Arizona isn’t just for Cactus League baseball in March as San Marcos High and Santa Barbara proved last week when they played in separate tournaments in the Grand Canyon State.
The Royals captured the Chris Moon Memorial Tournament in Tucson while the Dons went 2-1-1 at a tourney in Phoenix.
“I grew up in Tucson and we’ve played in the Chris Moon Memorial for the last five years,” said San Marcos coach Jacob Pepper during Monday’s press luncheon of the Santa Barbara Athletic Round Table at Harry’s Plaza Café. “We were able to win the championship after starting 1-2. We won three straight games and beat a pretty good Tucson High team in the final.
“Getting on the road and traveling with the kids is always fun. We did some hiking in the desert and luckily I was the only one to sustain an injury, splitting my lip as I tried to climb a rock wall. It’s really a good time to see other teams from other states and how they play and what we can learn from them.”
Pepper on Jack Winterbauer: “Jack’s a three-year varsity player who plays shortstop, third base and pitcher. He came up huge in Tucson, going 4-4 in the semifinals and was a triple short of the cycle. He closed the championship game and he made a lot of things happen. He hit about .450 for the week.”
On Erik Larson: “We came up with new name for him this past week, he’s called ‘Sniper’ now. His range in the outfield is amazing, we really don’t need a left or right fielder sometimes. The ball flies in the desert but his speed is so unbelievable. He’s also a three-year varsity guy who’s worked hard to become a great hitter.”
Santa Barbara Baseball
“We played some real good competition,” said Dons coach Steve Schuck. “It was very good for our team bonding and we grew a lot as a team.”
Schuck on Cody Orud: “He’s a senior and he’s been nothing but a workhorse in practice. Finally, 2½ weeks ago, he worked himself into the pitching rotation. Since then, he’s got an ERA of 2.62 in four appearances and has allowed just three runs on three hits with no walks. It’s a testament to his will, his passion and his grit. He never gave up and now he’s getting the ball once a week.”
On Derek True, the Athlete of the Week for March 18-24: “He had a great game against the No. 4 team from Colorado. He threw five innings with 10 Ks, one walk and one hit. He completely shut down a heavy hitting team. On the season, he’s 5-0 with 45 strikeouts and 15 walks. Offensively, he’s our No. 3 hitter and leads the team in home runs and RBIs, is tied for the lead in doubles and triples and tied for third in stolen bases. He’s a big part of our program and I’m blessed to have him.”
The Dons will play non-league games vs. St. Bonaventure and Buena this week.
Bishop Diego Baseball
The Cardinals are 9-3-1 overall and 0-2-1 in league after two close setbacks and a 9-inning tie that featured three squeeze bunts. “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen three squeeze bunts in a season, much less one game,” said coach Nick Katzenstein.
On junior Daniel Giannini: “As a small school, we rely on our athletes to do multiple things. Daniel has played first base, shortstop, left field and pitcher.”
On junior Jackson Haskell: “He’s our starting center fielder and he’s also our closer. We went to him in our 3-3 tie with Foothill Tech. Closers normally pitch about 1 inning and he pitched 4.1 vs. Foothill Tech. He’s also our backup catcher.”
Carpinteria Baseball
Coach Pat Cooney’s team has been streaky of late, winning five in a row, losing three straight and then beating Cabrillo 3-2 on Saturday.
“Seven of our 11 games have been 1-run games,” Cooney noted. “That’s great for fans, nerve-wracking for the coach but the kids aren’t too stressed out about it.”
Cooney on junior catcher Diego Hernandez: “He’s also our backup shortstop. He’s small in stature but he’s a huge player for our team.”
On Jacob Macias: “Jacob is the starting shortstop and the backup catcher. He’s one of the most competitive people on campus. He’s very athletic and you might see some interesting moves from him.”
The Warriors will play a two-game series with Citrus Coast leader Malibu, on the road on Wednesday and home on Friday.
UCSB Baseball
Emily Holland is in her first year as UCSB’s Director of Operations. She reported that the Gauchos took two of three at Fullerton for their first series win over the Titans in 12 years.
Catcher Eric Yang hit .500 in the Fullerton series (7-14) and was named Big West Field Player of the Week. He leads the Big West with a .422 average and is second in RBIs with 25. Michael McGreevy, a true freshman, pitched 10 innings in the last week and had a 2.71 ERA.
The Gauchos are 19-5 and ranked 17th in the country. They’re also in the top 10 nationally in RPI.
They’ll host USC on Tuesday at 3 p.m. and then welcome Stephen F. Austin to Ceasar Uyesaka Stadium for a three-game series this weekend.
Westmont Baseball
Sports information director Ron Smith noted that the Warriors got off to a fantastic start – 22-5 and ranked No. 3 in the NAIA. Recently, the Warriors have been hit with a slew of injuries to two starting players and three pitchers. They lost their first baseman and a starting pitcher for the season.
“We’re struggling to figure out how to fill all those positions and advance in our conference,” said Smith.
