Baseball: Locals help PCL prevail

Joseph Boo

IRVINE - Break up the Pacific Coast League.

The PCL senior all-star baseball team, which had six players from Tustin

and Santa Margarita High added on for competitive balance, knocked off

the best seniors from the Century League, 4-3, Saturday in the South

County Showcase at Windrow Park.

While the Tillers and Eagles helped out, representatives from Corona del

Mar, Costa Mesa, Estancia, University and Laguna Beach played almost

flawlessly en route to their triumph over the Century League, which was

led by CIF Southern Section Division III champion Villa Park.

“It was good to find out that we’re not as bad as the other guys,” Costa

Mesa catcher Galel Fajardo said.

And it was the PCL kids who ultimately won the game. Uni’s Jairo Ochoa

was the winning pitcher, the Trojans’ Jordan Cumsky got the save, and CdM

scored the PCL’s last two runs.

CdM’s John DiCesare plated the winning run in the seventh. After falling

behind with two quick strikes, DiCesare milked a one-out walk. He later

came home on an error.

“I’m just glad I didn’t strike out on my last at-bat,” DiCesare said.

Fellow Sea King Derek Loe tied the game in the sixth with a clutch RBI

single.

“It was a lot of fun,” Loe said. “There was no pressure. We just went out

and played for fun.”

Estancia’s C.K. Green had a solid all-around game and had a couple of

defensive gems. In the fifth, he snagged a sharp line drive to kill a

run-scoring single.

Green also had the PCL’s lone extra-base hit, a double in the fifth. He

left the game after that and came back to pitch a scoreless eighth

inning.

“It was fun,” he said. “My double was great to have on my last at bat.”

Estancia teammate David Akiva went 1 for 2 with a single. He made

numerous clutch plays at first base. In the eighth, Akiva snared a line

drive to end Century’s bases loaded threat. And he got an unassisted

groundout for the last out of the contest.

Akiva, who participated in the home run derby before the game, got his

only hit through hustle, legging out an infield single in the seventh.

Fellow Eagle Matt Mueller started the game as the designated hitter and

walked in the fifth.

Costa Mesa’s Josh Little started the game in center field. In the fifth,

he snagged a ball that bounced awkwardly away from the left fielder,

keeping Villa Park’s Josh Tuttle at second base. Tuttle reached third but

failed to score.

Fajardo, who hopes to be part of UCI’s resurrected baseball squad in 2002

-- he’ll try out as a walk-on -- came in at catcher in the sixth and

played three solid innings of defense.

“It was fun,” Fajardo said. “I have nothing but good feelings from this

game.”

Unfortunately, CdM’s Alex Swanson, who stole 28 bases in 29 attempts this

year, could not play. He sprained his ankle while playing pickup

basketball.

In the first game, the South Coast League bombed the Sea View League,

17-1. Newport Harbor’s Justin Jacobs collected one of the Sea View

League’s six hits with a single.

The Sailors’ Nick Langsdorf, who was one of two league representatives in

the home run derby, reached on an error by the left fielder.