Valley Dodgers Rally for World Series Win

The Valley Dodgers scored six runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to defeat the New Orleans A’s, 9-7, Wednesday at the National Baseball Congress World Series at Lawrence-Dumont Stadium.

The victory keeps the Dodgers, a San Fernando Valley-based semipro baseball team, in the consolation bracket of the 32-team, double-elimination tournament.

The Dodgers will play either Friday or Saturday against an undetermined opponent, a team spokesman said.

Trailing 6-3 in the eighth inning, the Dodgers (23-9) used a two-run, pinch-hit single from Todd Elliot and a squeeze bunt from Sean Collins to tie the game.

Perry Husband, most valuable player in the 1984 Division II College World Series, followed with a single to right that scored pinch-runner Miles Morris with the game-winning run.

Later in the inning, Cal State Northridge senior Jim Vatcher produced another run on a fielder’s choice and Husband scored on a wild pitch.

New Orleans (46-7), the state champion of Louisiana, came back with a run in the top of the ninth inning off winning pitcher Shawn Denton. Mark Titchener then came in to record to final two outs to preserve the victory.

Denton (1-0), a javelin thrower at CSUN who is from New Orleans, earned the victory with 2 innings in relief.

Titchener, a former Crespi High and College of the Canyons player now pitching at Nevada Reno, earned the save.

Each of the players in the starting lineups for both teams had at least one base hit. Nine pitchers were used in all.

The Dodgers had 14 hits, including a solo home run by Kenny Huth in the fifth inning, to snap a two-game losing streak.

New Orleans had 13 hits, including Jim Ferguson’s solo home run in the third inning.