Baseball: Lincoln celebrates City Section Division II championship

Lincoln High waited so long for the opportunity to finally play at Dodger Stadium, located three miles from campus, that there was no way the Tigers were not going to come away victorious.

Sophomore Isaac Cota threw a three-hitter for five innings and Hugo Avendano finished up in the Tigers’ 3-0 victory at Dodger Stadium on Saturday afternoon in the City Section Division II championship game. Lincoln fans that filled the seats behind the third-base dugout couldn’t have been happier.

“It was heaven on earth,” Cota said. “It was the best feeling ever.”

Lincoln (15-6) scored three unearned runs in the first inning, then relied on Cota, who struck out two and walked none. He was backed by flawless defense from shortstop Christian Frias, who had five assists, and left fielder Avendano, who made several clutch catches of fly balls.

Freshman Gunner Orozco pitched well after a rough first inning for Chavez (8-18), allowing four hits.

“We’re making history right here,” a Lincoln player said as the team took photos holding up its championship plaque.

Lincoln, 100 years old, last played in a championship game in 1935, according to a Lincoln historian. Now it has a championship banner to unfurl on campus.

Coach Jose Romero, a 1970 Lincoln grad, showed off the plaque to Lincoln fans to everyone’s delight.

Twitter:@LATSondheimer