PREP BASEBALL : Empire League Roundup : El Dorado Gathering Momentum

Steve Gullotti, El Dorado High School baseball coach, pointed to a small mound of dirt about 10 feet outside the Golden Hawks’ dugout and proclaimed that the freshly dug grave held all the trappings of his team’s past.

“We buried the past right here,” Gullotti said. “The players tossed in old wristbands, batting gloves and even a helmet. The idea was to bury the past rather than have it come back to haunt us.”

El Dorado, a favorite to win the Empire League title, pushed aside the memory of a mediocre 2-2 start in league play Friday by defeating rival Esperanza, 5-1, in Placentia.

Pitcher Jay Hassel (1-0) allowed only two hits after relieving starter Matt Luke in the second inning to gain his first victory in three years.

For the past two years, Hassel has been sidelined with major knee and ankle injuries that have kept him out of uniform for the entire season. Hassel, a lanky right-hander, struck out five and received two sparkling plays by right fielder Greg Fife in the seventh inning to keep Esperanza (6-5-3, 0-4-1) winless in league play.

“Jay did a great job,” Gullotti said. “The best thing he did was throw strikes. He threw his curveball with confidence and went right after them.”

El Dorado (11-5, 3-2) scored the only runs Hassel needed in the second inning, taking advantage of a throwing error by losing pitcher Greg Hauser (2-3) that allowed Travis Dowdell and Tim Walker to score.

El Dorado added three more runs on three hits in the third inning.

Esperanza scored its only run on a second-inning homer by catcher Keith McDonald that carried well over the 345-foot sign in right-center field. The Aztecs had only four hits and made two errors.

Esperanza has qualified for the playoffs in six consecutive seasons, advancing to the large-schools championship game the past three years. But the Aztecs appear to be going nowhere this year.

“We’re not a bad team, but we’re struggling,” said Mike Curran, Esperanza coach. “We’re not hitting and we’re not fielding, and you’re not going to win too many games that way. Hopefully, we’ll get better, but it’s getting awfully late.”

Loara 10, Katella 8 (8 innings)--Matt Drager hit a two-run homer with two outs in the bottom of the eighth to give the Saxons (6-9, 3-2) the victory. Katella tied the score, 8-8, with three runs in the top of the sixth. Jessie Evans had a two-run single in the inning. Loara scored five in the fifth, two on a single by Rusty Tamblyn. Billy Fitzgerald had two hits and three RBIs for Katella (8-5, 4-1).

Los Alamitos 11, Cypress 7--Brian Havens’ grand slam in the fourth pulled Los Alamitos into a 4-4 tie and the Griffins added another run and never trailed again at Cypress. Los Alamitos (3-2 in league play) added two in the fifth and four in the sixth to break the game open. Cypress (3-6-3, 1-3-1) was led by Kevin Smith, who was three for four.