PREP BASEBALL ROUNDUP : Sonora Wins Freeway League Title

After waiting nine years, Sonora sits atop the Freeway League in baseball.

The Raiders finally knocked off their closest and toughest challenger, Sunny Hills, with a 3-1 victory Wednesday at Sonora, clinching the school’s first league title since 1986. Last year Sonora finished fifth.

“This was the big one,” Sonora Coach Pat Tellers said. “It’s been a struggle not making the playoffs the past five years. The kids have worked so hard to get to this point. I couldn’t be happier for them.”

The Raiders (19-4-2, 11-3-1 in league) depended on the strong right arm and steely nerves of Junior Rodriguez, who held the Lancers (19-7, 10-5) to four hits.

Rodriguez (7-0-1) walked one and struck out three, but his most impressive feat was holding the dangerous 2-3-4 Sunny Hills hitters--Mike McCue, Josh Hochgesang and Greg Garand--to a combined one hit and no runs batted in in eight at-bats.

“When we won the Glendora tournament this year, I think we realized then we could be pretty good,” said Rodriguez, who was repeatedly sprayed with sparkling cider, the Raiders’ victory drink.

Sonora gave its ace a 3-0 lead, scoring one in the third on a passed ball by Lancer catcher Peter Flores, and twice in the fifth on B.J. Baumgardner’s RBI single, and Ryan Jones’ infield hit.

The only time Rodriguez and Tellers were concerned was in the sixth inning, when the first two Sunny Hills batters reached on errors. Tellers called a meeting at the mound and before they broke, Rodriguez--sensing “we were playing back on our heels instead of on our toes”--reminded everyone “we had worked too hard to let it slip away.”

Sunny Hills scored only once as a result, McCue scoring on Chris Cook’s chopper to third.

Lancers starter Ryan Puckett (4-3), who lasted into the fifth inning and left trailing, 1-0, took the loss.