Zamora powers Beckman into final

IRVINE - Beckman senior Edgar Zamora took it upon himself Tuesday afternoon to send the Patriots to their first CIF baseball championship game in the program's four-year history.

Zamora, the winning pitcher, went 5 for 5 with six RBIs to lead Beckman to a 15-3 victory over Lancaster in a CIF-SS Division III semifinal game at Beckman.

The victory sends top-seeded Beckman (26-4) into the championship Saturday at 1 p.m. at Angel Stadium against South Hills of West Covina.

Zamora (10-1) pitched the first five innings, allowing three unearned runs.

"I've struggled in the past (batting) when I've pitched because I usually concentrate on the mound," Zamora said. "But today, it just worked out for me."

Beckman coach Kevin Lavalle knew his squad was ready when it scored three runs in the first inning.

Zamora's two-run double and an RBI single by Justin Hazard accounted for the runs. In a four-run second inning, Brandon Trinkwon had an RBI triple and Zamora and Hazard had RBI singles.

"Sometimes as a coach, you want your guys to relax a little bit, but these guys were so ready to play, we would have played it in the parking lot," Lavalle said.

Lancaster (21-8) got going in the third inning, cutting the deficit to 7-3 on a three-run home run by Cameron Summers. But Beckman countered with four runs in the bottom of the inning, two coming on a double by Trinkwon.

Zamora capped the game with a two-run home run in the sixth.

Trinkwon was 3 for 4 with two runs scored and three RBIs, and finished with two scoreless innings on the mound.

Contact the writer: tburt@ocregister.com