El Segundo Nips Millikan, 7-6, in Redondo Final

Everyone knows El Segundo High School’s baseball team is capable of burying opponents. Scores like 42-0 and 28-1 this season have proven that.

But Saturday night, the high-flying Eagles showed that they can dig their way out of a hole, too.

Jason Wayt’s line single with one out in the bottom of the seventh inning chased home the tying and winning runs, giving El Segundo a 7-6 comeback victory over Long Beach Millikan in the championship game of the Palos Verdes/Redondo Tournament at Redondo High.

“This was sort of a new experience for us,” El Segundo Coach John Stevenson said.

Millikan managed only four hits off starter Wayt and reliever Tate Seefried, but three of them cleared the fences.

The Rams took a 3-1 lead in the second when Larry Satterlee crushed a Wayt fastball over the center-field fence for a three-run homer.

Seefried, El Segundo’s ace right-hander, took over for Wayt, but Millikan muscled him around a bit as well.

Omar Diaz blasted a solo shot to right off Seefried in the fourth, and Dante Powell stroked a two-run homer over the left-field fence in the fifth, giving the Rams a 6-2 lead.

But Seefried--the tournament’s most valuable player--golfed a solo homer to left in the bottom of the fifth to cut Millikan’s lead to three. Then he settled down on the mound, retiring nine of the last 10 Rams he faced, giving the Eagles a chance to battle back.

El Segundo (20-3) chipped away for two more runs in the sixth on Eric Stevenson’s RBI single and Brett Newell’s run-scoring ground out.

Seefried, who went four for four, led off the seventh with a bunt single up the third-base line. Garret Quaintance then hit a routine double-play ball, but Millikan second baseman Pete Kusel bobbled the feed from shortstop Pat Thacker for an error.

The runners moved to second and third on a passed ball. Jeff Poor struck out and Ken Talanoa was intentionally walked to load the bases, setting the stage for Wayt.

Wayt rifled a high fastball from Millikan reliever Scott Thielman (1-1) into center field, and Quaintance scored the winning run with a head-first slide.

The rally made a winner out of Seefried, who improved to 6-1. He struck out six and allowed three hits and two walks in six innings.

Millikan, ranked third in the Southern Section Division 5-A coaches’ poll, dropped to 19-4.