PREP BASEBALL ROUNDUP : Leuzinger Has 1-Hitter Through 7, but Finally Falls to El Segundo, 3-2

El Segundo High’s baseball team had managed just one hit off Leuzinger pitcher Tyrone Scott, so Eagle hitters were eager when Scott was lifted to start the eighth inning.

As if on cue, Chris Ashelford drove in Steve Sutherland with the winning run on Wednesday night as El Segundo pulled out a 3-2 Pioneer League victory at Recreation Park.

The win ruined a fine performance by the left-hander Scott, who gave up just one hit--a sixth-inning, two-run homer by Jeremy Varner--and struck out 14 in seven innings.

Angel Andrade started the eighth for Leuzinger and walked Sutherland, who took second base on a wild pitch. Ashelford then stroked a single to right-center field, scoring Sutherland.

“I saw it fall in, and I knew he had a chance to score,” said Ashelford, who walked twice against Scott. “I just wanted to make sure I didn’t get thrown out.”

Right-hander Heath Jones (6-3) struck out eight and walked five while giving up just four hits for El Segundo, which remained in a first-place tie with Redondo at 7-0. The Eagles are 19-6 overall.

Andrade (0-1) suffered the loss as Leuzinger dropped to 4-3 in league and 11-13 overall. All of the Olympians’ league defeats have come against Redondo and El Segundo.

Scott thought Leuzinger proved something to the host school.

“I know they were thinking we were the underdogs and couldn’t beat them,” he said. “But now they know they can’t take us lightly.”

The teams will meet again at 3 p.m. Friday at Leuzinger.

Leuzinger scored first in the fifth inning when Damaso Bautista walked, stole second and went to third on Tom Gordon’s single. George Alva drove in Bautista on a fielder’s choice and Wayne Johnson’s single scored Gordon.

The Olympians missed a chance to blow the game open in the fourth when they had the bases loaded and no outs. Chuck Foster was caught in a squeeze play and tagged out between home and third by El Segundo catcher Jose Sanchez. A fly out and ground out ended the threat.

El Segundo scored in the sixth when Ashelford walked and, two outs later, Varner homered off the light standard in center field.

Scott recovered nicely, though, striking out the side in the seventh.

“He’s a junior with a lot of talent,” Leuzinger Coach Derrel Thomas said of Scott. “In the future he has a chance to play professional ball.”