Cypress Misses Chance and Falls to Westlake in Quarterfinals, 4-3

Cypress couldn’t get the big hit it needed in the seventh inning Friday and lost to Westlake Village Westlake, 4-3, in a Southern Section Division III baseball quarterfinal at Cypress.

Westlake pitcher Tyler Adamczyk, protecting a two-run lead in the seventh, walked the bases loaded with one out and fell behind, 2-0, to Zack Swanson.

Enter closer Ryan McCarthy, who threw a ball, then a strike, before getting Swanson to ground out to first, scoring Christian Vitters from third.

Jason Filarey then grounded out to shortstop, giving Westlake (24-6-1) a tense victory and a spot in the semifinals against Norte Vista on Tuesday.

“I knew [Swanson] wasn’t going to swing, 3-0,” said McCarthy. “After I got the first strike it was downhill from there.”

The second-seeded Warriors took a 2-0 lead in the first inning on McCarthy’s two-run triple, but Cypress (21-8) gave them all they could handle the rest of the way.

Cypress starting pitcher Chad Halbert held Westlake scoreless through the next three innings, giving his team a chance to draw even, 2-2.

Cypress scored a run in the third, when Swanson singled to right and Rusty Murray scored from first when right fielder Luke Riordan misplayed the ball.

The Centurions tied it in the fourth on J.J. Lovejoy’s bases-loaded single to center with one out, but Scott Moore then hit the ball to McCarthy, and the shortstop turned it into a double play.

“I’m disappointed because we had our key guys up in the right situations, but didn’t get the big hit,” Cypress Coach Dave Lewis said. “I’m not disappointed in our effort, just the way things went.”

Cody Cipriano’s tiebreaking two-run single with the bases loaded in the fifth provided Westlake’s winning margin.