Rare run continues for Crescenta Valley Junior baseball
TUJUNGA — There was a question that permeated the Crescenta Valley Junior All-Star baseball team’s dugout and stands before and after Tuesday afternoon’s championship game of the Section 2 Tournament at Tujunga Ballfields.
No one was sure the last time Crescenta Valley had won a Section 2 title. The squad had come agonizingly close in back-to-back efforts in 2014 and 2015, only to finish runner-up.
That answer, though, crystallized as District 16 champion Crescenta Valley scored 11 runs in the third inning and never looked back in defeating District 40 titlist Northridge, 17-2, in five innings.
“I couldn’t tell you the last time we went this far,” Crescenta Valley Manager Bryan Rich said. “This is my fifth year doing this and we’ve never made it this far.
“I told the team that the last two years we were in the exact same position. We were up, 2-0, and then we finished 0-2. I just told them, ‘C’mon, let’s just win the first game, so we don’t have a second one.’”
With the victory, Crescenta Valley earned advancement to the Division 3 North Tournament, which begins Saturday and is being hosted by Santa Paula Little League. Crescenta Valley will face the Section 3 champion at St. Bonaventure High at 10 a.m.
Crescenta Valley finished off a 3-0 run through the section tournament that included a 4-3 opening win over Tehachapi and a 16-11 win over Northridge in winner’s bracket action Sunday.
As for Tuesday’s contest, Crescenta Valley exorcised some demons via an 11-run third inning in which the squad sent 15 batters to the plate, collected six hits, stole four bases and took advantage of two walks, two hit batters, two errors, a wild pitch and a balk.
An inning full of big blows included a two-run triple from leadoff batter Vinnie Parrott (two for five with a double and triple, three runs batted in and two runs), a two-run single from Chad Ruf, a rocketed run-scoring ground-rule double from Ian McCluskey and a scoring double from Trent Steele.
Northridge, which was limited in its pitching options, used only two hurlers in the frame and marveled at Crescenta Valley’s approach at the plate.
“Crescenta Valley is well-coached and they have a lot of players on their team they can draw from,” Northridge Coach David Renick said. “They have some pitching and some big guys on the team. Playing a year of high school baseball really helps out.”
The 11-run third inning put Crescenta Valley ahead, 13-0, heading to the bottom of the third.
Crescenta Valley eventually continued its streak to 16 unanswered runs by adding three in the fourth inning, with two runs scoring on a fielder’s choice from Chris Lawson.
Crescenta Valley ended with a run in the fifth thanks to a sacrifice fly from Parrott, while the team began with two runs in the first, with one being driven in by Ruf, who finished with three RBI and two runs scored.
Perhaps lost in the fireworks was a solid effort by Crescenta Valley starting pitcher Brian Harley.
The hurler allowed two runs on five hits over 4 1/3 innings, while striking out five.
Northridge’s big hit of the game was a two-run double from Jack Walker in the fourth inning.
“A lot of credit goes to Brian Harley for this win,” Rich said. “He pitched a great game and gave us some stability out there when this could have been a wild game. Now, we’re just happy to move on.”
