Baseball: Kevin Gowdy, Santa Barbara outlast Ricky Ramos, Bellflower, 1-0

The expected pitching duel for Thursday’s Southern Section Divsion 2 playoff opener between Bellflower and Santa Barbara lived up to the hype.

In the end, UCLA signee Kevin Gowdy of Santa Barbara struck out 11, walked one and gave up three hits in a 1-0 victory. Bellflower’s Ricky Ramos gave up the game’s only run in the sixth inning on an RBI single by Joe Firestone. He had a no-hitter into the sixth.

The game ended with a dramatic double play. Bellflower tried a suicide squeeze. On the bunt, Gowdy fielded the ball and got it to catcher Samsun Keithley, who beat the runner out at the plate and also tagged out the batter to end the game.

Villa Park 8, Bonita 1: Cole Wiens threw six shutout innings to help the Spartans stun No. 3-seeded Bonita in Division 2. Alex Sosnowski had three hits, including a two-run home run.

La Mirada 1, Ayala 0: In another pitcher’s duel, the Matadores pulled out the Division 2 win.

Damien 4, Royal 1: Nick Lodolo threw the complete game, striking out six.

South Hills 4, Mayfair 0: The top-seeded Huskies received five shutout innings from Brandon Dieter.

Mission Viejo 4, Downey 3: The Diablos won in 10 innings. Zack Manchez had the game-winning RBI.

Gahr 6, Buena 0: Left-hander Josh Haley struck out 10 in six innings and Jeremy Sifuentes had four RBIs.

Rancho Cucamonga 6, Burroughs 3: Tyler Lawson struck out five and threw a complete game.

Carter 7, Etiwanda 6: Carter scored three runs in the eighth to advance after Etiwanda scored two runs in the top of the eighth.

Paramount 3, Moorpark 0: Daniel Hernandez threw a four-hit shutout, striking out three.

Yucaipa 8, Simi Valley 7: Yucaipa scored a run in the eighth to gain the victory. Joseph Lomeli had three hits for Yucaipa, which rallied from a 6-3 deficit. Andrew Devine went four for five to lead Simi Valley.

Foothill 4, San Juan Hills 3: Foothill pulled out the win in the 11th inning on a game-winning RBI from Evan Mickelson.

Oxnard 7, Crescenta Valley 0: Oxnard came away with the shutout.

St. Bonaventure 3, Alhambra 1: Brent Dickey threw six innings and Darius Vines got the save for the Seraphs.

Providence 3, St. Margaret’s 2: The Pioneers won in eight innings on a game-winning RBI single from Thomas Keller.

Einstein 3, Valley Christian Academy 1: Sam Stulman struck out 11. Catcher Matt Cogan threw out three runners.

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