Flag Day for Sylmar, Chatsworth

Balls were flying around Chatsworth High’s baseball field Wednesday like a paper airplane in a wind tunnel.

“It was the thin air,” Chancellor second baseman Kevin O’Hara joked.

It was no laughing matter for two future All-City pitchers, Mike Kunes (9-1) of Chatsworth and Kurt Birkins (9-1) of El Camino Real.

Birkins didn’t make it out of the second inning after walking four batters and giving up a grand slam to sophomore Matt Cassel.

Kunes, who had allowed one home run all season, gave up three. Fortunately for Kunes, he’s a Chancellor.

“I’m grateful our team got so many runs and so many hits,” he said.

Chatsworth (24-3, 13-2 in league play) finished with 11 hits, three each by O’Hara and Bryan Gant, and beat the Conquistadores, 14-4, in a game halted after six innings because of the 10-run rule.

Chatsworth completed a three-game sweep of El Camino Real (15-9, 12-4) and provided Coach Tom Meusborn with his seventh West Valley League championship since he arrived at Chatsworth in 1990.

The Chancellors hardly celebrated. Last season, they beat El Camino Real for the West Valley title, then lost to the Conquistadores in the City 4-A semifinals.

Virtually every Chatsworth and El Camino Real player expects a fourth meeting when the playoffs begin next Friday.

“I’m sure we’ll play them again,” El Camino Real center fielder Woody Cliffords said.

Said O’Hara: “I’ll bet we see them down the road.”

El Camino Real better figure out a scenario for beating the Chancellors. It won’t be easy. This is a Chatsworth team with hitters up and down the lineup.

“One through nine, we can swing it,” O’Hara said.

El Camino Real fell behind, 6-0, then gave Chatsworth a scare by battering Kunes for five consecutive hits in the third inning.

Matt Schwartz and Jared Maiden hit home runs over the left-field fence, Cliffords and Conor Jackson hit doubles to left and Birkins singled. The lead was cut to 6-3.

But Chatsworth came right back to score four runs. Gant had the key hit, a bases-loaded single that scored three runs when the ball went under Cliffords’ glove and rolled to the fence.

Kunes struck out four, walked one and allowed eight hits.

“It’s the first time I’ve seen anyone hit Kunes like that,” Cassel said.

Kunes never lost his composure.

“He always comes back at you whether you knock out 10 home runs,” Chatsworth outfielder Tom Morefield said.

Added O’Hara: “Kunes is a bulldog. He was going to come back and throw strikes no matter what.”

Kunes was pitching with 12 days of rest after Chatsworth had both of its games postponed last week because of rain.

He offered no excuses.

“I tried to get ahead of the hitters and throw strikes,” he said. “Unfortunately, they were over the plate and they hit them out of the ballpark.”

Chatsworth ends its regular season today against Taft. The Chancellors are expected to be seeded No. 1 when the 4-A playoff pairings are announced on Tuesday night.

O’Hara makes it clear he’s doing no celebrating until “after June 11.”

That’s the night of the City 4-A championship game at Dodger Stadium. The Chancellors intend to get there and win it all.