Big Games : Hamilton at Venice

Venice, 12-2 overall and 1-0 in the Western League at the start of the week, will play host to Hamilton (3-3-1 and 0-1) at 3 p.m. Monday. The Gondoliers took the Holt/Goodman Tournament last week, defeating Granada Hills, 8-2. Outfielder Roger Serafin had a home run, a triple and a double to drive in three runs for the Gondoliers. Pitcher Armando Gomez saved two games in the tournament, and his bases-loaded triple scored three runs to break open the championship game. Gomez was named the tournament’s most valuable player.

The Gondoliers will face a Hamilton team with good speed and dangerous hitters in the middle of its lineup, Venice Coach Jeff Shimizu said. Hitters include shortstop Chris Martin and center fielder Darly Moss.

Second baseman William Galinato is leading the Gondoliers in hitting with a .429 average. The Gondoliers are also getting sound pitching from Paul Nikcevic, who has a 1-0 record and an earned run average of 2.06, and Gomez, who has a 3-1 record and an ERA of 2.66.

Westchester at University

University, 11-2 overall and 1-0 in the Western League, will entertain Westchester (3-5 and 1-0) at 3 p.m. Monday.

The Warriors took the Roosevelt/Goodman Tournament last week, pounding Eagle Rock pitching for 16 hits en route to a 16-3 win. Javier Cortez, the Warriors’ catcher, was 9 for 13 in the tournament with 6 RBIs. He drove in three runs in the championship game and captured the tournament most valuable player award.

University Coach Frank Cruz said that Westchester has strong pitching, but must play error-free ball against the Comets. The Warriors are averaging two errors a game, and Cruz said that he would like his team to cut the ratio to one every two games. He said the team also needs to eliminate base-running mistakes that cost the team runs.

The Warriors are led in hitting by shortstop Ross Rosenfeld with .467 average, and in pitching by Charlie German, with a 3-0 record. He has not given up an earned run.

Redondo at Santa Monica

Redondo travels to Santa Monica to take on the Vikings in Bay League action at 3 p.m. Monday.

Santa Monica, 11-4 overall and 1-0 in league, will face a strong Redondo team (11-2 and 1-1). The Sea Hawks are the defending Bay League champions and favored to take the league title. Santa Monica Coach Tony Diaz said that Redondo has strong pitching, a sound defense and timely hitting.

Santa Monica captured the Santa Maria/Righetti tournament over the Easter holidays. They beat Righetti 5-2 in the championship game. Viking left fielder Nick Satriano, was the most valuable player. He went 5 for 9 in the tournament with 6 RBIs and raised his average from .190 to .300.

The Vikings have nine players batting .300 or better. Leading the way is catcher Randy Bongar with a .455 average. Kurt Schwengel anchors the pitching staff with a 4-0 record and a 0.84 ERA.