Simi Valley Survives Shaky Inning to Gain Berth in Final : Prep baseball: Carmichael Jesuit scores seven runs in the sixth inning before Pioneers regroup for 13-7 win.

Who needs insurance runs when you’re averaging 13.5 runs a game?

The Simi Valley High baseball team suddenly found the need for a few in Wednesday’s 13-7 victory over Carmichael (Calif.) Jesuit in the semifinals of the Upper Deck tournament at Cal State Fullerton.

Simi Valley (13-1), which will play Irvine for the championship tonight at 7, rallied for four runs in the top of the seventh inning to finally put the game away after blowing most of a 9-0 lead in the sixth.

In what resembled a page from the Simi Valley score book, Jesuit (12-3-1) sent 11 batters to the plate and scored seven times. The Marauders rocked junior right-hander Bill Scheffels for six hits, including a two-run double by Aaron Porter and a two-out, two-run triple by Jason Burkhalter.

But Scheffels (6-0), who had yielded only four hits and struck out five through five innings, survived to record the final out of the inning.

“I can’t expect my defense to make plays like that,” Scheffels said.

Neither could Pioneer Coach Mike Scyphers.

“They had balls that were hit just hard enough that had eyes,” Scyphers said. “Scheff wasn’t doing anything different. What impressed me is how we came back and rolled a four.”

The Pioneers, who have outscored three tournament opponents, 47-12, were almost stopped after scoring only one run in the seventh. Scheffels led off by reaching third on an error by right fielder Martin Khodabakhshian, then scored on a one-out triple by Scott Miller.

Miller made the second out when he was thrown out trying to score on a ground ball. After walks to Ryan Briggs and Aaron Whitley loaded the bases, Britten Pond delivered a two-run bloop single. Whitley scored the final run by stealing home on the front end of a double steal.

Pond was four for four with four runs batted in. He also had a run-scoring double in the second and a sacrifice fly in the fourth.

Simi Valley began where they left off in Tuesday’s 13-4 quarterfinal win over Mater Dei as the Pioneers scored three times in the first. Leadoff hitter Briggs walked and scored from third on a throwing error by catcher Jason Quintel. Kevin Nykoluk added a run-scoring single and Ryan Hankins added a run-scoring double.

Simi Valley scored in every inning and appeared to have matters in hand with a 9-0 lead after five innings. But Scheffels began the sixth by yielding two singles and hitting a batter to load the bases. Before long, the Pioneers were watching someone else’s dugout erupt.

“We’ve been doing that to people all year,” Scyphers said. “I told the guys that somebody would do that to us. But we came back. Our lineup is capable, no matter who is leading off. And that’s been the case all year long.”