Photograph by Robert Scheer
This was a familiar scene for Saratoga's Kyle Cardin last week. Cardin, reaching home after homering against Los Gatos earlier this season, ripped three homers last week, but the Falcons could only manage a split.
By Dick Sparrer
Good pitching will beat good hitting every time... at least, that's what most baseball experts will say. So what happens when you get both?
That's easy.
Prospect head coach Frank Marroti found out last week something he already knew--put good pitching and good hitting together, and it's makes winning a lot easier.
The Panthers got good pitching from Dan Baucus and Nick Crawford and good hitting from Brandon Morgan and his Prospect teammates, and the result was a pair of wins in the Santa Teresa Division of the Blossom Valley Athletic League.
Prospect opened the week with a tight 5-4 league win over Overfelt, and the Panthers backed that up with an 11-3 win over Silver Creek.
Baucus went the distance to toss a two-hitter for the Panthers in the win over the Royals. The junior struck out 11 on his way to the win that pushed his season mound record to 3-0.
Morgan provided the big blast of the game, a three-run homer in the fifth. Baucus supported with a triple in the five-hit Prospect attack.
The Panthers fell behind 1-0 in the first, but scored two runs in the third to take a slim 2-1 lead. Prospect upped that lead to 5-1 when Morgan homered in the fifth.
Overfelt chipped away with two in the fifth and one in the seventh, but Baucus and the Panthers hung on to nail down the win.
Prospect improved to 4-1 in league play and 7-3 for the year with the 11-3 win over Silver Creek later in the week.
Crawford went all the way for the Panthers, scattering eight Silver Creek hits.
Prospect trailed 3-1 after three when the Raiders picked up single runs in each of the first three innings. But the Panthers tied it with two in the fourth, then broke the game open with a seven-run rally in the fifth.
Darrell Jacks, Tim Anderson and Mark Johnston ripped two hits each, and Baucus tripled to account for all seven of the Prospect hits in the win.
The Panthers take a break from league play this week, but will host Westmont in a nonleague game on April 3, 3:30 p.m.
The Warriors are coming off of a two-win week in the West Valley Division of the BVAL. Westmont edged Yerba Buena 6-5, then blanked Mt. Pleasant 6-0.
Senior Zack Felder tossed a one-hit shutout to lead the Warriors to the win over the Cardinals. Felder pushed his season record to 2-1 with the victory.
Felder was actually locked in a pitchers' duel through five innings before the Warriors broke open a scoreless game with a six-run rally.
Adam Curtis and Ben Skarbeck belted two hits apiece to lead a seven-hit assault for the Warriors.
Westmont, 5-4 for the year and 4-1 in the division, opened the week with a tight 6-5 win over Yerba Buena.
Curtis ripped a triple, and Skarbeck and P.J. Doherty each doubled to lead the offensive attack for the Warriors. Scott Smith knocked in a pair of runs.
Nate Hanson was the winning pitcher for Westmont, pushing his record to 2-0. Smith came on to pick up his first save of the season.
Cardin leads Falcons
Kyle Cardin powered three home runs and knocked in 10 runs in two games last week, but the Saratoga baseball team could manage just a split in the El Camino Division of the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League.
Cardin homered and singled to knock in three runs in a 6-1 win over Los Altos to open the week. David Goni was the winning pitcher for the Falcons, punching his season mound record to 3-1.
Saratoga took the early lead in the game with single runs in the first and second, then took control of the game with two runs each in the fourth and sixth.
The Falcons lost their bid for a shutout when the Eagles scored a single run in the seventh, but Saratoga had more than enough of a cushion to hold on for the win.
Cardin homered twice, but the Falcons lost to Santa Clara in a slugfest. The Bruins scored three runs in the seventh to break an 11-11 tie and pull out a 14-11 victory.
Cardin drove in seven runs in the win, but it wasn't enough for the Falcons. Trent Frisina and Andre Sorba added two hits apiece, and Mike Black doubled. Nick Blue drove in a couple of runs.
Santa Clara led 3-0 after an inning, but Saratoga unloaded for eight in the second. The Bruins came back with seven in the fourth and added another run in the sixth to lead 11-8, but the Falcons tied it with three in the bottom of the sixth. That just set the stage for Santa Clara's tie-breaking rally in the seventh.
Vikes lose in tourney
Lynbrook lost to Gilroy to face elimination from the Cupertino Host Lion's Tournament last week. The Vikings dropped a 9-3 nod to the Mustangs despite jumping out to an early 2-0 lead.
Junior Jered Schoettmer ripped a homer, and David Peng got a double to lead a five-hit attack for the Vikings.
The Vikings returned to league play this week when they hosted Saratoga on April 1, 3:30 p.m., in the El Camino Division of the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League. Lynbrook will entertain Andrew Hill on April 5, noon, in a nonleague game.
This article appeared in the Saratoga News, April 2, 1997.
©1997 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.