Huntington Beach starts Edward Pelc in playoff opener with Vista Murrieta and he delivers
In a surprise move, Huntington Beach High started Edward Pelc, instead of ace Josh Hahn, on the mound Friday. The way Pelc has been throwing, it’s easy to understand why coach Benji Medure made such a decision.
Pelc went into the first round of the CIF Southern Section Division 1 baseball playoffs having thrown 16 straight scoreless innings. The junior’s streak ended right away against Vista Murrieta, but one run is all the University of San Diego commit allowed.
Pelc tossed five strong innings, and the No. 2-seeded Oilers cruised to a 9-1 win at home.
After Pelc gave up a run in the top of the first inning, his first since April 13, the Oilers backed him up early. They scored three runs in the first and second innings, and Pelc helped his own cause by singling in two runs in the fourth.
The Oilers (26-5), ranked No. 4 in the state by CalHiSports.com, advanced to the second round to play at Goleta Dos Pueblos (24-3) on Tuesday. The Chargers earned a 6-5 walk-off win against Newbury Park in the first round on Friday, forcing Huntington Beach to make the long trip up Highway 101 next week.
Medure said he already knows of a spot in Santa Barbara to have lunch before the game.
“At La Super-Rica,” Medure said of the famous restaurant, “because I know that taqueria is good.”
Pelc is pretty good, too. He allowed four runs, struck out two and walked two.
It was pretty cool getting the opportunity to start this thing off.
— Huntington Beach High pitcher Edward Pelc
Another reason why Medure went with Pelc was because of his secondary pitches, and they gave Vista Murrieta problems. Other than UCLA-bound senior Jake Moberg’s leadoff double, he eventually came around to score in the first inning on an error, Pelc mixed up the speed and delivery on his pitches.
“I thought it was going to be Hahn [on the mound],” Vista Murrieta coach Matt Mosiello said. “It’s tough getting ready for a lefty one day, and [then seeing a different lefty].
“It was a good decision by [Medure].”
Medure knew Pelc was ready by the way he reacted when Medure picked up Pelc’s game ball.
“He almost bit my head off,” Medure said with a smile. “He’s really competitive. He’s really intense.”
Pelc wanted the ball. Medure figured the playoff opener would be a tight game, just like the last time the Oilers and Broncos played in the consolation round of the Boras Classic South tournament on April 5, when Huntington Beach won 6-5.
Huntington Beach came back on Vista Murrieta again, this time early and not late.
Jake Vogel’s leadoff home run to left field tied the game at 1-1. Jag Burden doubled in a run before Hahn raced home from third on an error to give the Oilers a 3-1 first-inning lead.
“Every time we’re down, it’s like we know what to do, just come right back,” said Vogel, who finished with two runs batted in, two runs and one walk.
Hahn, a junior committed to UCLA, and Nick Lopez each singled in a run to extend the Oilers’ lead to 6-1 in the second inning. The support was more than enough for Pelc to improve to 4-0.
“It was pretty cool getting the opportunity to start this thing off,” said Pelc, who threw 79 pitches. “It had been a long time [since I gave up a run]. I was certainly due for it.”
Get more of David Carrillo Peñaloza’s work and follow him on Twitter @ByDCP
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