By Loren Kopff
For the second straight game in the Babe Ruth League State Tournament, the Frontier Youth Baseball League 8-Under all-stars had a chance to win a game. But as was the case in its opener on July 9, Frontier had issues on defense and committed 11 errors in a 12-10 loss to Simi Valley last Saturday morning at El Dorado Park West in Long Beach.
The loss eliminated Frontier from the tournament and foiled any chances of advancing to the Cal Ripken Pacific Southwest Regional Tournament. While Frontier never led in the game, it rallied from deficits of five runs twice to tie the game before Simi Valley scored twice in the top of the sixth to preserve the victory.
Simi Valley scored three times in the top of the first inning on only one hit, but was aided by four walks and three errors. Two unearned runs came across in the second inning before Frontier got on the board in its half of the inning. With one out, pitcher Kaleb Nakano was walked and third baseman Henry Wonderlick and second baseman Nate Tsujioka were hit by pitches. Nakano would score on an error and a base hit from left fielder Brandon Casas plated Wonderlick, making the score 5-2. Tsujioka and Casas would later come home on wild pitches.
In the next inning, catcher Noah Andrunas singled, advanced on an error and scored on a single from Wonderlick. However, Simi Valley went up 10-5 in the fourth inning as Frontier made four more errors.
But, Frontier immediately rallied back with a pair of runs as center fielder Royce Roberts and Andrunas each had run scoring singles. Then with two outs in the fifth inning, right fielder Ryan Martinez and shortstop Jarret Nielsen had run scoring base hits. Nielsen tied the game at 10-10 when he came home on a wild pitch. The final two Simi Valley runs came home on a wild pitch and a passed ball respectively.
Andrunas, Roberts and Wonderlick all had two hits and everyone in the Frontier lineup reached base.
SOFTBALL
The championship season has already begun in the travel ball circuit and for the rest of the month and into the early days of August, several Artesia Punisher teams will vie for a championship, as will a plethora of area players with their respective teams.
The Artesia Punishers 14-Under team, coached by Jr. Vasquez, are currently in Park City, Utah for the Triple Crown Sports Open Western World Series. This past Tuesday, the Punishers blanked the (Sedona, AZ) Verde Valley Heat 9-0 and the (Los Gatos) CA Kryptonite 6-0 to begin pool play action. This past Wednesday, the Punishers whitewashed the (Corona) Quakes 7-0 and defeated the (Indio) Southern California Nationals 7-4. The Punishers began the double elimination portion of the tournament against the (Bakersfield) Triple Play on July 17. Of the 81 teams in the tournament, the Punishers were tied with two other teams for allowing the third fewest runs in pool play action. The championship game is slated for Saturday afternoon.
The other two Artesia Punishers 14-Under teams, coached by Danny Guerrero and Anthony Medina, will begin pool play action of the up and coming Premier Girls Fastpitch National Championships with single games on Saturday and two more on Sunday. Games will be at Bill Col. Bill Barber Park and Harvard Park in Irvine as well as the Fountain Valley Sports Park.
Also participating in the PGF National Championships will be Celeste Borza of Cerritos High School, Ashley Iseri of Whitney High School and Jennifer Morinishi, who will be attending Cerritos High School in September. All three play for the Fullerton-based Cal A’s. Gahr High School’s Alyssa Kumiyama and Malia Quarles of the So Cal Athletics will also be in the tournament. The double elimination portion, as well as the opening ceremonies, will begin on Monday. The championship game is set for Friday at Col. Bill Barber Park in Irvine.
SOCCER
The Cerritos Liverpool 16-Under girls club team participated in the National Premier League Finals last weekend in Greensboro, N.C. and came away with one win in three games played at the Bryan Park Soccer Complex. On July 10, the Liverpool defeated the (Powell, WA) Northwest United FC 97 3-2. However, the Liverpool would fall to the (Glastonbury, CT) Oakwood SC Pride 5-1 last Friday morning and the Santa Clara Sporting 97G 4-3 last Saturday afternoon. The Liverpool participated in the NPL Finals by virtue of being one of 17 NPL champions across the United States.
