Oxford Academy figures out winning formula

LONG BEACH - The first phase of the Oxford Academy game plan worked perfectly Friday as sophomore pitcher Steve Criss threw four scoreless innings against Rosamond.

Cameron Bedard was the second step. Bedard, a senior, replaced Criss in the fifth inning with runners on first and second and no outs.

Bedard escaped the inning without allowing a run and eventually capped a 5-1 victory for the Patriots in the CIF-SS Division VI championship game at Blair Field.

"This is a dream come true," Oxford Academy coach Dana Bedard said.

Criss improved his record to 8-0. Bedard pitched three innings for the save.

"He pitched a phenomenal four innings," Dana Bedard said of Criss. "If we could get through four innings and have Cameron (Bedard) come in and shut this thing down, then we knew we have a good chance of winning it.

"Steve (Criss) exceeded our expectations by throwing into the fifth inning, which really helped out … I felt a lot better knowing that I had the luxury of bringing Cameron in for three innings.

Cameron Bedard could only pitch three innings because he threw seven in the semifinals.

It also helped to have a fast-starting offense.

The Patriots (22-5) opened the first inning with consecutive singles from Bedard, Criss and Lucas Sardo. Patrick Zajac then followed with a two-run double against Rosamond starter D.J. Sterling.

"We knew that he threw a lot of strikes and we knew he had command of his fastball and change-up," Cameron Bedard said. "We tried to jump on his fastball early."

Oxford added another run in the third when Sardo, who led the off the inning with a triple, scored when Daniel Luscak grounded into a double play.

The Patriots added two runs in the sixth to seal their first baseball championship.

"I would have never believed that this would be the team to win it," Cameron Bedard said.

"We're a real young team, we start six freshman or sophomores. We struggled to win our league (Academy), but we played hard-nosed baseball all year and it paid off."

Contact the writer: dcalhoun@ocregister.com