By DICK SPARRER
The Sunnyvale Astros had hopes of evening their Joe Di Maggio League record at 5-5.
And when starter Nick Duran took a no-hitter and a 1-0 lead into the fourth, it appeared as though the Astros just might do it.
But that's when things began to fall apart.
Costly errors left the Astros with a 6-1 loss to Mountain View, and they slipped to 4-6 in league play with the defeat.
Duran had doubled home a run to give the Astros the 1-0 lead, and the former Fremont High star was cruising along with a no-hitter through three frames.
Mountain View touched Duran for a couple of runs to take a 2-1 lead before Tony Plant came on in relief. Plant gave up a double that put runners on second and third, but he induced ground balls from the next two hitters, only to see both balls thrown away at first. Mountain View went on to score four runs in the inning to nail down the victory.
It was a much different story a few days earlier. Alex Turlea cracked a run-scoring single in the sixth to give the Astros an 8-7 lead against South San Francisco, and Plant came on in relief of Mike Elias to pick up the save.
Plant came on with a pair of runners aboard, but struck out the last two hitters to nail down the victory.
The Astros gave up three runs early, but a single by Brett Erickson and a two-run double by Turlea put Sunnyvale on top 4-3 in the third.
Kayzell Milton and Erickson each singled home runs and Turlea knocked one home with a sacrifice fly to add to Sunnyvale's lead, but South San Francisco tied it 7-7.
Art Alegria doubled in the sixth and raced home on Turlea's single to put the Astros back on top 8-7.
Turlea had two hits to drive in four runs in the win and Erickson had two hits and a pair of runs-batted-in. Milton and Lamar Harvey added two hits apiece and Milton and Alegria each drove in runs.
Duran and Turlea combined to toss a four-hitter to lead the Astros to a win over San Carlos.
Harvey singled and tripled and Turlea doubled twice to lead the bat attack for the Astros. Luke Donigian added a run-scoring single in a four-run second.
Erickson currently leads the club with a .447 batting average. Kayzell Milton is hitting .410, Alegria .400, Duran .368 and Harvey .326.
This article appeared in the Sunnyvale Sun, July 3, 1996.
©1996 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.