Photograph by Chad Pilster
Saratoga's Erick Raich (7) tries to slide around the tag of Wilcox infielder Daniel Romero. Raich was out on this play, though, and the Falcons lost 5-2 to the Chargers.
Panthers win five straight
Two tough losses for Saratoga baseball
By Dick Sparrer
It's just about one down and two to go for the baseball team at Prospect.
The Panthers close out the first round of the league season in the Santa Teresa Division of the Blossom Valley Athletic League, and win or lose on Monday, Prospect will hold onto first place in the circuit heading into second-round play.
Prospect improved to 5-0 in the division and to 6-3 for the year with a lopsided 9-0 win over Piedmont Hills last week.
Nick Vidal was the star of the day for the Panthers. Not only did he pick up the mound win in the two-hit shutout, but he also led a 13-hit offensive assault with a couple of doubles and a single to drive in three runs for Prospect.
Curtis Wills had two doubles for the Panthers in the win. Craig Yamada had two hits to knock in three runs and Mark Bonvecchio also had two hits.
The Panthers jumped out to an early lead against the Pirates with five runs in the first inning. That was more than enough for Vidal, who went on to claim the mound win, evening his season record at 2-2.
Prospect added an insurance run in the fourth and locked up the win with three in the sixth.
Prospect will open play in the second round of the Santa Teresa Division season on March 29 when the Panthers visit Pioneer at 3:30 p.m.
Warriors lose two
Chris Houston and Tony LaVista locked up in a pitchers' duel last week, and it was Houston coming out on top to lead Valley Christian to a 2-1 win over Westmont.
Houston tossed a four-hitter, allowing just a single run in the fifth, to lead Valley to the victory. The Warriors are now 2-0 in the Mount Hamilton Division of the BVAL and 11-3 for the year. Houston boasts a 3-1 mound record.
LaVista matched Houston's four-hitter, but the Westmont right hander was touched for two runs in the fifth in the loss. His season record slipped to 4-2.
Westmont dropped to 0-3 in division play and to 5-7-1 for the year when the Warriors lost 6-1 to Oak Grove later in the week.
Ben Peterson doubled and singled twice in the game for Westmont. Colin McAvoy had two hits and LaVista roped a double.
It was another heartbreaking loss for the Warriors. They led 1-0 after an inning before the Eagles tied it with a run in the third and took the lead with another run in the fourth. Oak Grove broke the game open with four runs in the seventh.
Falcons fall
The Saratoga baseball team took on a pair of tough opponents last week and, while the Falcons played them both tough, they lost both decisions.
Saratoga dropped a 12-7 nonleague decision to Bellarmine to open the week, then the Falcons lost 5-2 to Wilcox in the De Anza Division of the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League.
The Falcons slipped to 4-5-3 for the year with the two losses, and dropped to 3-1 in league play with the loss to the Chargers. Wilcox tops the De Anza Division at 5-1.
Saratoga outhit Wilcox 8-7, but the Falcons could not overcome a first-inning grand slam by the Chargers in Friday's league clash. Mike Cook doubled and singled twice to lead the eight-hit attack for the Falcons, and Brian Stirm had two hits.
Senior right-hander Jason Worden was tagged with the tough pitching loss.
Erick Raich blasted a three-run homer in the fourth and Stirm had two hits, but the Falcons lost a nonleague decision to Bellarmine on Tuesday. Adam Varteressian knocked in two runs for Saratoga in the game.
The Bells took control of the game early with a 10-run rally in the second, then added single runs in the third and fourth.
Saratoga chipped away with three in the top of the fourth, two in the fifth and two in the seventh, but came up five runs short.
Saratoga faces three games this week. The Falcons were to open up Monday at Wilcox and will visit Cupertino on March 29 and host Monta Vista on March 31 in a couple of 3:30 p.m. games.
Vikings lose
Lynbrook lost its only game last week, falling 13-2 to Los Altos in El Camino Division play.
Justin Flood had two hits in the game for the Vikings and Matt Fratus and Eric Barnes each doubled.
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