The Warriors lost three of four games at Hope International over the weekend and fell into a tie for fifth in the GSAC. Head coach Robert Ruiz picked up his 281st win to tie John Kirkgard for the most wins in school history.
San Marcos Softball
Coach Jeff Swann’s club was playing rival Dos Pueblos on March 20 in a rain makeup. With the score tied 1-1 in the top of the third, the rain returned in force with an intense 30-minute downpour that caused a postponement.
“It must have rained a quarter of an inch in 10 minutes and the field was a lake,” said Swann, who brought two players with him.
Swann on Allie Fryklund: “She’s our sophomore pitcher who carries the load for us. She’s our No. 3 hitter who hits a ton and the ball flies off her bat. In practice, half her balls fly over the fence.”
On freshman Isabella Velasquez: She’s the future of our team. She’s worked hard on her swing and has a great whip with her bat. She’s also an excellent thrower from the outfield. I’m really impressed with her growth.”
Carpinteria Softball
The Warriors are 3-6 overall and 1-2 in league.
Coach Dakotah Wilcox on 3-year varsity player Rebecca Bray: “I coached her at JV level when she was a freshman. She’s our starting third baseman and she bats leadoff.”
On freshman Maddie Mora: “She’s a utility player who starts at second base. She can also pitch, play in the outfield or anywhere we need her. She has great energy and a great personality. These two together are a real riot.”
Carpinteria will play Malibu, Santa Paula and Santa Clara this week.
Bishop Diego Softball
The Cardinals only have six players with varsity experience. Coach Dakotah Wilcox says they’re moving in the right direction and for the first time this year, she’ll have all six experienced players on the field at the same time.
Wilcox on Sydney Naour: “She’s a junior and her nickname is ‘Coach Syd.’ She had a concussion at the start of the year and on her first day back, she sprained her ankle. She’s played in four games now and she’s our true captain. She loves to teach and she has great patience.”
On Amy Mancinelli: “She’s a freshman who’s played a lot of positions – shortstop, first, third, right field and she’s pitching now with her first start against Malibu last week. She hasn’t pitched since she was in 10-U ball and for her to get on the mound and start as a freshman is impressive. Her confidence is really growing.”
San Marcos Girls Swimming
Assistant coach Makenzy Fowler brought three Royals.
On Emma Engmyr: “She’s one of our distance swimmers, swimming the 200 free, 500 free and both relays. She’s been improving quite a lot and does a great job in the relays.”
On Megan Musick: “She’s a sprinter and she swims the 50 and 100 free as well as the relays.”
On Chloe Van Bogelen: “She’s a senior who works hard in the water and in the classroom. She’s been looking at two colleges, Gordon (of Massachusetts) and Westmont. We’re excited about her future.”
Fowler said the Royals had a great showing in the boys and girls meets against Santa Barbara. They’ll swim against Cabrillo and Foothill this week.
Santa Barbara Boys & Girls Swimming
Mark Walsh said his teams had a lot of best times in their meet at San Marcos. He brought four of his younger swimmers to the luncheon.
On Ryan Drake: “He was one of our star water polo players as a freshman and had a couple of big game-winning shots. He’s a fast swimmer but he’s not a year-round swimmer and he’s already passing some of the guys in his events, the butterfly and backstroke. He’s probably good enough to make the league finals in 4 or 5 events.”
On Sean O’Brien: “He’s uber-fast and he’s got quickness. We put him in the 200 IM because he’s versatile and he had one of our best times of the year.”
On Ana Martinez do Amaral: “Juju was one of our main water polo players and she’s a dedicated athlete. She’s been one of our main swimmers in the 50, 100 and 200. And she’s only a sophomore.”
On Dela Bucy: “She played summer water polo with us two years ago, then her parents decided to do a gap year. Then they decided to go to Midland School. We hadn’t seen her in two years and then someone said she’s back in school. She would have started for us as a freshman but now her shoulders were really bad and she could hardly throw a ball. At the end of water polo, I checked in with her and she was feeling better. She joined our roster for the playoffs and now she’s our top breaststroker and sprint freestyler. It’s great to have her back in the program.”
Cate Track & Field
Coach Kyle Mason reported that Cate opened its season last Tuesday at Carpinteria. The Rams are part of the new TCAA league that includes Carpinteria, Villanova, Foothill Tech and Thacher.
“We were excited to sweep the relays, both on varsity and frosh-soph,” said Mason. “That meet went a bit late, until 9:30 or 10 p.m., and we had to leave early.”
Santa Barbara High Lacrosse
Coach Andrew White says they’re about halfway through the season.
“It’s been a humbling first part of the season,” he stated. “We had a few games cancelled by rain and a couple of tough losses in overtime. As a result, our players have turned toward each other and gone inward. We’ve had our leaders step up and round the team up. Then we got a big win at Calabasas before Spring Break.”
The Dons will start league play on Tuesday when they host Cate School. They’ll play at Thacher on Thursday.
Hop Studios
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