HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL / SEASON PREVIEW : MARMONTE LEAGUE

Agoura

‘93 RECORD OVERALL LEAGUE 4-20 1-13

COACH YEAR Bryan Maloney 1st

TOP RETURNEES YR POS Kevin Sass Sr. CF Charles Brown Sr. LF Brian Burris Sr. RHP Cary Gallardo Sr. RHP John Dalrymple Jr. 2B Matt Gershon Jr. C Chris Cicuto So. 3B

TOP NEWCOMERS YR POS Craig Gladstone Jr. OF Mike Dianella Jr. SS Pat Lemonte Jr. SS

OUTLOOK

Sass is the franchise player. Last season he led the team in batting (.444), runs (21), hits (32), doubles (6), triples (2) and stolen bases (24). Maloney would like to move him from shortstop to center field, but that depends on the progress of Dianella or Lemonte, the middle infielders from the junior varsity. “We have plenty of pitchers,” Maloney said, “but we have zero pitching.” Although the lineup seems solid, expect another long season unless one of the Charger pitchers steps up.

Camarillo

‘93 RECORD OVERALL LEAGUE 7-18 3-11

COACH YEAR Jack Willard 5th

TOP RETURNEES YR POS Jake Spahr Sr. LF Matt Buttell Jr. CF Bennett Wutkee Sr. SS Robert Smith Sr. RF Jay Niremberg Sr. C Thomas Taketa Sr. RHP Nathan Kaup So. 2B Erik Jue Sr. 3B

TOP NEWCOMERS YR POS Mike Muller Jr. C Ryan Bourget Jr. RHP Roth Valencia Jr. RHP Zack Guyler So. C

OUTLOOK

The Scorpions could start returning players at eight positions, with Kaup being the only exception. He split the season between the varsity and junior varsity last year. Of those returnees, only Spahr (.341) batted higher than .300 last year, but Willard is optimistic about their defense. Niremberg, Muller and Guyler will battle for the catching job, but all three likely will be in the lineup somewhere. Bourget and Valencia were the 1-2 pitching combo for the JV, and they could be the top two. If they come through, Camarillo should compete for a playoff spot.

Channel Islands

‘93 RECORD OVERALL LEAGUE 11-12 6-8

COACH YEAR Al Tarazon 2nd

TOP RETURNEES YR POS Todd River Sr. RHP Rene Sanchez Sr. RHP James Rodriguez Sr. 1B Armando Maganalles Jr. C Ysidro Alfaro Sr. 2B

TOP NEWCOMERS YR POS John Oliveras Sr. IF Mookie Boyd So. SS Javier Rios Sr. LF

OUTLOOK

River and Sanchez are the top starting pitchers. River allowed two runs in 15 innings near the end of last season. Sanchez, a third-year varsity player, pitched mostly in relief last year and picked up one save. Oliveras started at shortstop as a sophomore, then missed last season for academic reasons. Boyd also will get a chance to play shortstop. In a late call-up last season, Boyd had 17 assists without an error in one game. The Raiders are a good defensive team with speed that will, like everyone else, need pitching to contend.

Newbury Park

‘93 RECORD OVERALL LEAGUE 17-9 12-2

COACH YEAR Gary Fabricius 8th

TOP RETURNEES YR POS Keith Smith Sr. RHP Jeff Bennett Sr. C Ray Clinton Sr. RHP Kes Anderson Jr. 1B Shawn Adams Sr. 2B Brian Collins Sr. LF Rich Adams Sr. RF Stuart McGugan Sr. CF

TOP NEWCOMERS YR POS Adam Reinwasser Jr. 3B Matt Cassaro So. SS

OUTLOOK

Fabricius wants Clinton and Smith to platoon, with one playing shortstop while the other is pitching. Smith, who has signed to play football at Arizona, was 7-4, 2.88 last year and Clinton was 7-1, 4.60. If playing shortstop affects either player’s pitching, Cassaro will start at shortstop instead. Bennett, an all-league catcher last year, hit .358. Smith batted .347 and his 18 RBIs are the most among returnees. Most league coaches agree the Panthers will be the main threat to unseat Simi Valley as league champion.

