Camarillo’s Youth Helps Serve Up 4-1 Victory for Wilson

Camarillo High started three juniors, two sophomores and a freshman in a Southern Section Division I baseball quarterfinal against Long Beach Wilson on Friday.

To Coach Scott Cline, the Scorpions showed their inexperience in a 4-1 loss at Blair Field.

“We didn’t play very good,” Cline said. “We made mistakes offensively [and] defensively. We missed three signs. It cost us. We made a couple errors on defense that cost us.”

Despite its problems, Camarillo (24-7) had a chance to tie the score in the seventh inning when Delmon Young came to the plate with the bases loaded and two out.

The 14-year old freshman was ahead on the count 3 and 0 and took the next two pitches for strikes. He chopped a pitch foul down the third-base line before grounding out to shortstop Chris Weems to end the game.

“I’ll take my guys over their guys,” said Cline, who guided the Scorpions to the quarterfinals for the first time since 1985 when they reached the Southern Section final. “I think we’re better if we play a five-game series, but [Friday] we weren’t better. We didn’t get the big hit when we needed it.”

Camarillo had only three hits over the first five innings off Joey Pace (9-1).

Young was hitless in four at bats after his two hits in a 5-3 upset of second-seeded Bishop Amat on Tuesday gave him a school-record 47 for the season.

“[Pace’s] off-speed stuff was tough,” Cline said. “We didn’t swing the bats the way we were capable of. We hit the ball in the air too much.”

Nine of the Scorpions’ 21 outs were fly outs.

Long Beach Wilson (22-9) took a 2-0 lead in the first on Greg Wasick’s two-run double off Young (3-1).

Steve Papazian hit a two-run single off reliever John Gonzalez in the fifth after two errors.

“We should have given up no runs in [the fifth],” Cline said. “That would have made the seventh a lot more exciting.”

Pinch-hitter Justin Frash and designated hitter Jacob Medina hit singles in the seventh and pinch-hitter Mark Cardella’s fielder’s choice drove in a run, but that was all Camarillo could muster.