Chatsworth Leaves No Doubt : Chancellors Lead by 2 Games After Pounding Canoga Park, 12-0

Mark Schauer allowed just four hits and catcher John Dunn doubled and homered to lead Chatsworth High to a 12-0 win Tuesday over Canoga Park at home.

The win keeps Chatsworth (9-2) in first place in the West Valley League by two games with four games left in the season. Canoga Park, which could have moved into a first-place tie with Chatsworth, is 7-4.

Schauer, one of only three left-handers in the league, baffled Canoga Park batters and improved his record to 7-1. He has pitched 13 straight shutout innings.

“I know most of those guys from Little League,” Schauer said. “So, I know how to pitch to them. Because there aren’t many left-handed pitchers in this league, I kind of have an edge.”

Dunn, who had three runs batted in, homered in the second inning off losing pitcher Kasey Fink (3-2). Dunn’s hit over the right-field fence scored designated hitter Sal Barrocas, who had singled in two runs in the same inning. Barrocas added a triple in the third.

Chatsworth scored four runs in the second inning and three in the fourth. The Chancellors added five runs in the fifth off reliever Mike Roberts. Chatsworth had nine hits against the combined pitching of Fink, Roberts and Adam Schulhofer. Schulhofer retired three straight in the sixth inning.

“I’m glad that Schulhofer even got to pitch one inning,” Canoga Park Coach Doug MacKenzie said. “He’s had some kind of flu. I think he has walking pneumonia. He’s sick as a dog.”

Schulhofer, who is the team’s best pitcher, has pitched only one inning in three weeks. Still, the Hunters had won five straight before Tuesday.

Defending league champion Chatsworth is hardly ailing and Coach Bob Lofrano is hopeful things stay that way.

“Today we came out defending our title,” Lofrano said. “We’re in first place. We don’t have to look in the papers to see who we have to beat. We have to beat everybody and this team has the desire to do it. We have a two-game lead with four games to go and we’re going to keep battling until we have a two-game lead with one to go.”

Of Schauer, Lofrano said: “He never beats himself. He’s a great pitcher and a good fielder. Left-handed pitchers on this level, especially in this league, are at a big advantage.”