New Math Adds Up for Alemany in L.A. Games Title

Defying laws of mathematics, the Alemany High baseball team adds by subtracting.

Alemany lost five starters to transfers before the high school season but didn’t stop winning. The Indians placed second in the Del Rey League to qualify for the Southern Section playoffs.

And already this summer, Alemany has staked claim as one of the area’s best teams. The Indians won five straight games over the past two weekends to capture the championship of the L.A. Games.

“Bringing up younger kids because people left enabled them to mature faster,” Alemany Coach Jim Ozella said. “Guys who have played a lot of ball for us will be back at every position.”

Despite losing outfielders Billy Picketts and Bill Chavez, second baseman Kevin Wittke and pitchers Sean Casey and Al Mayhew, Alemany posted a 17-9 record during the regular season.

“All those kids were good but we had guys behind them who could play,” Ozella said. “For example, Casey and Mayhew leaving gave Bill Lucid and Brian Rosselli a chance to pitch.”

And the numbers they’ve posted add up.

Rosselli, who was 8-3 with a 1.40 earned-run average during the regular season, pitched 19 innings in the L.A. Games, allowing 11 hits and 5 earned runs with 19 strikeouts and 1 walk. The right-hander pitched 12 innings in Alemany’s 13-inning win over Katella in the third round.

Lucid won three games in the tournament and did not allow a run in 9 innings. Mike Rooney, who shared tournament MVP honors with Rosselli, gave up just two earned runs in 12 innings and shut out Loara, 10-0, on Sunday in the final.

Randy Thompson, a junior who took over for Wittke at second, batted .355 last season and was 6 for 19 in the L.A. Games. Pat Aragon, a junior who batted .340 last season, and Bill Horvat, a sophomore who batted .290, took over in the outfield following the transfers.

“Now we’re experienced and young,” Ozella said. “It couldn’t have worked out any better.”

Revenge is semi-sweet: Hart opened and closed last football season with tough losses to Canyon and Muir. The Indians beat both teams in L.A. Games 7-on-7 competition before dropping the final to Carson, 31-14, but Coach Rick Scott played down the meaning of the victories.

“The games had some special meaning to the kids,” Scott said, “but to me winning just meant we got to advance in the tournament and play another game. We’ll throw more than 300 times during the season, so the more passing games we have, the better.”

After beating Canyon, 7-6, last Saturday, Scott couldn’t help crack a smile. But he claimed a loss might have been more beneficial to his team.

“Canyon will have this score posted in their locker room all summer,” he said. “I almost wish we’d have lost so I could use it to motivate my guys.”

Canyon Coach Harry Welch claimed he won’t remind his players of the game. “It meant absolutely nothing,” Welch said. “They beat us last summer, too.”

Out of Greer in the clutch: The absence of Damon Greer, Cleveland’s play-making point guard, caught up with the Cavaliers when they couldn’t keep up with Fairfax in the L.A. Games semifinals Sunday. Fairfax won, 59-37.

Greer, one of the top juniors in the Valley, is playing with an all-star team in Canada.

Cleveland won five games without Greer before bowing to Fairfax.

Fairfax played the tournament without its two best players. Sean Higgins and Chris Mills were in New Jersey for an invitational camp. Simi Valley’s Don MacLean is at the same camp.

Fairfax also was missing 6-6 Cardell Walker, who was on vacation. And 6-4 Clarence McDuffie was not expected to show because of a death in the family, but he arrived in time to play the second half against Taft.

Granada Hills suffered a numbers problem during the Games; Coach Bob Johnson had only six players available Saturday. Sean Brown and Kyle Jan were playing for the Highlanders’ football team, and Jeff Langman and Todd Lytle had to work, Johnson said. Brown and Lytle are probable starters.

After three straight wins, including a comeback victory in a semifinal, the Thousand Oaks softball team dropped the final to Corona, 6-1, on Sunday.

Shane Smyth hit a home run in the Lancers’ 10-2 first-round victory over West Torrance and then helped Thousand Oaks rally to a 5-4 victory over Pius X in the semifinals. She hit a three-run home run to erase a 3-0 deficit before Shannon Meyer’s two-run double in the sixth inning gave Thousand Oaks a 5-4 win.

Thanks to a goal by Shannon Lambert, Alemany defeated Arcadia, 1-0, for the girls soccer title.