BASEBALL: KUNES LEADS CHATSWORTH.

Byline: Chris Branam Daily News Staff Writer

They couldn't even get him with the congratulatory ice shower. That's how good Mike Kunes was.

``That's about as well as he's pitched all year,'' said Chatsworth High baseball coach Tom Meusborn after the junior left-hander shut out El Camino Real 8-0 on Thursday. ``You can't ask any more.''

Kunes couldn't have done much more to help the Chancellors, ranked No. 1 by the Daily News, beat the No. 7 Conquistadores for the second time this week. He allowed just two hits, struck out eight and also went 2 for 4 with three RBI and two doubles.

What made Kunes' day just as impressive is what he didn't do. He didn't walk a batter and he didn't give ECR, the defending City 4-A champion, many good swings at his curveball.

Kunes struck out the side in the first and didn't allow a hit until Matt Schwartz's single up the middle led off the fourth.

``Once we got through the first inning, I knew (Kunes) was going to be right on,'' Chatsworth catcher Loren Devries said. ``It was just right there every time. He never wasted any pitches.''

Chatsworth, which has won nine in a row, improved to 11-1 in the Northwest Valley Conference, 22-2 overall. The Chancellors took a two-game lead in the conference race over the Conquistadores (11-8, 9-3).

Even though they are charging toward a top seeding in the 4-A playoffs, the memory of last year's semifinal loss to the Conquistadores haunts some of the players.

``Every time we face them, that will be in the back of our minds,'' said sophomore first baseman Matt Cassel.

Kunes, though, wasn't a factor last year. He barely pitched but then came on in the summer and has become one of the top pitchers in the area. He improved to 8-1 and lowered his ERA to 1.58 on Thursday.

``Location-wise, I was on the whole game,'' Kunes said. ``The main thing today was to throw the ball inside. I just got the job done.''

The psychological carryover from an 8-6 win at ECR on Tuesday was evident with the Chatsworth players, who were relaxed and loose before the game. The Chancellors' Bryan Gant set the tone offensively when he hit a leadoff double against Conquistadores starter Jesus Gallo (2-1).

Three batters later, Kunes hit a two-run double that glanced off the glove of the left fielder Schwartz. The Chancellors also scored twice in the second and a run in the third.

``It was important that we kept scoring a run here and there,'' Meusborn said. ``Once (the Conquistadores) get rolling, they can score a bunch of runs in a hurry.''