AMERICAN LEGION BASEBALL : AREA 6 TOURNAMENT : Curran Makes Amends in 16-8 Newbury Oaks Win

Dropping a fly ball is not the conventional way to wake up a sleeping bat, but it worked fine for Newbury Oaks center fielder Tighe Curran in a third-round game of the American Legion Area 6 baseball tournament at UCLA’s Jackie Robinson Stadium on Saturday.

Curran, who had picked up the victories on the mound in Newbury Oaks’ first two games of the tournament, dropped a drive by Casey Snow of Encino-Crespi with one out in the sixth and his team leading by four runs. One out later, Kyle Carden hit a home run to cut Newbury Oaks’ lead in half and Curran, hitless in his first three at-bats, knew he had to atone.

“I took a little lip from my teammates,” said Curran, who was playing because regular center fielder Jim Chergey was ill. “I figured I had to hit a home run and make a diving catch out there to make up for it.”

He never made the catch, but he belted a two-run home run in the bottom of the sixth, and a two-run single in the seventh to help Newbury Oaks to a 16-8 victory and a berth in today’s championship round.

Newbury Oaks (26-1, 3-0 in tournament play) will face Van Nuys-Notre Dame at noon today. If Newbury Oaks wins, it takes the double-elimination tournament. If Newbury Oaks loses, it will play Van Nuys for the title 30 minutes after the conclusion of the first game.

“We’re ready to go,” Newbury Oaks Coach Chuck Fick said. “We’ve got all the ducks lined up in the right order.”

Encino-Crespi’s pitchers must have felt as if they were ducks in a shooting gallery at times as Newbury Oaks’ hitters teed off for 18 hits, including a pair of home runs.

Robert Fick, the coach’s brother, set the tone for Newbury Oaks with a two-run home run in the first, and although Newbury Oaks was unable to blow the game open until the seventh, Encino-Crespi was not able to draw closer than two runs.

“They were persistent,” Fick said. “We couldn’t get rid of them. But if we’re playing a nine-inning game, we’re going to explode sooner or later. We’re capable of putting five up on the board real quick.”

Leading, 9-7, entering the bottom the seventh, Newbury Oaks turned five hits, three walks and a sacrifice fly into seven runs. Jamal Nichols (three for five, two runs scored, two stolen bases) started the uprising with a single.

Newbury Oaks, winner of 26 in a row, has 52 hits in the tournament, led by Fick, who is 10 for 14 with five runs and six runs batted in. Encino’s Carden had three hits and two RBIs.

In other tournament games:

Van Nuys-Notre Dame 10, Encino-Crespi 8--Joe Orlando’s two-out triple down the right-field line drove in Francisco Dongo to break a 6-6 tie in the top of the eighth to lift Van Nuys (29-4) into the championship round.

After Cesar Martinez walked, Orlando scored on an infield single by Jasen McConaghy. Chris Garza walked to load the bases and Lou Tapia singled in two runs.

Encino-Crespi (22-10) scored two runs in the ninth on Joe Turner’s two-out single.

Van Nuys-Notre Dame 4, Claremont 3 (11 innings)--Van Nuys scored two runs in the bottom of the 11th to win the morning elimination game.

Garza, Tapia and Cesar Hernandez all singled to load the bases and Dongo followed with a ground ball to shortstop Jody NaPuunoa, whose throwing error allowed Garza and Tapia to score.