PREP BASEBALL ROUNDUP : Fountain Valley Rips Huntington Beach, 16-2

Fountain Valley’s Deric Yanagisawa called it a huge game. He came up with a performance of equal proportion.

Yanagisawa, a senior third baseman, drove in five runs as the Barons crushed Huntington Beach, 16-2, Tuesday at Huntington Beach to move closer to their second consecutive Sunset League championship. Fountain Valley (21-2, 9-2), the No. 1-ranked team in Orange County, has a two-game lead with three games to play.

“This was so huge,” Yanagisawa said. “We came out here ready to play. We showed them we were ready to play.”

Yanagisawa and company ought to have been prepared. The Barons took four hours of batting practice Monday in an effort to shake off a recent hitting slump.

“I guess it paid off,” Coach Ron LaRuffa said.

Fountain Valley edged fourth-ranked Huntington Beach (16-7, 6-4), in the first meeting, 1-0. Tuesday’s game was over when the Barons scored eight runs in the second inning.

Yanagisawa, the team leader in RBIs, had the biggest hits. He broke the game open with a two-run single in the second. He then doused any ideas of a comeback with a three-run home run in the fourth, giving him 29 RBIs for the season.

“When I got the single my first reaction was relief,” Yanagisawa said. “I was not going to be in a slump the rest of my life. The home run was a bonus.”

Yanagisawa wasn’t the only Baron to shake loose. Designated hitter Chris Ponchak, who has struggled much of the season, had three hits, including a double that tied the score, 1-1, in the second.

Matt Roman, Geoff Wilson and Danny Hoppie each drove in two runs.

It all supported pitcher Jason Liuzzi, who gave up one hit and two earned runs in four innings. Liuzzi (5-0) has given up only two earned runs this season.

“You can’t be happier than I am right now,” said LaRuffa, whose teams have won 37 of 40 games over the last two seasons. “I think we’re peaking at the right time.”

In other Sunset League games:

Servite 6, Ocean View 5--The Friars rallied in the bottom of the sixth, scoring five runs on five hits to take a 6-5 lead. Eric Jekums had a two-run double and Kirk Rossi doubled in the winning run in the inning. Kevin Krotz was three for three with two RBIs for Servite (13-8-1, 7-4).

Westminster 4, Santa Ana 3--John Matlock’s sacrifice fly with one out in the seventh inning scored Brian Rinkowski with the winning run for host Westminster (12-10, 5-6). Kent Montgomery (8-2) gave up seven hits and no earned runs in his sixth complete game.

Marina 3, Edison 1--Justin Lynch (6-1) pitched a five-hitter, striking out five, for visiting Marina (15-9, 5-6).

In the Arrowhead League:

Southern California Christian 12, Sherman Indian 1--Keith Ridgeway pitched a four-hitter with 11 strikeouts and also hit a home run for visiting Southern California Christian (12-4-1, 5-1).

In the Century League:

Canyon 8, Foothill 7--Eric Valent had a double, a triple, and a three-run home run for Canyon (17-5, 10-2). Valent finished with six RBIs and two runs scored.

Villa Park 5, Santa Ana Valley 4 (11)--Matt Brady scored on a throwing error in the bottom of the 11th to break a 4-4 tie for host Villa Park (14-8, 6-6).

In the Express League:

Heritage Christian 14, Claremont 1--Dave Acheson had three hits and two RBIs for Heritage Christian (8-7, 3-2).

In the Olympic League:

Orange Lutheran 4, Brethren Christian 3--Adam Cavaness pitched six innings, striking out five and giving up one earned run for Orange Lutheran (8-12, 4-4).

In the Pacific Coast League:

Trabuco Hills 15, Laguna Hills 0--Ryan Poe (3-0) pitched a four-hitter with five strikeouts as host Trabuco Hills (17-5, 12-0) clinched the league title.

Jake Anderson and Matt Rechner each had two hits and two RBIs for Trabuco Hills, the ninth-ranked team in Orange County.

Estancia 3, Century 0--Jairo Arceyut (3-6) struck out 10 and gave up two hits to record his second shutout for Estancia (10-12, 6-6).