the fourth inning of a wild-card playoff game Tuesday.
Harvard-Westlake's John Thomas beats the throw to second base Mater Dei's Brandon Perez moves to catch the ball during a CIF-SS wild-card playoff game Tuesday.
Harvard-Westlake players begin to celebrate after beating Mater Dei, 11-10, in a CIF-SS Division 1 wild-card playoff game Tuesday at Mater Dei High.

By Andrew Turner | Orange County Register

May 19, 2015 at 9:53 p.m.

SANTA ANA – When the CIF-SS baseball brackets were released, the eyes of some widened as they stumbled across the wild-card matchup of two formidable baseball programs.

Mater Dei versus Harvard-Westlake of Studio City had been a budding nonleague rivalry for a few seasons, and their postseason rendition Tuesday did not disappoint.

Ezra Steinberg singled home the winning run in the top of the seventh inning, and Harvard-Westlake defeated the Monarchs, 11-10, on Tuesday in a Division 1 playoff game at Mater Dei High.

The teams combined for 29 hits. Steinberg’s decisive knock came against Nick Pratto (3-1). The Monarchs left-hander, considered one of the top sophomore pitching prospects in the nation, had not taken the mound in a game since March 17 due to a back strain.

The Wolverines (23-5) batted around in the first, scoring five runs to put the Monarchs (17-13) in a hole.

Home runs by Brandon Perez and Grant Burton helped the Monarchs tie the score at 5 after one inning.

“Our team played with a lot of heart and passion today,” Monarchs coach Burt Call said. “We kept our energy, kept our composure, and got back into a great ballgame.”

Harvard-Westlake retook the lead with a run in the third, and a two-run homer from Cameron Deere extended its advantage to 8-5 in the fourth.

But the Monarchs rallied again. Josh Stephen homered, and Perez drove in Bryan Call with a single to make it 8-7 going to the fifth.

“(Harvard-Westlake) has always been competitive,” said Perez, remembering a pair of close wins against the Wolverines earlier in his career. “We knew we had a good challenge. We played our hearts out.”

The Wolverines added single runs in the fifth and the sixth to build a three-run margin.

In the bottom of the sixth, the Monarchs capitalized on a pair of errors by Harvard-Westlake. The second miscue allowed two runs to cross before Brendan Hamilton tied the score at 10 with a single.

In Division 5:

Whittier Christian 3, Campbell Hall of North Hollywood 2: The Heralds (17-12) won their wild-card game and advanced to play at Monrovia on Thursday.