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Vega leads Del Mar past Mustangs
Warriors beat Rams in league opener
By Dick Sparrer
The baseball season opened in the Santa Teresa Division of the Blossom Valley Athletic League under dark and dreary skies last Wednesday afternoon.
But the day couldn't have been brighter as far as the Del Mar Dons were concerned--they opened the league campaign with an impressive 5-3 win over Pioneer.
The Dons battled back from a 3-2 deficit with single runs in the fourth, fifth and seventh to claim the season-opening win over the Mustangs. And for a day, at least, the Dons found themselves in first place in the Santa Teresa Division.
That was short-lived, however. Del Mar lost a lopsided 10-0 decision to Piedmont Hills on Friday to slip to 1-1 in league play and to 3-5 for the year. Still, the loss could do little to diminish Del Mar's hot start against the Mustangs.
Sophomore outfielder Robert Martinez ripped a pair of singles and Nick Vega and Mark Steeves each doubled to lead an eight-hit attack for the Dons.
Vega, a junior, tossed five strong innings to get the pitching win and senior Seth Williams went the sixth and seventh to pick up the save.
The Dons were down 3-2 after two innings, but tied it with a run in the fourth. Steeves ripped a two-out double and scored when Patrick Myers reached on an error.
Del Mar broke the tie with another unearned run in the fifth. Matt Dompe reached on an error and raced all the way around to score on Vega's double.
The Dons added an insurance run in the seventh. Pinch hitter Eric Martin singled, stole second and came all the way around to score on a wild pitch.
Vega and his teammates jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first. Martinez opened the game with a single, took second on an error and stole third. Dompe singled home Martinez with the game's first run, but was forced to second by Vega.
Vega stole second, then, an out later, scored on a single by Williams.
Pioneer went down quietly in the first, but unloaded for three runs in the second to take the 3-2 lead. That just set the stage for Del Mar's comeback effort.
There wasn't much for Del Mar fans to cheer about on Friday when the Dons were held hitless in a five-inning 10-0 loss to Piedmont Hills.
Still, Del Mar coach Eric Buran is optimistic about his club's chances this spring.
"The Dons have been in a rebuilding process and the players have made a full- time commitment to improve as individuals and as a team," said Buran. "We hope to be very competitive this year."
Buran picks Mt. Pleasant as the title favorite in the division this season and ranks his Dons for a third-place finish.
The Dons, who lost an 8-0 non-league decision to Bellarmine last Thursday, are led by returning seniors Williams, Vega and Shaun Amelia and comeback juniors Steeves and Matt Barrera this year. Sophomores Martinez and Mike Stary are top prospects up from the frosh-soph.
Warriors win two
Westmont won a pair of games last week to push its record to 4-3 in the young season.
The second win, a 14-8 victory over Willow Glen, came in the first game of the season in the Mt. Hamilton Division of the Blossom Valley Athletic League. It was a good start to what head coach Jason Van Benthuysen hopes will be a great season.
The Warriors finished third in the Mt. Hamilton race last spring, but Benthuysen picks his club as the title favorite in the division this season. Westmont last won a league title in 1997 in the Santa Teresa Division.
Seniors Reed Dickert, Mike Haynes and Ben Peterson and juniors Mike Gorski and Josh Herzbrun are top returners for the Westmont club this season.
The coach sees juniors Scott Stouffer and Mike Sato and sophomore Brandon Simon as top prospects coming up to the varsity from the frosh-soph squad.
Westmont pounded out 15 hits in the league opener against Willow Glen last Friday afternoon on the WG diamond.
Haynes had a big day for the Warriors with two homers and a double to drive in three runs in the win.
Dickert doubled twice and singled to plate three runs for the Warriors. He was also the club's winning pitcher, evening his season mark at 1-1.
Gorski doubled and singled twice to finish the day with three hits. He also knocked in two runs.
Junior Jimmy Stevenson doubled in the win.
Westmont scored four runs in the first and went on to build up a 8-1 lead before the Rams battled back for five runs in the fifth to make it close at 8-6. The Warriors responded, though, with six in the sixth to take a commanding lead.
Earlier in the week, Haynes went the distance to toss a five-hitter in Westmont's 3-2 win over Fremont. The big right-hander struck out five in the win, and his double was the only hit of the day for the Warriors.
Panthers fall
Prospect could manage just two hits in a 4-2 loss to Pioneer last Friday in Santa Teresa Division play.
A fourth-inning single by J.D. Mazzuca and a sixth-inning double by Ted Piggins were the only safeties for the Panthers, who found themselves trailing 4-0 after three innings.
Still, Prospect managed to make a game of it with a couple of runs late in the game.
Kevin McPeck single-handedly got the Panthers on the scoreboard in the fifth inning. The senior center fielder struck out for what appeared the third out of the frame. But when the pitch rolled to the backstop, McPeck took off and reached first safely.
McPeck stole both second and third, then surprised the Mustangs by stealing home for Prospect's first run.
Mazzuca walked to with one out the sixth and raced all the way around to score when Piggins ripped a shot to right field that took a high hop over the right fielder's head. That brought the tying run to the plate, but the Panthers left Piggins stranded, then went down one-two-three in the seventh.
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Campbell, California
