They're closing in on titles They're closing in on titles (May 06, 2005)

Gunn, Menlo, SHP all facing showdowns in the final week

by Keith Peters

It's all or nothing today for the Gunn and Menlo baseball teams. Victories take schools closer to division titles, while losses nearly eliminate those hopes.

In the SCVAL El Camino Division, Gunn (10-4, 12-6) will play host to first-place Santa Clara (11-4) at 3:30 p.m. At stake is sole possession of the top spot with just one week remaining in the regular season.

In the PAL Ocean Division, Menlo (7-4, 15-12) visits first-place Capuchino (7-3) at 3:15 p.m. Sole possession of the division lead is also at stake for the Knights, who also need to beat visiting Aragon (7-4) next Wednesday at 3:15 p.m.

Clearly, Gunn and Menlo control their own destiny. Not only will victories move both closer to division titles, but Central Coast Section berths, as well.

Gunn, which had its game with Lynbrook on Thursday rained out, will face Santa Clara's Carlos Hernandez today. Hernandez was co-MVP in the division last season, but suffered a knee injury earlier this year that delayed his season.

"I scouted him Friday night against Saratoga and was very impressed," said Gunn coach Tim Thompson. "Since returning, I think he has yet to give up an earned run. He is extremely tough. He is still not 100 percent. The knee prohibits him from hitting, except in pinch-hit roles, and he couldn't beat out the runner on a ground ball to first base that almost every pitching would have made.

"Chances are the field will be wet and the mound will not be in great condition. How will that affect his knee? These are things SC has to be thinking about and I talked to our guys about them today (Thursday). But on the other side of the ball, SC is hitting pretty well, and so it will be on Tucker (Laurence) to keep the game close."

Gunn also is hitting the ball well. The Titans blasted two homers on Tuesday and Laurence pitched a scoreless seventh inning as Gunn held on for a big 5-2 victory over visiting Santa Clara.

The pitching win went to junior lefty Brent Gardiner, who allowed just five hits over six innings. Catcher Mike Myers unloaded a two-run homer in the bottom of the fourth for a 2-0 lead. After Santa Clara rallied for two runs in the fifth, senior Colin Felch ripped a line-drive solo homer over the left field fence for the winning run in the sixth. Sam Zipperstein provided insurance with a two-run double later in the frame.

Santa Clara hurt itself a number of times. In the second, the Bruins had two hits and an error but sent only four players to the plate and failed to score as one runner was picked off by Myers and another thrown out at third by center fielder Wils Cole while trying to advance to third on a single.

"That's not something we can expect again," Thompson said.

PAL Ocean Division

Menlo ace Andy Suiter likely will go against Capuchino today. In his previous outing on April 27, Suiter struck out 16 in a key victory over Aragon.

The Knights are riding a four-game winning streak and have received standout pitching during the streak. On Wednesday, Colin Umphreys tossed a complete-game five-hitter during a 10-3 win at San Mateo.

Umphreys (3-2) threw 22 pitches alone in the first inning as the Bearcats took a 1-0 lead. He settled down and threw only 63 pitches the remaining six innings, despite having to sit during a 25-minute rain delay.

Sophomore Calvin Jepson led Menlo's 10-hit attack with two hits and two RBI while senior Ryan Cavan added two singles.

De Anza Division

Palo Alto's chance of overtaking Wilcox for second place pretty much disappeared Wednesday during a 13-3 loss to the visiting Chargers. The Vikings fell to 8-5 (12-10 overall) while Wilcox improved to 12-4 with just two games remaining.

The Vikings managed just one hit on the rainy afternoon. That came in the first inning when Paly pieced together a single by John Ginanni, three walks and a fielder's choice for a 2-0 lead.

That was all Paly could manage as the Chargers battered the Viking pitching staff for 16 hits, reversing a loss to the Vikings on April 22 when Paly's Andrew White pitched a complete-game victory.

White, however, was knocked out the game in the fifth. The Vikings, who missed starter Karl Laughton for most of the game -- he was taking an AP test - will be without head coach Pete Colombo for today's scheduled game at Cupertino. Colombo was ejected for arguing a call at the plate in the fourth and has to sit out a one-game suspension.

He'll be back when the Vikings host Mountain View on Saturday (noon), Milpitas on Monday and Los Altos on Wednesday.

PSAL

Depending on the weather, Sacred Heart Prep (8-1, 12-9) can wrap up the league title on Wednesday with a victory at Redwood Christian. The Gators hold a two-game lead over King's Academy (7-3).

Sacred Heart moved closer to clinching with a pair of victories this week. The Gators blanked Fremont Christian on Monday, 9-0, before beating host Valley Christian-Dublin on Tuesday, 6-1.

Matt Connor got the pitching win on Monday, striking out eight and allowing only two hits over five innings. Tommy Pierson had two doubles and drove in four runs.

Pierson took the mound Tuesday and pitched a complete-game three-hitter. Travis Lucian led the Gators' offense with three hits, including an RBI double to start the scoring in the second inning.

Softball

Castilleja has plenty to celebrate already, and by the time Monday night rolls around, the Gators could be celebrating their first ever league title.

Thanks to a 3-0 victory over visiting Mercy of Burlingame on Tuesday, Castilleja moved into first place in the West Bay Athletic League with a 7-0 mark (11-3 overall).

Alex Chang-Graham pitched a one-hitter to lead the effort, striking out 14 in the complete game victory. Sterling Yee strained her hamstring during warm-ups, but was well enough to triple and drive in two runs.

Castilleja ended the Crusaders 58-game league winning streak, and will play at Mercy on Monday. The Gators are at Parker today and travel to Mercy of San Francisco on Tuesday in the regular season finale.

"Winning this game gave us a berth in the CCS," Gators coach Cindy Staehnke said. "It's the first ever for a Castilleja softball team and this team really deserves it. They have worked hard all season."

In a PAL Ocean Division game, first-place Menlo School knocked off host San Mateo, 8-4, as Ali Lycette pitched a three-hitter for the Knights (10-1, 15-5).

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