PREP BASEBALL ROUNDUP : Tustin Rolls to Victory

Tustin’s Jason Milliman hasn’t wasted his moment this season. It has been a year coming, but the wait has been worthwhile.

Milliman, a senior, pitched a three-hitter in a 7-0 victory over Westminster Wednesday at Tustin. It put the Tillers (15-4-1, 9-1) two games ahead of the Lions (15-6, 7-3) in the Golden West League race.

For Milliman, it was another day to make up for lost time.

A year ago, he was ready for the varsity, or so he thought. But an abundance of pitchers left him on the junior varsity. He was called up to the varsity for the playoffs, but pitched only one inning.

“We wanted him in a situation where he would pitch often,” Coach Tim O’Donoghue said.

It paid off. Milliman (7-0) retired 10 of the last 11 batters he faced. He struck out three but got 12 ground-ball outs, including one double play.

“I wasn’t expecting this much success this season,” Milliman said. “I normally don’t pitch well until it gets hot.”

No matter the weather, Milliman has become the Tillers’ ace. Wednesday was his sixth complete game.

“I thought I was ready last year, but I had to wait my turn,” Milliman said.

Tustin gave him a big cushion early, with help from Westminster. The Lions made four errors in the first two innings, which led to four unearned runs.

But the Tillers didn’t wait for the opportunities. Dave Hjorth doubled to lead off the first and later scored on a single by Rick Gonzalez. After a double by Kevin Timone, Rudy Aguilera attempted a squeeze bunt and Westminster pitcher Keith Bigelow threw the ball away, allowing both runners to score.

Tustin scored four in the second, three of which were unearned.