Gaffes, Bloopers Cost Crespi in 2-1 Loss to Millikan

Crespi High was eliminated from the Southern Section 5-A Division baseball playoffs Friday.

But it didn’t have to be that way.

Crespi’s Jeff Suppan scattered two runs on 10 hits over 8 2/3 innings, but defending championLong Beach Millikan prevailed, 2-1, in nine innings at Crespi.

Josh Prewitt led off the ninth for Millikan (18-5-1) with a bloop single to left-center field off Suppan (7-3). Prewitt advanced on a sacrifice bunt, and with two out Scott Allen singled him home.

The Celts, batting .355 entering the game, were held to six hits by Greg Gregory and Ty Hindman. The top four hitter in their lineup--Joe Ruggiero, Brodie Van Wagenen, Kyle Carden and Victor Seper--had one hit in 11 at-bats.

“It looked like a pitcher’s game,” Crespi Coach Scott Muckey said. “It just came down to who scored the last run, I guess--no great strategy.”

Crespi (19-6) might have won--without extra innings--were it not for what Muckey called two “crucial mistakes.”

One was a play in the second inning that led to Millikan’s first run. With two out, Aaron Quinn hit a bloop double that fell in shallow center field between shortstop Casey Snow, second baseman Van Wagenen, center fielder Javier Avila and right fielder Carden.

Avila was charged with an error when his relay throw streaked past second base and rolled all the way to the backstop, allowing Quinn to advance to third. Quinn scored on a single by Eric Gillespie.

Crespi’s other mistake came on the basepaths in the fourth inning. With Jim Horacek on third, Snow on second and none out, Joe Turner grounded to third. Horacek started home as soon as Turner made contact. Millikan third baseman Greg Negrete threw to catcher Eric Gillespie to begin a rundown, and Gillespie threw back to third to retire Horacek.

Snow, who also ran on contact, was only a few feet from third base when Horacek was tagged out. Negrete ran Snow back toward second, and he was tagged by second baseman Jose Salazar.

“We should have won that game, 1-0, or maybe 2-0,” Muckey said. He added that Horacek was correct in heading home on contact, and that Snow would have been safe at third had he run full steam.

“I think in a game like that you have to take your chances,” Muckey said.

Crespi scored in the third. Suppan singled and scored on Van Wagenen’s ground-rule double.