Vikings Beat Titans, Have Shot at Playoffs

What started out as a good week for Santa Monica High’s baseball team ended in even better fashion Thursday afternoon at Rolling Hills.

The Vikings, who had defeated Rolling Hills on Tuesday, completed a sweep of the first-place Titans with a 2-1 Bay League victory to remain in contention for a playoff berth.

Santa Monica improved to 10-10 overall, 5-5 in league play.”

Rolling Hills pitcher Dan Block’s two throwing errors led to both Santa Monica runs.

With the score at 1-1 in the sixth, Mike Stella singled and stole second.

Block tried to pick off Stella but threw into center field and Stella scored the winning run.

Santa Monica had taken a 1-0 lead in the first on Block’s first throwing error.

Bret Shafer led off the game with a single and moved to second when Block’s pick-off attempt got past first baseman Kirt Kishita. Shafer scored two outs later on a single by Colin Rice.

Rolling Hills was held hitless by winning pitcher Matt Aminoff (3-2) through the first three innings.

Torrance 12, Leuzinger 5--Bryan Mullings’ two-run double snapped a 4-4 tie and sparked the Tartars to an eight-run eighth inning at Leuzinger.

Torrance (5-5 in the Bay League, 8-12 overall) collected six hits in the eighth, including a two-run single by winning pitcher Mike Kendall, who threw the seventh and eighth innings.

Leuzinger (4-6, 13-10-1) led most of the game, but Torrance rallied for two runs in the sixth to tie at 4-4. Kendall tripled home a run and Rick Lawler followed with an RBI single.

The Tartars, who moved within two games of first place, play two games with league co-leader Rolling Hills next week.

Banning 8, Narbonne 0--Errors led to Narbonne’s 5-4 upset over Banning on Tuesday, but the Pilots rebounded with a flawless defensive effort behind the four-hit pitching of Jesus Olea at Banning.

Olea (4-1), a senior right-hander, mastered Narbonne’s hitters by keeping his pitches down in the strike zone. The Gauchos hit 16 ground balls and only two flies.

Banning’s strong defense was a marked improvement over Tuesday when two errors in the bottom of the seventh led to four unearned runs.

The Pilots collected 10 hits as they improved to 9-3 in the Southern-Pacific Conference and 13-7 overall. Julian Pardo went two for three with three RBIs, including a two-run double, and Sal Areyan had three hits in four at-bats.

San Pedro 10, Dorsey 4--Arnold Madrid and Joey Miller each drove in three runs and Dale Johnson added two RBIs as the Pirates kept pace with Banning for first place in the Southern-Pacific Conference with an easy win at Dorsey. San Pedro is 9-3 in conference play and 12-8 overall.

Madrid had three hits in three at-bats and Johnson, in his second game back from a knee injury, was two for four. Tuesday, Johnson hit a grand slam in San Pedro’s 19-5 win over Dorsey.

Senior right-hander Joey Camello pitched the distance, allowing seven hits, for his third league victory in four decisions.