LET THE CHASE BEGIN FOOTHILL BASEBALL, SOFTBALL RACES SET TO HEAT UP.Byline: Gerry Gittelson Staff Writer As schools return from spring break, Foothill League baseball and softball softball, variant of baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Invented (1888) in Chicago as an indoor game, it was at various times called indoor baseball, mush ball, playground ball, kitten ball, and, because it was also played by women, ladies' teams will dedicate most of the second half of the season to league competition. So things should heat up because all four Santa Clarita Santa Clarita, city (1990 pop. 110,642), Los Angeles co., S Calif., suburb 30 mi (48 km) NW of downtown Los Angeles, on the Santa Clara River; inc. 1987. Situated in the Santa Clara valley and nearby canyons, Santa Clarita includes the former towns of Canyon Country, schools - Canyon, Hart, Saugus and Valencia - have nearly equal opportunities to win the league baseball title. And the softball race should be tight, too, as Saugus, Valencia and Hart have proven capable of defeating almost anyone. In baseball, perhaps the one surprise has been the rise of Canyon, the league's last undefeated team. Flourishing under second-year coach Chuck Crim J.T. Adams, Anthony DiGiacomo and Tommy Kimmerle are capable starting pitchers, slugger Johnny Hay is among the league's top outfielders (and is expected to break out soon after batting below .200 over the season's first half), and returning all-league second baseman second baseman n. Baseball The infielder who is positioned near and to the first-base side of second base. Noun 1. second baseman - (baseball) the person who plays second base second sacker Josh Pipho could provide a boost after returning last week from academic ineligibility. Hart (8-1-1, 2-1) returned most of its key starters after reaching the Southern Section Div. II semifinals last year. Like Canyon, Hart relies on pitching - the Indians have held seven of 10 opponents to four or fewer runs - and the team has won four in a row since a 10-0 loss to Saugus in the league opener. Hart left-hander Tyler Fick (3-0, 1.56 ERA) and right-hander Donnie Williams (2-1, 2.01 ERA) have started strongly, and outfielder Brian Charnock (.563) and infielders Shane Carlson (.556, one home run) and Matt Valaika (.448, 10 runs) are among the top hitters. Saugus (5-3, 2-1) has the league's best all-around player in left-hander Thomas Milone. The senior pitcher-first baseman is 3-1 with a 0.64 ERA, and he's batting .542 with three home runs and seven RBI RBI abbr. Baseball runs batted in Noun 1. rbi - a run that is the result of the batter's performance; "he had more than 100 rbi last season" run batted in in 24 at-bats. Three-time league champion Valencia (6-7) has more losses than normal, but the team has played a difficult schedule while testing new players at various positions. Outfielder Michael Hur is hitting better than .500, and the team has several potential pitching standouts, including junior left-hander Brian Howe Brian Howe can refer to:
Burroughs of Burbank (5-5, 1-4) and Burbank (4-3, 0-3) are significant underdogs. Not including Burroughs' 10-1 victory Tuesday over Burbank, the average margin of the teams' six losses to Foothill League opponents has been 6.8 runs. In softball, defending Southern Section Div. II quarterfinalist Saugus (10-2) is very strong. Ranked No. 1 by the Daily News among teams from the San Fernando San Fernando, city, Argentina San Fernando (săn fərnăn`dō), city (1991 pop. 144,761), Buenos Aires prov., E Argentina. It is a district administrative center in the Greater Buenos Aires area. , Conejo, Santa Clarita and Antelope valleys, Saugus' only losses have been to national powers Pacifica of Garden Grove Garden Grove, city (1990 pop. 143,050), Orange co., S Calif., a suburb of Long Beach and Los Angeles, on the Santa Ana River; founded 1877, inc. 1956. Many of its residents work in nearby aerospace and defense installations, and there is light manufacturing. and Mater Dei Mater Dei is Latin for "Mother of God", referring to the Virgin Mary. The term has been used to name various institutions, often Catholic, including:
Santa Ana (sän'tä ä`nä), city (1993 pop. 129,873), W El Salvador. It is the second largest city in the country and the commercial and processing center for a sugarcane, coffee, and cattle region. . The Centurions have won five in a row, including a 6-0 victory over Hart in the championship game of the 32-team High Desert Classic tournament in Lancaster. Tiffany Huff huff - To compress data using a Huffman code. Various programs that use such methods have been called "HUFF" or some variant thereof. Opposite: puff. Compare crunch, compress. (.622, four home runs), Victory Kemp (.553, five HRs), Alexandra Cueva (.333, one HR) and Melisa Koutz (.333, two HRs) lead a potent lineup. Saugus pitcher Ashley Arnett, a right-hander, is 8-2 with a 1.03 ERA and 67 strikeouts in 61 innings. Valencia (6-1) features two dominant right-handed pitchers, Hawaii- bound Courtney Baughman and 6-foot-1 sophomore Jordan Taylor. Baughman is 3-0 with 27 strikeouts in 19 innings, and Taylor is 3-1 with 44 strikeouts in 29 innings. The Vikings have given up only two runs. Valencia doesn't have nearly as many strong hitters as Saugus; Danielle Maricle (.500), Whitney Lowe (.364) and Breanna Javier (.292) have had their moments, but they have just four extra-base hits between them. The league title could come down to the final game between Saugus and Valencia on May 12, but don't count out Hart. The Indians (6-4) usually improve dramatically over the second half of the season, and a difficult nonleague schedule - including a doubleheader against perennial Orange County power Los Alamitos Los Alamitos (lôs ăləmē`təs, lŏs), city (1990 pop. 11,676), Orange co., NE of Long Beach, S Calif., in a suburban area; inc. 1960. Los Alamitos Racetrack and U.S. military installations are nearby. beginning at 11 a.m. Saturday at Newhall Park - could pay dividends in the long run. Caitlin Stiglich, Emily Sudik, Danielle Duhart and Jessica Fridwell are among Hart's top players. Canyon (6-6), led by pitchers Trisha Solis and Nicole Johnson and talented shortstop Dani Thompson, appear stronger than usual under first-year coach Bob Foster, Canyon's fifth coach in five years. But any league victory over a Santa Clarita-area opponent probably would be considered a significant upset. Burbank (3-5) and Burroughs (3-5) don't have enough talent to keep up; their most competitive outings figure to be against one another. Gerry Gittelson, (661) 257-5218 gerry.gittelson(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): 3 photos, 5 boxes Photo: (1) Saugus' Thomas Milone is a two-way threat as a left-handed pitcher/first baseman. He is 3-1 and has a .542 batting average batting average n. Baseball A measure of a batter's performance obtained by dividing the total of base hits by the number of times at bat, not including walks. Noun 1. . Hans Gutknecht/Staff Photographer (2) Tiffany Huff, sliding, is among the top hitters for Saugus' softball team, which is ranked No. 1 in the Daily News coverage area. Gus Ruelas/Staff Photographer (3) Valencia infielder Alyssa Ishibashi fields a grounder. The Vikings have given up only two runs in seven games. David Crane/Staff Photographer Box: (1) LEADING OFF (2) STANDINGS (3) COMING UP (4) BASEBALL: GAME OF THE WEEK (5) SOFTBALL: GAME OF THE WEEK |
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