Surging Valencia ready to take on Hart’s Montgomery on Friday
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First, I want everybody to know that I’ll be covering a Hart sporting event for the second consecutive day on Friday. Now, I’m not a Hart homer or anything -- it just so happens the baseball team is playing a whopper of a contest against Valencia tomorrow and it’s one of those the-media-should-be-there kind of games.
This game should give us an answer as to who is the early favorite for the Foothill League title. There’s still a ton of baseball to be played, so you can’t crown tomorrow’s winner as the next league champion, but I’m sure I’ll forget about that little tidbit of jumping-the-gun information when I’m all worked up around 5:30 p.m. tomorrow.
The biggest question is whether the Vikings’ batter brigade, led by pineswinger extraordinaire Robbie Mousselli, can find a way past Hart ace Mike Montgomery. The Cal State Fullerton-bound southpaw is one of the very best at his craft, and Valencia understands runs are going to come at a premium against a guy who sports a 0.875 ERA.
‘With the arms they have, Hart, obviously, is a very talented team,’ Valencia Coach Jared Snyder said. ‘It’s going to be a challenge.... We’re not quite the offensive team we were in the past and we haven’t faced a pitcher like [Montgomery].’
Still, Snyder doesn’t want you to forget what his Vikings have accomplished. Looking past the fact a lot of crazy people pegged them to finish fourth place in the Foothill League, the Vikings have been on a roll after opening the season with a couple of what Snyder described as ‘learning experiences.’ And since they’re eyebrow-lifting 4-0 victory over Saugus on March 14, the Vikings have been pillaging all over the Santa Clarita Valley.
Mouselli is sporting a 1.33 ERA with 20 strikeouts over 21 innings and is averaging .389 at the plate. Teammate Christian Lopes is batting .459 and Dylan Jones has a .394 average with nine RBIs.
Montgomery is going to make life a lot tougher for these guys, but if Mouselli can keep the Indians’ bats under control, anything is possible. Remember the Thousand Oaks game?
-- Austin Knoblauch
