ORANGE LEAGUE ROUNDUP : Valencia Rallies in Seventh, Knocks Anaheim Out of Playoffs

Valencia High School’s baseball team saved its best for last.

Unfortunately, Valencia’s best spelled the worst for visiting Anaheim Friday night.

Valencia’s three-run rally with one out in the bottom of the seventh inning gave the Tigers a 6-5 victory over Anaheim, which was knocked out of the Southern Section Division 4-A playoffs for the first time in Anaheim Coach Dave Torres’ three-year tenure.

The last-minute heroics didn’t do Valencia (10-10, 8-7 in league) much good. Because of head-to-head records, the league will be represented in the playoffs by champion Brea-Olinda (10-5 in league), No. 2-seeded Savanna (9-6) and Magnolia (9-6), which is seeded third.

“This was our playoffs tonight,” Valencia Coach Mike Scheetz said. “We didn’t want to give (Anaheim players) the chance to celebrate on our field. We knew we could be the spoilers.”

Anaheim (10-15, 8-7) carried a 5-3 lead into the final inning. But Anaheim starter Luis Palomares walked Ryan Roskelly to start the inning, then gave way to Jeff Kafoury, who walked John Najera and gave up a run-scoring single to Mike Mebane.

Robert Serna was next to the mound for Anaheim, but with one out, Valencia’s David Morikawa lined a sharp single to center off Serna’s first pitch to score Najera with the tying run.

On Serna’s next pitch, Harold Ceron stroked a single to left, driving in Mebane with the run that ousted Anaheim.

“I have no answers,” Torres said. “We walked the park there at the end, and that cost us. Our problem all year has been pitching. But Valencia is a tough team and we never felt like we had a safe lead against them.”

Palomares was sharp until the end, allowing five hits in six innings and striking out seven. Two of those five hits left the park however, one a two-run homer by Roskelly in the third, and the other a homer by Ceron in the fourth.

Palomares helped with three hits of his own--doubling and scoring a run in the second and singling and scoring again in Anaheim’s four-run fourth.

The victory was Valencia’s third against Anaheim this season. Still, Scheetz didn’t think his team--which will return seven starters next season--has much of a shot at an at-large bid in the playoffs.

In another league game:

Brea-Olinda 4, Western 2--Pat Simec (5-3) pitched a three-hitter, struck out 12 for visiting Brea-Olinda, which won its second consecutive league title. Keith Miller hit a two-run single in the first for Brea-Olinda (14-11, 10-5).