San Diego Prep Baseball : San Pasqual Wins a Wild One, 18-9

Probably the wildest opening-round game of the 35th annual Lions-Mike Morrow baseball tournament took place between Saint Augustine and San Pasqual High Schools at Mar Vista Saturday afternoon.

The Eagles pounded 16 hits and beat the Saints 18-9 in a “A” Division matchup. San Pasqual scored five runs in the first inning and eight in the seventh. St. Augustine had a five-run sixth inning.

“It was a pitcher’s duel,” Saints’ Coach Bill Whitaker said.

The Saints’ five-run outburst made it 10-9 in favor of San Pasqual. But the Eagles struck back by scoring eight times in the seventh to put away the game.

“That’s when all the hell broke loose,” Whitaker said. “We couldn’t get anyone out.”

San Pasqual center fielder Yale Fowler hit a two-run home run in that seventh. Fowler went 4 for 5, scored three runs and had three RBIs on the day. Four Eagles--Greg Bratten, Dub Kruse, Chris Portis and Robbie Adams--had two hits. Adams also had three RBIs.

Darren Dunn was the winning pitcher for San Pasqual (7-1). Mark Mendoza (0-2) was the loser. Paul Fornier had four hits and drove in three Saint runs. One of Fornier’s RBIs came on a solo homer.

In other “A” Division play:

Clairemont 3, El Camino 2--The Chieftains jumped out to a 3-0 lead and held on to beat the Wildcats. Jeff Sturch (2-2) was the winning pitcher and had three hits for Clairemont (6-4). Ernie Spears hit a solo home run in the sixth inning for El Camino (4-5).

Lincoln 14, Coronado 4--The Hornets had 14 hits and easily defeated the Islanders. Steve Taylor and Horace Tucker had three hits apiece for Lincoln, and Lamont Horn and Eugene Howard had two each. Taylor, who hit a solo home run, had four RBIs, while Leon Connelly drove in three runs. The Hornets are 5-2-1, Coronado is 3-4.

Mar Vista 11, Francis Parker 1--Robert Cueva had three hits, including a two-run homer, and drove in five runs for the Mariners. Victor Vargas also had two hits, two RBIs and scored three times for Mar Vista. Mariners’ starting pitcher Jose Ibarra worked the first six innings, and gave up no runs on just one hit, while striking out six. The Mariners are 9-2. The Lancers are 4-3.

In the “AA” Division:

Hoover 17, La Jolla 3--Ty Murphy, Scott Charles, Louie Alonzo and John Roots all had two RBIs for the Cardinals, who are 4-5. Sal Ceballos was the winning pitcher. La Jolla is 0-8.

Mission Bay 19, Serra 1--Richard Viles and John Hemmerly had five RBIs apiece for the Buccaneers. Mission Bay scored 10 runs in first inning. Hemmerly drove in four of those runs in the first with a two-run homer and two-run double. Mission Bay is 8-2 and Serra is 3-5.

Hilltop 5, Crawford 4 (9 innings)--Ward Lannom’s single drove home Gary Fessia in the bottom of the ninth to give the Lancers a win at Hilltop. Todd Pratt (2-1) was the winning pitcher for the Lancers and had two doubles as well. Hilltop is 7-3, Crawford 2-6.

Torrey Pines 8, Castle Park 4--The Falcons (4-5) scored three runs in the fifth inning and four in the sixth to beat the Trojans (4-6-1).

University 5, El Capitan 4--Troy Kent (2-3) had two hits, drove in three runs and was the winning pitcher as the Dons (5-4) held off the Vaqueros (2-8).

In the “AAA” Division: Patrick Henry 13, Grossmont 0--The Patriots, who had scored 49 runs in their last four wins, continued their lusty hitting. Kasey McKeon had a home run, two singles and four RBIs, and Eric Karros and Tim Edmonds also had three hits apiece. Karros hit a solo homer.

Scott Middaugh and Ramon Llernas combined to limit Grossmont (5-4) to four hits. Patrick Henry is 6-1.

Morse 9, Chula Vista 4--At Granite Hills, Morse was down 3-0 in the third inning, but came back to beat the Spartans. Tiger center fielder Tony Bell had a double, triple, three RBIs and scored twice. Carlos Garcia had two hits and two RBIs. Dave Espiritu (4-1) was the winning pitcher. Both teams are 6-4.

Granite Hills 15, San Dieguito 1--The Eagles scored nine runs in the fourth inning to win for the seventh time in nine tries this season. Damon Hansel hit a three-run home run in the fourth, and Todd Parker added a two-run shot in the same inning. Hansel had four RBIs. Fred Helm (4-1) was the winning pitcher. The Mustangs fell to 2-4.

Helix 10, Madison 5--The Warhawks hit three home runs against the Highlanders, but nine errors cost them the game. Joe Gomes had a pinch-hit, two-run homer, and James Moliere and Jon McRae had solo home runs. Helix is 6-4, Madison 8-2.

Santana 13, Southwest 1--Jim Franco’s grand slam led the Sultans (7-2) in a romp over the Raiders. Franco had five RBIs on the day and Mike Cordoza drove in three runs. Jeff Barry (4-0) was the winning pitcher for Santana. Southwest is 0-7-1.

Mira Mesa 7, Monte Vista 5--Mike Eicher and Mark Robert drove in two runs apiece for the Marauders. Ricky Joseph also homered for Mira Mesa (7-1). Monte Vista is 3-5.

Poway 4, Montgomery 1--The Titans (7-2) scored three unearned runs and beat the Aztecs (7-2-1). Santiago Del Hoyo drove in Montgomery’s only run with a homer in the sixth inning.