Rose Garden Resident
Sports
Rain can't keep Bells from beating Piedmont Hills
By Dick Sparrer
It was a day not fit for man nor beast. But it was a perfect day for baseball!
At least, that's the way Bellarmine baseball coach Gary Cunningham sized things up on Monday afternoon. While the rest of the teams in the Santa Clara Valley ran for cover, Bellarmine opened play in the Brother Wally Ryan Tournament with an impressive 8-0 win over Piedmont Hills.
Senior right-hander Dan Ruder picked up the mound win in a game in which Bells held the Pirates to no runs on just a single hit.
Senior outfielder Mark Canha provided Ruder with all the support he needed in the game. Canha ripped a pair of home runs to drive in four runs for Bellarmine.
Senior first sacker Eric Johnson singled and homered in the win, and senior Erik Goeddel cracked a home run.
Bellarmine improved to 3-1 in the young season with the win. The Bells are 2-1 in the Los Gatos Lions Club Tournament that winds up this week. Tournament semifinals are March 1 with the finals on March 3--noon championship game, 3 p.m. consolation final. All remaining games will be played at Los Gatos.
The Bells suffered a tough 1-0 loss to Los Gatos in the first game of the season before battling back to beat Fremont 12-2 and Capuchino 12-1 in a couple of six-inning games.
Ruder was tough in the opener against the Wildcats. The 6-foot-5 hurler went four shutout innings, throwing just 66 pitches as he struck out eight and gave up just two hits and an intentional walk. Ruder struck out the side in the first and fanned two each in the second and fourth.
Los Gatos ace Kyle Blair threw four no-hit shutout innings, walking one and hitting a pair.
The two star right-handers retired after four frames, giving way to Bellarmine junior Michael Couch and Gatos sophomore Kevin Corey. Gatos scored a single run in the sixth to clinch the win.
Bellarmine had just two hits in the game.
The Bells came back a day later to blast 12 hits in a 12-1 win over Capuchino. Senior Kevin Connolly doubled twice and singled to knock in two runs in the win, and Canha, Goeddel, Hatfield, junior Chris Lee and senior Chris Arce each homered.
Junior right-hander Andy Hennessey was the winning pitcher.
Junior Patrick James clubbed two homers, and senior catcher Kyle Felix singled and doubled and scored three runs to lead Bellarmine to a 12-2 win over Fremont. Junior right-hander Aaron Vargas was the winning pitcher.
