Kennedy’s Kassis and Co. Break Sylmar With Bats : Baseball: Senior homers as Golden Cougars again eliminate Spartans from City playoffs, 8-5.

After Sylmar High’s Albert Palma struck out the side in the first inning Thursday, Kennedy pitcher Derek Morse braced himself for a pitchers’ duel.

That script was played out for almost four innings before Kennedy erupted, erasing a two-run deficit and posting an 8-5 victory in a City Section 4-A Division quarterfinal at Kennedy High.

It marked the second year in a row the Spartans were eliminated by Kennedy in the quarterfinals.

Top-seeded Kennedy (24-4) will play 13th-seeded Banning on Tuesday at a site to be determined.

Senior first baseman George Kassis highlighted the attack with a towering three-run home run to left field in the fifth inning, giving Kennedy a 6-2 lead.

Other players have been hotter than Kassis on a team that averages more than eight runs a game, but nobody has been more consistent. Kassis has kept his average above .400 the entire season.

Against the Spartans, Kassis had three hits, including a line drive single to center and a bloop single before the home run.

“He’s one player who I don’t have to motivate,” Kennedy Coach Manny Alvarado said. “He’s been doing this all year.”

Kassis’ blast brought a welcome sense of relief for Morse (7-3), who pitched a complete game.

“I was able to relax once we got on top,” he said. “I really thought it would be close the way [Palma] started. I thought whoever screwed up first would lose.”

Morse’s roughest inning was the seventh. Given an 8-2 lead, Morse allowed the first four batters to reach base, including a two-strike double by Mike Cervantes, and three runs scored before he retired the side.

Morse (7-3) allowed six hits and struck out eight, six on called strikes.

After being overwhelmed, 17-4, in last season’s playoff matchup, Sylmar (19-8) got early breaks this time.

In the second, Cervantes made a perfect throw from center field to gun down Kassis at home plate and preserve the scoreless tie. Kassis was trying to score from second on a single by Kevin Serr.

The Spartans took advantage of two Kennedy errors in the third to take a 1-0 lead and added a run in the fourth on a sacrifice fly by Cervantes.

Kennedy took a 3-2 lead in the fourth on run-scoring singles by Christian Bartlett and Aldo Pinto and a sacrifice fly by Andy Montes.