ROUNDUP: HIGHLAND EXPERIENCES ROLE REVERSAL.

Byline: Daily News

Highland High got a taste of its own medicine Thursday.

The Bulldogs of Palmdale, who hadn't allowed a run in the season's first three games, were shut out 4-0 by host Birmingham of Lake Balboa in the Daily News Invitational.

A victory would have had Highland representing the Southern Section in the tournament final.

Instead, Thousand Oaks gets the nod after the Lancers defeated South Gate 7-2 and edged Simi Valley in the runs-allowed tiebreaking system. The Lancers face City Section representative El Camino Real of Woodland Hills on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. at Birmingham.

``One loss is not going to defeat our morale,'' Highland coach Todd Zucker said. ``I never thought we were going to get through the tournament without allowing a run. I told the guys it would happen and to be prepared for it.''

It happened in the first inning, when Birmingham (3-1) set the tone for the game when catcher Luis Parra got a two-out single, stole second and scored on a hit by third baseman Luke Laolagi.

The Patriots went on to steal seven bases, including a perfectly executed delayed double steal in the fifth inning to score Max Limonick.

Birmingham starting pitcher Daniel Yaacobi shut down a Highland team that had outscored opponents 20-0 entering the game. Yaacobi (1-1) recorded just one strikeout but mixed up his pitches well to allow three hits.

Yaacobi helped his cause with two singles, an RBI in the fifth inning, and a stolen base. He was relieved by Efrain Cervantes in the seventh. Cervantes got two quick outs but put runners at second and third before getting out of the jam.

John Chavez allowed two runs in four innings for his first loss of the season. After a first-inning single, Highland didn't get another hit until shortstop Robbie Rico's double in the fifth.

- Matthew Kredell:

--Thousand Oaks 7, South Gate 2: Chad Lundahl had two triples and Mike Flickinger added two doubles for visiting Thousand Oaks in the victory that advances the Lancers (4-0) to the final.

--Quartz Hill 12, Granada Hills 1: Junior pitcher Matt Ware got himself out of a shaky first inning by retiring the next 11 batters he faced in the victory for visiting Quartz Hill (4-0).

--L.A. Baptist 10, Eagle Rock 2: After giving up two first-inning runs, R.J. Johnson settled down, striking out six en route to his first victory of the season for host L.A. Baptist of North Hills (2-1).

--Simi Valley 10, Verdugo Hills 0: Shane Ampe and Chris Gonzales both went 2 for 2 for host Simi Valley (4-0), which totaled 12 hits in a game that was called in the fifth inning because of the mercy rule.

--Harvard-Westlake 13, Taft 0: Josh Satin went 2 for 3 with a home run and two RBI, and Frank Pfister went 3 for 3 with a triple and four RBI in the victory for host Harvard-Westlake of Studio City (3-1).

--La Canada 10, Agoura 0: Max Hibbs pitched a complete game four-hitter with eight strikeouts as host La Canada (3-1) handed Agoura its first loss in four games this season.

--Glendale 12, Poly 1: Zareh Sohbatian went 2 for 3 with three RBI and teammate David Blyth finished 3 for 4 with two stolen bases in the victory for host Glendale (2-2).

--Notre Dame 13, Huntington Park 2: Nate Cordray hit a three-run home run in the third inning and then hit a two-run blast in the fifth, finishing with five RBI for host Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks (3-1) in the mercy-rule victory.

--Cleveland 4, Malibu 1: Cleveland of Reseda scored four runs in the top of the seventh to remain undefeated in each of its four games in the tournament.

--Westlake 8, Marshall 0: Garrett Cumeo pitched a complete-game four-hitter and Luke Salas went 4 for 4 with a triple and an RBI for host Westlake (3-1), which also got a home run from Cody Cipriano.

--Roosevelt 10, Burbank 4: Roosevelt of Los Angeles (2-2) pounded out 17 hits against Burbank (2-2), which struggled at the plate, managing just one hit in the loss at home.

--Alemany 15, Wilson 3: Raymond Ravago hit his fourth home run of the season and Andres Fernandez added two triples and four RBI for visiting Alemany of Mission Hills (3-1).

--Kennedy 3, Palmdale 2: Junior left-hander Richard Mestas (2-0) struck out seven in five innings of one-hit work for Kennedy of Granada Hills (3-1).

--Calabasas 10, Monroe 0: Drew Saberhagen and John Henry Jacobs hit back-to-back home runs in fifth inning for host Calabasas (3-1) in the mercy-rule victory.

--Lancaster 8, Reseda 4: Justin Keeney went 2 for 4, including a solo home run, for visiting Lancaster (1-3).