After 8 Innings, Crespi Finally Home Free, 1-0 : High school baseball: Weir’s two-out single helps Celts hand St. John Bosco its first loss.

Tim Weir couldn’t help himself. As he raced to first base after lining a single to left field--and as the winning run sped home from second--the Crespi High senior glanced over his left shoulder and prayed there would be no replay of the seventh inning.

Minutes earlier, in an almost identical situation, Crespi had the potential winning run gunned down at the plate. Weir was making sure that if this game was destined to be one to tell his grandchildren about, he was not going to rely on someone else’s description.

“Yeah, I looked,” Weir said, grinning. “I knew all I had to do was get to first. Shoot, everything else was happening out there.”

Weir’s two-out single drove in Ziggy Borszczewer with the winning run in the bottom of the eighth Friday to give Crespi a 1-0 Del Rey League win over St. John Bosco at Valley College.

The loss was the first for St. John Bosco (16-1-1, 8-1 in league play), ranked fourth in the Southern Section 5-A Division and seventh in the state.

With two out in the eighth, Crespi’s Kevin Walsh worked out of an 0-2 hole and walked. He was replaced at first by Borszczewer, who took second on a wild pitch. Weir then lined a 1-2 pitch to left fielder Ron Hernandez, who scooped up the ball and fired to third baseman Jason Negro. Negro, however, dropped the relay as Borszczewer slid home.

Crespi Coach Scott Muckey said that even though the seventh inning ended with a play at the plate, he never considered holding Borszczewer at third--especially with hits at a premium. Before Weir’s single, Crespi had fewer hits (two) than Borszczewer has vowels in his surname.

“We had him coming all the way,” Muckey said. “I thought for a second that they might get him again. Thank goodness the third baseman got in the way.”

St. John Bosco right-hander Martin Meza, who had a no-hitter through 6 2/3 innings, seemed bent on winning the game on his own. Before it was over, however, Meza’s no-no would become history as the Braves fell from the ranks of the unbeaten and booted a chance to clinch a share of their first league title since 1986. St. John Bosco and Crespi (13-7-1, 7-2) have three league games remaining.

Meza (8-1), who already had recorded a victory and a save this season against Crespi, was outdueled by Celt right-handers Rick Marino and Pat Bennett, who combined on a one-hitter. Meza accounted for the Braves’ hit with a first-inning single.

Marino was relieved by Bennett (7-1) with none out in the top of the seventh.

Crespi’s Mark Maurizi singled to center with two out in the bottom of the seventh to break up Meza’s no-hit bid. Scott Barton’s walk moved Maurizi to second and sophomore Vic Seper then looped a single to center, but Maurizi was shot down at home by center fielder Gary Manley.

Before Maurizi’s single, Meza had faced the minimum number of batters (20) and allowed one ball out of the infield. The first six innings took 61 minutes.

“That was some great pitching by both sides,” Muckey said. “That game was a pleasure to watch.”

Weir, from his vantage at first base, would certainly agree.