Royal

‘93 RECORD OVERALL LEAGUE 15-10 10-4

COACH YEAR Dan Maye 5th

TOP RETURNEES YR POS Bryan Fernandez Sr. LF Joel Mellinger Sr. SS David Vicari Sr. RHP Maki Kramer Sr. RHP

TOP NEWCOMERS YR POS Phil Derryman Sr. RHP Brent Egan So. IF Kevin Mellinger So. OF Adrian Mendoza So. 1B Matt Pittstick So. 1B Jesus Robles Sr. 3B

OUTLOOK

Joel Mellinger (.388) and Fernandez (.352) are the top returning hitters. The pitching should be strong, led by Vicari, the only pitcher to beat Simi Valley in a league game last season. Vicari was 5-1 with a 2.92 ERA. Kramer, a hard thrower who will be the No. 2 starter, was 2-1 with a 3.97 ERA and 35 strikeouts in 37 innings. Derryman, who finished last season with the JV after starting with the varsity, fills out a senior pitching staff. Team speed is another strength. Royal finished behind Simi Valley and Newbury Park last year, and could be in for the same.

Simi Valley

‘93 RECORD OVERALL LEAGUE 27-4 13-1

COACH YEAR Mike Scyphers 16th

TOP RETURNEES YR POS Bill Scheffels Sr. RHP Ryan Hankins Sr. 3B Nathan Celusta Sr. RHP Kary Kozlowski Sr. RHP Jeff Michael Jr. 1B

TOP NEWCOMERS YR POS Robert Gonzalez So. LF Tim Nykoluk Jr. 2B Brian Kavanagh Jr. C Neil Oberheide Jr. C Brian Wall Jr. OF Dave Martinez Jr. SS

OUTLOOK

Not much of the team that advanced to the Southern Section Division I final remains. Scheffels, the most complete pitcher in Ventura County, was 11-2 with a 1.17 ERA last year. Scyphers is high on Celusta and Kozlowski, who were on the varsity but didn’t pitch much last year. Celusta throws harder than Kozlowski or Scheffels, and he may be the closer. The lineup will be led by Hankins, who hit .500 with 12 home runs and 57 RBIs last year. The lineup is weaker than last year’s, but Scyphers expects the pitching to carry the team deep into the playoffs.

Thousand Oaks

‘93 RECORD OVERALL LEAGUE 17-9 8-6

COACH YEAR Jim Hansen 20th

TOP RETURNEES YR POS Greg Aguilar Sr. 2B Matt Elam Sr. SS Greg Manara Sr. OF Eric Soliz Jr. 1B Brian Downing Sr. LHP Tim Baron Jr. RHP

TOP NEWCOMERS YR POS Brandon Highland Sr. OF Jason Earles Sr. IF Walter Samora Sr. IF Micah Weathers So. LHP

OUTLOOK

The Lancers feature something rare this year in the Marmonte League: left-handed pitching. Downing (5-3, 3.09 ERA) was an all-league selection last year. Weathers had some dominating outings for the junior varsity. Baron, the top right-hander, was 4-3 with a 3.75 ERA. The up-the-middle combination of Aguilar (.390, three home runs and 24 RBIs) and Elam (.325, 20 stolen bases) is the strength of the defense and offense. The Lancers should fall into a logjam in the middle of the league.

Westlake

‘93 RECORD OVERALL LEAGUE 7-15 3-11

COACH YEAR Rich Herrera 6th

TOP RETURNEES YR POS Scott Morris Sr. SS Charlie Hirsh Sr. 3B Kasey Davis Sr. C Todd Singleton Jr. RHP Chris Flanagan Sr. RHP Rick Davidson Sr. RHP

TOP NEWCOMERS YR POS Aaron Tapking Jr. UT Joe Primack Jr. UT Kevin McClure Jr. IF Brian Schuster Jr. IF

OUTLOOK

Singleton (1-8, 4.17 ERA) and Flanagan (4-5, 4.08) were the top starters last season. Morris also may pitch. He was one of the most improved players over the summer, posting a 1.57 ERA in American Legion. Davidson pitched 27 innings, mostly in relief, and had a 3.11 ERA. The pitching should be strong, but none of the returning players provided much offense last season. Herrera is nonetheless optimistic. “We’re going to need to find room for a lot of guys,” he said. Stick the Warriors in the middle of the league race unless they can score some runs.