Sports Briefs: Former St. Francis High standout dominates on mound
Bergman dazzling for Seattle
St. Francis High graduate Christian Bergman proved he could handle pitching in hitter-friendly Fenway Park during his latest start Sunday.
The former All-Area Baseball Player of the Year pitched seven scoreless innings and got four double-plays to propel the Seattle Mariners to a 5-0 win against the Boston Red Sox.
Bergman (2-2) yielded four hits, struck out two and walked two. He got a double-play in the first four innings.
“I can’t say enough about the effort he gave us today,” Seattle Manager Scott Servais told the Seattle Times. “He was throwing strikes and attacking the strike zone and that’s what you have to do in this ballpark and against this team.”
Estrada continues fine play
Former Glendale Community College and current Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Marco Estrada battled Texas Rangers starter Yu Darvish on Saturday afternoon.
It was Estrada who outdueled his counterpart in leading Toronto to a 3-1 victory at home for the club’s fifth straight victory.
Estrada surrendered a home run to Shin-Soo Choo to lead off the game but didn’t allow another run the rest of the way, scattering four hits, striking out eight and walking one over six innings.
“I liked everything,” Estrada told MLB.com. “We were locating fastballs, changeups. I threw some decent curveballs. I threw one good cutter, the other one wasn’t too good, but overall, the pitches were just working.”
Estrada has struck out 78 batters over 68 2/3 innings and has allowed two runs or fewer in eight of his 11 starts this season. He lowered his earned-run average to 3.15 and has a 4-2 record.
Freers in CIF Tournament
St. Francis High boys’ tennis players Jack and Ian Freer will continue their quest to win the CIF Individual Tournament when they compete in a round-of-16 match at 11:30 a.m. Friday at Seal Beach Tennis Center.
The brotherly combination lost just three games in the opening rounds of the tournament Thursday at the University of Redlands after advancing to the Mission League Tournament Final.
The quarterfinals will be held immediately after the round-of-16 matchups. The semifinals and finals will be Saturday at Seal Beach Tennis Center.
Five Vaqueros named all-conference in softball
First-year Glendale Community College softball players were well represented when the All-Western State Conference selections were released.
Of the five Vaqueros recipients, four are freshmen.
“It’s nice that we had a good group of freshmen who stepped up and contributed this season,” Glendale coach Sal Pizzo said. “It’s also nice that we had a group of players who were recognized by our conference.”
Two Vaqueros freshmen were honored with first-team honors: shortstop Mabel Calderon and first baseman/third baseman Madison Stillwell.
Named to the second team was sophomore outfielder/pitcher Sydney Jones, while freshman catcher/second baseman Arlene Osnaya and freshman infielder Kristal Bendfelt garnered honorable mention.
Calderon had a .379 average (39 for 103) with 28 runs batted in, 23 runs scored, five doubles, six home runs and a .660 slugging percentage.
“Mabel was definitely an impact player for us,” Pizzo said. “She led us in all the power categories, home runs, RBI and slugging percentage. She also was solid at shortstop, which isn’t necessarily her best position, but we needed her there and she did a great job.”
Stillwell was tops on the team with a .410 average (41 for 100) and also had 27 RBI, 20 runs scored, six doubles and two home runs.
“Madison started out playing first base, but we had some injuries and we had her at third and she made a great transition there for us,” Pizzo said. “Not only was she great on defense but she was also a clutch hitter for us.
“Both of our first-teamers were very well deserved.”
Jones hit .398 (39 for 98) with 31 runs scored and 12 RBI with just four strikeouts, while Osnaya hit .255 (14 for 55) with 13 runs scored and Bendfelt had a .293 average (24 for 82) with 16 RBI, 14 runs scored and 17 walks.