Ocean View baseball stays perfect in Golden West League with rout of Westminster
The Ocean View High baseball team got to empty its bench late in Friday’s Golden West League game against Westminster.
With the Seahawks up big, they could afford to make plenty of substitutions. The only starter who stayed in the lineup was Michael Fernandez, and that’s because he went from first base to pitcher in the fifth inning.
The starters cheered loudly from the dugout when some of the replacements produced. Tristan Kennedy roped a double to left to lead off the fifth inning, and Joseph Legg had a single to left in the sixth.
“Today we brought in a couple of people off the bench with a big lead, and we’ve always got their backs, too,” Ocean View starting shortstop Matt Starr said. “When they come in, we expect them to do well, too. We’ve got to try to stay in the game and support them, because they support us when we’re out there.”
Ocean View coach Tanner VanMaanen said he sees it as a sign that the Seahawks are playing well. They certainly did that at home, earning an 11-1 win over Westminster to stay unbeaten in the Golden West League.
For the second time this week, Ocean View (16-9, 11-0 in league) did not have much of a problem getting past Westminster (5-14, 3-10). The Seahawks earned an 18-1 win on the road Tuesday.
Starr was three for four with a double, three runs batted in and two runs scored to lead the Seahawks’ attack, and Matt Maloney hit a two-run home run.
Ocean View scored three runs in the bottom of the first, and six more in the third. It all added up to plenty of support for senior right-handed pitcher Gavin Kennedy. The Cal State Fullerton-bound Kennedy said he didn’t have his best stuff after allowing one run and six hits in four innings.
“I couldn’t find my curveball at first, and I finally found it in the last two innings,” Kennedy said. “My fastball just wasn’t there today. I could hit my spots, I just wasn’t putting much behind it.”
He still improved to 7-2 with a 0.70 earned-run average this season, and Kennedy said he is also encouraged with the team camaraderie.
“We’re playing with a lot of energy, and that’s the most important thing, just getting behind the guys,” he said. “It’s fun to see everyone succeed. We want everyone to smoke a ball in the gap. It’s just really fun to watch. It goes back to team chemistry, and I think we have some pretty good team chemistry.”
Westminster scored its only run in the fourth, when Christian Bedolla and Matt Malloy led off with back-to-back singles. An out later, Bedolla scored on a groundout by Joseph Bill.
The Lions nearly added another run when leadoff hitter Jose Smith hit a shot up the middle, but Starr snagged it behind second base, spun and threw out Smith at first.
“It kicked off the mound a little bit, so I fielded it on the second-base side,” Starr said. “That’s a play that I like to work on in practice. It’s just fun to do. I got one in the game, and I was able to make it, and Michael picked me up at first with the pick.”
The Seahawks all had fun after the victory, but VanMaanen said tougher league games are coming next week, when Ocean View plays third-place Garden Grove. The Seahawks host Garden Grove on Tuesday and play on the road Friday.
VanMaanen has to like his chances with the way the Seahawks are playing.
“The last four games they’ve come out and just absolutely played like nails,” he said. “We’d be a very tough beat the way they’re playing right now … It’s slowly winding down and we’re starting to play some of our better baseball, which is exactly what you want.”
Twitter: @mjszabo
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