Marina Will Take the Eighth

Continuing its extra-inning magic, Huntington Beach Marina won the Southern Section Division I baseball championship Saturday night by turning to another eighth-inning hero.

This time it was Jacob Luque’s two-out single on a 3-2 count that scored Daric Barton from third base with the winning run in Marina’s 1-0 victory over Moreno Valley Valley View at Edison Field.

It was the fourth consecutive eighth-inning playoff victory for the Vikings (24-7), who earlier pulled out victories over Arcadia, Santa Ana Mater Dei and Riverside Arlington.

Barton walked with two out and moved to third on a errant pickoff throw by catcher Dale Solomon. Luque lined his single up the middle off Steven Wright (11-1), leaving Valley View players stunned and Marina players celebrating.

Wright was magnificent in defeat. He allowed only four hits, struck out five and walked two, both coming to Barton. Matching Wright for seven scoreless innings was Marina’s Wes Etheridge, who struck out nine before giving way in the eighth to J.J. Valicenti.

Valley View (23-7) seemed to be the team of destiny. The Eagles were eliminated from the playoffs in a 4-3 second-round defeat to Lakewood, then picked up a forfeit victory after a protest alleging Lakewood had conducted an illegal pregame batting practice was upheld.

Then came playoff victories over Anaheim Servite and Santa Margarita. Finally, in the final, Valley View placed great trust in Wright, who has signed with Hawaii. In the fifth, sixth and seventh, Marina put runners on second base, only to strand them.

But the eighth inning has been Marina’s lucky inning in the playoffs. Against Arcadia, Jason Jordan squeezed in the winning run. Against Mater Dei, Barton hit a walk-off home run. Against Arlington, Adam Rodriguez delivered a two-run double. So it was Luque’s turn to give Coach Paul Renfrow his first Southern Section title since 1990.