By DICK SPARRER
Chuck Camuso isn't mincing any words this spring.
The veteran coach thinks his Homestead baseball team can win the title in the El Camino Division of the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League, and he's saying so.
Camuso figures that his Mustangs and Saratoga should battle it out for the division crown, and when asked to predict his club's finish in the 1996 season, his answer was very clear: "First".
"Experience should be a key factor," Camuso said, indicating that 11 lettermen return from a solid '95 Homestead club.
"We have good team speed and hitting," he said. "And we have a good group of pitchers. They've looked good, but thus far have been untested."
Five all-leaguers top the list of returners at Homestead this spring.
Outfielder Bret Erickson, catcher Matt Hall, shortstop Gabe Interiano, third baseman Sal Kirmes and first sacker Mitch Ignaitis are senior lettermen who earned all-league honors for the Homestead club that posted a 10-8 record in the division last season.
Junior pitcher Ben Amiwero and freshman pitcher Jerell Taylor are a couple of talented transfers on the diamond for the Mustangs. Junior pitcher Tony Plant and sophomore outfielder Kayzell Milton are top prospects up from the frosh-soph.
The Mustangs are off to a solid start in the young season. Home-stead blasted Los Altos 10-2 last week to jump to 3-0 in El Camino Division play, but dropped a tough 5-4 nod to Los Gatos in nonleague action to slip to 4-2 for the year.
Amiwero went the distance, fanning 10 along the way, to lead the Mustangs to a win over the Eagles.
Homestead led 4-0 after two innings and 5-1 after four before exploding for five runs in the fifth to put the game on ice.
Ignaitis ripped three hits and Interiano singled and doubled to lead a 10-hit Mustang attack.
Hall doubled home a pair of runs for the winners and Amiwero and Milton each doubled.
Plant was tagged the loss in the tough one-run loss to Los Gatos to wrap up the week.
Homestead trailed 3-0 heading into the fifth, but picked up a run in the frame and rallied for three in the sixth to lead 4-3. But Gatos rallied for two in the home half of the sixth to pull out the tight win.
Homestead had opened the league season with a 14-6 win over Gunn, then beat Saratoga 8-1 in a key game.
The Mustangs erupted for seven runs in the first inning and never looked back on the road to the win over the Falcons.
Junior righthander Mike Elias picked up the mound win for Homestead and Plant came on to get the save.
Mike Jones singled and doubled for the Mustangs and Erickson had two hits. Steve Goldberg drove in a pair of runs.
Amiwero doubled twice and singled to knock in four runs for Homestead in the 14-6 win over Gunn. The junior was also the winning pitcher.
Milton singled and doubled and Taylor and Erickson each had two hits. Erickson, Ignaitis and Milton knocked in two runs each.
Indians fall
The Fremont baseball team slipped to 1-2 in the El Camino Division after two shutouts last week.
The Indians slapped just three hits in a 9-0 loss to Wilcox, then had just three more hits in a 7-0 loss to Monta Vista. Andrew Hoff tripled and Danny Cerda doubled for Fremont in the loss to the Matadors.
The two losses came after Fremont had opened the league season with a 4-1 win over Santa Clara in 11 innings.
Senior hurler Brent McCann was the winning pitcher, running his mound record to 2-0 this season, and junior Nick Duran came on to get the save.
Tom Jimenez drove in three runs for Fremont and Hoff and McCann each slapped two-baggers.
It was Jimenez who sparked the win with his 11th inning runs-batted-in. Santa Clara had jumped in front with a run in the third, but Fremont tied it in the sixth. It remained 1-1 until the 11th when Jimenez keyed a three-run rally to help the Indians win.
This article appeared in the Sunnyvale Sun, March 20, 1996.
©1996 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.