Sports Briefs: Six Flintridge Prep baseball players honored

Six Flintridge Prep baseball players honored

The Flintridge Prep baseball team picked up two first-team and six overall selections on the Prep League awards list.

The Rebels finished 14-8-1 and 7-5 in league to finish in third behind archrival Pasadena Poly and Rio Hondo Prep.

Flintridge Prep earned advancement to the CIF Southern Section Division IV wild-card playoffs, after being moved up two divisions, and was defeated, 10-5, by Arroyo Grande.

Senior second baseman Danny Chiarodit and senior utility player Kendall Kikkawa nabbed the Rebels’ first-team selections.

Chiarodit batted .358 with 29 runs and 11 runs batted in.

“It was really great having him as our three-year starter at second base,” Flintridge Prep coach Guillermo Gonzalez said. “He was one of the leaders that we had and someone the guys could look up to on hitting and defense. It was a privilege to have him.”

Kikkawa played football, basketball and baseball and mirrored that versatility in the lineup as he played several positions for Gonzalez.

Kikkawa batted .364 with 23 runs and 21 RBI along with seven doubles.

“We had him play everything – shortstop, outfield, third base – he even pitched a couple of games,” Gonzalez said. “He batted at the top of the order and did a great job. He’s another three-year starter who will be tough to replace.”

Flintridge Prep has four additional players on the second team in junior utility Nicholas Davis (.327 with 17 runs and 12 RBI), sophomore first baseman Thomas Kosakowski (team-best .407 average), junior utility Bradley Noble (.375 with 15 runs and eight RBI) and sophomore shortstop Max Rosenfeld (.304 with 19 RBI and 18 runs).

Rebels receive league honors

Though the Flintridge Prep softball team didn’t qualify for the postseason, four players were bestowed with All-Prep League recognition.

Senior pitcher Therese Oshiro was named to the first team. The right-hander went 9-9 with a 2.85 earned-run average. She struck out 86 in 108 innings. Oshiro batted .419 (26 for 62) with 29 runs and eight runs batted in.

“She was a four-year starter who proved to be a force in the circle and at the plate,” Flintridge Prep coach Julie Mejia said. “She was a game-changer and she had probably her best year at the plate.”

Libby Penn, a sophomore infielder, was also tabbed to the first team. Penn batted .480 (24 for 50) with 13 runs, 18 runs batted in and .760 slugging percentage.

“She’s such a great athlete,” Mejia said. “She was a force at the plate and got on base a lot. She always seemed to hit the ball hard.”

Sophomore infielder Melissa Grande and senior outfielder Taylor Yoshida were named to the second team.

Grande hit .411 (23 for 56) with nine doubles, 32 RBI and 24 runs. Yoshida batted .273 (15 for 55) with 10 runs batted in.

Flintridge Prep finished 9-9, 4-8 in league for fifth place.

Golbranson inks with Puget Sound

St. Monica Academy senior Jack Golbranson announced his future plans in ink when the catcher signed a letter of intent on Tuesday afternoon to NCAA Division III Puget Sound University in Tacoma, Wash.

“When I went up to visit last summer, I fell in love with the place,” said Golbranson, who is interested in a business major. “They have the major I want to go into and I can play baseball. It was a perfect fit.”

This past season, Golbranson batted .470 with 27 runs batted in, 24 runs and 23 extra-base hits. Golbranson led the Crusaders to an 11-4 mark and a fifth straight league championship.

Bergman grabs another victory

Former St. Francis High baseball player Christian Bergman turned in another quality start Friday for the Seattle Mariners.

The former All-Area Baseball Player of the Year tossed six innings, allowing two runs on seven hits in a 12-4 home win against the Tampa Bay Rays. Bergman (3-2) struck out six in a 105-pitch ouing to win his second straight start.

In 33 innings, he’s struck out 20 and has a 4.36 earned-run average in six appearances.

Estrada suffers loss against NY

Former Glendale Community College and current Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Marco Estrada couldn’t make it out of the fourth inning Thursday in a 12-2 loss to the New Your Yankees.

Estrada, a 33-year-old right-hander, got the start against the Bronx Bombers and struggled from the onset. He allowed seven runs on nine hits and a pair of walks while striking out four. The seven earned runs were the most Estrada has allowed since joining the Blue Jays in 2015 and his highest total since June 20, 2014 when he was with the Milwaukee Brewers.

“Obviously it was a tough outing,” Estrada told MLB.com. “I got hit around a bunch. I didn’t make any good pitches today. It just wasn’t there. But I’m more upset about having the bullpen to pick up all of those innings. It’s my job to go deep into games regardless of how many runs I give up.”

Estrada has a 3.86 earned-run average with 82 strikeouts and 19 walks in 72 1/3 innings.

Falcons Summer Baseball Camp

The eighth annual Falcons Summer Baseball Camp, conducted by Crescenta Valley High baseball coach Phil Torres, will run from 9 a.m. to noon June 12-15 at Stengel Field.

The camp, designed for ages 7-13 entering the 2017-18 school year, will be geared toward hitting, pitching and more. The cost is $175 per person and includes a T-Shirt.

For more information, contact Torres at (818) 249-5871, ext. 6110, or at cvbaseball@hotmail.com.

Coach Z Basketball Camp

The annual Coach Z Basketball Camp, spearheaded by Crescenta Valley High boys’ basketball coach Shawn Zargarian, will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. July 10-14 at Crescenta Valley High’s gymnasium, 2900 Community Drive, La Crescenta.

The camp is for boys and girls, ages 6-13, and will focus on shooting, rebounding, dribbling and more. For more information, contact Zargarian at Coachzbasketballcamp@gmail.com.

Elite Basketball Camp set

The third annual Elite Basketball Camp, conducted by Glendale High boys’ basketball coach Ib Belou, will be held from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. July 17-21 at Glendale High’s gymnasium, 1440 E. Broadway, Glendale.

The event is geared for boys and girls, ages 6-14. For more information, contact Belou at coachbelou@gmail.com.