Tornadoes weather the storm

Charles Rich

GLENDALE -- o7 Odds and ends from the local high school baseball

scene:f7

Coming of age: None of the Hoover baseball players will predict the

unpredictable.

Privately, there might have been some thoughts of a lost week when the

schedule signaled that the Tornadoes had to play Pacific League

powerhouses Crescenta Valley and Arcadia.

The immediate task called for the Tornadoes to weather the storm. They

accomplished that goal against two squads that were ranked at or near the

top of their respective CIF Southern Section divisions.

Hoover opened with a 1-0 loss to CV, the top-ranked team in Division

II, on Tuesday. CV scored its lone run in the first inning before Hoover

pitcher Max Hibbs and CV’s Kris Krise matched each other pitch-for-pitch.

Then things looked bleak for Hoover on Friday against visiting

Arcadia, ranked No. 3 in Division I.

Hoover held an 8-7 lead entering the top of the seventh before relief

pitcher Philip Estrella surrendered a two-run home run with two outs.

Dazed by the home run, Estrella regrouped to hit a game-winning,

bases-loaded double in the bottom of the inning to give the Tornadoes

(13-6, 6-4 in league) a 10-9 win.

“I’d say we had quite a week,” Hoover Coach Jim Delzell said. “We

weren’t intimidated in either game and we stayed with them. What

impressed me the most was that we scored seven runs against [Arcadia’s]

three best pitchers.”

Delzell referred to Gary Kim, Aaron Anderson and Alex George, who have

played a big part in the Apaches winning the last two Pacific League

titles.

Thorn in their side: La Canada High baseball Coach Grant Vermillion

sure gained a lot of respect for Temple City pitcher Brandon Dame this

season.

The senior, who is Coach Barry Bacon’s No. 2 hurler, beat the Spartans

twice this season, allowing only one run in 13 innings.

But Dame wasn’t the only Ram responsible for La Canada’s headaches.

Senior Jimmy Brettl might have had more to do with Temple City

sweeping La Canada this season, which just might knock Vermillion’s squad

from first to third in in the Rio Hondo League standings.

Brettl pitched seven strong innings in the first meeting March 15 to

earn the win, 2-1. He then hit a three-run home run in a 5-1 victory on

April 2.

And on Thursday, Brettl slugged a solo shot to center in the second

inning, which led to another two runs for the Rams in a 3-0 blanking.

The good news for Vermillion and the Spartans is that they won’t have

to worry about Dame and Brettl any longer, because the two teams don’t

play each other anymore this season.