EMPIRE LEAGUE BASEBALL ROUNDUP : Esperanza Holds Off El Dorado
The long-anticipated third meeting between Esperanza and El Dorado, the premier baseball teams in Orange County, had one unusual twist Wednesday at Esperanza High.
Esperanza, the county’s top-ranked team, played to form by getting some timely hitting and strong relief pitching from Joe Foss and Jeff Bowman in a 6-4 victory that moved the Aztecs into a first-place tie with El Dorado in the Empire League.
But El Dorado, the county’s second-ranked team, committed four errors, a passed ball and played lethargically most of the afternoon.
Esperanza (15-1, 5-1 in league) scored four unearned runs in the second inning and survived a seventh-inning rally by El Dorado in avenging a 3-2 loss to El Dorado in the first round of league play.
Esperanza had routed El Dorado, 14-4, in the championship game of the Upper Deck Classic.
El Dorado second baseman John Street dropped a routine fly ball in the second inning with two outs Wednesday, and Esperanza took advantage of the error by scoring three runs.
After the game, El Dorado Coach Steve Gullotti couldn’t explain his team’s poor performance.
“We played the No. 1 team in the county, and it’s beyond me how a team couldn’t be ready to play,” Gullotti said. “We were not mentally sharp and didn’t compete. It was a poor competitive effort on our part.”
Still, El Dorado (12-4, 5-1) had the go-ahead run at the plate with one out in the seventh when Bowman retired the final two batters to earn a save. Foss (4-0) relieved starter Keith McDonald in the fourth inning and got the victory. Foss will start Friday when the teams play at El Dorado.
El Dorado had 11 hits but couldn’t overcome the three-run deficit. Leadoff batter Chris Barlow had three hits, including a home run in the fourth inning.
Esperanza Coach Mike Curran expressed sympathy for Street after his error, but added that one of his team’s strengths is its ability to capitalize on mistakes.
“Street makes that play 99 times out of 100,” Curran said. “But that’s high school baseball. The guys came through after the error to score some runs, but El Dorado didn’t quit. We expect a battle every time we play them.
“The players are different, but the script hasn’t changed over the years. You never leave these games early, because it’s always going down to the wire.”
Esperanza also played well on defense, getting two fine plays from outfielders Erickson Dumaual and Ryan Allee in the fifth inning. Dumaual made an over-the-shoulder catch to rob El Dorado’s Brett Tomko of an extra-base hit, and Allee made a diving catch for a sinking liner by El Dorado designated hitter Steve Smith.
In other Empire League baseball:
Katella 3, Loara 0--Corey Doll (4-2) pitched a two-hitter, walking two and striking out five for host Katella (9-7, 4-2). Dax Dowling’s double drove in the first run in a three-run fifth inning.
Los Alamitos 10, Cypress 6--Craig Voorting had three hits, including a two-run home run, and three RBIs and and Andrew Fuentes had a single, double, triple and five RBIs for host Los Alamitos (5-11, 2-4). Ken Fann had a three-run home run as Cypress (2-11, 1-5) scored five in the first.